Corpus

THE BOOK OF THE PEARL. THE HISTORY, ART, SCIENCE, AND INDUSTRY OF THE QUEEN OF GEMS BY GEORGE FREDERICK KUNZ, A.M., Ph.D. AND CHARLES HUGH STEVENSON, LL.M., D.C.L. Orient pearls fit for a queen Will I give thy love to win, And a shell to keep them in. —_The Faithful Shepherdess (1611)_ NEW YORK THE CENTURY CO. 1908
TO MARGARET, THE PEARL AS A SLIGHT MARK OF APPRECIATION BY THE AUTHORS OF HER FATHER’S GENEROUS ENCOURAGEMENT OF SCIENCE, ART, ENGINEERING, TECHNOLOGY, AND LITERATURE

INTRODUCTION
The preparation of this book has been a joint labor during the spare
moments of the two authors, whose time has been occupied with subjects
to which pearls are not wholly foreign—one as a gem expert, and the
other in the fisheries branch of the American government. But for the
views and expressions contained herein, they alone are personally
responsible, and do not represent or speak for any interest whatever.
For many years the writers have collected data on the subject of pearls,
and have accumulated all the obtainable literature, not only the easily
procurable books, but likewise manuscripts, copies of rare volumes,
original edicts, and legislative enactments, thousands of newspaper
clippings, and interesting illustrations, many of them unique, making
probably the largest single collection of data in existence on this
particular subject. It was deemed advisable to present the results of
these studies and observations in one harmonious volume, rather than in
two different publications. This publication is not a pioneer in an
untrodden field. As may be seen from the appended bibliography, during
the last two thousand years hundreds of persons have discussed
pearls—mystically, historically, poetically, and learnedly. Among the
older writers who stand out with special prominence in their respective
periods are the encyclopedist Pliny, in the first century A.D.; Oviedo
and Peter Martyr of the sixteenth century; the physician Anselmus De
Boot, and that observant traveler and prince of jewelers, Tavernier, in
the seventeenth century. It would be difficult to do justice to the many
writers of the nineteenth century and of the present time; but probably
most attention has been attracted by the writings of Hessling and Möbius
of Germany; Kelaart, Streeter, Herdman, and Hornell of Great Britain;
Filippi of Italy, and Seurat and Dubois of France. While the book is a
joint work in the sense that each writer has contributed material to all
of the chapters and has critically examined and approved the entire
work, the senior author has more closely applied himself to the latter
half of the text, covering antiquity values, commerce, wearing
manipulation, treatment, famous collections, aboriginal use, and the
illustrations, while the junior author has attended to the earlier half
of the book, with reference to history, origin, sources, fisheries,
culture, mystical properties, and the literature of the pearl.

The senior author has had exceptionally favorable opportunities to
examine the precious objects contained in the various imperial and royal
treasuries. Through the courtesy of the late Count Sipuigine, Court
Chamberlain, and of the late General Philamanoff, custodian of the
Ourejena Palata, he was permitted to critically examine the Russian
crown jewels in the Summer Palace on the Neva, and in the Palata in the
Kremlin, at Moscow, he examined the crowns and jewels of all the early
czars. Through the courtesy of Baron von Theile, he was permitted to
inspect carefully and in detail the wonderful jewels of the Austrian
crown, which are beautifully ordered and arranged. The English and Saxon
crown jewels were also seen under favorable conditions which permitted
detailed examination, and the jewel collections of almost all the
principal museums of Europe and America were carefully studied. As
regards the literature of the subject, the senior author has gathered
together the largest known existing collection of works treating of
pearls and precious stones.

In covering so comprehensive a subject, many obligations have been
incurred from individuals and officials, to whose courtesy and
assistance is due much of the interest of this work. To list all of
these is impossible, yet it would be ungrateful not to note the
following: her Majesty Queen Margherita of Italy; his Royal Highness the
Gaikwar of Baroda; to H. R. H. le Prince Ruprecht of Bavaria, of Munich;
to the late Prince Sipuigine, then chamberlain of the Russian Imperial
Appanages; to Sir Edward Robert Pearce Edgcumbe for data relative to
fisheries of East Africa; Dr. H. C. Bumpus, director of the American
Museum of Natural History, New York, for many courtesies in regard to
materials and illustrations; Sir Caspar Purdon Clarke, director, Dr.
Edward Robinson, assistant director, J. H. Buck, curator of Metal-work,
and A. G. St. M. D’Hervilly, assistant curator of Paintings, all of the
Metropolitan Museum of Art, for numerous courtesies; Archer M.
Huntington, founder of the Hispanic Society and Museum in New York City;
Dr. Bashford Dean, Prof. Friedrich Hirth, Chinese professor, Dr.
Berthold Laufer, Prof. A. V. Williams Jackson, professor of Indo-Iranian
languages, and Prof. M. H. Saville, all of Columbia University, New York
City; J. Pierpont Morgan, for the right to publish the illustration of
Ashburnham missal; Dr. W. Hayes Ward, Assyriologist; Dr. Charles S.
Braddock, formerly Chief of Medical Inspection for the King of Siam;
Robert Hoe, for the two plates of unique Persian illustrations from his
manuscripts; Edmund Russell, for East Indian material; F. Cunliffe-Owen,
the author of diplomatic subjects; Ten Broeck Morse; Walter Joslyn;
Stansbury Hagar; Henri de Morgan, explorer; Dr. Nathaniel L. Britton,
director New York Botanical Garden, J. H. Lawles, and Ludwig Stross, for
many courtesies; Miss M. de Barril and Miss Belle da Costa Greene, all
of New York; Dr. Stewart W. Culin, of the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and
Sciences; the Contessa Casa Cortez, for Peruvian information, of
Brooklyn; Dr. Charles B. Davenport, of the Carnegie Institution
Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor; Arthur C. Parker, archæologist, State
Museum, Albany, N. Y.; A. S. Clark, antiquarian, Peekskill, N. Y.; Dr.
Richard Rathbun, assistant secretary, Dr. Cyrus Adler, curator, Dr. Otis
S. Mason, curator of Ethnology, all of the Smithsonian Institution; Dr.
S. W. Stratton, chief of the Bureau of Standards; Miss E. R. Scidmore;
Gilbert H. Grosvenor, editor, National Geographic Magazine; Hon. William
Eleroy Curtis; his Excellency Enrique C. Creel, Embajador de Mexico, and
James T. Archbold, war correspondent, all of Washington, D. C.; Prof. W.
P. Wilson, director Philadelphia Commercial Museum, Clarence B. Moore,
Academy of Natural Sciences, and T. Louis Comparette, curator Numismatic
Collection, U. S. Mint, all of Philadelphia; Prof. Henry Montgomery,
University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada; Dr. Warren K. Moorehead,
archæologist, Andover, Mass.; H. D. Story, and Theo. M. Davis, curators
of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Mass.; Miss Mathilde Laigle
of Wellesley College; Prof. F. W. Putnam and Alfred M. Tozzer, Peabody
Museum of Archæology, Cambridge, Mass.; Prof. Edward S. Morse, Salem,
Mass.; Dr. Hiram Bingham, Yale University; W. E. Frost, Providence, R.
I.; Dr. Edgar J. Banks, University of Chicago, Chicago, Ill.; Hon. F. J.
V. Skiff, director, for several photographs of museum material, and Dr.
George A. Dorsey, curator of Anthropology of the Field Columbian Museum;
Dr. A. R. Crook, curator of the Museum of Natural History, Springfield,
Ill.; Richard Hermann, director Hermann Museum, Dubuque, Ia.; Charles
Russell Orcutt, San Diego, Cal.; David I. Bushnell, St. Louis, Mo.; Dr.
J. H. Stanton, Prairie du Chien, Wis.; Joe Gassett, Clinton, Tenn.;
Prof. Wm. C. Mills, University of Ohio, Columbus, O., for material
covering the new Ohio mound discoveries; Mrs. Marie Robinson Wright,
author and South American traveler, New York City; Miss Helen Woolley of
Judson College, Alabama; Prof. Dr. Eugene Hussak, Rio Janeiro; Hon.
George E. Anderson, Consul General of the United States, Rio de Janeiro,
Brazil; Señor L. E. Bonilla, Consul General of Colombia; Madam Zelia
Nuttall, Coyoacan, Mexico; Prof. Waldstein, University of Cambridge,
Cambridge, England; Dr. O. F. Bell, assistant keeper Ashmolean Museum,
Oxford; Dr. Stephen W. Bushell, Chinese authority; Lady Christopher
Johnston, Dr. William F. Petrie, University College, Dr. Charles
Hercules Read, director of the department of Archæology, British Museum,
for illustrations and data; Cyril Davenport, antiquarian writer of the
British Museum, for the illustration of the English crown, and crown
information; to Sir John Evans, late veteran archæologist and writer;
Thomas Tyrer, chemist, W. Talbot Ready, A. W. Feaveryear, E. Alfred
Jones, author on metal-work, Edwin W. Streeter, all of London, England;
Prof. H. P. Blackmore, curator Blackmore Museum, Salisbury, England; Dr.
Thos. Gann, Harrogate, England; Prof. Arthur E. Shipley, Cambridge,
England; Dr. Wilfred Grenfell, Labrador; T. W. Lyster, librarian of the
National Library of Ireland, Prof. R. F. Scharff, director of the
National Museum of Ireland, Dublin, W. Forbes Hourie, all of Ireland;
Mr. James Hornell, Dr. W. A. Herdmann, all on information concerning the
Ceylon fisheries; Prof. James M. Milne, Belfast, Ireland; David
MacGregor, Perth, Scotland; Joseph Baer & Co., Frankfurt, Germany; Herrn
C. W. Kesseller, Idar, Germany; Prof. Dr. Carl Sapper, University of
Tübingen, Germany; Geheimrath Prof. Dr. Max Bauer, University of
Marburg, Germany; Herrn Prof. Dr. Hofer, director Biologische
Versuchsstation, Munich; Herrn Ernst Gideon Bek, Pforzheim, Germany;
Hon. Albert H. Michelsen, American Consul at Turin; Sabbatino De
Angelis, of Naples, Italy; Mons. Alphonse Falco, of the Chambre
Syndicale Pierres Précieuses of Paris; Prof. A. Lacroix, Musée Histoire
Naturale, Paris; Mons. Georges Pellisier, Paris; Sr. Gaston J. Vives, La
Paz, Mexico; Prof. R. Dubois, Faculté des Sciences, University of Lyons,
France; Prof. P. Candias, director of the National Museum, Athens,
Greece; Prof. G. A. F. Molengraaff, University of Delft, Holland; the
late Prof. Dr. Furtwängler of Munich; Dr. Otto Leiner, Custus
Landes-Museum at Constanz, Baden; Herrn Dr. A. B. Meyer, Herrn Carl
Marfels, Berlin; Prof. Dr. H. Schumacher, University of Bonn; Geheimrath
C. F. Hintze, Breslau; Herrn R. Friedlaender & Sohn, Berlin; Herrn
Reg.-Rath Dr. W. von Seidlitz, Dresden; Dr. R. Jacobi, director König
Zoologichen Museum, Dresden, Germany; his Excellency Dr. Szalaz,
director Hungarian National Museum; Dr. S. Radischi, director National
Industrial Museum of Budapest; and to Herrn A. B. Bachrach, Budapest,
Hungary; Frau Melanie Glazer, of Prague, and Herrn V. Fric, Prague,
Bohemia; Herrn Prof. Dr. F. Heger, Custus Imperial Archæological
Collection, Vienna; Herrn H. von Willer and Herrn Max Zirner, of Vienna;
Herrn Leopold Weininger, the artisan goldsmith of Austria, for many
courtesies; Prof. W. Vernadskij, University of Moscow; Mons. C. Faberje,
Joaillier de la Cour, St. Petersburg, Russia; his Excellency Baron P.
Meyerdorff, assistant director, Musée des Antiques, Ermitage Impériale,
St. Petersburg, for important data and illustrations; his Excellency N.
J. Moore, Premier, Western Australia; Dr. K. Van Dort, engineer of
Bankok, Siam; Dr. J. Henry Burkill, of the India Museum, Calcutta,
India; Alphaeus E. Williams, manager of the De Beers Mine, Kimberley;
Capt. E. L. Steever, District Governor of Jolo, Philippine Islands; Dr.
T. Nishikawa, Zoölogical Institute; K. Mikimoto, both of Tokio, Japan;
Dr. S. M. Zwemer of Bahrein, Persian Gulf; Mr. Hugh Millman of Thursday
Island, Australia; Julius D. Dreher, American Consul at Tahiti, Society
Islands; and not least, by any means, the uniform promptness and
completeness with which the officials of the British Colonial Service
have responded to the many inquiries which the writers have addressed to
them.
THE AUTHORS.
September, 1908.

I PEARLS AMONG THE ANCIENTS
The richest merchandise of all, and the most soveraigne commoditie throughout the whole world, are these pearles. PLINY, _Historia naturalis_.
_Lib._ IX, c. 35.

Perfected by nature and requiring no art to enhance their beauty, pearls
were naturally the earliest gems known to prehistoric man. Probably the
members of some fish-eating tribe—maybe of the coast of India or
bordering an Asiatic river—while opening mollusks for food, were
attracted by their luster. And as man’s estimation of beauty developed,
he found in them the means of satisfying that fondness for personal
decoration so characteristic of half-naked savages, which has its
counterpart amid the wealth and fashion of the present day.

Pearls seem to be peculiarly suggestive of oriental luxury and
magnificence. It is in the East that they have been especially loved,
enhancing the charms of Asiatic beauty and adding splendor to barbaric
courts celebrated for their display of costume. From their possession of
the rich pearl resources it is natural that the people of India and of
Persia should have early found beauty and value in these jewels, and
should have been among the first to collect them in large quantities.
And no oriental divinity, no object of veneration has been without this
ornament; no poetical production has lacked this symbol of purity and
chastity.

In a personal memorandum, Dr. A. V. Williams Jackson, professor of
Indo-Iranian languages in Columbia University, states that it is
generally supposed that the Vedas, the oldest sacred books of the
Brahmans, contain several allusions to pearl decorations a millennium or
more before the Christian era, as the word _krisana_ and its
derivatives—which occur a half dozen times in the Rigveda, the oldest of
the Vedas—are generally translated as signifying “pearl.” Even if this
interpretation of the term be called into question on the ground that
the Hindus of the Panjab were not well acquainted with the sea, there
can be little or no doubt that the Atharvaveda, at least five hundred
years before the Christian era, alludes to an amulet made of pearls and
used as a sort of talisman in a hymn[1] of magic formulas.

Those two great epics of ancient India, the Ramayana and the
Mahabharata, refer to pearls. The Ramayana speaks of a necklace of
twenty-seven pearls, and has pearl drillers to accompany a great
military expedition.[2] An old myth recounts the offerings made by the
elements as gifts worthy of the deity: the air offered the rainbow, the
fire a meteor, the earth a ruby, and the sea a pearl. The rainbow formed
a halo about the god, the meteor served as a lamp, the ruby decorated
the forehead, and the pearl was worn upon the heart.

The literature of Hinduism frequently associates the pearl with Krishna,
the eighth avatar or incarnation of Vishnu, the most popular god of
Hindu worship. One legend credits its discovery to the adorable Krishna,
who drew it from the depths of the sea to adorn his daughter Pandaïa on
her nuptial day. Another version makes the pearl a trophy of the victory
of Krishna over the monster Pankagna, and it was used by the victor as a
decoration for his bride.

In the classic period of Sanskrit literature, about the first century of
the Christian era, there were abundant references to pearls, generally
called _mukta_ (literally “the pure”); and there are dozens of words for
pearl necklaces, circlets, strings, and ornamental festoons,
particularly in the dramas of Kalidasa—the Hindu Shakspere, who lived
about the third century A.D.—and of his successors.

In the Mahavansa and the Dipavansa, the ancient chronicle histories of
Ceylon in the Pali language, are several early Cingalese records of
pearl production and estimation.[3] The Mahavansa lists pearls among the
native products sent from Ceylon about 550 B.C., King Wijayo sending his
father-in-law gifts of pearls and chanks to the value of two lacs of
rupees; and notes that about 300 B.C., several varieties of Ceylon
pearls were carried as presents by an embassy to India.

In the ancient civilization of China, pearls were likewise esteemed;
this is evidenced by the frequent mention of them in traditional
history, their employment in the veneration of idols, and as tribute by
foreign princes to the emperor. One of the very earliest of books, the
Shu King (dating from about 2350–625 B.C.), notes that, in the
twenty-third century B.C., Yü received as tribute oyster pearls from the
river Hwai, and from the province of King Kau he received “strings of
pearls that were not quite round.”[4] That ancient Chinese dictionary,
the Nh’ya, originating thirty centuries ago, speaks of them as precious
jewels found in the province of Shen-si on the western frontier.

Many fantastic theories regarding pearls are to be found in ancient
Chinese literature. Some writers credited them as originating in the
brain of the fabled dragon; others noted that they were especially
abundant during the reign of illustrious emperors, and they were used as
amulets and charms against fire and other disasters. Curious allusions
were made to pearls so brilliant that they were visible at a distance of
nearly a thousand yards, or that rice could be cooked by the light from
them. And one found about the beginning of the Christian era, near
Yangchow-fu, in the province of Kiang-su, was reported so lustrous as to
be visible in the dark at a distance of three miles.

In Persia, the popularity of pearls seems to date from a very early
period. Professor Jackson states that if they are not mentioned in the
extant fragments of the ancient Zoroastrian literature, the Avesta and
the Pahlavi, or by the Middle Persian books from the seventh century
B.C. to the ninth century A.D., it is probably a mere accident, due to
the character of the work or to the fragmentary condition of the
literature; for pearls were well known during that entire period, and
seem to be indicated in extant sculptures. The coin and the gem
portraits of Persian queens commonly show ear-pendants of these. The
remains of a magnificent necklace of pearls and other gems were recently
found by J. de Morgan in the sarcophagus of an Achæmenid princess
exhumed at Susa or Shushan, the winter residence of the kings of Persia.
This necklace, perhaps the most ancient pearl ornament still in
existence, dates certainly from not later than the fourth century B.C.,
and is now preserved in the Persian Gallery of the Louvre.[5] Even if we
had no other evidence, it would be natural to assume that the knowledge
of pearls was as wide-spread among the Iranians in antiquity as it was
among the Hindus, since the Persian Gulf, like the Indian Ocean, has
been famous for its fisheries from ancient times.

In the ruins of Babylon no pearls have been found; indeed, it would be
surprising if they could survive for so many ages in the relatively
moist soil which contains much saltpeter. Inlays of mother-of-pearl and
decorations of this material have been secured from the ruins of
Bismaya, which Dr. Edgar J. Banks refers to about 4500 B.C.

There is likewise little evidence that pearls were extensively employed
by the ancient Assyrians, notwithstanding that excavations at Nineveh
and Nimrud have furnished much information regarding their ornaments;
and the collars, bracelets, sword-hilts, etc., wrought in gold and
ornamented with gems, show that the jewelers’ art had made much
progress. This is not wholly trustworthy as determining the relative
abundance; for being of organic or non-mineral origin, pearls would not
have survived the burial for thousands of years so well as the crystal
gems. An inscription on the Nineveh Obelisk, which states, according to
Sir Henry Rawlinson, that in the ninth year of his reign Temenbar
received, as “tribute of the kings of the Chaldees, gold, silver, gems,
and pearls,”[6] shows that the sea-born gems were highly valued there.

The mother-of-pearl shell was in use as an ornament in ancient Egypt
certainly as early as the sixth dynasty (_circa_ 3200 B.C.), the period
of the Tanis Sphinx. In a recent letter from Luxor, where he is studying
the ruins of ancient Thebes, Dr. James T. Dennis states that he has
found several of these shells bearing cartouches of that period; and in
the “pan-bearing graves” of the twelfth dynasty (2500 B.C.), the shell
occurred not only complete, but cut in roughly circular or oblong
angular blocks and strung on chains with beads of carnelian, pottery,
etc.

So far as can be determined from the representations of ancient Egyptian
costumes, pearls do not seem to have been employed to any great extent
in their decoration. The necklaces, earrings, and other jewels found in
the tombs, which are composed largely of gold set with crystal gems,
contain the remains of a few pearls, but give no indication that they
were numerous. In fact, no evidence exists that they were used
extensively before the Persian conquest in the fifth century B.C.; and
probably it was not until the time of the Ptolemies that there began the
lavish abundance which characterized the court of Alexandria at the
height of her power.

The authorities differ in regard to the mention of pearls in ancient
Hebrew literature; although in the Authorized Version of the Old
Testament, this significance has been given to the word _gabîsh_ in Job
xxviii. 18, where the value of wisdom is contrasted with that of
_gabîsh_. Some writers claim that this word refers to rock crystal.
Other authorities are of the opinion that the word _peninim_ in Lam. iv.
7, which has been translated as “rubies,” actually signifies pearls. In
Gen. ii. 12, Prof. Paul Haupt has proposed to render _shoham_ stones by
pearls, since the Hebrew word translated “onyx,” if connected with the
Assyrian _sându_, might mean “the gray gem.” It does not appear that
they entered into the decorations of the Tabernacle and the Temple, or
were largely employed in the paraphernalia of the synagogue.

In the New Testament, however, there are numerous references to the
estimation in which pearls were held. In his teachings, Christ
repeatedly referred to them as typifying something most precious: “The
kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:
who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that
he had, and bought it” (Matt. xiii. 45, 46); and in “casting pearls
before swine,” in that great Sermon on the Mount (Matt. vii. 6). In
picturing the glories of the Heavenly City, St. John made the twelve
gates of pearls (Rev. xxi. 21); and what could better serve as portals
through the walls of precious stones?

In the Talmud, pearls are frequently mentioned, and usually as
signifying something beautiful or very costly, as “a pearl that is worth
thousands of zuzim” (Baba Batra, 146a); a “pearl that has no price”
(Yerushalmi, ix. 12d); the coats which God made for Adam and Eve were
“as beautiful as pearls” (Gen. R. xx. 12), and the manna was “as white
as a pearl” (Yoma, 75a). Their purchase formed one of the exceptions to
the law of _Ona’ah_ (overcharge), for the reason that two matched pearls
greatly exceeded the value of each one separately (Baba Mezi’a, iv. 8).

The high value attached to pearls by the ancient Hebrews is illustrated
by a beautiful Rabbinical story in which only one object in nature is
ranked above them. On approaching Egypt, Abraham hid Sarah in a chest,
that foreign eyes might not behold her beauty. When he reached the place
for paying custom dues, the collectors said, “Pay us the custom”; and he
replied, “I will pay your custom.” They said to him, “Thou carriest
clothes”; and he stated, “I will pay for clothes.” Then they said to
him, “Thou carriest gold”; and he answered, “I will pay for gold.” On
this they said to him, “Surely thou bearest the finest silk”; and he
replied, “I will pay custom for the finest silk.” Then said they, “Truly
it must be pearls that thou takest with thee”; and he answered, “I will
pay for pearls.” Seeing that they could name nothing of value for which
the patriarch was not willing to pay custom, they said, “It cannot be
but that thou open the box and let us see what is within.” So the chest
was opened, and the land was illumined by the luster of Sarah’s
beauty.[7]

The love which the early Arabs bore to pearls is evidenced by the
references to them in the Koran, and especially the figurative
description given of Paradise. The stones are pearls and jacinths; the
fruits of the trees are pearls and emeralds; and each person admitted to
the delights of the celestial kingdom is provided with a tent of pearls,
jacinths and emeralds; is crowned with pearls of incomparable luster,
and is attended by beautiful maidens resembling hidden pearls.[8]

The estimation of pearls among the art-loving Greeks may be traced to
the time of Homer, who appears to have alluded to them under the name
τρίγληνα (triple drops or beads) in his description of Juno; in the
Iliad, XIV, 183:
In three bright drops,
Her glittering gems suspended from her ears.
and in the Odyssey, XVIII, 298:
Earrings bright
With triple drops that cast a trembling light.

Classical designs of Juno usually show the three pear-shaped pearls
pendent from her ears. The ancient Greeks probably obtained their pearls
from the East through the medium of Phenician traders, and a survival of
the word τρίγληνα seems to exist in the Welsh _glain_ (bead), the name
having been carried to Britain by the same traders, who exchanged
textiles, glass beads, etc., for tin and salt.

The Persian wars in the fifth century B.C., doubtless extended the
acquaintance which the Greeks had with pearls, as well as with other
oriental products, and increased their popularity. One of the earliest
of the Greek writers to mention pearls specifically appears to have been
Theophrastus (372–287 B.C.), the disciple and successor of Aristotle,
who referred to them under the name μαργαρίτης (_margarites_), probably
derived from some oriental word like the Sanskrit _maracata_ or the
Persian _mirwareed_. He stated that pearls were produced by shell-fish
resembling the _pinna_, only smaller, and were used in making necklaces
of great value. In Pliny’s “Historia naturalis,” that great storehouse
of classical learning, reference is made to many other writers—mostly
Greeks—who treated of gems; but virtually all of these writings have
disappeared, except fragments from Theophrastus, Chares of Mytilene, and
Isidorus of Charace.

From Greece admiration for pearls quickly extended to Rome, where they
were known under the Greek word _margaritæ_. However, a more common name
for this gem in Rome was _unio_, which Pliny explained by saying that
each pearl was unique and unlike any other one. The conclusion of the
historian Ammianus Marcellinus (330–395 A.D.), that it was because each
one was found singly in a shell,[9] seems scarcely correct. Claude de
Saumaise, the French classical scholar, thought that the common name for
an onion was transferred to the pearl, owing to its laminated
construction.[10] According to Pliny, the Romans used the word _unio_ to
distinguish a large perfect pearl from the smaller and less attractive
ones, which were called _margaritæ_.[11]

It was not until the Mithridatic Wars (88–63 B.C.) and the conquests by
Pompey that pearls were very abundant and popular in Rome, the great
treasures of the East enriching the victorious army and through it the
aristocracy of the republic. In those greatest spectacular functions the
world has ever known—the triumphal processions of the conquering
Romans—pearls had a prominent part. Pliny records that in great Pompey’s
triumphal procession in 61 B.C. were borne thirty-three crowns of pearls
and numerous pearl ornaments, including a portrait of the victor, and a
shrine dedicated to the muses, adorned with the same gems.[12]

The luxuries of Mithridates, the treasures of Alexandria, the riches of
the Orient were poured into the lap of victory-fattened Rome. From that
time the pearl reigned supreme, not only in the enormous prices given
for single specimens, but also in the great abundance in possession of
the degenerate descendants of the victorious Romans. The interior of the
temple of Venus was decorated with pearls. The dress of the wealthy was
so pearl-bedecked that Pliny exclaimed in irony: “It is not sufficient
for them to wear pearls, but they must trample and walk over them”;[13]
and the women wore pearls even in the still hours of the night, so that
in their sleep they might be conscious of possessing the beautiful
gems.[14]

It is related that the voluptuous Caligula (12–41 A.D.)—he who raised
his favorite horse Incitatus to the consulship—decorated that horse with
a pearl necklace, and that he himself wore slippers embroidered with
pearls; and the tyrannical Nero (37–68 A.D.), not content with having
his scepter and throne of pearls, provided the actors in his theater
with masks and scepters decorated with them. Thus wrote the observant
Philo, the envoy of the Jews to the Emperor Caligula: “The couches upon
which the Romans recline at their repasts shine with gold and pearls;
they are splendid with purple coverings interwoven with pearls and
gold.”

