i ^ ) 



Had things been fettled upon this bottom in thofe 

 parts for a hundred and fifty years laft paft, Acadia 

 muft have become one of the moft powerful colo- 

 nies in all America. For whilft it was given out 

 in France, and that with a kind of afFe&ation that 

 it was impofllble ever to do any thing in that coun- 

 try, it enriched the people of New-England by the 

 fifhing trade only, though the Englifh were without 

 feveral advantages for carrying it on, which our fi- 

 tuation offered us. 



After leaving the great bank, you meet with fe- 

 veral leffer ones, all of them equally abounding in 

 fifli, nor is the cod the only fpecies found in thofe 

 feas. And though you do not in facl meet with 

 many Requiems % fcarce any Gilt heads and Bonettas, 

 or thofe other fillies which require warmer feas, yet 

 to make amends they abound with whales, blowers, 

 fword- filh, porpuffes, threfhers, with many others 

 of lefs value. We had here more than once the 

 pleafure of viewing the combat of the whale and 

 fword-fifh, than which nothing can be more enter- 

 taining. The fword-fifh is of the thicknefs of a 

 cow, from feven to eight feet long, the body taper- 

 ing towards the tail. It derives its name from its 

 weapon, which is a kind of fword three feet in 

 length and four fingers in breadth. It proceeds 

 from his fnout, and from each fide he has a range 

 of teeth an inch long, and placed at equal diftances 

 from each other. This fifh is dreffed with any fort 

 of fauce, « and is excellent eating. His head is 

 more delicious than a calf's, and thicker, and of a 

 fquarer form. His eyes are extremely large. The 

 whale and fword- fifh never meet without a battle, 

 and the latter has the fame of being the conflant 

 aggrefibr. Sometimes two fword-fifhes join againft 

 one whale, in which cafe the parties are by no 



means 



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