* 
Fishes of Massachusetts. B57 | 
small portion is three inches high, and one lang. 
Fin, color of the abdomen. 
At the base of the tail, a transverse furrow three 
inches long and two thirds of an inch wide. On 
each side of the base of the tail, a lateral carina 
three inches high, eight inches long, three inches 
back of the dorsal, extending three inches on the 
caudal fin. 
The Caudal fin deeply pikad: twenty-nine inches 
high, eight inches long, six inches high in its mid- 
dle. rat 
The fin rays are as follows: D. 18-3; P. 15; A. 
11-3; C. 17. 
The common size of this fish is from 12 to 15 feet 
in length, and weighing from 300 to 400 pounds, 
although it sometimes is taken considerably larger. 
Although a species of “Xiphias” has been known 
for many years to frequent our coast, I am not aware 
that it has been examined by any of our scientific 
men, save by my friend John B. S. Jackson, M. D. 
of this city, who kindly loaned me his rough notes 
of a specimen exhibited here in 1833. From these 
- notes it appears, that the “specimen was taken by 
codfishers, from a small dory, about twenty miles 
from Boston, not far from Marshfield, and near the 
Western Banks. It was drawn up with much diffi- 
eulty with eod hook and line, and then speared. 
Whole length, 11 feet 4 inches. Length of sword, 
4 feet. Weight, 650 pounds." 
In looking over the plates of this fish, one is sur- 
prised at the great dissimilarities between them; 
and could he think that each plate had been drawn 