Yet not all the men of Rome were enthusiastic over the beautiful “gems
of the sea, which resemble milk and snow,” as the poet Manlius called
them. Even then, as now, there were some faultfinders. The immortal
Cæsar interdicted their use by women beneath a certain rank; Martial and
Tibullus inveighed against them; the witty Horace directed his stinging
shafts of satire against the extravagance. Referring to a woman named
Gellia, Martial wrote: “By no gods or goddesses does she swear, but by
her pearls. These she embraces and kisses. These she calls her brothers
and sisters. She loves them more dearly than her two sons. Should she by
some chance lose them, the miserable woman would not survive an
hour.”[15] Hear what stern old Seneca had to say: “Pearls offer
themselves to my view. Simply one for each ear? No! The lobes of our
ladies have attained a special capacity for supporting a great number.
Two pearls alongside of each other, with a third suspended above, now
form a single earring! The crazy fools seem to think that their husbands
are not sufficiently tormented unless they wear the value of an
inheritance in each ear!”[16]

The prices reported for some choice ones at that time seem fabulous. It
is recorded by Suetonius, that the Roman general, Vitellius, paid the
expenses of a military campaign with the proceeds of one pearl from his
mother’s ears: “_Atque ex aure matris detractum unionem pigneraverit ad
itineris impensas_.” In his “_Historia naturalis_,” Pliny says that in
the first century A.D., they ranked first in value among all precious
things,[17] and reports sixty million sestertii[18] as the value of the
two famous pearls—“the singular and only jewels of the world and even
nature’s wonder”—which Cleopatra wore at the celebrated banquet to Mark
Antony. And Suetonius[19] places at six million sestertii the value of
the one presented by Julius Cæsar as a tribute of love to Servilia, the
mother of Brutus, who thus wore
The spoils of nations in an ear,
Changed to the treasure of a shell.

Or, as St. Jerome expressed it in his “Vita Pauli Eremitæ”:
_Uno filo villarum insunt pretia._

We are told by Ælius Lampridius that an ambassador once brought to
Alexander Severus two remarkably large and heavy pearls for the empress.
The emperor offered them for sale, and as no purchaser was found, he had
them hung in the ears of the statue of Venus, saying: “If the empress
should have such pearls, she would give a bad example to the other
women, by wearing an ornament of so much value that no one could pay for
it.”

The word “margarita” was used symbolically to designate the most
cherished object; for instance, a favorite child. In an inscription
published by Fabretti, p. 44, No. 253, the word _margaritio_ has the
same significance. (Sex. Bruttidio juveni margaritioni carissimo, vixit
annis II mensibus VII, diebus XVIII.)[20]

While the ancient writers were familiar with the pearl itself, they knew
little of the fisheries, and related many curious stories which had come
to Athens and Rome. Pliny and Ælianus quoted from Megasthenes that the
pearl-oysters lived in communities like swarms of bees, and were
governed by one remarkable for its size and great age, and which was
wonderfully expert in keeping its subjects out of danger, and that the
fishermen endeavored first to catch this one, so that the others might
easily be secured. Procopius, one of the most entertaining of the old
Byzantine chroniclers, wrote of social relations between the
pearl-oysters and the sharks, and of methods of inducing the growth of
pearls.

The principal fisheries of antiquity were in the Persian Gulf, on the
coasts of Ceylon and India, and in the Red Sea. The pearls referred to
in ancient Chinese literature appear to have been taken from the rivers
and ponds of that country, while those in Cochin China and Japan seem to
have come from the adjoining seas. The pearls were distributed among the
nations in control of the fisheries, and from them, other people
received collections, either as presents, in conquest, or by way of
trade. History makes no mention of pearls having been obtained elsewhere
than in the Orient up to the time of Julius Cæsar, when small quantities
of inexpensive ones were collected in Britain by the invading Romans.
And in the first century A.D., Pliny states that small reddish pearls
were found about Italy and in the Bosphorus Straits near Constantinople.

A number of specimens of pearls of the artistic Greeks and of the
luxurious Romans are yet in existence, and some of these are in a fairly
good state of preservation. A notable and interesting example is a
superb Greek necklace of pearls and gold, referred to the third century
B.C., and now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Several
earrings now in that museum, in the Hermitage at St. Petersburg, the
British Museum, the Louvre in Paris, and in the Boston Museum of Fine
Arts, are shown in this book. Some of these may have decorated ears that
listened to the comedies of Aristophanes, the tragedies of Euripides,
the philosophies of Plato, or the oratory of Demosthenes. A number of
classic statues have the ears pierced for earrings, notably the Venus de
Medici now in the Tribuna of the Uffizi, Florence; and a magnificent
pair of half-pearls is said to have decorated the Venus of the Pantheon
in Rome.[21] Pearl grape earrings are shown on the artistic intaglio by
Aspasios, representing the bust of the Athene Parthenos of Phidias,
which has been in the Gemmen Münzen Cabinet at Vienna since 1669.

The beautiful Tyszkiewicz bronze statuette of Aphrodite was acquired in
1900 by the Boston Museum of Fine Arts, and has even yet a pearl in a
fairly good state of preservation suspended from each ear by a spiral
thread of gold which passes quite through the gem and also through the
lobe of the ear. This statuette has been described as “the most
beautiful bronze Venus known.”[22] Professor Froehner considers that it
belongs nearer to the period of Phidias (_circa_ 500–430 B.C.) than to
that of Praxiteles (_circa_ 400–336 B.C.); but Dr. Edward Robinson does
not concur in this opinion, and refers it to the Hellenic period
(_circa_ 330–146 B.C.).

However, considering the very large accumulations, relatively few pearls
of antiquity now remain, and none of these is of great ornamental value.
Those in archæological collections and art museums are more or less
decayed through the ravages of time and accident to which they have been
subjected. While coins, gold jewelry, crystal gems, etc., of ancient
civilizations are relatively numerous, the less durable pearls have not
survived the many centuries of pillage, waste, and burial in the earth.

A well-known instance of this decay is found in the Stilicho pearls,
which owe their prominence to the incident of their long burial. The
daughters of this famous Roman general, who were successively betrothed
to the Emperor Honorius, died in 407 A.D., and were buried with their
pearls and ornaments. In 1526, or more than eleven centuries afterward,
in excavating for an extension of St. Peter’s, the tomb was opened, and
the ornaments were found in fair condition, except the pearls, which
were as lusterless and dead as a wreath of last year’s flowers.

II MEDIEVAL AND MODERN HISTORY OF PEARLS

I’ll set thee in a shower of gold, and hail
Rich pearls upon thee.
_Antony and Cleopatra_, Act II, sc. 5.

The popularity of pearls in Rome has its counterpart in the Empire of
the East at Byzantium or Constantinople on its development in wealth and
luxury after becoming the capital of that empire in 330 A.D. Owing to
its control of the trade between Asia and Europe, and the influence of
oriental taste and fashion, enormous collections were made; and for
centuries after Rome had been pillaged, this capital was the focus of
all the arts, and pearls were the favorite ornaments. The famous mosaic
in the sanctuary of San Vitale at Ravenna, shows Justinian (483–565)
with his head covered with a jeweled cap, and the Empress Theodora
wearing a tiara encircled by three rows of pearls, and strings of pearls
depend therefrom almost to the waist. In many instances the decorations
of the emperors excelled even those of the most profligate of Roman
rulers. An examination of the coins, from those of Arcadius in 395 to
the last dribble of a long line of obscure rulers when the city was
captured and pillaged by Venetian and Latin adventurers in 1204, shows
in the form of diadems, collars, necklaces, etc., the great quantity of
pearls worn by them. The oldest existing crown in use at the present
time, the Hungarian crown of St. Stephen, which is radiant with pearls,
is of Byzantine workmanship.

Outside of Constantinople, the demand and fashion for pearls did not
cease with the downfall of the Roman Empire and the spoliation of Rome
in the fifth century. The treasures accumulated there, and the gems and
jewels, were carried away by the conquering Goths and scattered among
the great territorial lords of western and northern Europe.

In the ancient cities of Gaul, in Toulouse and Narbonne, the Ostrogoth
and the Visigoth kings collected enormous treasures. The citadel of
Carcassonne held magnificent spoils brought from the sacking of Rome in
410 by Alaric, king of the Ostrogoths, consisting in part of jewels from
the Temple, these having been carried to Rome after the spoliation of
Jerusalem in 70 A.D. Several beautiful objects of this and somewhat
later periods are yet in existence, notably the Visigothic crowns and
crosses, in the Musée de l’Hôtel de Cluny, Paris, the most beautiful of
which are probably the crown and the cross of Reccesvinthus.[23]

Even as the treasures of Rome were despoiled by the Ostrogoths and the
Visigoths, so, later, their collections were depleted by the military
operations of the Franks, when Narbonne was pillaged; when Toulouse was
sacked by Clovis, or Chlodowig, in 507; when the churches of Barcelona
and Toledo were despoiled by Childebert in 531 and 542; and by various
expeditions in succeeding years.

The military triumphs of the Franks placed them in the highest rank
among the peoples of Europe, in the sixth and seventh centuries, in the
possession of treasures of jewels which enriched their palaces and great
churches. And the taste which the triumphs of war had developed was
maintained by the trade carried on by the Jewish and Syrian merchants.
The inhabitants of Gaul were extremely fond of objects of art, of rich
costumes, and of personal decorations; and the courts of some of the
early kings rivaled in magnificence those of oriental monarchs.
Especially was this true during the reign of King Dagobert (628–638),
who competed in splendor with the rulers of Persia and India. His
skilful jeweler, Eligius (588–659), was raised to the bishopric of
Noyon, and eventually—under the name of St. Eloi—became one of the most
popular saints in Gaul. Under direction of this artistic bishop, the
ancient churches received shrines, vestments, and reliquaries superbly
decorated with pearls and other gems. Indeed, for several centuries
following the time of Eligius, the greatest treasures of jewels seem to
have been collected in the churches.

The use of gems in enriching regalia, vestments, and reliquaries in
Europe, advanced greatly during the reign of Charlemagne (768–814); and
princes and bishops competed with each other in the magnificence of
their gifts to the churches, sacrificing their laical jewels for the
sacred treasures. Few of the great ornaments of Charlemagne’s time are
now in existence in the original form. Doubtless the most remarkable
pieces are the sacred regalia of the great emperor, preserved among the
imperial treasures in Vienna.

An artistic use for pearls at that time was in the rich and elegant
bindings of the splendidly written missals and chronicles, finished in
the highest degree of excellence and at vast expense. An artist might
devote his whole life to completing a single manuscript, so great was
the detail and so exquisite the finish. Vasari states that Julio Clovio
devoted nine years to painting twenty-six miniatures in the Breviary of
the Virgin now in the royal library at Naples. The library at Rouen has
a large missal on which a monk of St. Andoen is said to have labored for
thirty years. These books were among the most valued possessions of the
churches, and their bindings were enriched with gold and pearls and
colored stones. The wealthy churches had many such volumes; Gregory of
Tours states that from Barcelona in 531 A.D. Childebert brought twenty
“_evangeliorum capsas_” of pure gold set with gems. Several of these
superbly bound volumes are yet in existence, in the Basilica of St. Mark
in Venice; in the treasury of the cathedral at Milan; among the imperial
Russian collections in the Ourejenaya Palata at Moscow, etc.; and they
furnish probably the most reliable examples of artistic jewel work of
the Dark Ages.

The most remarkable specimen of these books in America is doubtless the
Ashburnham manuscript of the Four Gospels, now owned by J. Pierpont
Morgan, Esq., which affords an interesting example of the jeweler’s art.
For many centuries it belonged to the Abbey of the Noble Canonesses,
founded, in 834, at Lindau, on Lake Constance. After an extended
examination, Mr. Alexander Nesbit concluded that the rich cover of the
manuscript was probably made between 896 and 899 by order of Emperor
Arnulf of the Carolingian dynasty. Most of the ninety-eight pearls
appear to be from fresh water, and probably all of them were obtained
from the rivers of Europe. This is one of the few remaining pieces of
the magnificent ecclesiastical jeweling of that period.

After the death of Charlemagne, internal dissensions, separations and
the division of the Empire into the nations of Europe, annihilated
commerce, oppressed the people, and impoverished the arts. In the ninth
century, the Normans pillaged many of the palaces and churches in
Angoulême, Tours, Orléans, Rouen, and Paris, and destroyed or carried
away large treasures. The tenth and the eleventh centuries were indeed
the Dark Ages in respect to the cultivation of the arts; yet even during
that period the churches of western Europe received many gems from
penitent and fear-stricken subjects. The heart of man, filled with the
love of God, laid its earthly treasure upon the altar in exchange for
heavenly consolation. Pious faith dedicated pearls to the glorification
of the ritual; altars, statues, and images of the saints, priestly
vestments, and sacred vessels, were surcharged with them. The great
museums and the imperial collections contain some beautiful and highly
venerated objects of this nature.

In the meantime pearls of small size and of fair luster had been
collected in the rivers of Scotland, Ireland, and France, the headwaters
of the Danube, and in the countries north thereof. In England, as noted
in the preceding chapter, they were obtained by Cæsar’s invading
legions, who carried many to Rome. Ancient coins indicate that pearls
formed the principal ornament of the simple crowns worn by the early
kings of Britain previous to Alfred the Great.

The river pearls were not so beautiful as oriental ones; but, owing to
the ease with which they were obtained, they were employed more
extensively and especially in ecclesiastical decorations, the principal
use for pearls from the eighth to the eleventh century. Apparently
authentic specimens of fresh-water pearls of an early period are the
four now in the coronation spoon of the English regalia, which is
attributed to the twelfth century.

From the most ancient times until the overthrow of the Roman Empire,
practically the only use for pearls was ornamental; but after the eighth
century there developed a new employment for these as well as for other
gems. Natural history was little studied in Europe from the ninth to the
fourteenth century, except for the effect which its subjects had in
medicine and magic, which were closely allied. Largely through Arabic
influence, the practice of medicine had developed into administering
most whimsical remedies, among which gems, and especially pearls, played
a prominent part, and belief in the influence of these was as strong as
in that of the heavenly bodies. For this application, large demands had
arisen for pearls, which seem to have been prescribed for nearly every
ill to which the flesh was heir. On account of their cheapness, the
small ones—seed-pearls—were used principally; though larger ones were
preferred by persons who could afford them. While many of these
so-called medicinal pearls were obtained from the Orient, most of them
were secured from the home streams in the north of Europe and in the
British Isles.

After the decadence of Roman power in the East, the rulers of India and
Persia, through their control of the fisheries, again accumulated
enormous quantities of pearls. All of the early travelers to those
countries were astonished at the lavish display of these gems in
decorative costume.

The manuscript of Renaudot’s two Mohammedans, who visited India and
China in the ninth century, notes that the kings of the Indies were rich
in ornaments, “yet pearls are what they most esteem, and their value
surpasses that of all other jewels; they hoard them up in their
treasures with their most precious things. The grandees of the court,
the great officers and captains, wear the like jewels in their
collars.”[24]

Inventories of some of the oriental collections of later times seem to
be extravagant fiction rather than veritable history. In that
interesting book dictated in a Genoese prison to Rusticiano da Pisa,
accounts are given by Marco Polo of great treasures seen by the first
Europeans to penetrate into China. He describes the king of Malabar as
wearing suspended about his neck a string of 104 large pearls and rubies
of great value, which he used as a rosary. Likewise on his legs were
anklets and on his toes were rings, all thickly set with costly pearls,
the whole “worth more than a city’s ransom. And ’tis no wonder he hath
great store of such gear; for they are found in his kingdom. No one is
permitted to remove therefrom a pearl weighing more than half a
_saggio_. The king desires to reserve all such to himself, and so the
quantity he has is almost incredible.”[25]

Later travelers give wonderful descriptions of this excessive passion
for pearls. Literature is full of this appreciation, and of the part
which these gems played in the affairs of the Orientals. Who has not
dwelt with delight upon those imperishable legends such as are embodied
in the Arabian Nights, of the pearl voyages by Sindbad the Sailor, of
the wonderful treasure chests, and of the superb necklaces adorning the
beautiful black-eyed women!

The returning Crusaders in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, and the
development of the knightly orders, had much to do with spreading
through Europe a fondness for pearls in personal decoration. Those who,
like Chaucer’s knight, had been with Peter, King of Cyprus, at the
capture and plunder when “Alexandria was won,” returned to their homes
with riches of pearls and gold and precious stones. And learning much
relative to decorative art from Moorish craftsmen, the jewelers of
western Europe set these in designs not always crude and ineffective.

Although they were well known and valued, pearls do not seem to have
been much used in England before the twelfth century, as the
Anglo-Saxons were not an especially art-loving people. The word itself
is of foreign derivation and occurs in a similar form in all modern
languages, both Romance and Teutonic; _perle_, French and German;
_perla_, Italian, Portuguese, Provençal, Spanish, and Swedish; _paarl_,
Danish and Dutch. Its origin is doubtful. Some philologists consider it
Teutonic and the diminutive of _beere_, a berry; Claude de Saumaise
derives it from _pirula_, the diminutive of _pirum_, a sphere; while
Diez and many others refer it to _pira_ or to the medieval Latin
_pirula_, in allusion to the pear shape frequently assumed by the
pearl.[26]

The word pearl seems to have come into general use in the English
language about the fourteenth century. In Wyclif’s translation of the
Scriptures (about 1360), he commonly used the word _margarite_ or
_margaritis_, whereas Tyndale’s translation (1526) in similar places
used the word _perle_. Tyndale translated Matt. xiii. 46: “When he had
founde one precious pearle”; Wyclif used “oo preciouse margarite.” Also
in Matt. vii. 6, Tyndale wrote, “Nether caste ye youre pearles before
swyne”; yet Wyclif used “margaritis,” although twenty years later he
expressed it “putten precious perlis to hoggis.” Langland’s Piers
Plowman (1362), XI, 9, wrote this: “_Noli mittere_ Margeri perles Among
hogges.” The oldest English version of Mandeville’s Travels, written
about 1400, contained the expression: “The fyn Perl congeles and wexes
gret of the dew of hevene”; but in 1447, Bokenham’s “Seyntys” stated: “A
margerye perle aftyr the phylosophyr Growyth on a shelle of lytyl
pryhs”; and Knight de la Tour (about 1450) stated: “The sowle is the
precious marguarite unto God.”

The word is given “perle” in the earliest manuscripts of those old epic
poems of the fourteenth century, “Pearl” and “Cleanness,” which have
caused so much learned theological discussion and which testify to the
great love and esteem in which the gem was held. The first stanza of
“Pearl” we quote from Gollancz’s rendition:

Pearl! fair enow for princes’ pleasance,
so deftly set in gold so pure,—
from orient lands I durst avouch,
ne’er saw I a gem its peer,—
so round, so comely-shaped withal,
so small, with sides so smooth,—
where’er I judged of radiant gems,
I placed my pearl supreme.[27]

The fourteenth-century manuscript in the British Museum gives this as
follows:

Perle plesaunte to prynces paye,
To clanly clos in gold so clere,
Oute of oryent I hardyly saye,
Ne proved I never her precios pere,—
So rounde, so reken in uche a raye,
So smal, so smothe her sydez were,—
Queresoever I jugged gemmez gaye,
I sette hyr sengeley in synglere.

And from a modern rendering of “Cleanness” we quote:

The pearl is praised wherever gems are seen,
though it be not the dearest by way of merchandise.
Why is the pearl so prized, save for its purity,
that wins praise for it above all white stones?
It shineth so bright; it is so round of shape;
without fault or stain; if it be truly a pearl.

In the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries throughout Europe pearls were
very fashionable as personal ornaments, and were worn in enormous
quantities; the dresses of men as well as of women were decorated and
embroidered with them, and they were noted in nearly every account of a
festive occasion, whether it were a marriage, a brilliant tourney, the
consecration of a bishop, or the celebration of a victory in battle.

The faceting of crystal gems was not known at that time, and those
dependent on artifice for their beauty were not much sought after.
Although the diamond had been known from the eighth century, it was not
generally treasured as an ornament, and not until long after the
invention of cutting in regular facets—about 1450—did it attain its
great popularity.

In the Dark Ages, it was customary for princes and great nobles to carry
their valuables about with them even on the battle-fields; first, in
order to have them always in possession, and second, on account of the
mysterious power they attributed to precious stones. Since jewels
constituted a large portion of their portable wealth, nobles and knights
went into battle superbly arrayed. In this manner the treasures were
easily lost and destroyed; consequently, relatively few of the personal
ornaments of that period are preserved to the present time.

Among the greatest lovers of pearls in the fourteenth and fifteenth
centuries were the members of the ducal house of Burgundy, and
especially Philip the Bold (1342–1404), Philip the Good (1396–1467), and
Charles the Bold (1433–77), and some of the gems which they owned are
even now treasured in Austria, Spain, and Italy. When Duke Charles the
Bold, in the year 1473, attended the Diet of Treves, accompanied by his
five thousand splendidly equipped horsemen, he was attired in cloth of
gold garnished with pearls, which were valued at 200,000 golden
florins.[28] We are told that “almost a sea of pearls” was on view at
the marriage of George the Rich with Hedwig, the daughter of Casimir III
of Poland, at Landshut, in 1475. Among the many ornaments was a pearl
chaplet valued at 50,000 florins which Duke George wore on his hat, and
also a clasp worth 6000 florins.[29] Members of the related houses of
Anjou and Valois also held great collections. Nor in this account should
we omit some of the English sovereigns, including especially Richard II
(1366–1400), one of the greatest dandies of his day.

During the fifteenth century, enormous quantities of pearls were worn by
persons of rank and fashion. A remarkable 1483 portrait of Margaret,
wife of James III of Scotland, which is now preserved at Hampton Court,
shows her wearing such wonderful pearl ornaments that she might well be
called Margaret from her decorations. As this queen was praised for her
beauty, we fear the artist has scarcely done justice to her appearance;
or possibly since that period tastes have changed as to what on a throne
passes for beauty. Her head-dress is undoubtedly the most remarkable
pearl decoration which we have seen of that century.

The uxorious and sumptuous Henry VIII of England (1491–1547) spent much
of the great wealth accumulated by his penurious father, Henry VII, in
enriching the appearance of his semi-barbaric court. In this reign, the
spoliation of the Catholic cathedrals and churches contributed many
pearls to the royal treasury; and onward from that time, they were
prominently displayed among the ornaments of the women of rank in
England. Most of the portraits of Henry’s wives show great quantities of
these gems; many of them with settings doubtless designed by artistic
Hans Holbein the Younger (1497–1543); and during the succeeding reigns
the women near the throne were commonly depicted with elaborate pearl
decorations.

The cold, unflattering portraits by Holbein of the court celebrities of
that period, not only of the gracious women and of the dandified men,
but of the clergy as well, show the prominence of pearls. Note his
portrait of Jane Seymour, of Anne of Cleves, of Christina of Denmark,
and the pearl-incrusted miter of Archbishop Warham of Canterbury.

An interesting story is told of Sir Thomas More, the learned chancellor
of Henry VIII, showing his view of the great display of jewels which
distinguished the period in which he lived:

His sonne John’s wife often had requested her father-in-law, Sir
Thomas, to buy her a billiment sett with pearles. He had often put
her off with many pretty slights; but at last, for her importunity,
he provided her one. Instead of pearles, he caused white peaze to be
sett, so that at his next coming home, his daughter-in-law demanded
her jewel. “Ay, marry, daughter, I have not forgotten thee!” So out
of his studie he sent for a box, and solemnlie delivered it to her.
When she, with great joy, lookt for her billiment, she found, far
from her expectation, a billiment of peaze; and so she almost wept
for verie griefe.[30]

Meanwhile, in the yet unknown America, pearls were highly prized, and
their magic charm had taken an irresistible hold on aborigines and on
the more highly civilized inhabitants of Mexico and Peru. In Mexico the
palaces of Montezuma were studded with pearls and emeralds, and the
Aztec kings possessed pearls of inestimable value. That they had been
collected elsewhere for a long time is evidenced by the large quantities
in the recently opened mounds of the Ohio Valley, which rank among the
ancient works of man in America. As in the Old World, so in the New,
they had been used as decoration for the gods and for the temples, as
well as for men and women.

The principal immediate effect of Columbus’s discovery and of the
commercial intercourse with the New World, was the great wealth of
pearls which enriched the Spanish traders. The natives were found in
possession of rich fisheries on the coast of Venezuela, and somewhat
later on the Pacific coast of Panama and Mexico, whence Eldorado
adventurers returned to Spain with such large collections that—using an
old chronicler’s expression—“they were to every man like chaff.” For
many years America was best known in Seville, Cadiz, and some other
ports of Europe, as the land whence the pearls came. Until the
development of the mines in Mexico and Peru, the value of the pearls
exceeded that of all other exports combined. Humboldt states that till
1530 these averaged in value more than 800,000 piastres yearly.[31] And
throughout the sixteenth century the American fisheries—prosecuted by
the Spaniards with the help of native labor—furnished Europe with large
quantities, the records for one year showing imports of “697 pounds’
weight” into Seville alone.

For two centuries following the discovery of America, extravagance in
personal decoration was almost unlimited at the European courts, and the
pearls exceeded in quantity that of all other gems. Enormous numbers
were worn by persons of rank and fortune. This is apparent, not only
from the antiquarian records and the historical accounts, but also in
the paintings and engravings of that time; portraits of the Hapsburgs,
the Valois, the Medicis, the Borgias, the Tudors, and the Stuarts show
great quantities of pearls, and relatively few other gems.

Probably the largest treasures were in possession of the Hapsburg
family, which furnished so many sovereigns to the Holy Roman Empire, to
Austria, and to Spain, and which, by descent through Maria Theresa,
continued to rule the Holy Roman Empire until its abolition in 1806, and
has since ruled Austria and Hungary.

A number of superb pieces of jewelry owned centuries ago by members of
this illustrious family are yet in existence; notably the buckle of
Charles V, and especially the imperial crown of Austria, made in 1602 by
order of Rudolph II.[32]

Two great women of that period are noted for their passion for pearls,
Catharine de’ Medici (1519–89), and Elizabeth of England (1533–1603). It
requires but a glance at almost any of their portraits, wherein they are
represented wearing elaborate pearl ornaments, to see to what an extent
they carried this fondness. And many other women were not far behind
them, among whom were Mary Stuart, Marie de’ Medici, and Henrietta
Maria. And not only by the women, but by the men also, pearls were worn
to what now seems an extravagant extent. Nearly all the portraits of
Francis I (1494–1547), Henry II (1519–59), Charles IX (1550–74), and
Henry III (1551–89) of France; of James I (1566–1625), and of Charles I
(1600–49) of England, and likewise of other celebrities, show a great
pear-shaped pearl in one ear. Many portraits also show pearls on the
hats, cloaks, gloves, etc.

