21 5 
of the Squalus maximus. 
truth, and in others allowed their imaginations to supply de- 
ficiencies, for one of them declared, with confidence, that the 
drawing was so exact a representation of what he had seen, 
“ that he fancied he saw the beast lying before him, at a dis- 
“ tance, on the beach.” 
The drawing is correct in the representation of the head 
and anterior part of the fish, from which the skin, the upper 
and lower jaw, the gills, and gullet, had been separated by 
putrefaction ; and when we consider that the liver and the 
other viscera were all destroyed, except the valvular intestine, 
which was taken away by the observers, the size of the body 
that remained would be nearly in proportion with the drawing. 
The legs are tolerably exact representations of the holders 
in the male Squalus maximus, described in a former part of 
this paper, and therefore are not imaginary, only that four 
have been added which did not exist. This is satisfactorily 
determined by the pectoral fin, which is preserved, having no 
resemblance to them. The mane, they said, was composed 
of ligamentous fibres, one of which was sent to London ; this 
corresponds, in its appearance, with the fibres that form the 
termination of the fins and tail of the Squalus' maximus, such 
an appearance therefore was seen, but could only be met with 
in the place of the two dorsal fins, instead of being continued 
along the back, as in the drawing. The contortions towards 
the tail are such, as the intervertebral joints could not admit 
of, they are therefore imaginary. 
It is said, two different persons measured the fish ; one by 
fathoms, the other by a foot rule, and that it was fifty-five 
feet long. Their accuracy is at least doubtful, as the parts 
that are preserved correspond with those of a fish about 
F f 2 
