Ayres's Description of a New Genus of Fishes. 55 
upward and forward, one inch and eight-tenths, reaching 
within about one-tenth of an inch of the nape of the neck, 
and within six-tenths of an inch of the anterior extremity of 
the head, so that the bones of the cranium are, of course, 
reduced within this length of about half an inch. 
The gape of the mouth is monstrous, the distance from the 
tip of the lower jaw to its articulation being two inches and 
one-tenth. The lower jaw, which is slender and nearly 
straight, is provided with very large, sharp teeth, slightly 
curved backward, separate and distinct, five or six on each 
side. The largest of these are three-tenths of an inch in 
height. These larger teeth occupy the anterior half of the 
jaw, while intermingled with them, and also posterior to them 
are other similar teeth, but much smaller. In the upper jaw 
we find no large teeth, like those of. the lower. "There is a 
single row extending about half the length of the jaw, small, 
sharp, separate, and slightly curved backward, three or four 
of the anterior ones being rather larger than the others; exte- 
rior to this row we find traces of another. "There are no 
teeth on the palatines, the vomer, or the branchial arches. 
The tongue has two rows; they are sharp, curved backward, 
and somewhat larger than those of the upper jaw. "The 
superior pharyngeals have also teeth which are similar in size 
to those of the tongue. These pharyngeal clusters are oval, 
about three-eighths of an inch in length, and contain each 
from twelve to fifteen teeth. 
On the cheek, immediately above the maxillary bone, and 
about half an inch behind the eye, is a feature which is quite 
singular. [t is an ovoid body, one-sixth of an inch in length, 
of a dead white, entirely similar to the lens of the eye as 
changed by the alcohol. What was its appearance during life - 
we do not know. It is, from the contraction caused by the 
aleohol, brought more into view than would probably be the 
case in its natural state. The similarity of the whole to an eye 
is very striking. As to the nature or the use of this peculiar 
organ, analogy could afford us but little instruction, for there 