When the Duke of Buckingham went to Paris in 1625, to bring over
Henrietta Maria to be queen to Charles I, he had, according to an
account in the “Antiquarian Repertory,” in addition to twenty-six other
suits, “a rich suit of purple satin, embroidered all over with rich
orient pearls, the cloak made after the Spanish mode, with all things
suitable, the value whereof will be twenty thousand pounds, and this, it
is thought, shall be for the wedding day at Paris.”

In the rich and prosperous cities of southern Europe, pearls were no
less popular. From its share of the spoils of the Byzantine Empire,
after its partition in 1204, pearls and other riches were plentiful in
Venice, and they were increased by the rapidly developing trade with the
Orient. In the rival maritime cities, Genoa and Pisa, the gem was
equally popular; and likewise in Florence “the Beautiful.” When Hercule
d’Este sought Lucrezia Borgia (1480–1519) in marriage for his son, her
father, Pope Alexander VI, plunging both hands in a box filled with
pearls, said: “All these are for her! I desire that in all Italy she
shall be the princess with the most beautiful pearls and with the
greatest number.”[33]

Separated by three centuries of time and by the intervening simplicities
of puritanism and democracy, it is difficult for us to appreciate the
passion for pearls in Europe at that period, which may well be called
the Pearl Age.

The sumptuary laws which prevailed at different times in France,
England, Germany, and other countries, did not overlook this
extravagance; and an entire volume might be devoted to the efforts to
curb the excessive use. In France they were probably most stringent
during the reign of Philip IV (1285–1314), of Louis XI (1461–83), of
Charles IX (1560–74), of Henry III (1574–89), and of Louis XIII
(1610–43). In Germany almost every city had its special restrictions. A
sumptuary law of Ulm, in 1345, provided that no married woman or maiden,
either among the patricians or the artisans, should wear pearls on her
dresses; and another, in 1411, restricted them to “one pearl chaplet,”
and this should not exceed twelve _loth_ (half ounce) in weight. A
Frankish sumptuary law of 1479 provided that ordinary nobles serving a
knight at a tourney should not wear any pearl ornaments, embroidered or
otherwise, excepting one string around the cap or hat. The regulations
decreed by the Diet of Worms, in 1495, set forth that the citizens who
were not of noble birth, and nobles who were not knights, must withhold
from the use of gold and pearls. A similar provision was enacted by the
Diet of Freiburg in 1498, and likewise by the Diet of Augsburg in 1530,
which permitted the wives of nobles four silk dresses, but without
pearls. In the sumptuary law of Duke John George of Saxony, April 23,
1612, we read: “the nobility are not allowed to wear any dresses of gold
or silver, or garnished with pearls; neither shall the professors and
doctors of the universities, nor their wives, wear any gold, silver or
pearls for fringes, or any chains of pearls, or caps, neck ornaments,
shoes, slippers, shawls, pins, etc., with gold or silver or with
pearls.” Beadles, burgomasters, and those connected with the law-courts
were forbidden to wear chains of pearls and ornaments of precious stones
on their dresses, caps, etc., or slippers or chaplets with pearls.

Probably in no place were these laws more stringent than in the
art-loving republic of Venice from the fourteenth to the sixteenth
century. This seems remarkable in view of the fact that this city was
largely dependent for its wealth and prominence on commerce with the
East, of which pearls constituted a prominent item.

The earliest Venetian restriction that we have found regarding pearls
was made in 1299; when, in a decree determining the maximum number of
guests at a marriage ceremony and the extent of the bridal trousseau,
the grand council of the republic provided that no one but the bride
should wear pearl decorations, and she should be permitted only one
girdle of them on her wedding dress. This enactment was modified in
1306, but numerous other restrictions were substituted, notably in 1334,
1340, 1360, 1497, and 1562. These differed in many particulars: some
forbade ornaments or trimmings of pearls, gold, or silver on the dresses
of any women except a member of the Doge’s family; and other enactments
required that, after a definite period of married life, no woman should
be permitted to wear pearls of any kind. But an examination of the
documents and of the paintings of that period shows that these decrees
had little effect, and the luxury of the “Queen of the Adriatic” in the
use of pearls at the most brilliant epoch in her history is aptly
reproduced in the portraits by Giovanni Bellini, Lorenzo Lotto, the
great Titian, Tintoretto, Paul Veronese, and other artists of the
highest rank. In the engraving by Hendrik Goltzius of a marriage at
Venice in 1584, not one of the many women present seems to be without
her necklace and earrings of pearls, and some of them have several
necklaces.[34] And the same appears true of the principal female figures
in Jost Amman’s noted engraving, “The Espousal of the Sea,” executed in
1565.[35]

As preservation of the republic became more difficult with declining
resources and with the continued growth of dazzling splendor, a
resolution in the Senate, dated July 8, 1599, set forth that “the use
and price of pearls has become so excessive and increases to such an
extent from day to day, that if some remedy is not provided, it will
cause injury, disorders, and notable inconvenience to public and private
well-being, as each one of this council in his wisdom can very easily
appreciate.” And then it was enacted: “That, without repealing the other
regulations which absolutely prohibit the wearing of pearls, it shall be
expressly enjoined that any woman, whether of noble birth or a simple
citizen, or of any other condition, who shall reside in this our city
for one year (except her Serenity the Dogaressa and her daughters and
her daughters-in-law who live in the palace), after the expiration of
fifteen years from the day of her first marriage, shall lay aside the
string of pearls around her neck and shall not wear or use, either upon
her neck or upon any other part of her person, this string or any other
kind of pearls or anything which imitates pearls, neither in this city
nor in any other city or place within our dominion, under the
irremissible penalty of two hundred ducats.”

And yet ten years later, on May 5, 1609, another law enacted in the
Senate stated:

Although in the year 1599 this council decided with great wisdom
that married women should be permitted to wear pearls for only
fifteen years after their first marriage, nevertheless it is very
evident that the desired end has not been attained, and the
extravagance has continued up to the present time and still
continues with the gravest injury to private persons. Therefore, as
it is necessary to remedy, by a new provision, not only this
considerable incommodity, but also to prevent in the future the
introduction into the city of a greater quantity of pearls than are
found here at present, it is enacted, that married women as well as
those who shall marry in the future (except the Serene Dogaressa and
her daughters and her daughters-in-law living in the palace) of
whatever grade and condition they may be, who have resided in this
city for one year, cannot wear pearls of any kind except for ten
years immediately following the day of their first marriage; and
after that period they must lay aside these pearls which they are
forbidden to wear on any part of their persons, at home or abroad,
and as well in this as in the other cities, lands, and other places
of our dominion, under the penalty of two hundred ducats. And if the
husband of the offending wife is a noble, he shall be proclaimed in
the greater council and declared a debtor to the office of the
governors of the revenue in the sum of twenty-five ducats for each
fine; and if he is a citizen or of any other condition, besides the
penalty of two hundred ducats and the fine of twenty-five ducats
above mentioned, he shall be banished for three years from Venice
and the Duchy, and the same for each offence. And pearls or anything
which imitates pearls, shall be forbidden to all other women, men
and boys or girls of every age and condition at all times and in all
places, under the same penalty of two hundred ducats. In the future
no one shall in any manner bring pearls to this city as merchandise,
under the penalty of their seizure and forfeiture. And the merchant
shall be imprisoned for five consecutive years; and if he flees, he
shall be banished from the city and district of Venice and from all
other cities, lands, and places of our dominion for eight
consecutive years…. And all who at present have pearls to sell are
required to deposit a list of them with the sumptuary office, so as
to avoid all fraud which could be practiced in this matter.

A copy of the title-page of this enactment is presented above.

The decrees and edicts were not confined to Venice, or to Italy, France,
or Germany; they made their appearance quite generally throughout
western and northern Europe and the interdictions of the civil
authorities were strengthened by the voice of the bishops and other
clergy, especially in the imperial cities of southern Germany. Yet the
united authority of church and state was ineffectual in stemming the
tide of fashion and personal fancy, and whether or not pearls should be
worn became one of the much discussed questions of that period.

To the question, “Whether the statute and regulation of Bishop
Tudertinus, who had excommunicated all women who wore pearls, was
binding,” Joannes Guidius replied that many denied that this was so, and
made the subtle defense that “the women had not accepted it and all had
worn pearls, and it was considered that such a law was binding only when
it was accepted by those for whom it was intended.”[36]

And as to the validity of the statutes requiring that women should not
wear more than a definite number of pearls, he decided that “such a
statute is valid and in itself good. And if the question is put whether
every woman who infringes incurs the penalty, an answer may be gathered
from the sayings of the doctors, who distinguish between married and
unmarried women. They consider that an unmarried woman is obliged to
obey the statute and regulation or to incur the penalty. But as to a
married woman, if her husband approves, she should obey the statute; if,
however, the husband objects, then the wife ought to wish to obey the
statute, but in effect she should rather obey her husband, for she is
most immediately and strongly bound to do this.”[37] Aided by such
ingenious opinions as these, the women continued to follow their own
inclinations notwithstanding the opposition of church and state.

Other fine distinctions were drawn by the lawyers of that day regarding
ownership of gems under certain conditions. For instance, it was decided
that pearls given by a father to his unmarried daughter remained her
property after marriage because “they are given for a reason, namely to
induce a marriage”; yet “pearls handed to a wife by her husband are not
considered as her property, but must be given to his heirs, since it is
supposed that they were given only for her adornment. The same holds
good as respects pearls handed to a daughter-in-law by her
father-in-law.”[38]

However, the greed of fashion, which law-makers and bishops could not
arrest, was gradually satiated; and, influenced probably by the horrors
of the Thirty Years’ War, more simple taste prevailed in the latter part
of the seventeenth century.

In the meantime, improvements in cutting and polishing had greatly
increased the beauty and popularity of diamonds and other crystal gems,
and this adversely affected the demand for pearls. Furthermore, cleverly
fashioned imitations manufactured at a low cost also served to decrease
the relative rank and fashion of the sea-born gems. In the eighteenth
century, pearls were relatively scarce; the resources of the American
seas were largely exhausted, likewise the Ceylon and Red Sea fisheries
were not to be depended on, and practically the entire supply came from
the Persian Gulf, with a few from European rivers and the waters of
China. As a result, although they continued to be prized by
connoisseurs, pearls were not so extensively sought after by the rank
and file of jewel purchasers.

It should be noted, however, that from the most ancient times, the
princes of India and of Persia have had their pick and choice of the
output from Ceylon and the Persian Gulf; and the largest single
collections of the Western world have never equaled the possessions of
some of those rulers. Some Indian princes have loaded themselves with
thousands of pearls, and individual ornaments have been valued not only
by oriental, but by European experts, at several millions of dollars.

The great diamond resources of Brazil were discovered in 1727, and after
a few years these came on the market at the rate of 140,000 carats
annually. At that time ladies of rank did not esteem diamonds so highly
as pearls. This distinction was accentuated by Lord Hervey in his
account of the coronation, in 1727, of George II and his consort
Caroline, who wore not only the great pearl necklace inherited from
Queen Anne, but “had on her head and shoulders all the pearls she could
borrow of the ladies of quality at one end of the town, and on her
petticoat all the diamonds she could hire of the Jews and jewelers at
the other; so that the appearance and the truth of her finery was a
mixture of magnificence and meanness not unlike the _éclat_ of royalty
in many other particulars, when it comes to be nicely considered and its
source traced to what money hires or flattery lends.”[39] In a portrait
of Charlotte (1744–1818), wife of George III, the pearls and diamonds
appear equally popular.

On the entry of the British into possession of Ceylon in 1796, the
fisheries of that country were resumed with great success after thirty
years of idleness, resulting in very large outputs for several seasons.
But owing to exhaustion of the areas, they were soon reduced, and the
yield became small and uncertain.

About 1845, pearls came on the market from the Tuamotu Archipelago and
other South Sea islands, and the industry was revived on the Mexican
coast. The pearls from these localities are noted for their range of
coloration, and particularly for the very dark shades, black or greenish
black being especially prominent. But the fashion, and thus,
necessarily, the demand, had always been for white and yellow pearls;
consequently, these black ones were of little value in the markets until
about ten years later, when they became fashionable in Europe largely
through their popularity with Empress Eugénie of France, then at the
height of her power. To this queen, pearls owe much of their high rank
in fashion in the nineteenth century; and on her head they were royal
gems royally worn, as appears from Winterhalter’s portrait of her,
showing her magnificent necklace.

The discovery of the resources on the Australian coast about 1865, and
the development of the fishery there for mother-of-pearl, resulted in
many large white pearls coming from that coast. The search was confined
to the relatively shoal waters, until the introduction of diving-suits
about 1880. The use of these facilitated a considerable extension of the
fisheries not only on the Australian coast, but also in Mexico, the
Malay Archipelago, several of the South Sea islands, and some minor
localities.

In America, few jewels were worn previous to the Civil War, owing to the
absence of great wealth and to the simplicity of taste in personal
decorations. The rapid increase in wealth and luxury, on the termination
of that war, resulted in a great demand for gems, and the most brilliant
and showy ones were selected, especially diamonds. This demand was the
more readily supplied by the discovery of the South African mines, with
their great yield from 1870 to the present time. So popular did that gem
become that many a young man invested his first earnings in a
“brilliant,” and an enormous diamond in the shirt-front became the
caricatured emblem of a prosperous hotel clerk.

But in the last quarter of the nineteenth century, in Europe, as well as
in America and elsewhere where gems are worn, luxury found in pearls a
refinement, associated with richness and beauty, exceeding that of
diamonds and other crystal gems, and in the last few years they have
taken the highest rank among jewels. This change in fashion and the
increase in wealth among the people developed vastly greater demands and
consequently very much higher prices. These have resulted in greatly
extending the field of search, and during the last two or three decades
many new territories have been brought into production.

By far the most important of these new regions is the Mississippi Valley
in America, the pearl resources of which were made known about a score
of years ago. As the exploitation developed, the gems from these streams
added very largely to the supply, especially of the baroque or irregular
pearls, which have increased greatly in fashion in the last ten years.

Notwithstanding the popular idea that pearls are scarce owing to
depletion of the fisheries, they are doubtless produced in greater
quantities at present than ever before in the history of the world.
True, they were more plentiful in Rome after the Persian conquest, and
in Spain immediately following the exploitation of tropical America; but
it is highly probable that in no equal period have the entire fisheries
of the world yielded greater quantities than in the five years from 1903
to 1907 inclusive. Certain individual fisheries are now less productive
than at the height of their prosperity; those in the Red Sea do not
compare favorably with their condition in ancient times, the European
resources are nearly exhausted, the supplies from the Venezuelan coast
do not equal those obtained early in the sixteenth century, the yield
from Mexico is not so extensive as twenty-five years ago, and the same
is true of some other regions. On the other hand, the great fisheries of
Persia and Ceylon are yet very prosperous, the Ceylon fishery of 1905
surpassing all records, and the number of minor pearling regions has
largely increased.

The present value of pearls—which has advanced enormously since 1893—is
due to the extended markets and the increased wealth and fashion in
Western countries, rather than to diminished fisheries. The oriental
demand still consumes the bulk of the Persian and Indian output, and the
vast increase in wealth among the middle classes in America, Europe, and
elsewhere, has increased the demand tenfold over that of a century ago.
While women no longer appear ornamented from head to foot as in the
sixteenth century, pearls are in the highest fashion, and the woman of
rank and wealth usually prizes first among her jewels her necklace of
pearls.

III
ORIGIN OF PEARLS

Heaven-born and cradled in the deep blue sea, it is the purest of
gems and the most precious.

S. M. ZWEMER.

The origin of pearls has been a fruitful subject of speculation and
discussion among naturalists of all ages, and has provoked many curious
explanations. Most of the early views—universally accepted during those
centuries when tradition had more influence than observation and
experiment—have no standing among naturalists at the present time. And
although much information has been gained as to the conditions
accompanying their growth, and many theories are entertained, each with
some basis in observed fact, science does not yet speak with conclusive
and unquestioned authority as to the precise manner of their origin and
development.

Owing to the chaste and subdued beauty of pearls, it is not strange that
poets of many countries have founded their origin in tears—tears of
angels, of water-nymphs, of the lovely and devoted. Sir Walter Scott in
“The Bridal of Triermain” refers to—

The pearls that long have slept,
These were tears by Naiads wept.

In one of his most lovely and consoling thoughts, Shakspere says:

The liquid drops of tears that you have shed,
Shall come again, transform’d to orient pearl,
Advantaging their loan with interest
Of ten times double gain of happiness.

And we quote from Rückert’s “Edelstein und Perlen”:

I was the Angel, who of old bowed down
From Heaven to earth and shed that tear, O Pearl,
From which thou wert first-fashioned in thy shell.
To thee I gave that longing in thy shell,
Which guided thee and caused thee to escape,
O Pearl, from the bewitching sirens’ song.

In luster they so closely resemble the limpid, sparkling dewdrop as it
first receives the sun’s rays, that the ancients very naturally
conceived that pearls are formed from drops of dew or rain. The usual
legend is, that at certain seasons of the year, the pearl-oysters rise
to the surface of the water in the morning, and there open their shells
and imbibe the dewdrops; these, aided by the breath of the air and the
warmth of the sunlight, are, in the course of time, transformed into
lustrous pearls; but if the air and the sunlight are not received in
sufficient quantities, the pearls do not attain perfection and are
faulty in form, color, and luster. However remarkable and even absurd
this may seem at present, it appears to have been universally accepted
for centuries by the most learned men of Europe as well as by primitive
people who delight in the mystical and fantastic. This opinion was
recorded in the Sanskrit books of the Brahmans and in other oriental
literature. The classical and medieval writings of Europe contain
numerous references to it; and it is found even yet in the traditions
and folk-lore of some peoples.

In the first century A.D., Pliny wrote in his “Historia naturalis,”
according to Dr. Philemon Holland’s quaint translation:

The fruit of these shell fishes are the Pearles, better or worse,
great or small, according to the qualitie and quantitie of the dew
which they received. For if the dew were pure and cleare which went
into them, then are the Pearles white, faire, and Orient; but if
grosse and troubled, the Pearles likewise are dimme, foule, and
duskish; pale they are, if the weather were close, darke and
threatening raine in the time of their conception. Whereby (no
doubt) it is apparent and plaine, that they participate more of the
aire and sky, than of the water and the sea; for according as the
morning is faire, so are they cleere: but otherwise, if it were
misty and cloudy, they also will be thicke and muddy in colour. If
they may have their full time and season to feed, the Pearles
likewise will thrive and grow bigge: but if in the time it chance to
lighten, then they close their shells together, and for want of
nourishment are kept hungrie and fasting, and so the pearles keepe
at a stay and prosper not accordingly. But if it thunder withall,
then suddenly they shut hard at once, and breed only those
excrescences which be called _Physemata_, like unto bladders puft up
and hooved with wind, no corporal substance at all: and these are
the abortive & untimely fruits of these shell fishes.[40]

Pliny’s views were probably derived from the ancient authorities of his
time, particularly from Megasthenes, Chares of Mytilene, and Isidorus of
Charace; and these curious fictions were incorporated by subsequent
writers and influenced popular opinion for many centuries. With scarcely
a single exception, every recorded theory from the first century B.C. to
the fifteenth century evidences a belief in dew-formed pearls.

This theory is referred to by Thomas Moore in his well-known lines:

And precious the tear as that rain from the sky,
Which turns into pearls as it falls in the sea.

The Spanish-Hebrew traveler Benjamin of Tudela, in his “Masaoth” in
Persia (from 1160 to 1173), wrote: “In these places pearls are found,
made by the wonderful artifice of nature: for on the four and twentieth
day of the month Nisan, a certain dew falleth into the waters, which
being sucked in by the oysters, they immediately sink to the bottom of
the sea; afterwards, about the middle of the month Tisri, men descend to
the bottom of the sea, and, by the help of cords, these men bringing up
the oysters in great quantities from thence, open and take out of them
the pearls.”[41]

From the “Bustan,” one of the most popular works of Sadi, the Persian
poet (1190–1291 A.D.), Davie quotes:

From the cloud there descended a droplet of rain;
’Twas ashamed when it saw the expanse of the main,
Saying: “Who may I be, where the sea has its run?
If the sea has existence, I, truly, have none!”
Since in its own eyes the drop humble appeared,
In its bosom, a shell with its life the drop reared;
The sky brought the work with success to a close,
And a famed royal pearl from the rain-drop arose.
Because it was humble it excellence gained;
Patiently waiting till success was attained.

Even the usually well-informed William Camden (1551–1623), in whose
honor the Camden Historical Society of England was named, accepted the
theory of dew-formed pearls. He stated that the river Conway in Wales
“breeds a kind of shells, which being pregnated with dew, produce
pearl.”[42] Also, speaking of the Irt in county Cumberland, England, he
said: “In this brook, the shell-fish, eagerly sucking in the dew,
conceive and bring forth pearls, or (to use the poet’s word) shell
berries (_Baccas concheas_).”[43]

A recent letter from the American consul at Aden indicates that this
view is held even yet by the Arabs of that region. In giving their
explanation for the present scarcity in the Red Sea, he states: “There
is a belief among them that a pearl is formed from a drop of rain caught
in the mouth of the pearl-oyster, which by some chemical process after a
time turns into a pearl; and as there has been very little rain in that
region for several years past, there are few pearls.”

So firmly established throughout Europe was the belief in dew-formed
pearls, that its non-acceptance by the native Indians of America excited
the commiseration of the Italian historian Peter Martyr, in his “De Orbe
Novo,” one of the very first books on America, published in 1517. He
states: “But that they [pearls of Margarita Island on the present coast
of Venezuela] become white by the clearnesse of the morning dewe, or
waxe yelowe in troubled weather, or otherwise that they seeme to rejoice
in fayre weather and dear ayre, or contrary-wise, to be as it were
astonished and dymme in thunder and tempests, with such other, the
perfect knowledge hereof is not to be looked for at the hands of these
unlearned men, which handle the matter but grossly and enquire no
further than occasion serveth.”[44] Peter Martyr was distinguished for
his learning, was an instructor at the court of Spain at the height of
its power, and came in contact with the most enlightened men of Europe,
consequently it may be assumed that he reflected the best opinions of
his time.

It was not long before the aborigines of America were not alone in
discrediting the views which had prevailed in Europe for more than
fifteen hundred years. That practical old sailor Sir Richard Hawkins
concluded that this must be “some old philosopher’s conceit, for it can
not be made probable how the dew should come into the oyster.”[45] A
similar view is expressed by Urbain Chauveton in his edition of Girolamo
Benzoni’s “Historia del Mondo Nuovo,” published at Geneva in 1578. From
his reference to pearl-oysters on the Venezuelan coast, we translate:

Around the island of Cubagua and elsewhere on the eastern coast, are
sandy places where the pearl-oysters grow. They produce their eggs
in very large quantities and likewise pearls at the same time. But
it is necessary to have patience to let them grow and mature to
perfection. They are soft at the beginning like the roe of fish; and
as the mollusk gradually grows, they grow also and slowly harden.
Sometimes many are found in one shell, which are hard and small,
like gravel. Persons who have seen them while fishing say that they
are soft as long as they are in the sea, and that the hardness comes
to them only when they are out of the water. Pliny says as much,
speaking of the Orientals in Book IX, of his Natural History, ch.
35. But as to that author and Albert the Great and other writers
upon the generation of pearls, who have said that the oysters
conceive them by means of the dew which they suck in, and that
according as the dew is clear or cloudy the pearls also are
translucent or dark, etc., etc.,—all this is a little difficult to
believe; for daily observation shows that all the pearls found in
the same shell are not of the same excellence, nor of the same form,
the same perfection of color, nor the same size, as they would or
must be if they were conceived by the dew all at one time. Besides
this, in many of the islands the Indians go fishing for them in ten
or twelve fathoms depth, and in some cases they are so firmly
attached to the rocks in the sea that they can be wrenched off only
by main strength. Would it not be difficult for them to inhale the
quintessence of the air there? It seems then that it is the germ and
the most noble part of the eggs of the oyster which are converted
into pearls rather than any other thing; and the diversities of
size, color, and other qualities, proceed from the fact that some
are more advanced than others, as we see eggs in the body of the
hen.[46]

The old theory of dew-formed pearls was illustrated even as late as 1684
on a medal struck in honor of Elena Piscopia of the Corraro family of
Venice. This bore an oyster-shell open and receiving drops of dew, and
underneath was engraved the motto “_Rore divino_” (By divine dew). Even
yet one hears occasionally from out-of-the-way places—as in the instance
reported by the American consul at Aden—of pearls formed from rain or
dew, notwithstanding that there seems to exist absolutely no
justification for it in scientific zoölogy.

Probably the most popular theory entertained from the fifteenth to the
seventeenth century was that pearls were formed from the eggs of the
oyster. This was intimated by Chauveton in the quotation above given,
and it was also referred to by many naturalists.

In an interesting letter, dated Dec. 1, 1673, and giving as his
authority the testimony of an eye-witness, “Henricus Arnoldi, an
ingenious and veracious Dane,” Christopher Sandius wrote: “Pearl shells
in Norway do breed in sweet waters; their shells are like mussels, but
larger; the fish is like an oyster, it produces clusters of eggs; these,
when ripe, are cast out and become like those that cast them; but
sometimes it appears that one or two of these eggs stick fast to the
side of the matrix, and are not voided with the rest. These are fed by
the oyster against her will and they do grow, according to the length of
time, into pearls of different bigness.”[47] This possibly hit the mark
with greater accuracy than the observations of the “ingenious and
veracious Dane” warranted, for he seems to have had quite a different
idea as to the manner in which the pearls are “fed by the oyster against
her will” from those generally entertained by naturalists at the present
time.

However, Oliver Goldsmith settled the matter by declaring briefly:
“Whether pearls be a disease or an accident in the animal is scarce
worth enquiry.”[48] Thus it seems that notwithstanding all that had been
written and the extended attention given to the subject, theory
prevailed to the almost complete exclusion of practical investigation,
with little intelligent advance over Topsy’s “’spect they just growed.”

Owing, doubtless, to the scarcity of pearl-bearing mollusks in their
vicinities, naturalists of Europe were somewhat slow in giving attention
to the origin of pearls. This is further accounted for by the fact that
the gems occur more frequently in old and diseased shells than in the
choice specimens which have naturally attracted the notice of
conchologists.

