Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-12-26

Monsters Of the Deep which Have N Ap.
petite for Human Flesh.

petite for Human Flesh.
HoNsrHn SHARKS OF LONG AGO THAT GREW TO
BE 100 FEET IN LENorH-rHE GREAT WHITE
SHARK AND IT'S SEVEN Rows OF rKxrH-BLur
SHARKS OF COLDER WATERS.
Al EXQUISITE CUTTING TOOL, AP-
"A parently weapon Of primitive manu-
facture. Shaped somewhat like the head Of an
arrow, but much bigger. Six inches long by
five inches broad, with sharp point and both
edges SO keen that one could cut beefsteak with
them readily. Weighing about two pounds,
beautifully polished and black Of ne.
Such was the object shown to Q STAR writer
at the Smithsonian Institution yesterday.
Never having beheld q savage weapon Of quito
that shape, SO beautifully made, or SO heavy for
its bulk, ne was puzzled when asked to guess
what 1t was. Imagine his surprise when he was
told that it was the tooth of q shark.
Not the tooth Of any living species of shark,
but fossil incisor left behind by some mon
ster fish Of the past who died hundreds of thou
sands Of years ago perhaps. What whopper he
must have been. When it is considered that the
teeth Of forty-foot white shark the biggest spe-
cies now known, only measure about two inches
in length it ispositivey astonishing to figure out
the size Of the owner of the specimen described.
1t is impossible that he could have been less
than eighty feet and he may have been 100 feet
long.
In what strange and distant sea did this
hugh beast swim? As to that there is no
doubt He freauented the vicinity of Washing
ton, d. c., and very likely pursued his prey in
the waters directly over what is now the
capital city of the United States. At all
ia IL ia Cartain that ha died N this neioh-
bozhood, because the tooth in question was
found only the other day not q dozen miles
from town over in Virginia.
Perhaps you imagine that such monsters as
common indeed, as is proved by the numbers
Of such teeth which are ploughed up on nearly
every farm in the Potomac valley. These
creatures must have fairly swarmed hereabOut
In ages past. The soil is filled with their dental
remains. So much harder is the enamel of
teeth than anything else Of organic origin in
nature that they outlast all things else appar-
emily, even the rocks, and are preserved for the
enlightenment Of science.
Sharks are among the most ancient Of fishes.
Long before the first reptiles appeared in the
world. to be followed in their turn by the man,
mails, they ruled creation at time when nearly
oil the earth was covered by seas. Thus great
quantities OF fossil sharks teeth are found
scattered over the bottom Of the oceans. Such
great ones as that mentioned have been largely
usAAA1So AVh OossAo oACo ohA oshSA pun pObcS
by savages, who are quick to take
advantage Of tools offered them by
nature withou: labor. In similar fashion
they employ the many-barbed ivory sting of
the sting ray for spear tips, the instrument
having the great advantage that it breaks off
short in the wound and cannot be withdrawn
from the flesh. Likewise the islanders of the
South Pacific use heavy conch shells as heads
for their war clubs, the sharpened points serv-
ing admirably for the purpose Of pecking out
the brains Of an adversary.
The most dreaded and ferocious shark now
in existence is the great white shark Of tropi-
cal waters. 1t il the man eater par excellence.
Specimens have been captured which measured
forty-two feet in length. Whether it has done
so or not, this frightfCl creature would GER
tainly have no difficulty in literally swallowing
a man whole When big shark is taken on
board ship the skull is usually preserved, the
flesh being removed from the bones, and it Is a
favorite pastime with sailors to crawl one after
another through the distended jaws. 1t would
be far from safe to do this, however, when
the head has been but freshly cut off, because
under such conditions the jaws will snap to-
gether fercely for some time afterward if any
thing be placed between them.
The skull Of big shark is always salable, ow-
ing to the demand by museums and curiosity
hunters. Backbones Of small ones are made
into walking sticks. In Ceylon there is a con-
siderable trade in the oil OF the white shark
The fins OF the animal are very rich in gelatine
nuo uEc ubcu ldISely ny tu6 SulueS6 1Or making
soup. Of which they declare that the turtle soup
so much priced by epicures in this country is
but q distant and feeble imitation. Among the
natives OF the Pacific islands sharks hvers are
regarded as a royal luxury.
In respect to its dentition the shark is q very
remarkable creature. The white shark has
seven rows Of teeth, while other species vary
in the number Of rows they possess. 1t must
be understood, however, that the shark only
uses one row at q time. The other rows lie
doxx 1T l~-l.- Al
jaw, erecting themselves when it is time for
them to take successfully the place Of the first
row. When one observes how keen-edged
these incisors are it seems no wonder that they
can bite off big rope as readily as if it were o
packthread.
In colder water the blue shark is king. 1t is
not nearly 30 big as its white cousin, seldom
measuring more than fifteen feet in length, but
in point Of wickedness it is hard to beat The
ferocity OF sharks is not necessarily in proper
ton to their size. For example, there is the
great basking shark, so called because Of its
habit of lying motionless at the surface
OF the water. It often attains q length of
nearly forty feet, but its teeth are small
comparatively and it probably never at
tacks man, depending upon small fishes
this species is ''sail fish," because Of its great
back fin which shows out of the water like a
sail when 1t Is basking. Although sluggish
ordinarily and easily harpOoned, it exhibits
great ACTIVITY ana enormous strengtn wnen
struck, diving Immediately to the bottom and
requiring great length OF rope to hold it.
These basking sharks are caught for their livers
OF the coast OF Iceland, and the oil obtained is
used to adulterate cod-liver oil.
The Greenland shark il well known as foe
to whalers. 1t will follow a dead whale to the
ship and show no fear Of the mon while they
are engaged in cutting up the prey, biting out
Jumps from 1t as big as q mans head. Some
times it happens that q man will fall off the
slippery side of the whale close by the shark,
but the latter never attacks him, being intent
upon gorging itself with the flesh Of the ceta-
cean. The most severe wounds from thrusts
Of the whalers' knives will not persuade it to
desist. This species of shark is often partly
or wholly blinded by parasitic worm three
inches long, which fastens itself at the
corner OF the eye and lives on its
fluids.
One Of the querest sharks is the thrasher,
which has the upper lobe Of its tail so much
developed as to equal in length the body Of the
fish itself. This tail is controlled by powerful
muscles and is used as q weapon. Sword hsh
and thrasher sharks have beon seen on many
occasions to attack whales in concert and kill
them, the sharks flashing the victims with their
tails while the sword fish speared them from
below. On the other hand, sharks themselves
are often killed by porpoises, which will sur
round a shark and lash the enemy to death with
their flukes.
There are other fishes which will attack man
besides sharks. not the worst of which are more