TORT TORTOISE. 



645 



chief of the Swedish forces in Germany. The 

 position of the Swedish affairs was most discourag- 

 ing : but the activity of Torstenson soon recovered 

 them. He defeated the imperial forces at Schweid- 

 nitz (May 21, 1642), and, after being obliged to 

 retreat before a superior force, at Breitenfeld 

 (November 2). A rupture having taken place be- 

 tween Denmark and Sweden, the Swedish com- 

 mander hastened from Silesia to Holstein (a dis- 

 tance of 400 miles), by forced marches, and reduced 

 nearly the whole of that province. This bold en- 

 terprise contributed to produce the peace of Brom- 

 sebro, between Denmark and Sweden, on terms 

 highly advantageous to the latter. The imperial 

 general Gallas, who had closely pursued the Swedes, 

 was now obliged to retire to Bohemia, with great 

 loss. Torstenson penetrated into that country, 

 formed a junction with Rakotsky, prince of Tran- 

 sylvania| routed the imperial forces at Jankow, or 

 Jankowitz (Feb. 24, 1645), and threatened Vienna. 

 But the gout soon after compelled him to resign 

 (1646), and retire to Sweden, where he was created 

 count. Torstenson has left behind him the reputa- 

 tion of a great and successful general, and of a 

 friend and patron of the arts and sciences. See 

 Thirty Years' War. 



TORT, in law, denotes injustice or injury. The 

 word is French. Actions upon torts or wrongs are 

 all personal actions for trespasses, nuisances, as- 

 saults, defamatory words, and the like. 



TORTOISE OR TURTLE, (testudo). These 

 reptiles are distinguished by having the body en- 

 closed between two shields or shells, so that the 

 head, neck, legs, and tail, only appear externally ; 

 and these are capable of being retracted in a greater 

 or less degree. The upper shell is formed by the 

 ribs, which are enlarged, flattened, and closely 

 united by sutures ; the under shell is the sternum, 

 or breast bone ; and the vertebrae of the neck and 

 tail only are movable. In consequence of this con- 

 formation, the muscular system is inverted, in many 

 respects, as with insects and Crustacea ; and to this 

 circumstance these animals owe their great strength. 

 Tortoises have no teeth ; and the margin of the 

 mandibles is covered with horn, as in the beak of 

 birds. They are very tenacious of life, and will 

 move weeks after being deprived of the head ; and 



is last will continue to bite long after it is severed 

 'om the body. They can remain months, and 

 even years, without food. The eggs have a hard 

 shell, and are deposited in the sand. The land 



rtoises are distinguished by the convexity of their 

 pper shell, and their short toes, enveloped in the 

 common integument, nearly to the nails. They 

 pass their lives altogether upon land, and perish if 

 thrown into the water. Some of them attain a 

 very great size. The gopher, or large land tortoise, 

 digs large and deep holes, discoverable by the 

 mound of earth at the orifice, and rarely ventures 

 out except at night. The shell exceeds a foot in 

 length. The flesh is eatable, and is often sold in 

 the markets. The common land tortoise, or box 

 tortoise (testudo clausa), is remarkable for the 

 hinge of the sternum, by means of which the ani- 

 mal can close the shell, in such a manner as to con- 

 ceal perfectly every part of the body. The colours 

 are yellow and brown, but the markings vary in 

 different individuals. The shell does not exceed 

 six inches in length. The fresh water tortoises 

 (.emys) have the upper shell more flattened, the 

 nails longer, the toes more deeply divided, and 

 their intervals occupied by a membrane, which as- 



sists the animal in swimming. The largest is the 

 E. Floridana of Le Conte, which inhabits the St 

 John's river of East Florida. The shell of this 

 species exceeds a foot in length, and is more con- 

 vex than usual. The red-bellied terrapin (E. ru- 

 briventris, Lee.) is next in size. The shell is 

 nearly a foot in length, and, more or less distinctly, 

 longitudinally striated. The margin of the mandi- 

 bles is usually worn away by use, and the bone 

 presents a serrated or jagged edge. The flesh is 

 esteemed. E. reticulata is a southern species, 

 hitherto not found north of the thirty-fifth parallel 

 of latitude. It is remarkable for the extraordinary 

 length of the neck. E. serrata is also a southern 

 species, distinguished from the preceding by a 

 carina or keel along the middle of the back. E. 

 concinna inhabits the upper and rocky parts of rivers. 

 The shell is perfectly smooth, but, in other 

 respects, it bears a general resemblance to the red- 

 bellied terrapin. E. geographica of Lesueur, is so 

 called from the pale, reticular or map-like lines on 

 the back. E. insculpta (Lee.) is rather rare. The 

 back is carinate; the plates of the upper shell are 

 concentrically furrowed, somewhat prominent, with 

 radiating yellow lines. It differs somewhat in its 

 aspect from the other fresh water tortoises ; is ob- 

 served to be more fond of leaving the water, and 

 will remain for months uninjured in a dry place. 

 E. Muhlenbergii is also rare. It is readily dis- 

 tinguished by two large, irregular, orange spots 

 on the back part of the head. The common 

 terrapin (E. palustris') is well known as an article 

 of luxury. It. is found exclusively in the salt 

 water a remarkable circumstance in this genus 

 and always in the neighbourhood of marshes. 

 The plates of the upper shell are concentrically 

 furrowed. E. picta is found only in Canada and 

 the Northern and Middle States of America. The 

 shell is flattened and very smooth, and the plates 

 are bordered with a yellow margin. It is fond of 

 basking in the sun, upon rocks and logs, and in- 

 stantly takes refuge in the water on the approach 

 of danger. In the common spotted tortoise (J?. 

 guttata*), the colour of the upper shell is black, with 

 rounded yellow spots ; the sternum is yellow, with 

 large, dusky blotches. E. Pennsylvanica and odo- 

 rata differ from the preceding in having the sternum 

 divided into two or three pieces, by ligamentous 

 hinges, admitting a slight degree of motion. They 

 are of small size, of a brown colour, or dusky, fre- 

 quent ditches and muddy water, emit a strong and 

 musky odour, and are very troublesome to anglers, 

 as they bite readily at the hook. The snapper (. 

 serpentina) has been separated by some authors from 

 emys, on account of the small size of the sternum, 

 which serves very imperfectly to conceal the head 

 and members. It prefers muddy waters, is very 

 voracious, and destroys great quantities of fish. 

 The shell is more or less tri-carinate ; the head, 

 neck, limbs and tail are very large, the latter 

 strongly crested. From the form of its body, it is 

 sometimes called alligator tortoise. It bites severe- 

 ly, and will seize any thing presented to it, and 

 sometimes will not let go its hold even after the 

 head is severed from the body. It is sought after 

 as an article of food, but, when old, the flesh is 

 rank and disagreeable, and at all times, it exhales 

 a strong, musky adour. It attains large dimen- 

 sions ; individuals have been met with exceeding 

 four feet and a half in total length. 



The soft-shelled tortoises (trionyx} differ much 

 in appearance from the preceding. The shell b 



