SHARKS AND SKATES. 83 



man-eater sliarks. We need but refer to their well-known habit of following ships 

 for weeks, feeding on the refuse that may fall overboard, and not hesitating to swal- 

 low any object, however iuipalatable or indigestible, that may come in their way. 

 Their voracity is unbounded, and they swim with great velocity. Their cartilaginous 

 skeleton gives the body great flexibility, and the tail can be bent, unlike that of the true 

 fishes, into a compound curve. Did space allow, we could retail many a story of their 

 omnivorous appetites. In the stomach of a white-shark was found a tin can, a num- 

 ber of mutton bones, the hinder quarters of a pig, the head and fore quarters of a 

 bull-dog, a quantity of horse-flesh, and other and smaller things — as the auction bill 

 says — too numerous to mention. Possibly the most interesting case is the following, 

 with which we must close our account. The story is well authenticated. A British 

 cruiser was following a suspected slaver off the African coast, but, on overhauling her, 

 nothing was found to implicate the vessel in any illegal practice. A white-shark was 

 caught .about this time, and in its stomach were found the slaver's papers, which bad 

 been thrown overboard, and which conclusively settled the guilt of its owners and 

 oflicers. On long voyages, a favorite amusement to while away the time is fishing for 

 sh.arks. A large hook is fastened to a piece of chain, and baited with jjork or other 

 meat. This the shark usually swallows in a hurry. When hauled on board, the work 

 is not done ; his tail, as well as his teeth, are formidable weapons. One of the bolder 

 sailors usually rushes quickly up, and, with a sudden blow with a hatchet, cuts the 

 body just in front of the caudal fin, which puts an end to danger from that source. 

 The me.at of these large sharks is usually described as coarse and unpalatable. The 

 whalers, however, like it, and describe it as much like that of halibut. Possibly, their 

 long diet of salt meat contributes to their appetites. 



The ScYLLiD^ have an anal and two dorsal fins, the latter without spines ; the 

 first dorsal is above or behind the ventrals, the teeth are small, and those of several 

 i-ows are generally used at the same time ; there is no nictitating membrane, and a 

 spiracle is well developed. The species of the typical genus Scyllium, share with 

 Squalus the common name dog-fishes, but this introduces no little confusion, since the 

 two are so different, and hence the term roussette is perhajis jireferable. The rou- 

 settes, mdike the dog-fish, are oviparous, their eggs being enclosed in quadrangular 

 horny cases, prolonged at each cornei- into a long filament, which coils around sea- 

 weeds and other submarine objects, and thus anchors the egg. 



Our only species of Sci/llium is the swell-shark, S. ventricosum, of the west coast 

 of Jlexico. This s]iecies is peculiar in that, when caught, it swallows air like a scul- 

 pin or a sea hedgehog (Diodon), until its diameter equals a third of its length. The 

 cat-shark, and dog-shark, S. catulas, and S. caniaila, of European seas, are handsome 

 s]»ecies, reddish in color, and spotted with numerous brown blotches. They are great 

 enemies of the herrings. They are found most .abundantly among the Orkney Isles, 

 and are there used to a considerable extent as food. Their flesh is very white, but 

 dry. The fishermen s]ilit them open, and dry them, in much the same manner as 

 they would a cod-fish. This species also furnishes most of the shagreen used by cabi- 

 net-makers. 



The genus Stef/ostoma is noticeable from the fact that its only species, iS". tiffrimmi, 

 is one of the most beautiful sharks known. It reaches a length of about fifteen feet, 

 and is brownish yellow, over which are laid black or brown transverse bands, or round 

 snuff-colored spots. It is one of the most conmion species in the Indian Ocean, and, 

 from its ornamentation, has received the common names zebra-shark and tiger-shark. 