One of the first of the original observations made on this subject was
that by Rondelet, who, in 1554, advanced the idea that pearls are
diseased concretions occurring in the mollusca, similar to the morbid
calculi in the mammalia.[49]

The first writer to intimate the similarity in structural material or
substance between pearls and the interior of the shell in which they are
formed, appears to have been Anselmus de Boot (_circa_ 1600), who wrote
that the pearls “are generated in the body of the creature of the same
humour of which the shell is formed; … for whenever the little
creature is ill and hath not strength enough to belch up or expel this
humour which sticketh in the body, it becometh the rudiments of the
pearl; to which new humour, being added and assimilated into the same
nature, begets a new skin, the continued addition of which generates a
pearl.”[50] The Portuguese traveler, Pedro Teixeira (1608), stated: “I
hold it for certain that pearls are born of and formed of the very
matter of the shell and of nothing else. This is supported by the great
resemblance of the pearl and the oyster-shell in substance and color.
Further, whatever oyster contains pearls has the flesh unsound and
almost rotten in the parts where the pearls are produced, and those
oysters that have no pearls are sound and clean fleshed.”[51]

Somewhat more than one hundred years later, this theory was confirmed by
investigations made by the famous physicist Réaumur (1683–1757).
Microscopic examination of cross sections of pearls show that they are
built up of concentric laminæ similar, except in curvature, to those
forming the nacreous portion of the shell. In a paper published by the
French Academy of Science in 1717,[52] Réaumur noted this condition, and
suggested that pearls are misplaced pieces of organized shell, and are
formed from a secretion which overflows from the shell-forming organ or
from a ruptured vessel connected therewith, and that the rupture or
overflow is ordinarily produced by the intrusion of some foreign or
irritating substance.

Sir Edwin Arnold calls attention to this theory in his beautiful lines:

Know you, perchance, how that poor formless wretch—
The Oyster—gems his shallow moonlit chalice?
Where the shell irks him, or the sea-sand frets,
He sheds this lovely lustre on his grief.

In pursuance of this idea, we find, in 1761, the Swedish naturalist
Linnæus, “the father of natural history,” experimenting in the
artificial production of pearls by the introduction of foreign bodies in
the shell, and meeting with some degree of success. His discovery was
rated so highly that it has been announced by some writers as the reason
why the great naturalist received the patent of nobility, which is
generally supposed to have been the reward for his services to science.

It seems that Linnæus’s discovery but verified the old saying that there
is nothing new under the sun, for later it was announced[53] that in
China—where so many inventions have originated—this idea had been put to
practical account for centuries preceding, and the crafty Chinaman had
succeeded in producing not only small pearly objects, but even images of
Buddha, with which to awe the disciples of that deified teacher.

The method consisted in slightly opening or boring through the shell of
the living mollusk and introducing against the soft body a small piece
of nacre, molded metal, or other foreign matter. The irritation causes
the formation of pearly layers about the foreign body, resulting, in the
course of months or of years, in a pearl-like growth. While these have
some value as objects of curiosity or of slight beauty, they are not
choice pearls, nor for that matter were those produced by Linnæus.

It will be observed that the theory of Réaumur, and also that of
Linnæus, required the intrusion of some hard substance, such as a grain
of sand, a particle of shell, etc., to constitute a nucleus of the
pearl; and this is the accepted explanation at the present time as to
the origin of many of the baroque or irregular pearls, and likewise the
pearly “blisters” and excrescences attached to the shell. But not so as
to the choice or gem pearls, those beautiful symmetrical objects of
great luster which are usually referred to in speaking of pearls.

Examinations of many of these have failed, except in rare instances, to
reveal a foreign nucleus of sand or similar inorganic substance. In
searching many fresh-water mussels, Sir Everard Home frequently met with
small pearls in the ovarium, and he further noticed that these, as well
as oriental pearls, when split into halves, often showed a brilliant
cell in the center, about equal in size to the ova of the same mollusk.
From these observations, in 1826 he deduced his “abortive ova” theory,
and announced:

A pearl is formed upon the external surface of an ovum, which,
having been blighted, does not pass with the others into the
oviduct, but remains attached to its pedicle in the ovarium, and in
the following season receives a coat of nacre at the same time that
the internal surface of the shell receives its annual supply. This
conclusion is verified by some pearls being spherical, others having
a pyramidal form, from the pedicle having received a coat of nacre
as well as the ovum.[54]

Naturalists generally accepted these conclusions, that pearls originate
in pathological secretions formed, either as the result of the intrusion
of hard substances, or by the encysting or covering of ova or other
objects of internal origin; and there was no important cleavage of
opinion until the development of the parasitic theory, as a result of
the researches of the Italian naturalist Filippi, and those following
his line of investigations. This theory is not severely in conflict with
those of Réaumur, Linnæus, Home, etc., but relates principally to the
identity of the irritating or stimulating substance which forms the
nucleus of the pearl.

In examining a species of fresh-water mussel, the _Anodonta cygnea_,
occurring in ponds near Turin, and especially the many small pearly
formations therein, Filippi observed that these were associated with the
presence of a trematode or parasitic worm, which he named _Distomum
duplicatum_, and which appears to be closely allied to the parasite
which causes the fatal “rot” or distemper in sheep. Under the
microscope, the smallest and presumably the youngest of these pearls
showed organic nuclei which appeared undoubtedly to be the remnants of
the trematode. In Anodonta from other regions, which were not infested
with the distoma, pearls were very rarely found by Filippi. In a
paper,[55] published in 1852, containing a summary of his observations,
he concluded that a leading, if not the principal, cause of
pearl-formation in those mussels was the parasite above noted; and in
later papers[56] he included such other forms as _Atax ypsilophorus_
within the list of parasitic agencies which might excite the
pearl-forming secretions, comparing their action to that of the
formation of plant-galls.

The discovery of the parasitic origin of pearls was extended to the
pearl-oysters and to other parasites by Küchenmeister[57] in 1856, by
Möbius[58] in 1857, and by several other investigators. Prominent among
these were E. F. Kelaart and his assistant Humbert, who, in 1859[59]
disclosed the important relation which the presence of vermean parasites
bears to the origin of pearls in the Ceylon oysters. These naturalists
found “in addition to the Filaria and Cercaria, three other parasitical
worms infesting the viscera and other parts of the pearl-oyster. We both
agree that these worms play an important part in the formation of
pearls.” Dr. Kelaart likewise found eggs from the ovarium of the oyster
coated with nacre and forming pearls, and also suggested that the
silicious internal skeletons of microscopic diatoms might possibly
permeate the mantle and become the nuclei of pearls. Unfortunately, Dr.
Kelaart’s investigations were terminated by his death a few months
thereafter.

In 1871, Garner ascribed the occurrence of pearls in the common English
mussel (_Mytilus edulis_) to the presence of distomid larvæ.[60]
Giard,[61] and other French zoölogists, made similar discoveries in the
case of Donax and some other bivalves. In 1901, Raphael Dubois confirmed
the observations of Garner, associating the production of pearls in the
edible mussels on the French coasts with the presence of larvæ of a
parasite, to which he gave the name of _Distomum margaritarum_, and
boldly announced: “La plus belle perle n’est donc, en définitive, que le
brillant sarcophage d’un ver.”[62]

Prof. H. L. Jameson, in 1902, disclosed the relation which exists
between pearls in English mussels (_Mytilus_) and the larvæ of _Distomum
somateriæ_.[63] The life history of this trematode, as revealed by Dr.
Jameson, is especially interesting from a biological standpoint, since
it is entertained by three hosts at different times: the first host is a
member of the duck family; the second is the Tapes clam (_Tapes
decussatus_), or perhaps the common cockle (_Cardium edule_), which
incloses the first larval stage, and the third is the edible mussel, in
which the second larval stage of the parasite stimulates the formation
of pearls. At the Brighton Aquarium and the Fish Hatchery at Kiel, Dr.
Jameson claims to have succeeded in artificially inoculating perfectly
healthy mussels with these parasites by associating them with infested
mollusks, and thereby producing small pearls.

From Dr. Jameson’s interesting paper we abridge the following account of
the manner in which the pearls are developed. The trematode enters
_Mytilus edulis_ as a tailless cercaria, and at first may often be found
between the mantle and the shell. The larvæ, after a while, enter the
connective tissue of the mantle, where they come to rest, assuming a
spherical form, visible to the naked eye as little yellowish spots about
one half millimeter in diameter. At first the worm occupies only a space
lined by connective-tissue fibrils, but soon the tissues of the host
give rise to an epithelial layer, which lines the space and ultimately
becomes the pearl-sac. If the trematode larva completes its maximum
possible term of life, it dies, and the tissues of the body break down
to form a structureless mass which retains the form of the parasite,
owing to the rigid cuticle. In this mass arise one or more centers of
calcification, and the precipitation of carbonate of lime goes on until
the whole larva is converted into a nodule with calcospheritic
structure. The granular matter surrounding the worm, if present, also
undergoes calcification. The epithelium of the sac then begins to shed a
cuticle of conchiolin, and from this point the growth of the pearl
probably takes place on the same lines and at the same rate as the
thickening of the shell.[64]

Fully as remarkable as the observations of Dr. Jameson are the results
claimed by Professor Dubois in experimenting with a species of
pearl-oyster (_M. vulgaris_) from the Gulf of Gabes on the coast of
Tunis, where they are almost devoid of pearls, a thousand or more shells
yielding on an average only one pearl. Conveying these to the coast of
France in 1903, he there associated them with a species of
trematode-infested mussel (_Mytilus gallo-provincialis_), and after a
short period they became so infested that every three oysters yielded an
average of two pearls.[65] This claim has not been without criticism;
but who ever knew scientists to agree?

In the pearl-oyster of the Gambier Islands (_M. margaritifera cumingi_),
Dr. L. G. Seurat found that the origin of pearls was due to irritation
caused by the embryo of a worm of the genus _Tylocephalum_, the life of
which is completed in the eagle-ray, a fish which feeds on the
pearl-oyster.[66]

In 1903, Prof. W. A. Herdman, who, at the instance of the colonial
government, and with the assistance of Mr. James Hornell, examined the
pearl-oyster resources of Ceylon, announced: “We have found, as Kelaart
did, that in the Ceylon pearl-oyster there are several different kinds
of worms commonly occurring as parasites, and we shall, I think, be able
to show that Cestodes, Trematodes, and Nematodes may all be concerned in
pearl formation. Unlike the case of the European mussels, however, we
find that in Ceylon the most important cause is a larval Cestode of the
Tetrarhynchus form.”[67]

In his investigation of the Placuna oyster in 1905, Mr. James Hornell
found that the origin of pearls was due to minute larva of the same
stage and species as that which causes the pearls in the Gulf of Manar
oyster.[68]

The spherical larvæ of this tapeworm sometimes occur in great abundance,
and there is evidence of forty having been found in a single
pearl-oyster. Mr. Hornell states that the living worm does not induce
pearl formation, this occurring only when death overtakes it while in
certain parts of the oyster. As a consequence, pearls are more numerous
in oysters which have been long infected, where the worms are older and
more liable to die. This parasitic worm has been traced from the
pearl-oyster to the trigger-fishes, which eat the pearl-oysters, and
thence into certain large fish-eating rays, where it becomes sexually
mature and produces embryos which enter the pearl-oyster and begin a new
cycle of life-phases.

It seems, therefore, that the latest conclusions of science appear
entirely favorable to the parasitic theory as explaining at least one,
and probably the most important, of the causes for the formation of
pearls; and that some truth exists in the statement that the most
beautiful pearl is only the brilliant sarcophagus of a worm. This
morphological change is not peculiar to mollusks, for in most animal
bodies a cyst is formed about in-wandering larvæ. Fortunately for lovers
of the beautiful, in the pearl-oysters the character of the cyst-wall
follows that of the interior lining of the shell, and not only
simulates, but far surpasses it in luster.

While the theory that pearls are caused by the intrusion of some unusual
substance has the evidence of actual demonstration in many instances,
and is unquestionably true to a large extent, yet microscopic
examination of some pearls suggests the theory that a foreign substance
is not always essential to their formation, and that they may originate
in calcareous concretions of minute size, termed “calcospherules.” As
regards their origin, Professor Herdman classifies pearls into three
sorts: (1) “Ampullar pearls,” which are not formed within closed sacs of
the shell-secreting epithelium like the others, but lie in pockets or
ampullæ of the epidermis. The nuclei may be sand-grains or any other
foreign particles introduced through breaking or perforation of the
shell. (2) “Muscle pearls,” which are analogous to gallstones, formed
around calcospherules at or near the insertion of the muscles. And (3)
“Cyst pearls,” in which concentric layers of nacre are deposited on
cysts containing parasitic worms in the connective tissue of the mantle
and within the soft tissues of the body.[69]

Even a particle of earth, clay, or mud may form the nucleus of a pearl.
This was illustrated a few years ago in a fine button-shaped pearl,
which was accidentally broken under normal usage and was found to
consist of a hard lump of white clay surrounded by a relatively thin
coating of nacre. More remarkable yet are the cases in which a minute
fish, a crayfish, or the frustule of a diatom has formed the nucleus.

Several instances have been described by Woodward, Gunther, Putnam,
Stearns, and others, where small fish have penetrated between the mantle
and the shell of the mollusk, and the latter has resented the intrusion
by covering the intruder with a pearly coating. In two or three
instances the secretion occurred in so short a time that the fish
suffered no appreciable decomposition, and its species is readily
identified by observation through the nacreous layer. Among the
remarkable specimens of this nature which have come under our
observation are two very curious shells received in March, 1907, from
the Mexican fisheries. One of these specimens shows an encysted fish, so
quickly covered and so perfectly preserved that even the scales and
small bones are in evidence; indeed, one can almost detect the gloss on
the scales of the fish; and in the other—with a remarkable comet-like
appearance—a piece of ribbed seaweed is apparently the object covered.

From the foregoing, it appears that the pearl is not a product of health
associated with undisturbed conditions, but results from a derangement
in the normal state of the mollusk. Unable to resist, to rid itself of
the opposing evil, it exercises the powers given to it by a beneficent
Creator and converts the pain into perfection, the grief into glory.
Nature has many instances of the humble and lowly raised to high degree,
but none more strikingly beautiful than this. One of the lowest of
earth’s creatures, suffering a misfortune, furnishes a wonderful lesson
upon the uses of pain and adversity by converting its affliction into a
precious gem symbolical of all that is pure and beautiful. As written by
a forgotten poet: “Forasmuch as the pearl is a product of life, which
from an inward trouble and from a fault produces purity and perfection,
it is preferred; for in nothing does God so much delight as in
tenderness and lustre born of trouble and repentance.” As the great
Persian poet Hafiz says:

Learn from yon orient shell to love thy foe,
And store with pearls the wound that brings thee woe.

IV
STRUCTURE AND FORMS OF PEARLS

“This maskellez perle that boght is dere,
The joueler gef fore alle hys gold,
Is lyke the reme of hevenes clere”;
So sayde the fader of folde and flode,
“For hit is wermlez, clene and clere,
And endelez rounde and blythe of mode,
And commune to all that ryghtwys were.”
FOURTEENTH-CENTURY MSS. OF “PEARL,”
IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM.

As Kadir Munshi says, “pearls have no pedigree”; their beauty is not to
be traced to their origin, but exists wholly in the excellence of the
surroundings in which they develop.

The pearl-bearing mollusks are luxurious creatures, and for the purpose
of protecting their delicate bodies they cover the interior of their
shells with a smooth lustrous material, dyed with rainbow hues, and
possessing a beautiful but subdued opalescence. No matter how foul, how
coral covered, or overgrown with sponges or seaweeds the exterior may
be, all is clean and beautiful within. This material is nacre or
mother-of-pearl. It consists ordinarily of an accumulation of extremely
thin semi-transparent films or laminæ of a granular organic substance
called conchiolin, with the interstices filled with calcareous matter.
The nacre decreases in thickness from the hinge toward the lip of the
shell, and terminates a short distance from the extreme edge.

Next to the nacre is the middle layer or the shell proper. In species of
_Margaritifera_, this stratum is commonly formed of layers of calcareous
prisms arranged vertically to the shell surface. External to this middle
or prismatic layer is the epidermis or periostracum, the rough outer
coating of varying shades, usually yellow or brown. Where the waves are
rough, and the bottom hard and rocky, this covering is thick and heavy,
to afford greater protection; but where the waters are smooth and
gentle, and the bottom free from rocks, Nature—never working in
vain—furnishes only thin sides and slight defense. As is the case with
the nacre, the prismatic layer and the periostracum decrease in
thickness from the hinge to the edge, and the inside lip of the shell
shows the gradual union of the three superimposed layers. The two outer
layers are formed by the thick edge of the mantle, the remaining
portion—or nearly the entire surface—of this organ secretes the nacral
layer.

Not only is the interior of the shell made lustrous and beautiful, but
this tendency is exerted toward all objects that come in contact with
the soft body of the mollusk, either by intrusion simply within the
shell, or deeply within the organs and tissues of the animal itself. All
foreign bodies—such as small parasites, diatoms, minute pebbles,
etc.,—irritate the tender tissues of the mollusk, and stimulate the
pearly formation which in course of time covers them. At first the
nacreous covering is very thin; but with added layer after layer the
thickness is enhanced, and the size of the object increases as long as
it remains undisturbed and the mollusk is in healthful growth.

Chemically considered, aside from the nucleus, the structure of pearls
is identical in composition with that of the nacre of the shell in which
they are formed. Analyses have shown that those from the fresh-water
mussels of England and Scotland, and from the pearl-oysters of Australia
and of Ceylon, have nearly identical composition in the proportion of
about 5.94 per cent. of organic matter, 2.34 of water, and 91.72 per
cent. of carbonate of lime.[70] The specific gravity ranges from nearly
2 to about 2.75, increasing with the deposit of the nacreous coatings.
The following summary by Von Hessling[71] shows the results of certain
determinations of specific gravity:

Authority Specific Note
Gravity

Muschenbroet 2.750 at moderate temperature

Brisson 2.684 at 14° Réaumur

Möbius 2.686 4 fine pearls, weighing 2.396 gms.

Möbius 2.650 24 pearls, weighing 6.221 gms.

Möbius 2.336 63 brown pearls from Mazatlan, weighing 4.849
gms.

Voit 2.722 Bavarian pearls, 3–3⁄16 carats, medium quality

Voit 2.616 Bavarian pearls, 3⅝ carats, finer quality

Voit 2.724 Bavarian pearls, 1¾ carats, very fine

Voit 2.578 Bavarian pearls, gray, with some luster

Voit 2.765 Bavarian pearls, brown, ranking between good &
black

Voit 2.238 Bavarian pearls, poor black pearls, impure

The distinctive characteristic, the great beauty of a true pearl, is its
luster or orient, which is a subdued iridescence, rather than the
glittering brilliance of the diamond; and unless the shelly growth be
lustrous it does not rank as a gem pearl, no matter how perfect its form
or beautiful its color. This luster is due to the structural arrangement
of the surface as well as to the quality of the material. The nacreous
material forming true pearls, and likewise mother-of-pearl, is commonly
deposited in irregular tenuous layers, very thin and very small in area
compared with the surface of the pearl. These laminæ overlap one
another, the surfaces are microscopically crumpled and corrugated, and
the edges form serrated outlines. The greater the angle which the laminæ
form with the surface, the closer will be these serrated outlines, and
where the plane of the exterior lamina is parallel with the plane of the
surface the lines are not present. This arrangement causes the waves of
light to be reflected from different levels on the surface, just as in a
soap bubble, and the minute prisms split the rays up into their colored
constituents, producing the chromatic or iridescent effect.

The cause is wholly mechanical, and an impression of the surface made in
very fine wax shows a similar iridescence. Also, if a piece of
mother-of-pearl be immersed in acid until the surface lime or shelly
matter is dissolved, the pellucid membrane shows the iridescence until
it is so compressed that the corrugations are reduced. About two score
years ago an Englishman invented steel buttons with similar minute
corrugations producing pearly effect, but the manufacture was
unprofitable, owing, principally, to their liability to tarnish.

In the shells of some mollusks—as the edible oysters (_Ostrea_) or the
giant clam (_Tridacna_),—there is almost a total absence of the crumpled
corrugated laminæ, and, consequently, there is little luster. In others
the nacre is of better quality, resulting in superior orient, and it
probably reaches its highest degree of perfection in the pearl-oyster
(_Margaritifera_).

As the curvature of the surface of pearls is greater, and the minute
striæ are more numerous, than in ordinary mother-of-pearl, it follows
that the iridescence is likewise greater.

Superior nacre is more or less translucent, depending on its quality;
and to the iridescence of the outer laminæ is added that of many
interior ones, so that the luster is vastly increased. The position of
the pearl within the shell may greatly affect the quality of the
material and, consequently, the orient. The choicest are commonly found
within the soft parts of the animal, and those of poorer quality are at
the edges of the mantle, or within the fibers of the adductor muscle of
bivalves.

The structure of pearls may be studied by examining thin cross sections
under the microscope, or by transmitted polarized light. It appears that
ordinarily a pearl is made up of many independent laminæ superimposed
one upon another “like the layers of an onion,” or, rather, resembling
the leaves near the upper part of a well formed cabbage. When subjected
to sufficient heat, the laminæ separate from each other, as do shells of
edible oysters and similar mollusks under like conditions. When broken
by a hammer, a pearl may exhibit this laminated formation. If not split
directly through the center, the central section may retain the
spherical form; and as this commonly remains attached to one of the
parts, its concave impression appears in the other portion of the broken
pearl. The outer laminæ of many pearls may be removed with a fair
prospect of finding a good subjacent surface, and this may be continued
until the size is greatly reduced. These laminæ are not always similar
in color or luster.

However, not all pearls are laminated in this manner. Instead of
superimposed layers, some of them exhibit a crystalline form, composed
of beautiful prismatic crystals radiating from the center to the
circumference. In at least one oriental pearl examined, these crystals
were in well defined arcs, and were further separated into concentric
rings of different degrees of thickness, depth of color, and distance
apart. Another specimen—a Scotch pearl—combined in separate layers both
the laminated form and the crystalline structure.

Dr. Harley points out that some crystalline pearls apparently originate
in mere coalescences of mineral particles, rather than in well defined
nuclei.[72] Microscopic sections of crystalline pearls convey the idea
that the prisms branch and interlace with one another, and also that in
some instances they are of fusiform shape. However, these appearances
seem to be due simply to the cross sections having cut the prisms at
different angles.

Pearls showing these types were exhibited at a meeting of the Royal
Society of London, June 8, 1887. That exhibit also contained a section
of a west Australian pearl of curiously complex crystalline formation;
instead of one central starting-point, it had more than a dozen
scattered about, from which the crystalline prisms radiated in all
directions.

Since the three superimposed layers of the shell are secreted by
separate parts of the mantle, _viz._, the nacre by the general surface,
the prismatic layer by the inner edge, and the epidermis by the outer
edge, it follows that if a pearl in course of formation is moved from
one of these distinctive portions of the palial organ to another, the
nature of its laminæ changes. Thus, if a pearl formed on the broad
surface of the mantle is moved in some way to the inner edge of that
organ, it may be covered with a prismatic layer; if then moved to the
outer edge it may receive a lamina of epidermis, and then by changing
again to the broad surface of the mantle it receives further coats of
nacre.

The structure of pearls from univalve mollusks, such as the conch, the
abalone, etc., as well as those from some bivalves, as the Pinna, for
instance, differs from that of the true pearls formed in species of
Margaritifera. Instead of the alternate layers of conchiolin and of
carbonate of lime, many of these have an alveolar structure. When
greatly magnified, the surface of a Pinna pearl appears to be formed of
very small polygones, which, as decalcification shows, are the bases of
small pyramids radiating from the nucleus. The walls of these pyramids
are formed of conchiolin, and they are filled with carbonate of lime of
a prismatic crystalline structure. This is simply a modification of the
parallel laminæ in the Margaritifera pearls, for, as Dubois points out,
in some sections we can see portions where the alveolar formation has
proceeded for a time coincidentally with the lamellar form.

Pearls are affected by acids and fetid gases, and may be calcined on
exposure to heat. Their solubility in vinegar was referred to by the
Roman architect Vitruvius (“De Architectura,” L. viii. c. 3) and also by
Pausanias, a Greek geographer in the second century (“Hellados
Periegesis,” L. viii, c. 18); but it seems that there could be little
foundation for Pliny’s well-known anecdote in which Cleopatra is
credited with dissolving a magnificent pearl in vinegar and drinking
it—“the ransom of a kingdom at a draught”—to the health of her lover
Antony.[73] It is no more easy to dissolve a pearl in vinegar than it is
to dissolve a pearl-button—for the composition is similar, and one may
easily experiment for himself as to the difficulty in doing this. Not
only does it take many days to dissolve in cold vinegar the mineral
elements of a pearl of fair size, but even with boiling vinegar it
requires several hours to extract the mineral matter from one four or
five grains in weight, the acid penetrating to the interior very slowly.
And in neither case can the pearl be made to disappear, for even after
the carbonate of lime has dissolved, the organic matrix of animal
matter—which is insoluble in vinegar—retains almost the identical shape,
size, and appearance as before. If the pearl is first pulverized, it
becomes readily soluble in vinegar, and might be thus drunk as a lover’s
potion, but it would scarcely prove a _bonne bouche_.

Pearls assume an almost infinite variety of forms, due largely to the
shapes of the nuclei, and also to their positions within the mollusk.
The most usual—and, fortunately, also the most valuable—is the
spherical, resulting from a very minute or a round body as a nucleus and
the uniform addition of nacre on all sides. Of course, spherical pearls
can result only where they are quite free from other hard substances;
consequently they originate only in the soft parts of the mollusk and
not by the fixation of some nucleus to the interior surface of the
shell.

The perfectly spherical pearls range in weight from a small fraction of
a grain to three hundred grains or more, but it is very, very rare that
one of choice luster weighs more than one hundred grains. The largest of
which we have any specific information was that among the French crown
jewels as early as the time of Napoleon, an egg-shaped pearl, weighing
337 grains. The largest pearl known to Pliny in the first century A.D.
weighed “half a Roman ounce and one scruple over,” or 234½ grains Troy.
These very large ones, weighing in excess of one hundred grains, are
called “paragons.” The small pearls—weighing less than half a grain
each—are known as “seed-pearls.” The very small ones, weighing less than
1⁄25 of a grain, are called “dust-pearls.” These are too small to be of
economic value as ornaments.

Slight departures from the perfect sphere, result in egg shapes, pear
shapes, drop shapes, pendeloque, button shapes, etc. Some of these are
valued quite as highly at the present time as the spherical pearls, and
many of the most highly prized pearls in the world are of other than
spherical form. Indeed, pearls of this kind are found of larger size
than the perfectly round pearls. The egg-shaped pearl,[74] called “la
Régente,”—one of the French crown jewels sold in May, 1887—weighed, as
stated above, 337 grains. The great pear pearl described by
Tavernier—“the largest ever discovered”—weighed about 500 grains. A
button pearl received from Panama in 1906 weighed 216 grains.

Wider departures from the spherical form result in cylindrical, conical,
top-shaped, etc. Some pearls present the appearance of having been
turned in a lathe with intricate tooling. Remarkable examples of these
“turned pearls” have been found, competing in their circular perfection
with the best work of a jeweler’s lathe.

Many standard varieties of non-spherical, but normally shaped pearls,
are recognized by the fishermen and the jewelers. For instance, in the
nomenclature of the American fishermen, _bouton_, or button pearls are
divided into “haystacks” and “turtle-backs,” according to the height of
the projection. Also, certain imperfections result in distinguishing
names: “bird’s-eye” refers to a pearl having a little imperfection on
the best surface; “ring-arounds” have a dark or discolored ring about
them; and “strawberries” have numerous minute projections on the
surface.

