Gobioidei, Discocephali, and Teniosomi 687 
The Dealfishes: Trachypteride.— The family of Trachypteride 
comprises the dealfishes, creatures of fantastic form and silvery 
coloration, smaller than the oarfishes and more common, but of 
similar habit. 
Just as in Norway the fantastic oarfish was believed to be 
the king of the herrings and cherished as such, so among the 
Indians of Puget Sound another freak fish is held sacred as the 
king of the salmon. The people about Cape Flattery believe 
that if one does any harm to this fish the salmon will at once 
leave the shores. This fable led the naturalists who first discov- 
ered this fish to give it its name of Trachypterus rex-salmonorum. 
In Europe a similar species (Trachypterus atlanticus) has 
long been known by the name of dealfish, or vogmar, neither 
of these names having any evident propriety. 
The dealfish is one of the most singular of all the strange 
creatures of the sea. It reaches a length of three or four feet. 
Its body is thin as a knife and would be transparent were it 
not covered over with a shining white pigment which gives to 
the animal the luster of burnished silver. On this white surface 
is a large black blotch or two, but no other colors. The head 
is something like that of the oarfish, to which animal the deal- 
fish bears a close relationship. Both have small teeth and 
neither could bite if it would, and neither wants to, for they 
are creatures of the most inoffensive sort. On the head of the 
dealfish, where the oarfish has its mane, is a long, streamer-like 
fin. At the end of the tail, instead of the ordinary caudal fin, 
is a long, slim fin which projects directly upwards at right 
angles to the direction of the back-bone. No other fish shows 
this strange peculiarity. 
The dealfish swims in the open sea close to the surface of 
the water. It does not often come near shore, but it is occa- 
sionally blown on the beach by storms. Trachypterus rex- 
salmonorum has been recorded two or three times from Puget 
Sound and twice from California. The finest specimen known, 
the one from which our figure is taken, was secured off the Faral- 
lones in 1895 by a fisherman named W. C. Knox, and by him 
sent to Stanford University. The specimen is perfect in all its 
parts, a condition rare with these fragile creatures, and its 
picture gives a good idea of the mysterious king of the salmon. 
