198 Man and Shark 



scuff. A small boy's destructive energy, tameless as it may be, is simply 

 no match for the impregnable hide of the shark! 



A cross-weave of strong fibers runs through the thick epidermis of 

 sharkskin, forming a sinewy network that resists great strain, yet re- 

 mains pliable. Tests have shown that shark leather has a tensile strength 

 of about 7,000 pounds per square inch. Cowhide's tensile strength is 

 about 5,000 pounds per square inch. 



Sharks are hauled in principally from the waters off the coasts of 

 Florida, the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean, and the west coast of 

 Mexico. The supply is subject to sudden curtailment by hurricanes and 

 revolution (pre-Castro Cuba was a key shark hide source). The whims 

 of both sharks and fishermen also continually affect the irregular flow 

 of hides to the tannery. But, somehow, hides usually come in every 

 month of the year, and every hide represents the personal triumph of 

 a man over a shark. 



Individual fishermen hauling in handlines still supply Ocean Leather 

 with many of the nearly 50,000 shark hides it receives each year. But 

 most of the sharks are being caught nowadays by special shark-fishing 

 boats operating out of Florida and other well-established shark-fishing 

 stations. The sharks are caught on mile-long lines strung every 25 feet 

 with 2%-inch hooks. About 300 hooks dangle on 7-foot leaders from 

 each line. The lines are set in from 20 to 200 fathoms. 



The hides arrive at Ocean Leather's odoriferous tannery in neatly 

 folded piles in burlap wraps and bundles about as beautiful as bundles 

 of old grocery bags. After a complicated tanning process that takes about 

 4 weeks and involves seemingly endless baths and batterings in great 

 vats and tumbling drums, the hides become a luxury leather whose 

 beauty and durability have engendered a demand that has never been 

 matched by the supply. And it is this simple economic fact that explains 

 why all-sharkskin shoes cost about $40 a pair. Texas oil millionaires 

 once commandeered most sharkskin shoes. Lately, however, with the 

 spread of the affluent society beyond the boundaries of Texas, that fief 

 has lost its near-monopoly on shark leather. 



Shark-hide tanneries have existed in many parts of the world for 

 centuries— possibly the first recorded instances are from China and 

 Japan. In recent times, there have been tanneries in Norway, Germany, 

 France, Italy, India, Australia, Cuba, Mexico, and elsewhere. So far as 

 is known, however, none of them enjoyed any great success. 



Tiger, Dusky, Brown, Sand, Blacktip, Mackerel, and Nurse sharks 

 are the most desirable species for leather. Each species has its own 

 peculiarities. The Nurse, for instance, yields a hide that produces a very 

 desirable leather, but its fins are no good for shark fin soup and its liver 

 oil is low in vitamin A potency. The Hammerhead's hide and fins are not 

 very desirable, but Hammerhead liver oil is usually rich in vitamin A. 



