344 NATURAL HISTORY OF THE BERMUDAS. 



February 17th, 1849. — The schooner " Earl Dundonald," 

 on a recent voyage from Demerara to Bermuda, was found 

 suddenly to leak in the locker abaft the cabin. On ex- 

 amination it was discovered that a Sword-fish {Xiphias 

 gladius) had penetrated the port quarter of the vessel with 

 its horn, which had passed through the copper sheathing, 

 an outer planking of pitch-pine an inch and three-quarters 

 thick, the centre of a cedar timber five inches thick, and, 

 lastly, through the ceiling of pitch-pine, one and a half 

 inches in thickness, breaking off at the base with the con- 

 cussion. This is supposed to have taken place on the 

 Demerara coast. 



Went on board, with several gentlemen, to examine this 

 natural curiosity, and found the horn of the fish firmly 

 wedged in the inner lining of the ship, and projecting 

 exactly ten inches beyond the woodwork. It was very 

 nearly at a right angle with the keel, pointing slightly up- 

 wards, and was split from its base to within about four 

 inches of the projecting point, so as to resemble, in some 

 measure, an upper and lower mandible. The extreme end 

 was rounded and blunt like the end of a person's finger, 

 the horn increasing in thickness towards its base. The 

 surface of one side of this horn was rough and rasp-like 

 when grasped by the hand, the other parts smooth. In 

 colour it appeared dark brown. 



Allowing six inches for the space between the outside 

 plank and the inner lining, and one inch only for the thick- 

 ness of the outer planking, in which this horn is bedded, the 

 entire length of this curious weapon must be seventeen 

 inches. Captain Drummond, of the 42nd Highlanders, 

 who was present, described the horn as different in shape to 

 that of the Sword-fish of the Mediterranean, and probably 

 belonging to some species of Sword-fish common to the 

 coast of America. 