During its growth, a spherical pearl may come in contact with a foreign
body, such as grit or a vegetable film, and the additional nacral layers
envelop the adjacent matter until it is entirely concealed within the
pearl, its position being recognized only by the excrescence on one
side, and, with continued increase in size, even this may be almost
overcome.

Sometimes double, triple, or multiple pearls are formed; each of these
may have a separate nucleus and grow independently for a time until they
adjoin each other; continuing to grow, they become so united as to form
a connected mass. The “Southern Cross” is a remarkable example of this.
It appears to consist of seven nearly spherical pearls attached to one
another in a straight line, and one projecting from each side of the
second in the row, thus forming a Roman cross.[75]

A few years ago, near Sharks Bay, on the coast of western Australia, a
cluster was found containing about 150 pearls closely compacted. This
cluster measured about one and a half inches in length, three quarters
of an inch in breadth, and half an inch in thickness.

When a growing pearl is very near to the nacreous lining of the shell,
the pressure between the two hard substances results in a rupture of the
pearl-forming sac and the epithelial layer of the shell, and the pearl
comes in actual contact with the nacre. The pearl gradually becomes
attached to the shell, and the under portion is prevented from growing
further; the upper or exposed surface receives other layers, resulting
in the formation of a _bouton_. As the shell around the pearl continues
to grow, it gradually closes about, and almost wholly conceals the
pearl. Since it is constantly wasting away on the exterior surface as it
grows on the interior, it follows that in time the shell passes the
pearl quite through to the outside, where it rapidly decays. Thus the
oyster virtually forces the annoying intruder directly through the wall
of its house instead of by way of the open door, and magically closes
the breach with its marvelous masonry.

These embedded pearls are generally faulty and of diminished luster,
but in the aggregate, large quantities of imperfect ones, and
especially half and quarter pearls, are secured in this manner.
Sometimes—particularly in the Australian fisheries—large pearls are
thus found, weighing twenty, forty, sixty, and even eighty grains; and
when the faulty outside layers of nacre are removed, a subjacent
surface of fine luster may possibly be revealed. In bivalves, these
adherent pearls are commonly in the deep or lower valve, except in
those unusual cases where the mollusks have been lying in a reverse
position. At the fisheries, the surfaces of the shells are carefully
inspected for evidence of pearly nodules, and these are broken open in
search for encysted objects. Cutters of mother-of-pearl occasionally
find embedded pearls of this kind which have escaped the vigilant eyes
of the fishermen.

We read of an instance in an important paper treating of the jeweling
trade of Birmingham: “A few years since [the paper was written in 1866]
a small lot of shells was brought to Birmingham, which either from
ignorance or mistake had not been cleared of the pearls at the fishery.
A considerable number were found and sold, and one especially was sold
by the man who had bought the shell for working into buttons, for £40.
The purchaser, we believe, resold the same for a profit of £160; and we
have heard that it was afterward held in Paris for sale at £800.”

A choice gem which was found in New York, in October, 1905, in an
Australian shell, sold finally for $1200.

The intrusion and continued presence of grains of sand or similar
material between the mantle and the shell causes the formation of nacre
over the foreign body, resulting in a _chicot_ (blister pearl), or
possibly a quarter or a half-pearl. The growth of a _chicot_ sometimes
results from the mollusk covering a choice pearl which has become
loosened from the soft tissues and adheres to the shell, as above cited.
Hence, it is sometimes desirable to break a _chicot_ to secure its more
valuable inclosure. In the account of his interesting pearling
experiences on the Australian coast, Henry Taunton states: “During the
first season’s shelling at Roebuck Bay, we came across an old worm-eaten
shell containing a large blister, which was removed in the usual manner
by punching a ring of minute holes around its base; a slight tap was
then sufficient to detach it. For many weeks it was untouched, no one
caring to risk opening it, for if filled with black ooze, which is
frequently the case, it would be of little value. At last, baffled in
his attempt to solve the problem, and emboldened by an overdose of
‘square face,’ the skipper gave it a smart blow with a hammer, which
cracked it open, and out rolled a huge pearl, nearly perfect, and
weighing eighty grains. A few specks and discolorations were removed by
a skilful ‘pearl-faker,’ and it was sold in London for £1500.”[76]

Blister pearls are also caused by the defensive or protective action of
the mollusk in resisting the intrusion of some animal, as a boring
sponge or a burrowing worm, which has begun to penetrate the outer
layers of the shell. This stimulation causes the mollusk to pile
nacreous material upon the spot, thus making a substantial mound closely
resembling a segment of a large pearl. This walling-out of intruders is
not the result of intelligent forethought or of instinct, analogous to
the repairing of a damaged web by a spider, or the retunneling of a
collapsed gallery by ants; it is a pathological rather than an
intelligent action.

When the nucleus of a pearl is large and very irregular, it necessarily
follows that the deposited nacre roughly assumes the irregular outline
of the inclosed object. This is strikingly shown in pearls covering a
minute fish, a crayfish, or a small crab. Several specimens have been
found in which the species could be identified by examination through
the nacreous coating.

In the American Unios there is a strong tendency to produce elongated
pearls near the hinge of the shell, which are consequently known as
“hinge pearls.” The occurrence and form of these suggest that their
origin may not be due to nuclei, but that they result from an excess of
carbonate of lime in the water, and that the animal stores a surplus of
nacre in this convenient form. There are several standard forms of these
hinge pearls. Many are elongated or dog-toothed, some are hammer-shaped,
others resemble the wings of birds, the petals of flowers, the bodies of
fish, and various other objects. A large percentage of the pearls found
in Unios of the Mississippi Valley are of these types.

Some irregular pearls or baroques are very large, weighing an ounce or
more. A well-known example is the Hope pearl, described on page 463,
which weighs three ounces. These monster pearls sometimes assume odd
shapes, such as clasped hands, the body of a man, lion, or other animal,
etc.

Although baroques may have a pearly luster, they are not highly prized
unless unusually attractive, and they have little permanent value, apart
from their estimation in the eyes of admirers of the curious and unique.
They are used largely in _l’art nouveau_, and in forming odd and
fanciful objects of jewelry, the designer taking advantage of the
resemblance which they bear to common objects of every-day life, and by
additions of gold and other ornaments completing the form which nature
had merely suggested.

Some remarkable examples of baroque mountings have been produced, and a
few are to be found in most of the large pearl collections. In a single
case in the Imperial Treasury at Vienna are baroques forming the
principal parts or figures of a horse, stag, lamb, tortoise, lizard,
cock, dragon, butterfly, gondola, hippopotamus, female bust, and three
mermaids. Other well-known collections are those of the royal family of
Saxony in the Grüne Gewölbe at Dresden; those in the Palace of Rosenberg
at Copenhagen; in the Waddesden (Rothschild) collection of the British
Museum; among the jewels in the Louvre in Paris; with the treasures of
the Basilica of St. Mark in Venice; and in the museum of the University
of Moscow.

A remarkable pearl-like ornament more common in Asia than in the
Occident, is the _coque de perle_, which is an oval section of the
globose whorl of the Indian nautilus. The exterior or convex surface is
highly lustrous, but the material is very thin. It is commonly provided
with a suitable filling or backing of putty or cement to impart
solidity, and is used like a blister pearl. Sometimes two perfectly
matched _coques de perle_ are filled and cemented together, giving the
appearance of an abnormally large oblong or nearly spherical pearl.

The color of pearls has no connection with the luster. In general it is
the same as that of the shell in which they are formed. Black pearls are
found in the black shells of Mexico, and pink pearls in the pink-hued
_Strombus_ of the Bahamas. Ceylon pearls are seldom of any other color
than white, and Sharks Bays are almost invariably quite yellow or
straw-colored, while those of Venezuela are commonly yellowish tinged.
But from other localities, pearls simulate every tint of the rainbow, as
well as white and black. The most common, as well as the most desirable
ordinarily, is white, or rather, silvery or moonlight glint,—“_la gran
Margherita_,” as Dante calls it; but yellow, pink, and black are
numerous. They may also be piebald—a portion white and the rest pink or
brown or black. Some years ago there was on the market a large
bean-shaped pearl of great luster, one half of which was white and the
other quite black, the dividing-line being sharply defined in the plane
of the greatest circumference. The pearls from Mexico, the South Sea
islands, and the American rivers are especially noted for their great
variety of coloration, covering every known tint and shade, and
requiring such a master as Théophile Gautier to do justice to them.

Many theories have been advanced to explain the coloration of pearls.
When the old idea of dew formation prevailed, it was considered that
white pearls were formed in fair weather, and the dark ones when the
weather was cloudy. It was further considered that the color was
influenced by the depth of the water in which they grew: that in deep
water they were white, but where it was so shallow that the sunlight
easily penetrated, the pearls were more likely to be dark in color.
Tavernier curiously explained that the black pearls of Panama and Mexico
owed their color to the black mud in which the pearl-oysters of those
localities lived, and that Persian Gulf pearls were more inclined to
yellow than those of Ceylon, owing to the greater putrefaction of the
flesh before they were removed therefrom.[77] Two centuries ago the
color of a pearl was attributed to that of the central nucleus, and it
was concluded that if the nucleus was dark, the pearl would be of a
similar hue.[78] This theory has also been upset, for pearls are found
white on the exterior and quite dark within, and also with these
conditions reversed.

The color of a pearl is determined by that of the conchiolin, as appears
from its remaining unchanged after decalcification. While generally it
is the same as that of the mother-of-pearl at the corresponding point of
the shell in which it is formed, there are many exceptions to this, and
the reasons for the varying tints and colors are probably to be found in
the changes in position of the pearl, the ingredients of the water, the
health of the mollusk, accidents of various kinds, etc. These factors
will be referred to later in discussing the pearls from different
mollusks and regions; but in general it is no more easy to explain the
colors of pearls than it is to say why one rose is white and another is
yellow.

Medieval writers had much to say regarding unripe or immature pearls,
likening them to eggs in the body of a hen, which follow a uniform rate
of growth; and this idea is not entirely absent even in contemporaneous
writings. However, it is an interesting fact that the humble mollusks,
like the five wise virgins with prepared lamps, keep their gems perfect
in beauty and luster at all times. It matters not whether the pearl be
removed when it is only the size of a pinhead or not until it reaches
that of a marble, it is at all times a complete, a ripe, a perfect
pearl, and the largest surpasses the smallest only in the
characteristics and properties which are incidental to size. Imparting
perfection and completion every day, every moment, the mollusk utilizes
the added time simply in enlarging its beautiful work.

Although art has made wonderful progress in that direction, the pearl,
like truth, is not easily imitated. There is as much difference between
the ubiquitous imitations and the perfect gem as there is between a
chromolithograph and a silvery Corot, or between the effects of
cosmetics and the freshness of youth. While to the unskilled, or under
superficial inspection, the false has some of the properties of the
genuine, it is only necessary to place them side by side to make the
difference apparent. However clever the imitation may be in color, in
form, and in density, it always lacks in richness, in sweetness, and in
blended iridescence.

V
SOURCES OF PEARLS

Rich honesty dwells like a miser, sir, in a poor house, as your
pearl in your foul oyster.

_As You Like It_, Act V, sc. 4.

In geographic range, the sources of pearls are widely distributed, each
one of the six continents yielding its quota; but the places where
profitable fisheries are prosecuted are restricted in area. First in
point of value, and possibly of antiquity also, are the fisheries of the
Persian Gulf, giving employment ordinarily to thirty thousand or more
divers. The yield in the likewise ancient fisheries of the Gulf of
Manaar is uncertain, but sometimes remarkably large. The Red Sea
resources are now of slight importance compared with their extent in the
time of the Ptolemies. Other Asiatic fisheries are in the Gulf of Aden,
about Mergui Archipelago, on the coast of China, Japan, Korea, and Siam,
and also in the rivers of China, Manchuria, and Siberia.

Aside from those produced in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, the pearl
fisheries of Africa are of small extent. Some reefs exist on the lower
coast of the German East African territory and also in Portuguese East
Africa, but they have not been thoroughly exploited.

In most of the inshore waters of Australasia pearls may be secured; the
fisheries are most extensive on the northern coast of Australia, in the
Sulu Archipelago, and about the Dutch East Indies. Tuamotu Archipelago,
Gambier, Fiji, and Penrhyn are prominent in the South Pacific Ocean.

In the seas of Europe few pearls have been found, but the rivers have
yielded many; and although the resources have been greatly impaired,
many beautiful gems are yet found there.

South America contributes the important reefs on the coast of
Venezuela—the land of unrest and revolutions, whose fisheries were first
exploited by Columbus. Other South American countries in which pearls
are collected are Panama, Ecuador, Peru, etc. In North America, pearls
are found in the pearl-oyster of the Gulf of California, the abalone of
the Pacific coast, the queen conch of the Gulf of Mexico, and in the
Unios of most of the rivers, especially those of the Mississippi Valley.

Since pearly concretions partake of the characteristics of the shell
within which they are formed, it follows that practically all species of
mollusks whose shells have a well-developed nacreous lining yield pearls
to a greater or less extent. But the number of these species is
relatively small. They belong chiefly to the _Margaritiferæ_, or
pearl-oyster family of the sea, and to the _Unionidæ_, or family of
fresh-water mussels. Pearls occur also in some univalves, but not so
abundantly as in bivalves of the families mentioned. Broadly stated, we
may hope to find pearls within any mollusk whose shell possesses a
nacreous surface; and it is useless to search for them in shells whose
interior is dull and opaque, such as the edible oyster for instance.

The great bulk of the pearls on the market, and likewise those of the
highest quality, are from the _Margaritiferæ_, which are widely
distributed about tropical waters. Although these mollusks are spoken of
as pearl-oysters, they are not related in any way to the edible oysters
(_Ostrea_) of America and Europe.[79] The flesh is fat and glutinous,
and so rank in flavor as to be almost unfit for food, although eaten at
times by the poorer fishermen in lieu of better fare. The origin of the
name is doubtless due to the fact that in the somewhat circular form of
the shell they resemble oysters rather than the elongated mussels of
Europe, to which they are more nearly related in anatomy. Also in
that—like their namesakes—they are monomyarian, having only one adductor
muscle.

The two valves or sides of the pearl-oyster shell are nearly similar in
shape and almost equal in size; whereas in the edible oysters one valve
is thin and somewhat flat, while the other is thicker, larger, and
highly convex. In the latter, also, the hinge, or umbo, is an angular
beak; but in the pearl-oysters the umbo is prolonged by so-called ears
or wings into a straight line the length of which is nearly equal to the
breadth of the shell.

The byssus, or bunch of fibers, by which pearl-oysters attach themselves
to the bottom indicates their relationship to the mussels. The
possession of a small foot and somewhat extended migratory powers—at
least in the first years of growth—also distinguish them from the
sedentary edible oysters. But from an economic point of view, the
principal difference is the possession of a thick, nacreous, interior
lining in the shells of pearl-oysters, which is wholly lacking in the
edible species. Like their namesakes, the pearl-oysters are exceedingly
fertile, a single specimen numbering its annual increase by millions.

Commercially considered, the pearl-oysters are roughly divisible into
two groups, (1) those fished exclusively for the pearls which they
contain, and (2) those whose shells are so thick as to give them
sufficient value to warrant their capture independently of the yield of
pearls. The best examples of the first group are the pearl-oysters of
Ceylon and of Venezuela, and to a less extent those of the Persian Gulf,
the coast of Japan, and of Sharks Bay, on the Australian coast. Of the
second group, the pearl-oysters of Torres Straits and of the Malay
Archipelago are the most prominent members. Between these two groups are
the many species and varieties whose shells and pearls are more evenly
divided with respect to value, including those of Mexico, Panama, the
Red Sea, the South Sea islands, etc.

Some conchologists recognize a large number of species of
_Margaritiferæ_, while other authorities consider many of these as local
variations of the same species. There is much difference in the size,
color, and markings of the shells in different localities, owing to
varying geographical and physical conditions. The distinction of species
and the nomenclature herein adopted are those of Dr. H. L. Jameson, who
has recently revised and rearranged the collection of shells belonging
to this family in the British Museum of Natural History,[80] and to whom
we are indebted for descriptive notes relative to several of the
species.

The greatest pearl-producer in the family of pearl-oysters is the
_Margaritifera vulgaris_ of the Gulf of Manaar and the Persian Gulf, and
to a much less extent of the Red Sea. It occurs in various other inshore
waters of the Indian Ocean, and about the Malay Archipelago and the
coast of Australia and New Guinea, although it is not the principal
pearl-oyster of those waters. An interesting account of its immigration
into the Mediterranean Sea through the Suez Canal was given by Vassel in
1896.[81]

This species is quite small, averaging two and a half inches in diameter
in Ceylon waters, and somewhat more in the Persian Gulf, whence large
quantities of the shell are exported under the name of “Lingah shell.”
The Ceylon variety has the nacreous lining almost uniformly white over
the entire surface, only the lip having a slightly pinkish ground color.
The exterior is marked by seven or eight reddish brown radial bands on a
pale yellow ground. In addition to its greater size, the Persian variety
is darker, and the lip of the shell has a reddish tinge.

For centuries the _Margaritifera vulgaris_ has sustained the great pearl
fisheries of Ceylon, India, and Persia, and at present yields the bulk
of pearls on the market, especially the seed-pearls and also those of
medium size. It produces relatively few large ones, rarely exceeding
twelve grains in weight. These pearls are commonly silvery white, and
for their size command the highest prices, because of their beautiful
form and superior luster. Excepting the Venezuelan species, this is the
only pearl-oyster which at present supports extensive fisheries
exclusively for pearls; in the fisheries for all other species the value
of the shells furnishes considerable revenue, and in some localities
this represents several times as much as the income from the pearls.

Ranking next to _Margaritifera vulgaris_ in extent of pearl production
is the _Margaritifera margaritifera_, which is widely distributed about
the tropical inshore waters of the Pacific and Indian oceans. It is very
much larger than the Lingah oyster, good specimens measuring seven or
eight inches in diameter, and the nacreous interior is usually of a
darker color. In addition to its yield of pearls, the shell of this
species is of value in the mother-of-pearl trade, and contributes
largely to the economic results of the fisheries. Indeed, in several
regions the shell is of more value than the pearls, which represent only
an incidental yield. As Jameson notes, the color and markings of the
shell, though extremely variable, generally suffice to distinguish this
species. The ground color of the exterior ranges through various shades
from yellowish brown to very dark brown. Its characteristic markings
consist of from ten to eighteen radial rows of white and yellow spots,
running from the umbo, or hinge, to the margin.

Several varieties of _Margaritifera margaritifera_ are recognized. The
type species occurs along the north coast of Australia, from Brisbane on
the east to Sharks Bay on the west; on the New Guinea coast; at Formosa;
and about many of the islands of the Pacific. The well-known “black lip
shell” of Australian waters is of this species; it shows a greenish
black on the margin of the nacre. The yield of this is very small
compared with that of the large pearl-oyster of Australia.

The _Margaritifera margaritifera_ occurs on the eastern coast of Arabia
in two varieties, which differ somewhat from the type species. These
have been designated by Jameson as _M. margaritifera persica_ and _M.
margaritifera erythræensis_. These are much larger than the Lingah shell
of the Persian Gulf, but are smaller than the Australian species. The
percentage of pearls in them is less than in the Lingah species, but
from a commercial point of view this is to some extent offset by the
greater value of the shell. The _M. m. persica_ is more numerous in the
gulf than the _M. m. erythræensis_, and large quantities of the shell
are marketed in Europe. Formerly the shipments were made principally by
way of Bombay, hence the shell is known in the mother-of-pearl trade as
“Bombay shell.” The exterior is of a light grayish or greenish brown
color, with yellowish white radial bands. The nacre has a slightly
roseate tint, and the margin is greenish yellow. The pearls found herein
are more yellowish in color and attain a larger size than those from the
Lingah oyster.

The _M. m. erythræensis_ occurs also in the Red Sea and along the shores
of the Arabian Sea. Among mother-of-pearl dealers it is known as
“Egyptian shell” or “Alexandria shell,” owing to the fact that prior to
the opening of the Suez Canal shipments were commonly made by way of
Alexandria. The color of the nacre is darker than that of its related
variety in the Persian Gulf. In the trade, three grades of this shell
are recognized, classed according to the shade of color. The lightest
comes from Massowah and near the southern end of the Red Sea, and the
darkest from farther north, in the vicinity of Jiddah and Suakim.

The islands of the southern Pacific, and of eastern Polynesia
especially, yield another variety of _M. margaritifera_, to which the
name _M. m. cumingi_ has been given. The nacre is of a dark metallic
green, and in the mother-of-pearl trade the shell is designated as
“black-edged.” It attains a large size, only slightly smaller than the
large Australian species; many individual specimens measure ten inches
in diameter, and weigh six or seven pounds for the two valves. Belonging
to this variety are those oysters whose shells are known in the markets
of Europe and America as “Tahiti,” “Gambier,” and “Auckland” shells, the
name designating the port of shipment.

Yet another subspecies, the _M. m. mazatlanica_, occurs on the coasts of
Panama and Mexico, and especially in the Gulf of California. This is
likewise green-edged, and the exterior color is yellow or light brown.
This shell has been marketed in quantities since 1850, and is known in
the mother-of-pearl trade as “Panama shell.” It is smaller than the
Australian species, specimens rarely exceeding eight inches in diameter.
It yields a large percentage of the black pearls that have been so
fashionable in the last fifty years.

Since 1870, the largest pearls have been found mainly in a very large
species of pearl-oyster, _Margaritifera maxima_, obtained off the north
and west coasts of Australia, among the Sulu Islands, and elsewhere in
the Malay Archipelago. In the fisheries for this species, the
mother-of-pearl is the principal object sought, and the pearls are
obtained incidentally. It is the largest of all the members of this
family, reaching in exceptional cases twelve or thirteen inches in
diameter, and weighing upward of twelve pounds; while the Ceylon oyster
rarely exceeds four ounces in weight. So marked is this difference, that
the Australian species is often designated the “mother-of-pearl oyster,”
and the Ceylon species the “pearl-oyster.” Jameson notes that it differs
from the _Margaritifera margaritifera_, its nearest competitor in size,
in its much longer hinge, its shape, its lesser convexity, and in its
color and markings. As described by him, the color ranges from pale
yellowish brown to deep brown, with traces of radial markings of dark
brown, green, or red in the umbonal area. In its marginal region, the
shell is marked by a series of circumferential lines about one third of
a millimeter apart.

Several geographical varieties of this species are recognized in the
mother-of-pearl trade, differing principally in the coloring of the
interior surface. The chief commercial varieties are “Sydney” or
“Queensland,” “Port Darwin,” “West Australian,” “New Guinea,” “Manila,”
“Macassar,” and “Mergui.” The nacre of those from the Australian coast
is almost uniformly silvery white. That of the “Manila shell” is
characterized by a broad golden border surrounding the silvery white
nacre. The “Macassar shell” lacks the golden border of the “Manila
shell,” and is similar in its uniform whiteness to the “Sydney shell,”
but its iridescence is much greater.

The _Margaritifera carcharium_, from Sharks Bay, on the coast of
Australia, yields yellow pearls and small quantities of mother-of-pearl.
This species is small—three or four inches in diameter. The color is
grayish or greenish yellow, with several somewhat indistinct radial
bands of brownish green. The nacre has a yellowish green tint, with a
margin of pale yellow, with brown markings.

In the West Indies and on the Atlantic coast of tropical America,
especially the coast of Venezuela, occurs the _Margaritifera radiata_.
This species is quite small, and seems to be closely allied to the
Ceylon oyster. Like the latter, the nacreous interior is rich and
brilliant, but owing to its small size, the shell is wholly valueless as
mother-of-pearl. The principal and almost the only fishery for this
species is on the Venezuelan coast, in the vicinity of Margarita Island,
the islands of Cubagua, and Coche.

The coast of Japan yields the _Margaritifera martensi_, which occurs
among the numerous islands in the southern part of the empire, but does
not extend beyond 40° north latitude. This species is likewise small,
and closely resembles the pearl-oyster of Ceylon, from which it differs
principally in coloration. As noted by Jameson, brown and white
predominate in the exterior coloring, and the interior of the lip is
marbled with yellow ocher and chocolate brown, instead of pink, as in
the Ceylon shell.

There are numerous other species of pearl-oysters, but they are of
slight economic importance, and do not support fisheries of value.

As only a small percentage of the individual mollusks contain pearls, it
follows that vast quantities are destroyed without any return whatever,
and handling them merely adds to the expense of the industry, as well as
reduces the resources of the reefs. This could be obviated if it were
possible, without opening them, to determine the individual mollusks
containing pearls.

Among the several methods proposed for this purpose, especially
interesting is the use of X-rays, which was suggested by Raphael Dubois
of Lyons, France, in 1901.[82] The shells of some pearl-oysters—those of
Ceylon and of Venezuela for instance—are relatively thin, and it was
thought that by the means of the rays the presence of pearls could be
ascertained, and non-pearl-bearers could be saved from opening, and be
returned to the reefs without injury. Although the calcareous shell
partly interrupts the radiations, it is not difficult to recognize the
presence of large pearls.

The theory has never been found practical in application, owing largely
to the rough and irregular exterior of the shell and the small size of
the pearls. The presence of the larger pearls may be ascertained by this
method; but it is exceedingly probable that a very large percentage of
the small ones, and especially the seed-pearls, would be overlooked.
Furthermore, if in their sixth year oysters contain no pearls, the
probability of appearance therein later is very small, and little
benefit would result from their return to the water. As to saving the
trouble of opening the non-pearl-bearing mollusks, labor in the pearling
regions is usually inexpensive, and this cost is far more than offset by
the reasonable certainty of securing practically all the small as well
as the large pearls by the present method of operation. Owing to the
greater thickness and the economic value of the large pearl-oysters—as
those of Australia or of Mexico, for instance—the application of X-rays
to them is obviously impractical. However, when pearl-oyster culture
becomes a highly developed industry, with personal ownership in those
mollusks returned to the water, some method such as this might be of
great value.

Pearls are yielded by various species of _Unionidæ_ or _Naiades_
occurring in the rivers of America, Scotland, Saxony, Bavaria, Norway,
Sweden, Russia, France, China, etc. These mollusks exist exclusively in
the fresh-water streams, lakes, and ponds, and quickly die when
submerged in salt water. The _Unionidæ_ are of particular interest in
America, as it is here that this group is most abundant, and nearly
every stream east of the Rocky Mountains contains more or less of them.
The Mississippi basin abounds in Unios, or “clams,” as they are known to
the fishermen of that region, and furnishes about 400 of the 1000
recognized species of this important family.

The Unios are most abundant in clear, running water, where the bottom is
gravelly or sandy. The interiors of the shells are iridescent, and vary
greatly in tint, exhibiting many delicate shades of color from silvery
white to straw color, pink, purple, brown, etc.

About five hundred species of American fresh-water mussels have been
recognized by conchologists. Many of these differ from one another so
very slightly that they are scarcely distinguishable from an examination
of the shells themselves, or even from the descriptions, and a detailed
index to the complete list is of little economic importance. The
professional fishermen and the shell-buyers take the trouble to name
only the species with which they deal, which includes only about
twenty-five species, all of which are margaritiferous, though some to a
greater extent than others. In the pearling regions a popular
nomenclature exists, the names given by the fishermen having reference
to the shape, color, etc.

