Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 26.djvu/359

Rh for its enormous dorsal fin. Its range may be said to be from 30° south to 40° north latitude.

No observations have been made upon the sail-fish in this country. In the life of Sir Stamford Raffles there is the following account from Singapore, under date of November 30, 1822: "The only amusing discovery we have recently made is that of a sailing-fish, called by the natives Ikan layer, of about ten or twelve feet long, which hoists a main-sail, and often sails in the manner of a native boat, and with considerable swiftness. I have sent a set of the sails home, as they are beautifully cut, and form a model for a fast sailing-boat. When a school of these are under sail together they are frequently mistaken for a fleet of native boats." The appearance of this fish is shown in Fig. 5.

A sketch of the gladiators of the sea would not be complete without some mention of the saw-fish and the narwhal. The saw-fish family is allied to the sharks, having a similar elongated and rounded body, and unequal tail-lobes. They are found in most warm seas and even near the poles; one species is met with all along the Atlantic coast of the United States. They are rapid swimmers. The mouth is