The Torpedo. 
425 
THE TORPEDO, OE ELECTRIC RAY. 
(Torpedo vulgaris.) 
This curious fish is capable of giving a violent shock, like 
that produced by the electrical machine, to the person 
who handles it. The body is nearly circular, and thicker 
than any other of the Ray kind, and is sometimes so large 
as to weigh between seventy and eighty pounds. The 
skin is smooth, of a dusky brown colour, and white under- 
neath. The ventral fins form on each side, at the end of 
the body, nearly a quarter of a circle. The tail is short, 
and the two dorsal fins are near its origin. The mouth 
is small, and as in the other species, there are on each 
side below it five breathing apertures. 
The shock imparted by the touch of the Cramp-fish, as 
the Torpedo is vulgarly called, is often attended with a 
sudden sickness at the stomach, a general tremor, a kind 
of convulsion, and sometimes a total suspension of the 
faculties of the mind. Such power of self-defence has 
Providence allowed this lumpish and inactive fish. 
Whenever an enemy approaches, the Torpedo emits from 
its body that benumbing shock, which incapacitates the 
other instantly, and it thereby gets time to escape. Nor 
is it merel} r a means of defence, but an advantage in 
other respects, for the Torpedo thus benumbs its prey, 
and easily seizes upon it. The animals thus killed are 
also supposed to become more easy of digestion. 