The niggerhead (_Quadrula ebena_) is the most numerous in the
Mississippi, and it is extensively used in button manufacture. The thick
shell of this species is almost round, with a black outer surface and a
pearly white interior. At maturity it averages about four inches in
diameter and four ounces in weight. Owing to its uniform whiteness and
the flatness of its surface, it is well adapted to button manufacture,
and for this purpose more than twenty thousand tons are taken in the
Mississippi Valley every year. When the fishery originated, the
niggerhead was very abundant in some places, and especially between La
Crosse and Burlington. From a single bed near New Boston, Illinois,
measuring about 200 acres in area, 7500 tons, or about 70,000,000
individual shells, were removed in three years. In 1897, a bed of 320
acres near Muscatine furnished 500 tons, or about 4,750,000 shells. This
species occasionally yields valuable pearls.

Two species of Unios, _Quadrula undulata_ and _Q. plicata_, are known
among the fishermen as “three-ridges.” The former is also known as the
“blue-point” from the fact that the sharp edge is usually tinged faint
blue on the inside. Although not the best for button manufacture, the
shells yield the greatest number of pearls.

A species somewhat similar to the niggerhead is the bullhead
(_Pleurobema æsopus_). This shell is thick and opaque, the nacre is not
so iridescent as that of the niggerhead, nor does it yield pearls of
such good quality. These two species are not evenly distributed over the
bottom of the streams, but occur in great patches or beds, sometimes
several feet in thickness and covering many hundreds of acres. Some of
the beds are several miles in length, and they may be separated by
twenty or thirty miles in which the mollusks are so scarce that
profitable fishing can not be made; but usually the reefs are smaller
and more closely situated.

The sand shells (_Lampsilis_)—of which there are several species—do not
occur in large beds, but are scattered over the sandy beaches and
sloping mud-banks. In shape they are narrow and long, adults measuring
five or six inches in length. Owing to the small waste in cutting, due
to uniformity in thickness, these shells are sold to button
manufacturers for more than the niggerhead, which in turn is more
valuable than the bullhead.

The buckhorn (_Tritigonia verrucosa_) is very long and narrow; on the
dark brown exterior it is rough, as is the horn from which it takes its
name, while the interior shows a beautiful display of colors. This is
not found in beds, but lies scattered among other species. It sells at a
relatively high price—usually in excess of $20 per ton—for button
manufacture.

Another species is the butterfly (_Plagiola securis_), which is very
prettily marked on the outside with faintly colored dotted stripes of
varying length. Over a background of dark yellow run black stripes to
the outer edge of the shell, with dark dots between the stripes. The
shell is small and thick, and like the sand shell and the buckhorn, is
found in small quantities. Owing to the beauty and permanency of its
luster, this shell is in demand for button manufacture, and its pearls
are often very beautiful.

Other well-known species are the pancake (_Lampsilis alatus_), the
maple-leaf (_Quadrula wardi_), and hackle-back (_Symphynota
complanata_). On the Atlantic seaboard, the principal species in which
pearls have been found are _Unio complanata_; the _Alasmodon arcuata_,
which has hinge teeth, and a species of Anodon. Pearls from the _Unio
complanata_ are usually smaller but more lustrous than those from either
of the other species.

Among the many fresh-water mussels are found some remarkable conditions
of animal life. Probably the most curious is the parasitic stage of
certain species. When hatched from the egg, each one of these is
provided with hooks or spines, by means of which it attaches itself to
the gills or fins of a swimming fish and becomes embedded therein. After
confinement in this cyst for a period of two months or more, the small
mollusk works its way out and falls to the bottom of the river or pond,
where its development continues along lines more conventional to
molluscan life.

In most of the species of Unios the sexes are separate; but it has been
determined that in some the individuals are provided with both sets of
sexual organs. It is claimed by some naturalists that certain species
may change from one sex to another; yet this does not seem to have been
positively established.

Not the least interesting of the habits of the Unios is the manner in
which they “walk,” bushels of them changing their habitation in a few
hours. The shell opens slightly and the muscular tongue-like “foot” is
thrust out, and by pressure of this on the bottom, the mollusk is
propelled in a jerky, jumpy movement with more speed than one would
suppose possible for the apparently inert creature.

The number of eggs produced by an individual in one season ranges from a
few hundred in some species to many millions in others, as in the
_Quadrula heros_, for instance. Most of the fresh-water mollusks are of
slow growth, reaching maturity in six or eight years, and it is believed
that if undisturbed they live to be from fifteen to fifty years old;
indeed, some writers credit them with attaining an age of one hundred
years.

While outwardly there is no positive indication of the existence of
pearls, they are relatively scarce in young mollusks, and likewise in
those having a normal, healthy appearance, with smooth exterior free
from blemishes, and they are found generally in the older, irregular,
and deformed shells, which bear excrescences and the marks of having
parasites. However, some of the choicest pearls have come from shells
relatively young and apparently in perfect condition.

It has been pointed out that with the fresh-water Unios there are three
indications on which the fishermen to some extent rely for determining
the presence of pearls from the outward aspects of the shell. There are,
first, the thread or elevated ridge extending from the vertex to the
edge; second, the kidney-shape of the shell, and third, the contortion
of both valves toward the middle plane of the mollusk.

A single mollusk may contain several small pearls,—more than one hundred
have been found,—but in such cases usually none has commercial value.
Ordinarily only one is found in the examination of very many shells. Of
these objects it may be truthfully said that “many are found, but few
are chosen,” few that are of first quality or are worthy of a fine
necklace. In many instances, several pounds of cheap pearls would be
gladly exchanged for a choice gem weighing an equal number of grains.

On the Atlantic seaboard of America, the Anodontas, or “mussels,” as
they are known locally, are more numerous than the Unios. They prefer
the still waters of the ponds and lakes, rather than the swift currents
of the streams. The shell is much thinner than that of the Unios, and it
is usually not so brilliant in color and iridescence; consequently the
pearly concretions obtained from them are less lustrous.

The rivers of Europe, and of Asia also, contain numbers of pearl-bearing
mussels. In many localities the yield of pearls has at times attracted
attention and produced much profit, though probably never equaling the
present extent of the Mississippi River finds. The principal
pearl-bearer of Europe is the _Unio margaritifera_, the shell of which
has been of some local importance in the manufacture of pearl buttons.
In Great Britain it is known as the pearl-mussel; in France as the
_moule_ or _huître perlière_; in Germany as _perlenmuschel_; in Belgium
as _paarl mossel de rivieren_; in Denmark as _perle-skiael_; in Sweden
as _perlmussla_; in Russia as _schemtschuschuaja rakavina_, and in
Finland as _simpsuckan cuosi_. The _Unio margaritifera_ likewise exists
in Siberia, and possibly elsewhere in Asia. Other species of Unio exist
there and in Mongolia, Manchuria, etc., as, for instance, _U.
mongolicus_, _U. dahuricus_, etc. A leading species in eastern China,
the _Dipsas plicatus_, has long been extensively employed in the
artificial production of pearly objects or culture pearls.[83] Unio
pearls show less uniformity of tints than those derived from the
pearl-oysters. They present an extended series of shades, corresponding
to those on the interior of the shells, from almost perfect white
through various tints of cream, pink, yellow, bright red, blue, green,
russet, and brown. The metallic shades are numerous, especially the
steels and the coppers.

Most of the members of the _Mytilidæ_ family, which includes the marine
mussels, are of slight luster; and the pearly concretions found in them
are of the grade known as “druggists’ pearls,” so-called because,
formerly, they were used in a powdered form in astringent and other
medicines. However, some of these mussels on the European coast yield
pearls that are fairly lustrous. The white and the pink are most
numerous, but purple, red, bronze, and yellow are by no means uncommon.

A few pearls are also obtained from the sea-wings or wing-shells
(_Pinna_), the silkworms of the sea, found in the Red Sea, the
Mediterranean Sea, the Indian Ocean, the southern coast of America, and
elsewhere. These shells are narrow at the umbo, or hinge, long, and
fan-shaped; they are generally brittle, and present a horn-like
appearance. The interior is commonly of a silvery reddish or
orange-colored hue, and this tint is imparted to the pearls. The most
characteristic feature of the _Pinna_ is the thick rope of silky fibers,
from four to ten, and sometimes twenty or more inches in length,
constituting the byssus, a remarkable provision by means of which it
anchors itself to the bottom and thus outrides the storm. Formerly the
byssus was gathered in Sicily, washed in soap and water, dried, corded,
and fabricated into gloves and similar articles of a fine texture. The
finished garments were of a beautiful golden brown color, resembling the
burnished gold on the backs of some splendid flies or beetles.

The yield of _Pinna_ pearls is very small. A few are obtained from the
Mediterranean, especially on the Adriatic coast. These are usually
rose-tinted or reddish in color, but of diminished orient, and inferior
in size. _Pinna_ pearls are also reported from the Isle of Pines and
from New Caledonia, where they are commonly very dark, almost black in
color.

The window-glass shell (_Placuna placenta_), the _vitre chinoise_ of
some writers, yields a few small, irregularly shaped pearls of a dull
leaden color. It occurs in the inshore waters of the Indian and the
southwestern Pacific oceans; fisheries are prosecuted in Tablegram Lake,
near Trincomali, on the northeast coast of Ceylon; on the coast of
Borneo, especially at Pados Bay, and to a less extent in some other
localities. This mollusk is quite distinct from the true pearl-oyster,
and in adult life is devoid of the byssus, living on the muddy bottom of
the shallow waters. The shell is almost circular, the right valve is
quite flat, and the left only slightly convex. It is remarkable for its
transparency, especially in the first year of growth, when the beating
of the heart of the mollusk is visible through it. Reaching maturity in
about two years, the shell becomes white and translucent, resembling
pressed isinglass somewhat in its texture. It then measures about six or
seven inches in length, and nearly the same in width. The outside is
rough; the interior is glazed over and has a subdued pearly luster. It
is so thin and transparent that with a strong light very coarse print
can be read through it. It is commonly used in the East Indies as a
substitute for glass in windows, admitting a soft mellow light into the
room. For this purpose it is usually cut into small rectangular or
diamond-shaped pieces, about five or six square inches in area, and
these are inserted into sash frames. It forms a good economical
substitute for glass, not only in windows of native residences, but also
in lanterns and the like.

The giant clam (_Tridacna gigas_) of tropical waters yields a few large
opal-white symmetrical pearls, with faint luster and of little value.
The transversely oval shell of the _Tridacna_, with its great squamous
ribs, is probably the largest and heaviest in existence, single pairs
weighing upward of 500 pounds. It is found in tropical seas, and
especially in the Indian Ocean. It is much used for ornament,
particularly for fountain-basins, and for _bénitiers_, or holy-water
fonts. A beautiful pair used as _bénitiers_ in the Church of St. Sulpice
in Paris is said to have been a gift of the Republic of Venice to
Francis I. There seems to be no established fishery for this mollusk,
and the pearls very rarely come on the market. About four years ago in
New York City an effort was made to market one weighing about 200
grains. The owner represented that it was a “cocoanut pearl,” and
offered to sell it for $2000; whereas its actual value was probably not
over $10 or $20, and that only for a museum collection.

Pearls of slight luster also occur in the quahog, or hard clam (_Venus
mercenaria_), of the Atlantic coast of the United States. Although these
are rare, they are generally of good form, and some weigh upward of
eighty grains each. They are commonly of dark color, purplish,
ordinarily, but they may be white, pale lilac, brown, and even purplish
black, or black. The white ones—which so nearly resemble ivory buttons
as readily to pass for them at a casual glance—are of little value; but
fine dark ones have retailed at from $10 to $100 each. There is little
demand for them, for unless the color is very good, they possess slight
beauty, lacking the orient peculiar to choice pearls. Pearls have also
been reported from the edible clam of the Pacific coast of America.

Shelly concretions are found in the edible oyster of America (_Ostrea
virginica_), as well as in that of Europe (_O. edulis_); but these are
commonly objects of personal interest or of local curiosity, rather than
of artistic or commercial value, as they are lacking in luster and
iridescence. Most of them are dull or opal-white, some are purple, and a
few are white on one side and purple on the other. As many as fifty of
these formations have been found in a single oyster. Sometimes they are
of odd appearance, suggesting the human eye or face, and recently one
was found which bore a striking resemblance to a human skull.
Notwithstanding many news items to the contrary, it is doubtful whether
the choicest pearl from an edible oyster would sell for as high as $20
on its own merits; professional shuckers have opened thousands of
bushels of oysters without finding one which would sell for ten cents.

Among univalves, the most prominent pearl-producer is probably the
common conch or great conch (_Strombus gigas_) of the West Indies and
the Florida coast, which secretes beautiful pink pearls of considerable
value. This is one of the largest of the univalve shells, some
individuals measuring twelve inches in length, and weighing five or six
pounds. The graceful curves and the delicate tints of lovely pink color
make it exceedingly attractive. The conch abounds in the waters of the
West Indies, especially in the Bahamas, where many thousands are
annually taken for the shell, which forms quite an article of commerce.
The flesh is esteemed as food and is also used for bait; and it is
particularly in preparing for these purposes that the pearls are found,
as no established fisheries exist for the pearls alone.

The ear-shells or abalones (Haliotidæ) found on the coasts of
California, Japan, New Zealand, and other localities in the Pacific,
secrete pearly concretions, sometimes with fine luster, but usually of
small value. These shells resemble in general outline the form of the
human ear. Distinguishing characteristics are the flatly-spiral
bowl-like shape, and the regular series of holes in the back near the
distal margin, for the admission of water to the respiratory organs. The
holes are on the left side and parallel with the columellar lip, and
those nearest the apex close up as the shell increases in size. The
shells are rough externally, but beautifully nacreous within. In variety
and intensity of coloring, the nacre is superior to that of the
pearl-oysters, but it is not so harmonious, and it does not form so
thick and flat a layer.

Abalone pearls are especially interesting on account of their brilliant
and unusual colors. Green predominates, but blue and yellow also occur.
Although commonly very small, some of the well formed ones exceed
seventy-five grains in weight, and those of irregular shape may be very
much larger. The ear-shells also produce many irregular pearly masses.
Although these are without an established commercial value, their
beautiful greenish or bluish tints adapt them for artistic jeweled
objects, such as the body of a fly or of a beetle.

Similar concretions are found in species of turbos and turbinella,
especially the Indian chank (_Turbinella rapa_), which yields pink and
pale red pearls. The pearly nautilus (_Nautilus pompilius_) yields a few
yellowish pearls, especially those taken in Australian waters; but from
the paper nautilus—“the sea-born sailor of his shell canoe”—no pearls
are obtained, owing to the non-lustrous nature of the shell.

In bygone days, especially in Asia, and also to some extent in Europe,
pearls were credited as coming from many non-molluscan sources. The
Rabbis had the idea that they came also from fish, as noted in the story
of a tailor who was rewarded by finding a pearl in one which he bought
(Gen. R. xi. 5). The Raganighantu of Narahari, a Kashmir physician of
about 1240 _A.D._, reported them as coming from bamboos, cocoanuts,
heads of elephants, bears, serpents, whales, fish, etc.;[84] although it
conceded that these were deficient in luster, which is recognized as the
characteristic feature of pearls. We understand, therefore, that this
use of the word signifies only hard concretions of a spherical form. In
the apology for his book, prison-bound Bunyan wrote:

A pearl may in a toad’s head dwell,
And may be found in an oyster shell.

The crystal gems—the diamonds, rubies, etc.—are practically unlimited in
their longevity, existing thousands of years unchanged in condition.
Except those which have been discovered by man, the earth contains about
as many as it ever did, and it is not unreasonable to suppose that in
course of time a considerable percentage of the total will be
discovered. But in the seas as well as in the rivers, the longevity of
pearls is greatly restricted, and

Full many a gem of purest ray serene
The dark, unfathomed caves of ocean bear[85]

to run their course of existence and decay unseen and unknown.
Perishable while in the seas, almost as cereals and fruits on land, the
harvest must be gathered with promptness or it is wasted. And it seems
probable that only a small percentage of the beautiful gems produced in
the waters have gladdened the sight of man.

With considerable hesitancy we have attempted to estimate the number of
persons employed in the pearl fisheries of the world, and the aggregate
local value of their catch. For two or three regions, this is not a
matter of great difficulty. For instance, the divers employed in the
Ceylon fishery are numbered each season, and the auction sales of their
catch furnish a reasonably satisfactory basis for determining the value
of the output. Likewise in Australia, Venezuela, and some minor
localities, the fishermen are numbered; but the reports are less
satisfactory as to the value of the pearls. In the Persian Gulf, the Red
Sea, the Gulf of California, and the islands of the Pacific, where
pearl-diving is a profession and a regular source of livelihood, the
number of employees is fairly constant. But in the rivers and ponds of
America, as well as of Europe and of Asia, where neither experience nor
costly equipment is required for the industry, and pearls to the value
of very many thousands of dollars are obtained by men, women, and even
children, on pleasure bent, as well as in the widely fluctuating
professional fisheries, the problem is far more difficult.

Contending with these many difficulties, we venture to present the
following estimate of the number of persons employed in the pearl
fisheries of the world, and the value of the output in 1906.

Localities. Pearls Shells
Fishermen Local Local
No. Values. Values.

Asia:

Persian Gulf 35,000 $4,000,000 $110,000

Ceylon[86] 18,500 1,200,000 40,000

India 1,250 100,000 95,000

Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, etc.[87] 3,000 200,000 150,000

China, Japan, Siberia, etc. 20,000 400,000 50,000

——————— —————————— ——————————

Total 77,750 $5,900,000 $445,000

Europe:

British Isles 200 15,000

Continent of Europe 1,000 100,000 3,000

——————— —————————— ——————————

Total 1,200 $115,000 $3,000

Islands of the Pacific:

South Sea islands 4,500 125,000 500,000

Australian coast[88] 6,250 450,000 1,200,000

Malay Archipelago 5,000 300,000 800,000

——————— —————————— ——————————

Total 15,750 $875,000 $2,500,000

America:

United States rivers 8,500 650,000 350,000

Venezuela 1,900 275,000 10,000

Mexico 1,250 210,000 200,000

Panama 400 40,000 75,000

Miscellaneous 1,000 75,000 25,000

——————— —————————— ——————————

Total 13,050 $1,250,000 $660,000

======= ========== ==========

Grand total 107,750 $8,140,000 $3,608,000

Our returns do not represent the annual output of pearls in the values
best known to gem buyers. The difference in price between pearls in the
fisherman’s hands in the Persian Gulf or at the Pacific islands, and
that for which they are exchanged over the counters in New York or
Paris, is nearly as great as the difference in value of wool on the
sheep’s back and of the same material woven into fashionable fabrics.
For each dollar received by the fisherman, the retail buyer probably
pays three; and it is not unreasonable to suppose that the pearls herein
represented probably sold ultimately for an aggregate of $24,420,000.

This summary falls far short in giving a correct idea of the importance
of the pearl fisheries in furnishing a livelihood to humanity; for it
takes no consideration of that great body of men who contribute
incidentally to the prosecution of the fisheries, such as shell-openers,
pearl-washers, watchmen, cooks, laborers, etc. In the Ceylon pearl
fishery of 1906, for instance, our estimate shows 18,500 fishermen; but
there were 40,000 persons engaged at the pearl camp alone, and many
others were given employment in boat-building, supplying provisions,
selling the pearls, etc., and this does not include the wives and
children depending on the industry for sustenance. Indeed, it seems not
unreasonable to estimate that instead of only the 18,500 fishermen,
85,000 persons were in a large measure dependent for their livelihood on
the Ceylon fishery in 1906.

Estimated on the same basis, we have a total of 500,000 persons
depending largely on the pearl fisheries of the world for their support.
Thus we see that pearl buyers and pearl wearers not only gratify a
commendable admiration for the beautiful, but contribute largely to the
economic balance whereby one class of humanity either sustains or is
dependent upon another, even though these classes be so widely separated
as the crown of Russia from the half-starved diver of the tropical seas.
How strange is the providence of God, who, by granting the pearl to the
poor Arab, the Tamil of India, the South Sea Islander, and the forgotten
Selang of Mergui, makes the greatest and wealthiest in the world
contribute to their support.

VI

PEARLS FROM ASIA

THE PERSIAN GULF, FISHERIES OF INDIA, CEYLON PEARL FISHERIES, RED SEA
AND ARABIAN SEA, CHINA, JAPAN, SIBERIA, ETC.

VI
THE PEARL FISHERIES OF THE PERSIAN GULF

Dear as the wet diver to the eyes
Of his pale wife, who waits and weeps on shore,
By sands of Bahrein in the Persian Gulf;
Plunging all day in the blue waves; at night,
Having made up his toll of precious pearls,
Rejoins her in their hut upon the shore.

SIR EDWIN ARNOLD.

The pearl fisheries of the Persian Gulf are the most famous and valuable
in the world, and have been prosecuted for more than two thousand years.
A translation by that eminent Assyriologist, Jules Oppert, of a
cuneiform inscription on a broken obelisk, erected presumably by a king
of Nineveh, seems to indicate a very early origin for these
fisheries.[89] Professor Oppert’s translation is:

In the sea of the changeable winds (_i.e._, the Persian Gulf),
his merchants fished for pearls;
In the sea where the North Star culminates,
they fished for yellow amber.

The earliest writing of Europeans on the East refer to these fisheries.
An account of them was given by the Greek writer Megasthenes, who
accompanied Seleucus Nicator, the Macedonian general, in his Asiatic
conquests, about 307 B.C. Shortly afterward they were noted by the Greek
historian, Isidorus of Charace, in his account of the Parthian Empire.
Extracts from Nearchus preserved by Arrian also mention them. Ptolemy
speaks of the pearl fisheries which existed from time immemorial at
Tylos, the Roman name for the present Island of Bahrein. These resources
were well known in the days of Pliny. In his “Historia Naturalis,” Book
IX, ch. 35, he says: “But the most perfect and exquisite [pearls] of all
others be they that are gotten about Arabia, within the Persian
Gulf.”[90] Pliny states also (Book VI, ch. 25) that Catifa (El Katiff),
on the Arabian coast opposite Bahrein, was the center of an important
fishery.

In the ninth century these fisheries were noted by Massoudi, one of the
earliest Arabian geographers.[91] In the latter part of the twelfth
century they were visited and described by the Spanish-Hebrew traveler,
Rabbi Benjamin of Tudela.[92] The Arabian traveler, Ibn Batuta, wrote of
them about 1336.[93] In 1508 they were noted in the account of Lodovico
Barthema’s expedition to the Island of Ormus. According to him:

At three days’ journey from this island they fished the largest
pearls which are found in the world; and whoever wishes to know
about it, behold! There are certain fishermen who go there in small
boats and cast into the water two large stones attached to ropes,
one at the bow, the other at the stern of each boat to stay it in
place. Then one of the fishermen hangs a sack from his neck,
attaches a large stone to his feet, and descends to the bottom—about
fifteen paces under water, where he remains as long as he can,
searching for oysters which bear pearls, and puts as many as he
finds into his sack. When he can remain no longer, he casts off the
stone attached to his feet, and ascends by one of the ropes fastened
to the boat. There are so many connected with the business that you
will often see 300 of these little boats which come from many
countries.[94]

Shortly following the visit of Barthema, the Portuguese under
Albuquerque took possession of the principal ports of the Persian Gulf,
and they imposed heavy taxes on the pearl fishery throughout the century
of their retention. While under their jurisdiction, the fisheries were
visited and described by J. H. van Linschoten in 1596, who wrote:

The principall and the best that are found in all the Orientall
Countries, and the right Orientall pearles, are between Ormus and
Bassora in the straights, or Sinus Persicus, in the places called
Bareyn, Catiffa, Julfar, Camaron, and other places in the said Sinus
Persicus, from whence they are brought into Ormus. The king of
Portingale hath also his factor in Bareyn, that stayeth there onlie
for the fishing of pearles. There is great trafficke used with them,
as well in Ormus as in Goa.[95]

This was the Ormus where the treasures of the Orient were gathered in
abundance, the half-way house between the East and the West, making it
one of the greatest emporia of the world. So renowned was its wealth and
commerce that it was a saying among the Portuguese, were the whole world
a golden ring, Ormus would be the jeweled signet. It was built on an
island, supported a population of 40,000 persons, and was particularly
well situated as a distributing point for the pearls, which enriched the
argosies of Portugal, and contributed so largely to

the wealth of Ormus and of Ind,
Or where the gorgeous East with richest hand
Show’rs on her kings barbaric pearl and gold,

which Milton celebrates in “Paradise Lost.” This wonderful Ormus, in the
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries one of the wealthiest places in the
world, is now only a fishing village of less than a hundred huts.

It was at Ormus, nearly a century later, in 1670, that the shrewd old
jewel merchant, Tavernier, whose acquaintance with gems doubtless
equaled that of any man of his time, saw what he called “the most
beautiful pearl in the world”; not so much for its size, for it weighed
only 48¼ grains, nor for its regularity in form, but because of its most
wonderful luster.[96]

In describing the fisheries, which had been retaken by the Persians in
1622, Tavernier wrote in 1670, according to Ball’s translation:

There is a pearl fishery round the island of Bahren, in the Persian
Gulf. It belongs to the King of Persia, and there is a good fortress
there, where a garrison of 300 men is kept…. When the Portuguese
held Hormuz [Ormus] and Muscat, each boat which went to fish was
obliged to take out a license from them, which cost fifteen
_abassis_ [$5.45], and many brigantines were maintained there, to
sink those who were unwilling to take out licenses. But since the
Arabs have retaken Muscat, and the Portuguese are no longer supreme
in the Gulf, every man who fishes pays to the King of Persia only
five _abassis_, whether his fishing is successful or not. The
merchant also pays the king something small for every 1,000 oysters.
The second pearl fishery is opposite Bahren, on the coast of Arabia
Felix, close to the town of El Katif, which, with all the
neighboring country, belongs to an Arab prince.[97]

During the century following Tavernier’s time, the fisheries were
vigorously prosecuted, owing to the impoverished condition of the reefs
in India and America, and to the large demand for pearls, not only by
the Oriental courts, but by the wealth and fashion of Europe. Except for
the last four years, when the Ceylon fishery was very productive,
throughout the eighteenth century the Persian Gulf was almost the only
important source of supply for pearls. For several years following the
reopening of the Ceylon fishery in 1796, that region diverted some of
the attention which the Persian waters had been receiving, but it was
not long before these regained their ascendancy.

In 1838, Lieutenant J. R. Wellsted, an officer in the British India
service, reported that the fisheries of the gulf employed 4300 boats,
manned by somewhat more than 30,000 men.[98] Of these boats, 3500 were
from the Island of Bahrein, 100 from the Persian coast, and the
remaining 700 from the Pirate Coast situated between Bahrein and the
entrance to the Gulf of Oman. Lieutenant Wellsted estimated the value of
the pearls secured annually as approximately £400,000, which is somewhat
less than the average value of the output in recent years.

