FISHES. 205 



further to the eastward much larger ones arc found, weighing from three to eight 

 hundred pounds gross, and of a blackish color. They come and leave in a general 

 school ; not in close schools like other fish, but distributed over the surface of the 

 water, the whole being called by the fishermen the annual school, though it cannot 

 strictly be so named. Indeed, according to Professor Goode, it is the universal testi- 

 mony of our fishermen that two are never seen swimming close together, and CajDtain 

 Ashby maintains that they are always distant from each other at least thirty or forty 

 feet. The sword-fish appears to spawn at quite a distance from the coast. The eggs 

 float to the surface and then quickly mature. The young are very different from the 

 old, and indeed would not be recognized by an inexperienced observer, and would 

 even be referred to a very distinct group of the class. According to Mr. Goode, 

 little is known about the rate of growth. Young fish in the Mediterranean, rang- 

 ing in weight from half a pound to twelve pounds, are thought to have been hatched 

 during the previous summer ; those of a larger size, ranging from twenty-four to sixty 

 pounds, taken on the New England coast in the summer, are perhaps the young of the 

 previous year. " Beyond this, even conjecture is fruitless. As in other species, the 

 rate of growth depends directly upon the quantity of food consumed." 



The sword-fish is rather indiscriminate in its food, and almost all fish it comes 

 across are meat for it. It feeds on " menhaden, mackerel, bonitos, blue-fish, and other 

 species which swim in close schools." It is said to " rise beneath the school of small 

 fish, striking to the right and left " with the sword until a number have been killed, 

 which it then proceeds to devour. " Menhaden have been seen floating at the surface, 

 which have been cut nearly in twain by a blow of the sword." It is also recorded 

 that fish have been thrown out into the air and caught on the fall by it. Capt. Ashby 

 has asserted that he has seen a school of herring congregated together " at the surface, 

 on George's Bank as closely as they could be packed," and " a sword-fish came up and 

 through the dense mass, and fell flat over on its side, striking among the fish with the 

 sides of its sword." He has at one time picked up " as much as a barrel of herrings 

 thus killed by the sword-fish on George's Bank." 



The flesh of the sword-fish is somewhat oily, but nevertheless a very acceptable 

 article of food. According to Professor Goode, "its texture is coarse; the thick, 

 fleshy, muscular layers cause it to resemble that of the halibut for consistency. Its 

 flavor is by many considered fine, and is not unlike that of blue-fish. Its color is gray. 

 The meat of the young fish is highly prized on the Mediterranean, and is said to be 

 perfectly white, compact, and of delicate flavor. Sword-fish are usually cut up into 

 steaks, thick slices across the body, and may be boiled oi- broiled. Considerable quan- 

 tities of sword-fish are annually salted in barrels in Portland, Gloucester, Boston, New 

 Bedford, and New London. Sword-fish pickled in brine is in considerable demand in 

 some parts of the country, and particularly in the lower Connecticut valley, where a 

 barrel may be found in almost every grocery store. By many persons it is considered 

 much more eatable than salted mackerel." 



The sword-fish along the New England coast is hunted for in special vessels of 

 small size with a prominent platform at the bow, on which the harpooner is stationed. 

 It has been estimated by Mr. Goode, that " the average weight of a year's catch of 

 sword-fish amount to 1,500,000 pounds, valued at $45,000, the average price being 

 estimated at three cents per pound." 



The taenioid fishes are closely related to the elongated Scombridae, but exhibit 

 differences which may be properly used, not only for family distinction, but further 



