Tope, Size, Local Names, <Jfcc. 159 



In the above cases of the Porbeagle the second mentioned 

 was mounted for the British Museum ; but as a rule nothing is 

 made of the body other than as a show by the fishermen. These 

 sharks are fierce, and appear to have a partiality for their 

 brethren, the dog-fishes, though not loth to other booty, such 

 as the cod-fish family and large cuttle-fishes. 



(4) The COMMON TOPE (Galeus vulgaris) is an example of 

 the Shark tribe, which may be said to be widely distributed in 

 our District, and always with us. When full grown it may 

 reach 6 or 7 feet long or over. Generally speaking such magni- 

 tude is now rare in the Thames estuary, though when Long- 

 lining in the Deeps was in vogue large fellows were by no 

 means infrequent. In Essex they are known locally as " Dogs " 

 or "Sweet William,"* in South Kent as "Rigs," in Sussex 

 as " Penny Dogs." The Varne Bank is said to be a favourite 

 and noted locality by the Folkestone fishermen, who use hooks 

 and long- line, and capture a great many.f 



In past times the Leighmen hooked them mostly in the E. 

 Swin and from the Sunk Light, south-west along the Black 

 Deep. Though the Long-liners pursued their cod and skate 

 fishing through the winter, yet it was not till the end of March 

 or beginning of April that they were troubled with the " Dogs." 

 Then there seemed a wonderful lot of them, and it was an 

 everyday occurrence to hook some of all sizes. J When hauled 

 in the big ones especially had their throats cut, the liver ex- 

 tracted, hook disengaged, if possible, portion of skin kept to 

 make deck scrubbers, and the fish then thrown overboard. 

 Within later years the Topes' head-quarters aforesaid are 

 seldom fished, and the old hook and line tackle being out of date 

 with Leighmen the larger " Dogs " seem scarce. Nevertheless 



* Pennant (Brit. Quad.) thus accounts for this name : Its skin and flesh have an 

 offensive rank smell, therefore we suppose Mr. Dale (Hist. Harwich) gave it ironically 

 the title of " Sweet William." 



t See Buckland's droll account of Folkestone fishermen's experiences with " Rigs " 

 when fresh caught, and a numl>cr lying in the bottom of the boat. 



J R. Johnson, senr., mentions their capture was not always confined to spring, he 

 himself having caught as many as a hundred between November and 

 in the neighbourhood of the Swiii. 



