Il6 THE shark'. 



in ftrength and celerity, in the formidable arrangement of 

 his teeth, and in his infatiable defire of plunder *. 



The head and throat of the ihark are larger than the 

 proportion to the body, which is (lender and tapered a- 

 way almcft to a point as it approaches the tail. The teeth 

 are broad at the bafe, but flender and very fliarp above ; 

 they are difpofed in five rows all around each jaw, and at 

 their infertion are furnifhed with flror.g mufeles, by 

 means of which the animal raifes or deprefles them ; 

 ■when the fhark is at reft, they all lie flat in his naouth ; 

 but when he comes for-.vard to lay hold of his prey, thefti 

 dreadful inPiruments are fuddenly raifed, and the devoted 

 animal, feized by them, inllantly dies, pierced with an 

 Hundred wounds. 



The animals of this genus have a v/ild and ferocious 

 afpefl, that faithfully indicates the malignity of their na- 

 ture : Their eyes are oblong, funk in the fockets, and 

 placed longitudinally in the head, where they appear al- 

 moft overhung by the fldn, and are full of malevolence 

 and fire : The Sns, to which they owe their rapidity of 

 motion, are larger, and moire numerous than thofe of moft 

 other fillies : The body, though (lender, is pofleiTed of 

 very (trong mufeles, the fouice of that aftonifliing ira- 

 pulfe communicated by the tail. The whole external 

 parts are covered with a rough and hard Ikin, which wa3 

 uied by the ancients in poiifiiing wood and ivory ; but 

 13 now applied to cover inftrument cafes, the Ikin of the 

 greater dog filli furniftiing a preferable fliagreen f . 



The 



* Goldfmith's Nat. Hift. vol. vl. 23S0 

 if Briiift) Zoology, Clafs iv. gen. 6, 



