THE RAY. 



273 



Upon the whole, a shark, when living, is a 

 very formidable animal ; and, when dead, is 

 of very little value. The flesh is hardly di- 

 gestible by any but the Negroes, who are 

 fond of it to distraction; the liver affords 

 three or four quarts of oil ; some imaginary 

 virtues have been ascribed to the brain; and 

 its skin is, by great labour, polished into that 

 substance called shagreen. Mr Pennant is of 

 opinion, that the female is larger than the 

 male in all this tribe ; which would, if con- 

 firmed by experience, make a striking agree- 

 ment between them and birds of prey. It 

 were to be wished that succeeding historians 

 would examine into this observation, which is 

 offered only as a conjecture ' * 



CHAP. II 



OF CARTILAGINOUS FLAT-FISH, OR THE RAY 

 KIND. 



THE same rapacity which impels the shark 

 along the surface of the water, actuates the 

 flat fish at the bottom. Less active, and less 

 formidable, they creep in security along the 

 bottom, seize every thing that comes in their 

 way; neither the hardest shells nor the sharp- 

 est spines give protection to the animals that 

 bear them ; their insatiable hunger is such, 

 that they devour all ; and the force of their 



young alive, more than one at a time, and each inclosed 

 in a square horny case, terminated at the four corners by 

 slender filaments. After being in the water some time, 

 these natural pouches open at one end, and the young 

 fish escapes from his confinement. These receptacles 

 are, in the shark, of a pellucid horn-colour, terminated 

 at the corners by very long slender filaments, which are 

 generally found twisted round coral, sea-weeds, and 

 other substances, to prevent their being driven on shore 

 before the young is excluded : those of the Ray tribe are 

 black, with the filaments hardly longer than the case, 

 and are frequently cast on our shores in great abun- 

 dance. 



1 The Small Spotted Dog- Fish is a species of shark, 

 sometimes found on our shores. It is called Morgay in 

 Scotland. It lies near the bottom of the water, and its 



food is small fish and Crustacea. It is often caught on 

 the fishermen's lines, but is a useless capture to them. 

 It is injurious to the fisheries from its voracity. Its 

 length is about eighteen inches. 



The Large Spotted Dog- Fish, called in Scotland 

 Bounce, is easily distinguished from the other by its 

 larger but less numerous spots, and by the greater bulk 

 of the body for the same length. Like the Small Spot- 

 ted Dog-Fish, its haunts are near the bottom, and its 

 food similar, but it also frequents rocky ground, and is 

 hence sometimes called the Rock Dog-Fish. 



VOL. II. 



stomach is so great, that it easily digests 

 them. 



The whole of this kind resemble each other 

 very strongly in their figure ; nor is it easy, 

 without experience, to distinguish one from 

 another. The stranger to this dangerous tribe 

 may imagine he is only handling a skate, 

 when he is instantly struck numb by the tor- 

 pedo; he may suppose he has caught a thorn- 

 back, till he is stung by the fire-flare. It 

 will be proper, therefore, after describing the 

 general figure of these animals, to mark their 

 differences. 



All fish of the ray kind are broad, cartila- 

 ginous, swimming flat on _the_ water, and 

 having spines on different parts of their body, 

 or at the tail. They all have their eyes and 

 mouth placed quite under the body, with 

 apertures for breathing either about or near 

 them. They all have teeth, or a rough bone, 

 which answers the same purpose. Their 

 bowels are very wide towards the mouth, and 

 go on diminishing to the tail. The tail is 

 very differently shaped from that of other fishes; 

 and at first sight more resembling that of 

 a quadruped, being narrow, and ending either 

 in a bunch or a point. But what they are 

 chiefly distinguished by, is, their spines or 

 prickles, which the different species have on 

 different parts of their body. Some are 

 armed with spines both above and below; 

 others have them on the upper part only ; 

 some have their spines at the tail ; some have 

 three rows of them , and others but one. These 

 prickles in some are comparatively soft and 

 feeble ; those of others, strong and piercing. 

 The smallest of these spines are usually in- 

 clining towards the tail ; the larger towards 

 the head. 



It is by the spines that these animals are 

 distinguished from each other. The skate 

 has the middle of the back rough, and a single 

 row of spines on the tail. The sharp-nosed 

 ray has ten spines that are situated towards 

 the middle of the back. The rough ray has 

 its spines spread indiscriminately over the 

 whole back. The thorn-back has its spines dig. 

 posed in three rows upon the back. The fire- 

 flare has but one spine, but that indeed a ter- 

 rible one. This dangerous weapon is placed 

 on the tail, about four inches from the body, 

 and is not less than five inches long. It is of 

 a flinty hardness, the sides thin, sharp-pointed, 

 and closely and sharply bearded the whole 

 way. The last of this tribe that I shall men- 

 tion is the torpedo ; and this animal has no 

 spines that can wound ; but in the place of 

 them it is possessed of one of the most potent 

 and extraordinary faculties in nature. 



Such are the principal differences that may 

 enable us to distinguish animals, some of 

 which are of very great use to mankind, from 

 2M 