Twenty-seven years later, according to Sir Lewis Pelly,[99] who was in
the Indian service from 1851 to 1877, there were 1500 boats at Bahrein,
and the annual return from the whole fishery was £400,000, the same as
previously reported by Wellsted. In 1879, the value of the output was
estimated at £600,000 by the British Resident, Colonel Ross, and at
£800,000 by Captain L. E. Durand, of the British Protectorate of the
Persian Gulf. Owing to the increased market value, the average output in
the last five years has amounted to approximately four million dollars
annually. This refers to the local value only, which is greatly
increased by the time the pearls leave the markets in Bombay and Bagdad.

The Persian Gulf is nearly 600 miles long, with an average width of
somewhat more than 100 miles. The Strait of Ormus—thirty to sixty miles
wide—connects it with the Gulf of Oman, which opens directly into the
Arabian Sea. The depth of water rarely exceeds thirty fathoms. Oyster
reefs are well distributed throughout the gulf, and are in greatest
abundance on the Arab side between the 24th and 27th degrees of north
latitude and the 50th and 54th degrees of east longitude, at a distance
of from a few hundred yards to sixty miles from the shore, and
especially in the vicinity of the Bahrein Islands. The oysters are
scattered over level areas of coral rock and sand, with depths ranging
from two to eighteen fathoms.[100] The divers rarely descend in deeper
water than twelve fathoms, notwithstanding that valuable pearls are
apparently obtainable at greater depths.

Although the British Protectorate extends over the Persian Gulf,
insuring the peaceful prosecution of the fisheries and the settlement of
intertribal contentions by the government resident, the fisheries are
under the regulations of the maritime Arab sheiks. The restrictions
imposed by these, however, are principally with a view to collecting a
revenue from each boat employed. The total amount realized thereby is
unknown, but there is good reason for supposing that it is considerable.

The fisheries are carried on during the greater part of every year,
presenting a strong contrast to the Ceylon fishery, which is prosecuted
usually less than forty days, and in only about one year in three on an
average. This is especially remarkable when it is considered that no
particular care is taken of the Persian reefs and, except for certain
tribal restrictions, the fishermen may work whenever and wherever they
choose. Owing to the extended area over which the fishing is prosecuted
and the existence of undisturbed breeding-oysters in the deeper waters,
the reefs are not readily exhausted, notwithstanding the tens of
millions of mollusks annually removed therefrom.

The fisheries are at their height from June to September, when nearly
every person on the coast is interested in some capacity, if not in
fishing, at least in furnishing supplies, cleaning shells, buying
pearls, etc. In April and May the water on the deep banks is so cold
that the fishermen confine their efforts to the more shallow areas.
During the winter months, the cold weather and the northwesterly gales
interfere with the work, except such as is prosecuted in the smaller
bays and inlets.

The pearling operations are financed mostly by Indian _bunnias_, or
traders, principally from Bombay, who furnish capital for equipment,
supplies of food, etc., and who purchase the pearls in gross lots. These
men bear very hard on the fishermen, furnishing the supplies and buying
the pearls almost at their own prices; and the poor divers who explore
the depths and secure the pearls derive from their exertions little more
than the crudest necessaries of life, and are usually in debt to the
traders.

The actual fishing operations are carried on mainly by the maritime
tribes of Hasa and Oman, including those on the Pirate Coast. The
inhabitants of the Bahrein Islands and the adjacent shores have been
devoted to pearling from time immemorial; but the Wahabis of the Pirate
Coast—the _Ichthyophagi_ of Ptolemy’s time—have more recently, under the
persuasive influence of British gunboats and magazine-rifles,
substituted pearling for their two-century inherited life of fanatical
piracy. Referring to these people in his quaint sketches of Persia
eighty years ago, Sir John Malcolm wrote: “Their occupation is piracy,
and their delight murder, and to make it worse they give you the most
pious reasons for every villainy they commit. They abide by the letter
of the sacred volume, rejecting all commentaries and traditions. If you
are their captive and offer all to save your life, they say, “No! It is
written in the Koran that it is not lawful to plunder the living; but we
are not prohibited from stripping the dead. So saying they knock you on
the head.”[101] Most of the Wahabi pearlers congregate in the mat-hut
settlements of Dobai, Abu Thubi, and Ras-el-Kheima, located at the
mouths of creeks which form fairly good harbors for the small boats. The
Batina coast also furnishes some pearl fishermen, these coming
principally from Fujaira, Shenas, Sohar, Suaik, and Sib.

The headquarters for the pearling fleet are at Bahrein Island, the
largest of the insular group bearing the same name, the islets of
Moharrek, Sitrah, and Nissan completing the group. This is the early
home of Chaldean civilization, and one of the traditional sources of the
Phenicians, and whence came that fish-god who—according to the
Babylonian myth—bore the ark over the deluge. This island, the center of
the greatest pearl fishery in the world, is half way down on the
southern side of the Persian Gulf, and twenty miles from the mainland of
“Araby the blest.” It is about twenty-eight miles in length, and ten in
width at the widest part. The population approximates 60,000, all
Moslems, except about 100 Banyan traders from Sindh, India. The northern
half of the island is described as of great beauty, being a garden of
pomegranate, lemon, citron, and quince-trees, and especially the
magnificent date-palms, with numerous springs furnishing an abundance of
excellent fresh water. The principal settlement, Manama, with about
10,000 inhabitants, is poorly built, the houses consisting mostly of
huts of mats and palm leaves; yet it presents a better appearance than
any other settlement along this coast.

The one great industry, and the center of all interest throughout this
region, is the pearl fishery. The present conditions are precisely as
Palgrave wrote in 1863: “It is from the sea, not from the land, that the
natives subsist; and it is also mainly on the sea that they dwell,
passing amid its waters the one half of the year in search of pearls,
the other half in fishery or trade. Hence their real homes are the
countless boats which stud the placid pool, or stand drawn up in long
black lines on the shore, while little care is taken to ornament their
land houses, the abodes of their wives and children at most, and the
unsightly strong boxes of their treasures. ‘We are all, from the highest
to the lowest, slaves of one master—Pearl,’ said Mohammed bin Thanee to
me one evening; nor was the expression out of place. All thought, all
conversation, all employment, turns on that one subject; everything else
is merely by-game, and below even secondary consideration.”[102]

According to recent returns, the Persian Gulf fisheries employ about
3500 boats,[103] large and small, of which 1200 of the best are owned at
Bahrein, 700 on the coast of El Hassa from El Katar to Kuweit, and the
remaining 1600 are from various parts of the gulf, and especially from
the Pirate Coast east of El Katar. They measure from one to fifty tons.
The smaller ones, with three to fifteen men each, work near the shores;
the larger, carrying fifteen to thirty men, fish over the whole gulf,
remaining out for weeks at a time. These craft are very picturesque with
their artistic rigs and spoon-shaped sails, and when the fishery is at
its height the scene is one of rare interest. The boats from Bahrein are
of excellent construction made by native workmen using local materials,
with home-woven sailcloth and rigging of twisted date-fiber. Each of the
larger ones usually evidences a lingering trace of Semitic influence in
its _kubait_, or figurehead, covered with skin of the sheep or goat
sacrificed in the launching ceremonies.[104] The boats from El Hassa and
the Pirate Coast are usually smaller and less substantial than those
from Bahrein, the fishermen from the latter place far surpassing those
of the mainland in civilization and industrial wealth.

The fleet is manned by approximately 35,000 fishermen. In addition to
the _nakhoda_, or captain, who is often the owner of the boat, the crew
consists of _ghoas_ or divers, who are mainly Arabs and Sedees, and
_sebs_, or rope-tenders, who are usually Bedouins or Persians and attend
the divers and perform other duties. Many Hindus from India, and
flat-nosed, sable-hued Negroes from the east coast of Africa find
employment here. On each of the larger boats is a general utility man,
known as _el musully_, literally the “prayer-man,” who, in addition to
various other duties, relieves those _sebs_ who stop to pray.

Among the fishermen are all types and classes to be met with in this
part of the world, with the usual contingent of the lame, the halt, and
the blind. There are a number of fishermen who have been maimed and
mutilated by shark bites. A surprisingly large number of men who have
become totally blind engage in diving, and they usually do fairly well
where the oysters are abundant on the reefs. And one or two unfortunate
divers are reported who continue the work even though handicapped by the
loss both of a leg and of eyesight, this interfering less with their
diving than with their movements on land.

The fishery in this region owes absolutely nothing to modern
civilization in the method of securing the pearls from the depth of the
sea; it is carried on to-day practically as it was six hundred years
ago, and probably has been without important variation for two thousand
years. Aside from a loin-cloth, the diver is devoid of clothing except
that rarely, early in the season when _polypi_ abound, he is enveloped
in a cotton overall as a protection. Over each finger and thumb he wears
a shield or stall (_khubaat_, or finger-hat), about two inches long,
made of flexible leather, to protect the fingers from the sharp shells
and coral-growths. As each fisherman usually wears out at least two sets
of these shields each season, it will be seen that a very large quantity
of them is required to supply the entire fleet.

The divers use stones on which they descend feet foremost. Although this
is less spectacular than the method of diving practised by the natives
of the South Sea islands, it enables the fisherman to reach the bottom
more speedily and with far less effort. The diving-stones range in
weight from thirty to fifty pounds each, depending largely on the depth
of water and the weight of the fisherman. They are somewhat oval in
shape, and have one end perforated to admit a rope. Immediately above
the attachment is formed a loop, resembling a stirrup, to receive the
diver’s foot. When prepared for the day’s work, each stone is suspended
by a stout rope over outriggers projecting from the side of the boat,
and by a slip-knot is temporarily held four and a half or five feet
below the surface of the water. A very stout diver may have a stone
affixed to his waist to overcome his greater buoyancy. Usually two
divers use one stone together and descend alternately. Each one has an
attendant in the boat who assists him in ascending, and looks after the
ropes, baskets of shells, etc.

In preparing for descent, the fisherman takes hold of the rope from
which the diving stone is suspended, puts one foot in the loop just
above the stone and places the other foot in the rim of a net basket,
eighteen inches wide, made of coir rope. When ready, he signals his
attendant, inhales several good breaths, closes his nostrils with a
_fitaam_ or nostril-clasp of flexible horn attached to a cord around his
neck, raises his body somewhat above the surface to give force to the
descent, releases the slip-knot retaining the stone, and sinks rapidly
to the bottom. Immediately disengaging his foot from the stone, he
throws himself in a stooping position on the ground and collects as many
oysters as possible during the fifty seconds or more in which he is able
to remain under water. When near his limit of endurance, he hastily
gives a signal jerk to the rope attached to the basket, and the watchful
attendant hauls him up as speedily as possible, the diver frequently
quickening the ascent by hand over hand movement up the rope. When near
the surface, he lets go of the rope and with his arms close to his body
pops above the surface puffing and blowing. The contents of the net bag
are emptied into a large basket by the attendant, and the dead shells
and other refuse are separated from the live oysters and thrown back
into the sea, the diver having worked too rapidly at the bottom to
discriminate closely as to what he gathered.

In the meantime, the stone has been drawn up and suspended by the
slip-knot in its customary position and the diving partner is resting at
the surface preparatory to descending. Thus, diving alternately at
intervals of five or six minutes, each fisherman descends thirty or
forty times in an ordinary day’s work. The number of oysters gathered at
each descent depends on such conditions as their abundance, the depth
and clearness of the water, etc. It ranges from none to fifty or more,
but ordinarily ten or twelve is a good average. As the men commonly work
on shares, the shells brought up by each diver or by each pair of divers
are kept separate.

The best type of Arab divers are very careful of themselves, drying the
body thoroughly with towels on coming out of the water, taking intervals
of rest during the day’s work; and even while in the water between dives
they may enjoy the luxury of a cheroot or pipe, or possibly a cigarette
may pass from mouth to mouth of several men.

When pursuing their work, the divers are abstemious. After devotions at
sunrise and a light breakfast of perhaps dates or rice and coffee, they
begin fishing. About noon they knock off for coffee, prayers, and an
hour’s siesta, and then resume work for several hours. When the day’s
work is over and they have faced Meccaward with the customary prayers,
they rest and eat a substantial meal, commonly of dates and fish roasted
over a charcoal fire.

In equal depths the Arab fishermen remain under water longer than those
of India who resort to the Ceylon fishery, but this is partly
counterbalanced by the latter descending somewhat more frequently. When
preparing for a lengthy dive, the fisherman imbibes large quantities of
air, opening his mouth and inhaling large volumes.

The length of time a diver remains submerged in the average depth of
seven or eight fathoms rarely exceeds sixty seconds, although some may
remain seventy, eighty, and even ninety seconds on special occasion. A
fully substantiated instance is reported from Manaar of an Arab diver
having remained 109 seconds in seven fathoms of water. This occurred
April 13, 1887, and was witnessed and reported[105] by Captain James
Donnan, the inspector of the fishery. Wellsted reports[106] a diving
contest in the Persian Gulf in which only one man, of the hundreds who
competed, remained down 110 seconds; the depth, however, is not noted.

There are numerous reports of much longer stays than these; indeed, a
study of the published evidence bearing upon the subject furnishes
surprising results. Ribeiro wrote, in 1685, that a diver could remain
below while two _credos_ were repeated: “_Il s’y tient l’espace de deux
credo._”[107] In his interesting account of the Ceylon fishery, Percival
stated that the usual length of time for divers to remain under water
“does not much exceed two minutes, yet there are instances known of
divers who could remain four or even five minutes, which was the case
with a Caffre boy the last year I visited the fishery. The longest
instance ever known was of a diver who came from Anjango in 1797, and
who absolutely remained under water full six minutes.”[108] Le Beck
says, that in 1797, he saw a diver from Karikal remain down for the
space of seven minutes.[109] The merchant traveler, Jean Chardin,
reported in 1711 that the divers remain up to seven and a half minutes
under water: “_Les plongeurs qui pêchent les perles sont quelquefois
jusqu’à demi-quart-d’heure sous l’eau._”[110]

In 1667, the Royal Society of London addressed an inquiry on this
subject to Sir Philiberto Vernatti, the British Resident at Batavia in
the East Indies. Vernatti’s reply gave certain details regarding the
Ceylon fishery, but did not touch upon the length of diving because, as
he stated, he could not “meet with any one that can satisfy me, and
being unsatisfied myself, I cannot nor will obtrude anything upon you
which may hereafter prove fabulous; but shall still serve you with
truth.”[111] Two years later, and presumably after investigation,
Vernatti reported: “The greatest length of time that pearl-divers in
these parts can continue under water is about a quarter of an hour; and
that by no other means than custom; for pearl-diving lasts not above six
weeks, and the divers stay a great while longer at the end of the season
than at the beginning.”[112]

The anatomist Diemerbroeck relates[113] the case of a pearl diver who,
under his own observation, remained half an hour at a time under water
while pursuing his work; and this was seriously adopted without comment
by John Mason Goode in his “Study of Medicine.”[114] Ibn Batuta, “the
Doctor of Tangier,” wrote about 1336 that “some remain down an hour,
others two hours, others less.”[115] A still earlier writer, Jouchanan
ibn Masouiah,[116] in his book on stones, states that “the diver, when
he dives, places upon his nose a _masfâsa_ lest water should enter into
him, and breathes through the fissure, and remains under water for half
an hour.” According to Sebaldus Rau[117] this _masfâsa_ was an article
resembling a hood or cap, which the diver placed over his nose. It was
made of some impervious material and had a projection so long that it
reached to the surface of the water. The same writer believes that this
object was alluded to by Aristotle (“De part. animal.,” _Lib._ II, c.
16), where he likens the trunk of the elephant to the instrument used by
certain divers for aiding their respiration, so that they could remain
longer in the water and draw in air from above the surface.[118] And
here we cease pursuit of further records, lest our faith in recorded
testimony be too severely tested.[119]

A superficial inspection of the above evidence, from the one or two
hours noted by Ibn Batuta about the year 1336, to the half an hour of
Diemerbroeck in 1672, the quarter of an hour of Vernatti in 1669, the
seven and one half minutes of Chardin in 1711, the six minutes of
Percival in 1803, to the 110 seconds of the present time, seems to
indicate very clearly a gradual but somewhat remarkable decrease in the
ability of the Asiatic divers, and that the pearl fishermen of the
present day are very different creatures from their ancestors. And
especially is this so when it is considered that the above records are
not isolated reports selected for the particular purpose of showing a
decrease in the length of diving; on the contrary they are authoritative
and representative publications of their respective periods. We do not
recall having seen in any report issued previous to 1675, an intimation
that the limit of time was less than ten minutes.

However, a careful consideration of the subject leads to the belief that
there has been no serious decrease in the length of time that the Arab
and Indian divers remain under water, and that either the writers were
misinformed or that the individual cases reported were extremely
exceptional. Ibn Batuta’s instance of one to two hours could easily be
caused by a mistake in copying Arabic manuscript, or in the translation.
The case related by Diemerbroeck in which a pearl diver remained
submerged half an hour, is more perplexing, especially as the physician
reports that this was done under his own observation. The numerous
reports of five or six minutes may have been based on a very exceptional
case.

These statements are viewed as highly incredible by men who have spent
scores of years at the fisheries. A man may remain submerged for several
minutes, but the conditions are vastly different from the activities of
pearl-gathering at a depth of ten fathoms, where the pressure of the
water is nearly thirty pounds to the square inch, and the slightest
exercise is fatiguing. Unless the time is taken by a watch, it is easy
to overestimate the stay; the seconds pass very slowly when one is
waiting momentarily for the appearance of the diver’s head above the
water, and certainly to the nearly exhausted fisherman with straining
chest and palpitating heart, the last few seconds must seem extremely
long indeed. An instance is noted in which an Arab diver remained
submerged seventy-one seconds, and on his reappearance, naïvely inquired
if he had not been down ten minutes. It seems doubtful whether the 110
seconds herein noted has been greatly exceeded, in recent years at
least, by Arab or Indian divers, who do not appear to equal the
semi-amphibious natives of the South Sea islands in their exploits.

One of the most curious features of the pearling industry is the manner
in which the fishermen secure supplies of drinking water. In the
vicinity of Bahrein, numerous fresh-water springs exist at the bottom of
the gulf in depths of two or three fathoms, and the fishermen dive into
the depth of the salt water down to where the fresh water is springing
forth and there fill a skin or other suitable receptacle which they
bring to the surface. By running a pipe down near the bottom in the
vicinity of one of these springs, an abundance of fresh water may be
pumped into the boat.

Three species—or at least three varieties—of pearl-bearing oysters are
obtained in the Persian Gulf. These are known locally as _mahar_,
_sudaifee_, and _zinni_. Of these, the _mahar_ or Lingah oyster, which
corresponds to the Ceylon pearl-oyster, yields the greatest quantity of
pearls, and those of the finest quality. It measures three or three and
a half inches in diameter, and is found in deeper water than the others.
The _sudaifee_ and the _zinni_, which are larger, yield pearls in much
smaller quantities than the _mahar_.

On large boats, which remain out for two or three weeks at a time, the
oysters are left on deck overnight, and the following morning they are
opened by means of a curved knife (_miflaket_), four or five inches in
length. The smaller boats working near shore convey the catch to the
land for the opening and searching for pearls.

The Persian Gulf pearls are commonly not so white as those from Ceylon,
but they are found of larger size, and it is believed in Asia that they
retain their luster for a greater length of time. Many of the Persian
Gulf pearls, especially those from _sudaifee_ and _zinni_ shells, have a
distinctly yellow color. Tavernier made a curious explanation of this.
He stated:

As for the pearls tending to yellow, the color is due to the fact
that the fishermen sell the oysters in heaps, and the merchants
awaiting sometimes up to 14 or 15 days till the shells open of
themselves, in order to extract the pearls, some of these oysters
lose their water during this time, decay, and become putrid, and the
pearls become yellow by contact. This is so true that in all oysters
which have retained their water, the pearls are always white. They
are allowed to open of themselves, because if they are opened by
force, as we open our oysters in the shell, the pearls may be
damaged and broken. The oysters of the Manar Strait open of
themselves, 5 or 6 days sooner than those of the Gulf of Persia,
because the heat is much greater at Manar, which is at the tenth
degree of North latitude, while the island of Bahrein is at about
the twenty-seventh. And consequently among the pearls which come
from Manar there are few yellow ones found.[120]

Tavernier was more familiar with the pearls themselves than with the
methods of the fishery. The yellow color is not due to contact with the
putrefactive flesh, and is independent of the manner of opening. In
fact, if putrefaction caused the yellow color, this shade would be far
more prevalent in the Manaar or Ceylon pearls than in those from
Bahrein, for practically all of the Ceylon oysters are permitted to
putrefy, whereas only a portion of those in the Persian Gulf are opened
in this manner. Furthermore, notwithstanding that it is nearer the
equator, the heat at Manaar during the pearling season is not to be
compared with that at Bahrein when the season is at its height, for the
Persian Gulf during July and August is notorious as one of the hottest
places on the globe.

While the great bulk of the pearls are either white or yellowish, these
fisheries yield a few pink, bluish, gray, and occasionally even black
pearls. These unusual colors are not especially prized. A curious and
remarkably detailed story has gone the rounds in which the qualities of
Persian and Ceylon pearls are compared, to the disparagement of the
latter, and during the last hundred years few accounts have been
published of this fishery without recording it. We notice it first in
Morier’s “Journey through Persia in 1808 and 1809,”[121] but possibly it
antedated that report. The statement is that the pearls of Ceylon peel
off, while those of Persia are as “firm as the rock on which they grow”;
and though they lose in color and luster one per cent. annually for
fifty years, they still lose less than those of Ceylon, and at the
expiration of the fifty years they cease to diminish in appearance.

The pearl output in the Persian Gulf at the present time appears from
the official returns to exceed four million dollars annually at local
valuation. The exports in 1903 were reported at £827,447, and in 1904,
£1,077,241. It is generally understood that all of the pearls are not
entered in the official figures, and the valuations in the markets of
Asia and Europe are greatly in excess of these amounts. The profits of
the fishery are divided among a great number of persons. A large
percentage goes to the shrewd _bunnias_ from India, who finance the
fishery operations, and who, by all sorts of tricks connected with
advances of supplies, valuation of the catch, etc., manage to make a
very good thing out of the business. It is nothing unusual for the
valuation of a lot of pearls to double and even treble after leaving the
hands of the fishermen.

While many of the gulf pearls—and especially of the small seed-pearls—go
to Bagdad, the great bulk of them are sold to representatives of Hindu
and Arab merchants of Bombay for shipment to that city, which to the
Bahrein fisherman is the heart of the outside world. Few of the pearls
go directly into Arabia or Persia, as the certain sale in the larger
Bombay market is preferable to a sometimes higher but less regular price
in other markets. Indeed, pearls may usually be purchased at a less cost
in India than a stranger would be obliged to pay at Bahrein. The Bombay
merchants “sow the earth with Orient pearl,” dealing direct with London,
Paris and Berlin, and with the oriental jewelers. Most of the yellow
pearls find oriental purchasers, with whose dark complexions they
harmonize better than the silvery white ones. They are also more popular
because of a belief existing throughout the East that they are less
likely to lose their luster with the lapse of years.

The shell of the pearl-oysters is not used locally, but large quantities
are exported to Europe for manufacture. Although it is the smallest and
cheapest produced in the gulf, yet, owing to the enormous quantity taken
for their pearls, the shell of the _mahar_ (_Margaritifera vulgaris_)
constitutes the bulk of the exports. Formerly most of the shipments were
made from the harbor of Lingah, hence it is known in the markets of
Europe as “Lingah shell.” But in the last three or four years, much of
it has been transported to Europe via Bander Abbas and Bushire. A German
firm at Bahrein is extensively employed in exporting this shell, and
several Indian merchants are also engaged in the trade. The total
exports in 1906 amounted to 3262 tons, valued at $26,408 according to
the port returns, but worth about $135,000 in Europe. Very large
quantities are received in London, and over 2500 tons have been offered
at auction in a single year. This shell is very small, averaging about
three inches in diameter and about one and a half ounces in weight. It
is the cheapest of all mother-of-pearl. The best quality sells in London
for ten to twenty shillings per hundredweight, but the ordinary grade is
worth usually less than nine shillings, and sometimes as low as three
shillings per hundredweight. America formerly imported it, but few lots
have been received since the exploitation of the Mississippi shell about
fifteen years ago.

The shell of the larger species of pearl-oysters in the Persian Gulf is
worth considerably more than the “Lingah shell,” selling in Europe for
£12 to £60 per ton, yet manufacturers consider it as furnishing only
poor qualities of mother-of-pearl. Several hundred tons are exported
annually. It measures six or seven inches in diameter and is used
principally in making cheap grades of buttons.

THE PEARL FISHERIES OF CEYLON

Errors, like straws, upon the surface flow;
He who would search for pearls must dive below.

DRYDEN, _All for Love_, Prologue.

Second in extent to those of Persia only, are the intermittent and
uncertain pearl fisheries of the Gulf of Manaar. This is an arm of the
Indian Ocean, from 65 to 150 miles in width, separating the island of
Ceylon from the southernmost part of India. The pearl-oyster banks—known
locally as paars—are situated off the northwest coast of Ceylon and also
in the vicinity of Tuticorin on the Madras coast of the mainland. The
Ceylon fisheries are under the control of the colonial government of the
British Empire, and those of the mainland are monopolized by the Madras
government. Notwithstanding the fact that they are outside of the
three-mile limit established as the bound of national jurisdiction,
exclusive privileges are exercised over these fisheries by the
respective governments,[122] and poaching vessels are liable to seizure
and punishment.

Though possibly not so ancient as those of Persia, the Ceylon pearl
fisheries are of great antiquity. References to them occur in Cingalese
records dating from 550 B.C. Pliny, Ptolemy, Strabo, and other ancient
writers speak of their importance.

The “Periplus of the Erythræan”—written about the end of the second
century A.D.—refers to these fisheries, and states that, owing to the
dangers involved, it was customary to employ convicts therein. In the
days of the “Arabian Nights,” under the name “Serendib,” this was the
scene of the pearling adventures of Sindbad the Sailor, and the
reputation of the valuable pearl resources is reflected in those
wonderful tales.

