COMPARATIVE STUDY OF SCOMBROID FISHES. 
435 
very narrow and the flesh very rich in amount. Three lobes of the liver are 
connected with each other by very narrow portions, and the lateral lobes are 
divided into many lobules at the margin, as well as at the inner side. On 
the outer side of the liver we find very fine parallel venules, covering nearly 
the whole suiface of the liver. On the inner side of the liver bulbous and 
more or less conical masses of vascular plexus of both arterioles and venules 
are found. 
Venules to the cutaneous Vein are arranged in two alternate rows, and 
are more numerous than the arterioles. These venules pour to the inner side 
of the vein. Arterioles from the cutaneous artery are arranged in one row, 
and on the inner side of the artery (fig. 20). Venules are very minute and 
numerous, forming thick sheets in the lateral muscle, before pouring into the 
cutaneous vein. These venules form numerous small bundles by uniting just 
at the root. Each of the numerous branches from the cutaneous artery is 
minutely, divided as soon as it emerges from the main blood-vessels, and 
running along the venules supplies fresh blood to the dark red portion of the 
lateral muscle. The cutaneous artery originates just behind the pharyngeal 
muscle in the levels of the fifth vertebra and runs obliquely backward. 
Air-bladder present, rounded at the anterior end, and its wall is rather 
t hin . It is narrow, but long, running the whole length of the abdominal 
cavity. Kidneys of both sides are united to form a flat, ring-shaped body 
round the pharyngeal muscles. The ring-shaped kidneys are slightly prolonged 
backward. Uretern of both sides meet in a nearly straight line, thick at the 
junction. In this thick junction, we find a short longitudinal septum from the 
anterior wall. Posterior to this septum the ureters are joined to a median 
tube. 
Skull rather narrow. Vertebral column more or less slender. Height of 
the vertebrae nearly uniform. Parapophyses well developed. Parapophyses of 
the ninth vertebra are almost horizontal as in the preceding vertebrae ; but in 
the tenth vertebra the haemal arch is formed and is tinned forward leaving 
only a little space between the centrum and the arch. In each of the following 
precaudal vertebrae the haemal spine is formed, and it is remarkable that it 
is nearly uniformly elongated. These precaudal haemal spines are remarkably 
longer than in other tunnies. The head of the second and third rib3 is very 
