264 THE CROCODILE 



motionlessly to maintain its required or desired 

 degree of submersion — in other words, as ballast. 

 Now without being in a position personally 

 to support either view, from the results of my 

 own observation, I think, when regard is had 

 to the immense potency of the crocodile's gastric 

 fluid, that the idea would seem to have much to 

 commend it. 



There can be, I imagine, little do\ibt that 

 crocodiles hibernate. Certainly they do so in 

 the " tanks " of India, whilst when annually 

 Lake Hardinge in British East Africa dries up, 

 crocodiles are said to remain there in a state of 

 torpor, half concealed in the mud, where they 

 await the return of the rainy season. 



The crushing force of a crocodile's jaws is 

 enormous. On the Zambezi I was once shown 

 an ordinary galvanised iron bucket which, tied 

 to a cord, is thrown into the river to draw water 

 for deck washing and other similar purposes. 

 This had been taken by a crocodile at Shupanga, 

 and when recovered was quite flat, the bottom 

 bent outward like a doubled piece of paper, and 

 the sides pierced completely through by the 

 merciless drill-like teeth. On another occasion 

 one of my natives was drawing in a large barbel 

 caught on an ordinary line when, as he described 

 it, there was a rush and a swirl and he drew up 

 about one-third of the fish, the remainder having 

 been cut clean off by a single snap from a 

 crocodile's jaws. I have also seen on several 

 rivers halves and other portions of fish drifting 

 down which could only have been separated 



