S H A 
more ufually in May; and continue about two 
months. The Shad, at it's firft appearance, par- 
ticularly in the vicinity of Gloucefter, is efteemed 
a mod delicate fiih, fetching a higher price than 
the filmon; and the London fiOimongers diflin- 
guifli it from that of the Thames by the French 
name, aloje. 
It remains as yet undetermined whether or not 
Shads fpawn in the Severn: certain it is, their fry 
has neither been afcertained in tliat river, nor the 
Wye. The old fifh quit the fea in full roe; and 
many fi-hennen crroneouQy fuppofe, that the 
bleaks which appear in myriads near Gloucefter in 
July and Auguft, are the fry of the Shad : many of 
them are taken in thofe months only; but none 
of the emaciated Shads are ever caught on their 
return. 
The Shad of the Tharnes does not frequent 
that river till the month of July; and is efteemed 
a very infipid, coarfe fifti. About the fame time, 
the twaite, a variety of the Shad, is taken in pro- 
digious numbers in the Severn, near Gloucefter; 
but is as little valued as the Shad of the Thames. 
The real Shad weighs from four to eight 
pounds; the twaite, on the contrary, weighs from 
half a pound to two pounds, which it never ex- 
ceeds. The twaite differs from a fmall Shad only 
in having one or more round black fpots on the 
fides: if only one, it is always near the gill; but 
commonly three or four are arranged one under 
the other. 
Agreeable to aft of parliament, no Shads muft 
be taken in the Thames or Medway, except from 
the loth of May to the 30th of June. 
SHAG; the Pelecanus Graculus of LinnjEus. 
An aquatic fowl very common on the northern 
coafts: denominated by Ray Corvus Aquaticus 
Minor, or the lefler cormorant; being properly a 
bird of the cormorant kind. 
The Siiag is frequently twenty-feven inches in 
length ; three feet fix inches in breadth ; and nearly 
four pounds in weight. The bill, which is 
ftraight and flender, is of a roundifti figure, four 
inches long, and hooked at the extremity; the 
opening of the mouth is large; the eyes are fmall ; 
and the head is adorned with a creft, two inches 
long, and pendulous backward. The whole plu- 
mage of the upper part is of a fine gloifTy green 
hue, the edges of the feathers being of a purplifn 
black; but the lower part of the back, head, and 
neck, are wholly green. The belly is dufky ; and 
the legs are black. 
This bird builds in trees, like the common cor- 
morant. It fwims with it's head erect: and is ftiot 
with extreme difficulty; for it no fooner perceives 
the flafti of a gun, than it dives under water, and 
rifes again at a confiderable diftance. 
SHARK. A fpecies of fqualus in the Lin- 
n^ean diftribution; but confidered by Pennant as 
a diftin£t genus. I'he charaders are thefe: the 
body is flender, decreafing tov/ards the tail ; it has 
two dorfal fins, a rough (kin, and five apertures 
on the fides of the neck; the mouth is generally 
fituated far beneath the extremity of the nofe; and 
the upper part of the tail is longer than the lower. 
There are feveral fpecies. 
Sharks are the fierceft and moft voracious of all 
the inhabitants of the deep. The fmalleft of this 
tribe are notlefs dreaded by larger fifti than many 
which to all appearance feem more formidable: 
nor do any of them decline the combat with ani- 
mals far above their own fize ; and fome of them 
are from twenty to thirty feet in length. 
S H A 
No fifti whatever can fwim with fuch velocity 
as the Shark; nor is any fo cor.ftantly engaged in 
that exercife: he outftrips the fwifteft fhics, plays 
round them, darts out before them, returns, and 
feems to gaze at the mariners without exhibitino- 
the fmalleft fymptom of ftrong exertion or uneafy 
apprehenfion. Such amazing powers, joined with 
fuch ravenous appetites, would fpeedily depopu- 
late even the ocean itfelf, did not the upper javv of 
the Shark projea fo far above the lower, t'hat he 
IS obliged to turn on one fide (not on his back as 
generally fuppofed) before he can feize his prey 
As this aft requires fome time, the animal pul^fued 
avads Itfelf of the delay, and frequently cffcds an 
efcape. Still, however, the depredations he com- 
mits are frequent and formidable. He is the ter- 
ror of failors in all hot climates, wi\ere he Gene- 
rally attends the fl:ips, in expectation of fpoi]'^ and 
ftiould any perfon happen to fall overboard oa 
ftich an occafion, he would certainly perifii with- 
out inftant relief. 
A failor bathing in the Mediterranean, near 
Antibes, in 1744, about the diftance of forty 
yards from the fiiip, perceived a monftrous Hih 
making towards him, and furveying him on eveiy 
fide. Struck_ with terror, the haplefs mariner 
called out to his companions in the veftel to aftord 
him immediate affiftance: they accordingly tiirew 
out a rope with the greareft expedition ;1ind were 
drawing him up by the Hiip's fide, when the Shark 
inftantly darting after him from the water, fnapped 
off his leg. 
Pennant likewife informs us, that themaftcrof 
a Guinea fliip finding a rage for filicide prevail 
among his fiaves, from a notion the wretched 
creaturt-s entertained that after death they fhould 
be reftored again to their country, family, and 
friends; in order to convince them' that fome dif- 
grace fhould attend them even here, iie ordered 
one of their dead bodies to be fufpended by the 
heels, and fo let down into the fea; and thouch 
the corpfe was drawn up again v/ith all poffible 
expedition, during that very fhcrt fpace tl:c Sharks 
had devoured the whole of it except the feet. 
Another Guinea captain, by ftrefs of weather, 
was driven into the harbour of Belfaft, with a 
lading of very fickly fiaves; who, in the manner 
previoufiy mentioned, and from the fame prcpof- 
feffions, embraced every opportunity of throvvinp- 
themfelves overboard when brought on deck fo° 
the benefit of frefli air. The captain perceivincr, 
among others, a woman fiave attempting to de- 
ftroy herfelf, pitched on her as a proper exam])Ie 
to the reft: fuppofing that they had a very imper- 
fe6t idea of the terrors of death, he ordered a rope 
to be tied under her arm-pits, and her body to be 
thus let down into the water. The poor flave 
was no fooner plunged about half way down, than 
ftie was heard to utter a terrible ftiriek, which at 
firft was afcribed to her dread of drownino-; buc 
foon after the water appearing of a red hue around 
her, ftie was drawn up; and, to their great fur- 
prife, found that a Shark, which had follov/ed die 
track of the fnip, had bit off one half of her body 
from the middle downwards. 
A gendeman, now living, and a member of the 
Britifh legiflature,"had alfo the misfortune to lofe 
one of his legs by the bite of one of thefe terrible 
creatures, while batiiing in the Weft Indies: and, 
were we to enumerate the many accidents occa- 
fioned by Sharks, which have been tranfmitted by 
tlie moft unquefticnable authorities, they would 
far exceed the limits prefcribed to a work of this 
nature. 
