INTRODUCTION 



In this volume are included all the Game-Fishes 

 of the United States inhabiting the fresh water 

 lakes and streams east of the Rocky Mountains, 

 and the marine and brackish waters of the Atlan- 

 tic and Gulf Coasts. 



As a matter of convenience I have grouped the 

 fishes in families, wherever possible, but in their 

 sequence I have been guided, chiefly, by their 

 importance as game-fishes, and not in accordance 

 with their natural order. The latter feature, 

 however, has been provided for in a systematic 

 list on a subsequent page. 



In order not to burden the text with matter 

 that might not be of general interest, the tech- 

 nical descriptions of the fishes of each group are 

 given in small type at the head of each chapter ; 

 and that they may be readily understood by the 

 lay reader the following explanations seem nec- 

 essary: 



The length of the head is from the point of the snout 

 to the hindmost point or margin of the gill-cover. 



