Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 18.djvu/74

* SHAKK. are well developed, and the form of calcification of the vertebra', i.e. whether radial, in a single ring, or several concentric rings, iias been made by Hasse (1879) a criterion for subdivision of Selachii into Aslcruspundyli, Ci/closjjoiidi/H, and Tectospoiidi/li, but, like nust systems based upon a single cliaracter, it is not very satisfactory. A more practical division into suborders is the following: (1) Protoselacliii, sharks with more than live (0 or 7) gill-arches, and a number of priniitivc skeletal characters — extending from Upper Jurassic to recent, and including Hep- tanchus and Chlamydoselache; (2) Squalida, all five-gilled true sharks; most families appear in the Mesozoic, but the Port Jackson sharks (cestracionts), which have large crushing teeth, possibly originate in the Carboniferous; (3) Rujida, the rays and skates — Mesozoic to recent. BinLiooRAriiY. Dean, Fishes, Liuing and Fos- sil (New York. 1895); Woodward, Vertebrate Pakvontologij (London, 1898) ; Von Zittel, Text- bouk of i'ala-ontoloyij (Eng. trans., London, 1902). SHARKING. Fishing for shark. There are many methods of fishing for shark, varying ac- cording to the size or family of the fish and the resources of the fisherman. In some American waters, and particularly along the east coast of Florida, fishing for tarjjon and shark is com- mon, and while it is not unattended with danger, it offers the most exciting sport. The white shark (Carcharis vulgaris) is probably the most ferocious of all fish, and is found in the Mediter- ranean and other seas of the warmer parts of the world. The white shark is caught by means of a great hook, baited by a piece of meat and at- tached to a chain. In the South Sea Islands the method is to set afioat a log of wood which has a long rope attached to it at the end of which is a noose. It is expected that some curious shark will get his head into the noose and finally be wearied out by the log and thus be forced ashore. The blue shark, which seldom exceeds 8 feet in length and is common in the ilediter- ranean and the warmer jnirts of the Atlantic, is caught with a hook and line in the ordinary man- ner. The basking shark, which sometimes at- tains the enormous length of 36 feet, is of a mild disposition and is easily approached by a boat. It is caught whale-fashion with a harpoon. SHABK-STJCKER. A common sucking fish of tlic rcmora family (Echeneidida-), found in all warm seas attached to sharks and other large fishes, turtles, and the like, and known in Span- ish America as 'pega' or 'pegador.' It is named THE BHARK-STJCKER. Echeneis naucrates, and differs from the related remora (q.v. ) in its more slender form, more elongated sueking-disk, and the fact that the body is ornamented by a broad, dark, white-edged stripe on each side. This species is very common in the tropics, where, few large fish escape them. They re.iiUly take a hook, and are good to eat. SHABON, shar'on (Heb. sharSn, probably plain). The broad and imeven plain lying be- tween the hills of Palestine and the Mediterra- nean and extending from Caesarea to Joppa. It 56 SHARP. was once the site of extensive forests, which ex- isted as late as the time of the Crusades and some remains of which still survive. The Greek version (Isa. Ixv. 10) calls it 'the forest.' It was prized for its pasturage (I. Cliron. xxvii. 29, Isa. Ixv. 10), and ranked with C'armel and Lebanon for the luxuriance of its vegetation (Isa. xxxv. 2). Its wealth of flowers, for which it is still noted, is celebrated in 'the rose of Sharon' ( Song of Songs, ii. I ), which is now understood to be a narcissus or crocus. Consult George Adam Smith, Historical Geography of the Holy Land (New York, 1901). SHARON. A borough in Mercer County, Pa., 75 miles northwest of Pittsburg, on the Shenango River, and on the Pennsylvania, the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern, and other railroads (Map: Pennsylvania, A 2). It has the Hall Institute, a secondary school under Baptist control. There is a considerable trade in coal, which is extensively mined in the vicinity, and Sharon is also noted for its steel and iron inter- ests. There are rolling mills, boiler and machine shops, furnaces, flour mills, and manufactories of nails, horse collars, spokes, chains, stoves, and lumber products. Sharon was settled in 1795 and was incorporate'd as a borough in 1841. Population, in 1890, 7459; in 1900, 8916. SHARP (AS. scearp, OHG. scarf, Ger. scharf, sharp; connected with AS. screpan, to scrape). A sign (8) in music, which, when prefixed to a note, elevates it by a chromatic semitone. If the note occurs again within the same bar it is again played sharp, unless it is preceded by a natural sign. When the original tone is to be played in the following bar, it is customary to mark it with a natural sign. A double sharp (JJ) raises the pitch of a note by two chromatic semitones. SHARP, Abraham (1651-1742). An English astronomer and mechanist, born at Little Hor- ton, near Bradford. He first became a business ajiprentice, but gave this up and moved to Liver- pool, where he devoted himself to mathematics. From 1676 to 1690 he was employed in Greenwich Observatory, where he assisted in mounting in- struments, perfecting hand-graduation, and con- structed a mural circle. After 1690 he taught mathematics for some time in London, but later retired to Little Horton. calculating and making astronomical instruments and models, for which he became famous. He was joint publisher with Grosthwait of the British Catalogue. He wrote Geometry I in proved (1717). SHARP, Becky. The principal character in Thackeray's Vanity Fair, an attractive but thor- oughly unscrupulous adventuress, who, by her cleverness and boldness, worked her way up in the world. She married Rawdon Crawlej', and, after the scandal with Lord Steyne, lived on the Con- tinent and became .Joseph Sedley's mistress. SHARP, Dallas Lore (1870—). An Ameri- can author and naturalist, born at Haleyville, Cumberland County, N, J, He graduated at Brown University in 1895, and at the Boston Uni- versity School of Theology' in 1899. As a writer he became known through his charming magazine articles on native birds and small mammals, and his book. Wild Life Vear Home (1901), which treats these subjects with truthfulness, sympa- thetic insight, and literary felicity. SHARP, Granville (1735-I8I3). An Eng- lish pliiianthropist, author, and negro emancipa-