252 Scientific Intelligence. 
ted by birds and fishes. In very few cases they were not quite 
dead, but cares disabled. These oye seen chietly between N. 
lat. 44° and 44° 30’; and between W. long. 49° 30’ and 49° 50’ 
He believes that between twenty-five and thirty aston were 
secured by the fleet from Gloucester, Mass., and that as many 
more were probably obtained by. the vessels from ae places. 
They were cut up and used as bait for cod-fish. For this use 
they are of considerable Valic to the fishermen. Capt. Collins 
was at that time in command of the schooner ‘ Howard,’ which 
secured five of these giant squids. ese were mostly from ten 
to fifteen feet long, not ae the arms, and averaged about 
eighteen inches in diameter. The arms were almost always muti- 
lated. The portion that was left was usually three to four feet 
long and, at the base, about as large as a man’s thigh. 
ne specimen, when cut up, was packed into a large hogshead 
tub, having a capacity of about seventy-five allons, which it 
filled. This tub was known to hold 700 pounds of cod- fish. The 
gravity of the Architeuthis is probably about the same as that of 
e fish. This would indicate more nearly the actual weight of 
one of Nee creatures than any of the mere estimates that have 
been made, which are usually much too great. Allowing for 
the nates of the arms that had been destroyed, this specimen 
would, sine oe st weighed nearly 1,000 pounds. 
n merous other vessels that were sper ie 
zanda, ” Capt. Mallory. 2 secured three in one afternoon. These were 
eight to twelve feet long, not including the arms. These state- 
i : 
the “big squids” were also common, during the same ‘season, ® 
the “ Flemish eg ” a bank situated some Fiance > northeast from 
the Grand Ban 
The cause - so great a mortality among these great Cephalor 
pods can only be conjectured. It may have been due to some 
disease epidemic amon them, or to an unusual prevalence of 
deadly parasites or other enemies. It is worth while, howevel 
to recall the fact that these were observed at about the same time, 
found cast 
