Harper's New Monthly Magazine Volume 104 December 1901 to May 1902 . seless activity. Fortunately these widely distributedand gigantic destroyers of fishes for themost part vanished in the Eocene, yetsharks, voracious rays, crocodiles, seasnakes, and fish-eating birds were veryprominent. Even to comparatively re-cent times huge sharks with conicalteeth (Fig. I.) between four and fiveinches in length frequented the Pacific,whilst smaller forms everywhere abound-ed—linking on the old fauna to the new. In drawing deductions from the fos-sil remains of fishes and their destroy-ers, moreover, it ha
Harper's New Monthly Magazine Volume 104 December 1901 to May 1902 . seless activity. Fortunately these widely distributedand gigantic destroyers of fishes for themost part vanished in the Eocene, yetsharks, voracious rays, crocodiles, seasnakes, and fish-eating birds were veryprominent. Even to comparatively re-cent times huge sharks with conicalteeth (Fig. I.) between four and fiveinches in length frequented the Pacific,whilst smaller forms everywhere abound-ed—linking on the old fauna to the new. In drawing deductions from the fos-sil remains of fishes and their destroy-ers, moreover, it has to be rememberedthat the geological record is admittedlyimperfect, and that the few remainswhich man has laboriously collectedgive but a glimpse of the vast numbersof fishes—in shoals or otherwise—andthe abundance of their destroyers. Evenin the great voyage of the Challengerscarcely any remains of this naturecame from the bottom except sharksteeth, and yet the oceans everywhereteemed with fishes. The scanty recordof the rocks, further, stands conspicuous-. Fig. IV.—White Whale (Male)(Becks British Manual) 960 HARPERS MONTHLY MAGAZINE. ]y out when it is considered that, at poetic language, the fiat went forth and least, all these ancient sharks must have the mysterious changes proved fatal, produced vast numbers of young; yet leaving their well-nourished frames and how many of these are known? All the often their well-filled stomachs to testify ganoid fishes, forinstance, whichswarmed in theJurassic seas pro-duced countlesseggs (demersal—that is, non-float-ing), and thesegave birth to mul-titudes of young,which passedthrough the post-larval and veryyoung conditionsbefore reachingthe adult state;yet of these thereis no trace. It isjust as if, inmodern times, aplaice had hereand there beenpreserved, or per-chance a group,whilst its pelagic eggs, tiny larvae, post-larval forms, andmyriads of young in the shallow mar-gins of the sandy beaches had all beenobliterated. A
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