“I thought that sharks always took the bait,” observed Alexander.

“Not always, as you have now seen,” replied Mr. Swinton; “all depends upon whether they are hungry or not.  In some harbors where there are plenty of fish, I have seen sharks in hundreds, which not only refused any bait, but would not attempt to seize a man if he was in the water; but I am surprised at these Atlantic sharks refusing the bait, I must confess, for they are generally very ravenous, as are, indeed, all the sharks which are found in the ocean.”

“I can tell you, sir, why they refused the bait,” said the boatswain of the vessel, who was standing by; “it’s because we are now on the track of the Brazilian slavers, and they have been well fed lately, depend upon it.”

“I should not be surprised if you were correct in your idea,” replied Mr. Swinton.

“There are many varieties of sharks, are there not?” inquired Wilmot.

“Yes, a great many; the fiercest, however, and the largest kind is the one which has just left us, and is termed the white shark; it ranges the whole Atlantic Ocean, but is seldom found far to the northward, as it prefers the tropics:  it is, however, to be seen in the Mediterranean, in the Gulf of Lyons, and is there remarkably fierce.  In the English Channel you find the blue shark, which is seldom dangerous; there is also a very large-sized but harmless shark found in the north seas, which the whalers frequent.  Then there is the spotted or tiger-shark, which is very savage, although it does not grow to a large size; the hammer-headed shark, so called from the peculiar formation of its head; and the ground shark, perhaps the most dangerous of all, as it lies at the bottom and rises under you without giving you notice of its approach.  I believe I have now mentioned the principal varieties.”

“If a man was to fall overboard and a shark was nigh, what would be the best plan to act upon—­that is, if there would be any chance of escape from such a brute?”

“The best plan, and I have seen it acted upon with success, is, if you can swim well, to throw yourself on your back and splash as much as you can with your feet, and halloo as loud as you can.  A shark is a cowardly animal, and noise will drive it away.

“When I went out two or three years ago, I had a Newfoundland dog, which was accustomed to leap into the water from almost any height.  I was very partial to him, and you may imagine my annoyance when, one day, as we were becalmed along the Western Islands, and a large shark came up alongside, the dog, at once perceiving it, plunged off the taffrail to seize it, swimming toward the shark, and barking as loud as he could.  I fully expected that the monster would have dispatched him in a moment; but to my surprise the shark was frightened and swam away, followed by the dog, until the boat that was lowered down picked him up.”

“I don’t think the shark could have been very hungry.”