The first extensive description we have of the Gulf of Manaar fisheries
was given by the Venetian traveler, Marco Polo, who visited the region
about 1294. He wrote:

The pearl fishers take their vessels, great and small, and proceed
into the gulf where they stop from the beginning of April till the
middle of May. They go first to a place called Bettelar, and then go
60 miles into the Gulf. Here they cast anchor and shift from their
large vessels into small boats. You must know that the many
merchants who go divide into various companies, and each of these
must engage a number of men on wages, hiring them for April and half
of May. Of all the produce they have first to pay the king, as his
royalty, the tenth part. And they must also pay those men who charm
the great fishes to prevent them from injuring the divers whilst
engaged in seeking pearls under water, one-twentieth of all that
they take. These fish-charmers are termined _Abraiaman_; and their
charm holds good for that day only, for at night they dissolve the
charm so that the fishes can work mischief at their will. These
_Abraiaman_ know also how to charm beasts and birds and every living
thing. When the men have got into the small boats they jump into the
water and dive to the bottom, which may be at a depth of from 4 to
12 fathoms, and there they remain as long as they are able. And
there they find the shells that contain the pearls, and those they
put into a net bag tied round the waist, and mount up to the surface
with them, and then dive anew. When they can’t hold their breath any
longer they come up again, and after a little down they go once
more, and so they go on all day. These shells are in fashion like
oysters or sea-hoods. And in these shells are found pearls, great
and small, of every kind, sticking in the flesh of the shell-fish.
In this manner pearls are fished in great quantities, for thence in
fact come the pearls which are spread all over the world. And I can
tell you the King of that State hath a very great receipt and
treasure from his dues upon those pearls.[123]

That quaint old missionary bishop, Friar Jordanus, in his “Mirabilia
Descripta, or the Wonders of the East” (_circa_ 1330), reports that
“more than 8000 boats” were sometimes employed for three months
continually in these fisheries, which were then prosecuted under the
jurisdiction of the Cingalese kings of Kandy, and that the quantity of
pearls taken was “astounding and almost incredible.”[124]

This number of boats seems entirely too large, especially in view of the
fact that Jordanus secured his information at second hand; but it leaves
the impression that the fisheries of that period were of great
importance.

When the Portuguese, attracted by the wealth of its resources, obtained
control of this region about 1510, they exacted from the local rulers an
annual tribute in pearls and spices. Later they conducted the fisheries
on their own account, permitting the native fishermen to retain one
fourth of the catch as compensation for their work, and dividing the
remainder into three equal portions, for the king, the church, and the
soldiers, respectively.

Linschoten, who visited India about 1590, leaves this interesting
account of the fishery at that time:

“There are also other fishings for pearle, as between the Iland of
Seylon, and the Cape de Comoriin, where great numbers are yearlie
found, for that the King of Portingale hath a captaine there with
soldiers that looketh unto it; they have yearlie at the least above
3 or 4 thousand duckers [divers], yt live onlie by fishing for
pearles, and so maintaine themselves.” He describes the methods of
fishing, which appear to be similar to those of the present time,
and adds: “When they have made an end of the day’s fishing, all the
fishers with the captaine, soldiers, laborers and watchmen for the
king, goe together, and taking all the pearls [pearl-oysters] that
are caught that day they divide them into certaine heaps, that is,
one part for the king, another part for the captaine and soldiers,
the third part for the Jesuits, because they have their Cloyster in
that place, and brought the countrie first into the Christian faith,
and the last part for the Fishers, which is done with Justice and
Equalitie. This fishing is done in the Summer tyme, and there
passeth not any yeare but that divers Fishers are drowned by the
Cape de Comoriin (which is called the King’s fishing) and manie
devoured by fishes, so that when the fishing is done there is great
and pitiful noyse and cry of women and children heard. Yet the next
yeare they must do the same work againe, for that they have no other
means to live, as also for that they are partlie compelled thereunto
by the Portingales, but most part because of the gaine.”[125]

The best description we have seen of the Ceylon fisheries at the time of
the Portuguese occupation, is that of Caesar Frederick, a Venetian
trader, who referred to the period from 1563 to 1581. Frederick
reported, according to Hickocke’s translation in the Hakluyt edition:

The sea that lieth between the coast which descendeth from Cao
Comori, to the lowe land of Chilao, and from Island Zeilan, they
call the fishing of Pearles, which fishing they make every yeare,
beginning in March or April, and it lasteth fiftie dayes, but they
doe not fishe every yeere in one place, but one yeere in one place,
and another yeere in another place of the same sea. When the time of
this fishing draweth neere, they send very good Divers, that goe to
discover where the greatest heapes of Oisters bee under water, and
right agaynst that place where greatest store of Oisters bee, there
they make or plant a village with houses and a Bazaro, which
standeth as long as the fishing time lasteth, and it is furnished
with all things necessarie, and nowe and then it is neere unto
places that are inhabited, and other times farre off, according to
the place where they fishe. The fishermen are all Christians of the
countrey, and who so will may goe to fishing, paying a certain dutie
to the king of Portugall, and to the Churches of the Friers of Saint
Paule, which are in that coast. All the while that they are fishing,
there are three or foure Fustes armed to defend the Fishermen from
Rovers. It was my chance to bee there one time in my passage, and I
saw the order that they used in fishing, which is this. There are
three or foure Barkes that make consort together, which are like to
our litle Pilot boates, and a little lesse, there goe seven or eight
men in a boate: and I have seene in a morning a great number of them
goe out, and anker in fifteene or eighteene fadome of water, which
is the ordinarie depth of all that coast. When they are at anker,
they cast a rope into the sea, and at the end of the rope, they make
fast a great stone, and then there is readie a man that hath his
nose and his eares well stopped, and annointed with oyle, and a
basket about his necke, or under his left arme, then he goeth downe
by the rope to the bottome of the Sea, and as fast as he can hee
filleth the basket, and when it is full, he shaketh the rope, and
his fellows that are in the Barke hale him up with the basket: and
in such wise they go one by one untill they have laden their barke
with oysters, and at evening they come to the village, and then
every company maketh their mountaine or heape of oysters one distant
from another, in such wise that you shall see a great long rowe of
mountaines or heapes of oysters, and they are not touched until such
time as the fishing bee ended, and at the ende of the fishing every
companie sitteth round about their mountaine or heape of oysters,
and fall to opening of them, which they may easilie doe because they
bee dead, drie and brittle: and if every oyster had pearles in them,
it would be a very good purchase, but there are very many that have
no pearles in them: when the fishing is ended, then they see whether
it bee a good gathering or a badde: there are certaine expert in the
pearles whom they call Chitini, which set and make the price of
pearles according to their carracts [carats or weight], beautie, and
goodnesse, making foure sorts of them. The first sort bee the round
pearles, and they bee called Aia of Portugale, because the
Portugales doe buy them. The second sorte which are not round, are
called Aia of Bengala. The third sort which are not so good as the
second, they call Aia of Canara, that is to say, the kingdome of
Bezeneger. The fourth and last sort, which are the least and worst
sort, are called Aia of Cambaia. Thus the price being set, there are
merchants of every countrey which are readie with their money in
their handes, so that in a fewe dayes all is brought up at the
prises set according to the goodnesse and caracts of the
pearles.[126]

A remarkable instance of the immutability of custom in the Orient is
found in the fact that, except in a few minor particulars, Frederick’s
account, written more than three centuries ago, could serve as a
description of the methods of the fisheries in recent years. The
industry was then very extensive, as appears from an account shortly
afterward (about 1608) by Pedro Teixeira, who reported[127] that from
400 to 500 boats were employed, and from 50,000 to 60,000 persons
resorted to the fishery.

In 1658, possession of Ceylon and India passed from the Portuguese to
the Dutch, who for a time continued the pearl fisheries after the manner
practised by their predecessors; but owing to contentions as to the
details of management, they soon resorted to leasing them each year to
the highest bidder, or to several bidders, for a definite money payment.
The successful bidders prosecuted the industry in the same manner as the
government had previously done, employing the same native fishermen and
compensating them with one fourth of the oysters secured. Under the
Dutch rule the fisheries were very unprofitable, and particularly so
during the last seventy years of their authority. There was practically
no fishing from 1732 to 1746, and there was also a suspension—but not
entirely from lack of oysters or of pearls—from 1768 until the territory
passed into the control of the British in 1796.

The colonial government of the British Empire continued the Dutch policy
of leasing, only restricting the limits of territory and season for
fishing. Many objections were found to this method. It was difficult to
regulate the business properly, and there were no reliable means of
determining its proceeds and conditions. At length in 1835, the
government began to operate the fishery on its own account, as the
Portuguese had done two hundred years before, allowing the fishermen one
fourth of the oysters taken by them and selling the remaining three
fourths for the benefit of the treasury. In this way the full value of
the resources was realized without mystery, deception, or concealment,
and the plan worked satisfactorily for all concerned.

Owing, presumably, to the long period in which they had lain
undisturbed, the Ceylon oyster reefs were in excellent condition at the
beginning of British rule. In 1796 the government derived a revenue of
Rs.1,100,000 therefrom, and in 1797 the revenue was Rs.1,400,000; these
two years were by far the most productive during the first century of
British occupation.

Several very interesting reports on the industry were prepared about
that time. Especially to be noted among these were the accounts by Henry
J. LeBeck in 1798;[128] by Robert Percival in 1803;[129] and by James
Cordiner in 1807,[130] to which reference is made for detailed accounts
of the fisheries of that period.

The Ceylon fishery was prosecuted about every other year from 1799 to
1809, and the annual returns ranged from £15,022 in 1801 to £84,257 in
1808. From 1810 to 1813, inclusive, there was a blank so far as receipts
were concerned. In 1814 the fishery was very good, bringing in a revenue
of £105,187. With the exception of very slight returns in 1815, 1816,
and 1820, no oysters were then obtained until 1828. Excepting 1832 and
1834, the industry was prosecuted each year from 1828 to 1837, the
revenue to the government averaging about £30,000 annually. Then came a
long blank of seventeen years, for there was no fishing from 1838 to
1854, and likewise from 1864 to 1873. Indeed, so depleted had the beds
throughout the Gulf of Manaar become in 1866, that serious consideration
was given to the possibilities of securing seed oysters from the Persian
Gulf for restocking the reefs; but fortunately this was rendered
unnecessary by the discovery soon afterward of a few oysters on several
reefs on both the Ceylon and the Malabar coasts.

From 1855 to 1863, and also from 1874 to 1881, the returns were only
ordinary, the highest being £51,017 in 1863, and £59,868 in 1881,—the
best year since 1814; and during these two periods fishing was entirely
omitted in nearly one half the seasons. There were five lean years from
1882 to 1886, and the 1887 fishery was only fair, with a yield of
£39,609. But the returns for 1888 were large, amounting to £80,424; and
those for 1891 were even greater, being £96,370, representing a yield of
44,311,441 oysters. No oysters were caught from 1892 to 1902, inclusive.
In 1903, the fishery was profitable, yielding 41,180,137 oysters, and
the share of the government amounted to £55,303; and in 1904 the yield
was almost the same, being 41,039,085 oysters and a revenue of £71,050
to the government.

In 1905 occurred the greatest fishery in the modern history of Ceylon.
The season extended from February 20 until April 21, giving forty-seven
working days, exclusive of Sundays and five days of bad weather, the
longest period in over half a century.[131] The boats employed numbered
318, with 4991 divers and 4894 attendant _manduks_. The yield of oysters
exceeded all records, amounting to 81,580,716 in number, or nearly twice
as many as in any previous year within the period of British occupation.
The prices at which these sold ranged from Rs.24 to Rs.124 per thousand,
with an average of Rs.48.89 for the entire season. The government
received Rs.2,510,727 as its share of the revenue, which was twice as
much as in any previous year since the British have been in control, and
doubtless the largest received by any government in the history of the
industry. The oysters falling to the share of the divers must have sold
for at least Rs.1,255,363 (since 1881 the divers have received one third
of the catch as their compensation, instead of one fourth). The profits
of the merchants, who purchased and opened the government oysters as
well as those of the divers, doubtless amounted to fully as much, making
a total of Rs.5,021,453, or nearly $2,000,000 as a low estimate of the
local value of the pearls secured at Ceylon in 1905.

Owing to the great success in 1905, an enormous number of persons
flocked to the camp at the beginning of the season in 1906. Employment
was given to 473 boats, the largest number on record, and over 8600
divers were engaged, with an equal number of attendants. Owing to
unfavorable weather and the great quantity of oysters removed in 1905,
the catch in 1906 was less than in that record year, amounting to
67,150,641 in number, from the sale of which Rs.1,376,746 was realized.
The prices covered a wide range. For the large Cheval oysters, even
Rs.276, Rs.291, and Rs.309 per 1000 were received. The inferior, stunted
oysters from the Muttuvaratu paar ranged from Rs.20 to Rs.41 per 1000,
and even at these prices many buyers sustained losses. On the other hand
considerable money was made by the buyers of those from Cheval, in which
some very large and beautiful pearls were found.

The results of the 1907 fishery were surprisingly good, excellent prices
being obtained. The proceeds from the sale of two thirds of the
21,000,000 oysters amounted to Rs.1,040,000, or just under $350,000. The
fishery lasted thirty-six working days. Only 173 boats were used, as it
was considered that a fleet of this size is fully as large as can be
employed advantageously to the greatest satisfaction of all interested.

According to the compilations of the colonial secretary’s office, the
gross revenue to the government from 1796 to 1907, inclusive, amounted
to £2,098,830. If to this be added the fishermen’s share and the
merchants’ compensation, we have a total of about £4,200,000 or
$21,000,000 as the local value of the pearls produced in Ceylon during
the period of British occupation. The value of these in the markets of
Asia and Europe was undoubtedly very much greater.

In many respects the Ceylon pearl fisheries are the most interesting in
the world. Owing to their ready accessibility and thorough organization,
they are far better known than any others. Reliable data exist as to the
number of oysters taken during each season since 1854, and it is
possible to estimate roughly the pearls obtained therefrom. Throughout
the 112 years of British occupation, and previously to some extent under
the successive rule of the Cingalese kings, of the Portuguese, and of
the Dutch, for centuries, the reefs were annually examined by official
inspectors, and fishing was permitted only in those years when they
appeared in satisfactory condition.

A noticeable feature of these fisheries is their uncertainty, a
prosperous season being followed by an absence of fishing sometimes
extending over ten years or more. This is not of recent development.
Over eight hundred years ago a total cessation of yield for a
considerable period was recorded[132] by Albyrouni, who served under
Mahmud of Ghazni. He stated that, in the eleventh century, the oysters
which formerly existed in the Gulf of Serendib (Ceylon) disappeared
simultaneously with the appearance of a fishery at Sofala in the country
of the Zends, where previously the existence of pearls had been unknown;
hence it was conjectured that the pearl-oysters of Serendib had migrated
to Sofala.

In the 249 years since Ceylon passed from the dominion of the Portuguese
in 1658, there have been only sixty-nine years in which the pearl
fisheries were prosecuted. During the last century there were only
thirty-six regularly authorized fisheries. Enormous quantities of
oysters have appeared on the reefs, giving rise to hopes of great
results, only to end in disappointment, owing to their complete
disappearance. In the fall of 1887, for instance, examination of one of
the reefs revealed an enormous quantity of oysters, covering an area
five miles in length by one and a half miles in width, with “600 to 700
oysters to the square yard” in places. It was estimated by the
inspection officials that there were 164,000,000 oysters, which exceeded
the total number taken in the preceding sixty years, and which should
have yielded several million dollars’ worth of pearls in the following
season, according to the usual returns. But some months later not an
oyster was to be found on this large reef, the great host presumably
having been destroyed by action of the sea. Numerous reasons are
assigned for the failure of promising reefs. Those most frequently heard
are that the currents sweep the oysters away, that they are devoured by
predaceous enemies, that they are covered by the shifting bottom, or
that they voluntarily move to new grounds.

The oysters are found in well-known and permanently located banks or
paars in the upper end of the Gulf of Manaar, in the wide shallow
plateau off the northwest end of the island and directly south of Adams
Bridge. The hard calcrete bottom is formed mostly of sand combined with
organic remains in a compact mass and with more or less coral and shell
deposits. The density of the water, as determined by Professor Herdman
(to whose important and valuable report[133] we are indebted for much
information), is fairly constant at 1.023, and the temperature has a
normal range of from 82° to 86° F. during the greater part of the year.
The charts and records refer to about twenty paars, but most of these
have never yielded extensively, either to the English or to the Dutch.
In the aggregate, they cover an area fifty miles in length and twenty
miles in width. Most of them are from five to twenty miles from the
shore, and at a depth of five to ten fathoms. The principal paars are
Cheval, Madaragam, Periya, Muttuvaratu, Karativu, Vankalai, Chilaw, and
Condatchy. Only three have afforded profitable fisheries in recent
years, _i. e._: Cheval, Madaragam and Muttuvaratu.

The other paars are of practically no economic value at the present
time. They become populated with tens of millions of oysters, which
mysteriously disappear before they are old enough for gathering.
Especially is this true of the Periya paar, which is about fifteen miles
from the shore, and runs eleven miles north and south, varying from one
to two miles in width. Frequently this is found covered with young
oysters, which almost invariably disappear before the next inspection,
owing, probably, to their being covered by the shifting bottom caused by
the southwest monsoon. The natives call this the “Mother paar,” under
the impression that these oysters migrate to the other paars.

The Ceylon government has given very careful attention to all matters
affecting the prosperity of the pearl resources. It has maintained a
“Pearl Fishery Establishment,” consisting of a superintendent, an
inspector and numerous divers, attendants, and sailors. The inspector
examines the paars, determines when and to what extent they should be
fished, and directs the operations. The superintendent conducts the work
on shore, divides and sells the oysters, etc. The expense of this
establishment has approximated $40,000 per annum when there has been a
fishery, and about $22,500 without fishery expenses.

It has been decided by naturalists that Ceylon oysters less than four
years old produce very few marketable pearls; in the fifth, and again in
the sixth year the value of the yield doubles, and in the seventh it is
supposed to increase fourfold. Beyond that age there appears to be
little increase, and there is the risk of the oysters dying, and of the
pearls deteriorating or becoming lost. Eight years seems to be the
natural limit of life. While experience has shown that the most
profitable period for taking the pearl-oysters is when they are from
five to seven years old, the mollusks are liable to disappear,
especially after the fifth year, and the danger of waiting too long is
as great as that of beginning too early. The fishing on any particular
bank is determined by various circumstances and conditions, and is
permitted only after careful examination.

The different beds are inspected from time to time, and no fishing is
permitted until the condition of the pearl-oysters on the particular
reef thrown open seems to warrant the most valuable returns. In the
examination of a bed apparently in suitable condition, several thousand
oysters—usually eight or ten thousand—are taken up and the pearls found
therein are examined and valued. If they average Rs.25 or Rs.30 per
thousand oysters, profitable results may be expected, provided there is
a sufficient quantity of oysters on the bed. This method of determining
the fishery is very ancient. Tavernier wrote, about 1650, “before they
fish, they try whether it will turn to any account by sending seven or
eight boats to bring 1000 oysters each, which they open, and if the
oysters per 1000 yield five _fanos_ or above, they then know the fishing
will turn to account.”[134] And much the same method was described by
Ribeiro in 1685.

When it has been decided to hold a fishery, public notice is given by
advertisement, stating which of the many paars or reefs will be open,
and the estimated quantity of oysters to be removed, the number of boats
that will be given employment, and the date for beginning the season and
the length of time it will probably last. This notice is usually given
in December preceding the fishery, and it is the signal for preparation
by tens of thousands of persons in this part of Asia, and especially on
the Madras and the Malabar coasts of India, and on the coast of Arabia.
The fishermen, the merchants, and the multitude of artisans, mechanics,
and laborers who contribute to the industry, set their homes and
business in order so that they may attend. We give the notice issued in
1907, both in Cingalese and in English.[135]

Early in February the area to be gleaned is again examined, the limits
of the oysters are charted and buoyed off, the number that may be
obtained is estimated as accurately as possible, and valuation samples
are collected. Several thousand oysters are taken up, the pearls are
removed, examined, and valued by uninterested experts, and the results
are published, so that prospective buyers may have a reliable idea as to
their value. Otherwise this would not be possible until the merchants
had washed some of their own purchases, which ordinarily would not be
for a week or ten days after the opening of the season.

The fishery usually begins late in February or early in March, as the
sea is then relatively calm, the currents least perceptible, and there
is less danger of storms. It is prosecuted from a temporary settlement
or camp on the sandy shore at a place conveniently near the reefs. The
important fisheries of the five years ending in 1907, were centered at
the improvised settlement known as Marichchikadde. Although prosecuted
from the coast of Ceylon, relatively few Cingalese attend compared with
the large numbers who assemble from India, Arabia, and elsewhere.

A week or two before the opening of the season, the boats begin to
arrive, sometimes fifty or more in a single day, laden with men, women
and children, and in many cases with the materials for their huts. In a
short time the erstwhile desolate beach becomes populated with thousands
of persons from all over the Indian littoral, and there is the noisy
traffic of congregated humanity, and a confusion of tongues where before
only the sound of the ocean waves was heard. Beside the eight or ten
thousand fishermen, most of whom are Moormen, Tamils, and Arabs, there
are pearl merchants—mainly Chetties and Moormen, boat repairers and
other mechanics, provision dealers, priests, pawnbrokers, government
officials, koddu-counters, clerks, boat guards, a police force of 200
officials, coolies, domestic servants, with numbers of women and
children. And for the entertainment of these, and to obtain a share of
the wealth from the sea, there are jugglers, fakirs, gamblers, beggars,
female dancers, loose characters, with every allurement that appeals to
the sons of Brahma, Buddha or Mohammed. Natives from the seaport towns
of India are there in thousands; the slender-limbed and
delicate-featured Cingalese with their scant attire and unique
head-dress; energetic Arabs from the Persian Gulf; burly Moormen, sturdy
Kandyans, outcast Veddahs, Chinese, Jews, Portuguese, Dutch,
half-castes, the scum of the East and the riffraff of the Asiatic
littoral, the whole making up a temporary city of forty thousand or more
inhabitants.[136]

THE
Ceylon Company of Pearl Fishers,
LIMITED.

NOTICE

Is hereby given that a Pearl Fishery will take place at
Marichchukkaddi, in the Island of Ceylon, on or about February 20,
1907.

The Banks to be fished are—

The Karativu, Dutch Moderagam and Alanturai Pars, estimated to contain
21,000,000 oysters, sufficient to employ 100 boats for twenty-one days
with average loads of 10,000 each per day.

The Northwest and Mid-West Cheval, estimated to contain 2,000,000
oysters, sufficient to employ 100 boats for two days with average
loads of 10,000 oysters.

The Muttuvaratu Par, estimated to contain 8,000,000 oysters,
sufficient to employ 100 boats for eight days with average loads as
before stated: each boat being fully manned with divers.

2. It is notified that fishing will begin on the first favourable day
after February 19. Conditions governing the employment of divers will
be issued separately.

3. Marichchukkaddi is on the mainland, eight miles by sea south of
Sillavaturai, and supplies of good water and provisions can be
obtained there.

4. The Fishery will be conducted on account of the Ceylon Company of
Pearl Fishers, Ltd., and the oysters put up to sale in such lots as
may be deemed expedient.

A populous town springs up with well-planned and lighted streets and
vast numbers of temporary abodes of all sorts, according to the means
and the caste of the occupants, some of them just large enough for two
or three persons to creep into. Although made mostly of poles, mats,
_cajans_ or plaited fronds of the cocoanut tree, they furnish ample
shelter for the locality and season, the uncertainty of the fishery from
year to year being sufficient argument against expensive and substantial
buildings. Numerous wells and cisterns yield water for the use of all.
Sanitary measures are strictly enforced, with a liberal use of
disinfectants. At a considerable distance southward from the settlement
are constructed the private _toddis_, or inclosures, for decomposing the
oysters and washing the pearls therefrom. Nearer the camp or settlement
itself are the police court, the jail, the bank, the post and telegraph
offices, the auction room, the hospital and the cemetery—all to endure
through a strenuous six weeks of toil and labor, of money-getting and
gambling, and then the inhabitants “fold their tents like the Arabs, and
silently steal away,” leaving the debris to the shore-birds and the
jackals.

The fishing fleet consists of several hundred boats[137] of various rigs
and sizes. These are interesting on account of their picturesque
appearance and also their remarkable diversity of types in hull and
rigging: there is the broad and roomy Jaffna dhoney, commonly painted
black; the lugger-like Paumben boat; the very narrow and speedy
canoes,—not unlike the single masted bugeyes of the Chesapeake
region—from Kilakarai and neighboring villages, most noticeable owing to
their great number and their bright colors—red, green, or yellow; the
clumsy looking, single masted Tuticorin lighters, sharp sterned and
copper bottomed, the largest boats in the fleet, ranging in capacity
from twenty to forty tons each; and, most singular of all, the three
masted great canoes from Adirampatnam and Muttupat on the Tanjore coast,
pale blue in color and with curved prow. In addition to these standard
types, added novelty is imparted by a few boats of design so odd and
fantastic as would be conceived only by the mind of an oriental builder.

Reaching the camp at the beginning of the season, these boats are
examined by the officials as to condition and equipment and, if found
satisfactory, are registered and numbered. When the quantity of oysters
to be removed is small, many more boats may arrive than is necessary or
than can find profitable employment. Formerly when this occurred a
lottery was held to determine those to be employed. More recently the
officials have endeavored to engage all boats passing the inspection,
although to do so might necessitate arranging the fleet into two
divisions, each fishing on alternate days. In 1874, the boats were
arranged in three divisions, the red, blue and green, with fifty boats
in each; in 1879, and again in 1881, there were two divisions, the red
and the blue; and likewise in 1880, in 1903 and in 1906 there were two,
the red and the white divisions. Of the 318 boats employed in the 1905
fishery, 143 were from Kilakarai, seventy-four from Jaffna, thirty-five
from Tuticorin, thirty-four from Paumben, nine from Manaar, six from
Negapatam, five from Colombo, four each from Tondi and Kayalpatam, and
one each from Devipatam, Adrapatam, Ammopatam, and Koddaipatam.

The number of persons on each boat ranges from about twelve to
sixty-five, with an average for the entire fleet of about thirty-five
men per boat. This includes the _sammatti_, or master, who represents
the owner; the _tindal_, or pilot; the _todai_, or water-bailer, who is
very necessary on these leaky craft, and who also takes charge of the
food and drinking water; at times a government inspector or “boat
guard”; and from five to thirty divers, with an equal number of
_manducks_, or attendants.[138] The _sammattis_, _tindals_, and _todais_
are nearly all from the coast of southern India. The “boat guards” or
inspectors are natives of Ceylon, and are employed by the government to
prevent the fishermen from opening the oysters. Most of the _manducks_
are from the Indian coast.

Of the 4991 divers employed in 1905, 2649 were Moormen or Lubbais from
Kilakarai, Tondi, etc., on the Madura coast; 923 were Arabs; 424 were
Erukkalampiddi Moormen from Ceylon, and the remaining 995 were Tamils
from Tuticorin, Rameswaram and elsewhere on the Madras coast, Malayalans
from the Malabar coast, with small numbers from other localities on the
Asiatic coasts.

Among the 8600 divers in 1906, were 4090 Arabs, the largest number of
those people employed in recent years. In 1905 there were only 923 Arab
divers, in 1904 only 238, and previously the number was much less. Some
have worked on the Ceylon coast since 1887, but most of them are newly
arrived from Bahrein and Kuweit, where they received their training as
pearl-divers. They are very energetic and skilful fishermen, far
surpassing the Tamils, coming early in the season and staying late, and
working on many days when rough seas deter the Indian divers from
venturing out.

The Erukkalampiddi divers of Ceylon are by no means so energetic or
steady in work as the Arabs, and commonly desert the fishery before the
close. The Tamil divers belong to the Parawa and Kadeiyar castes.

The season in the Ceylon fishery is very short, only about six or eight
weeks at the most; and the holidays and storms usually reduce the number
of actual working days to less than thirty. In no other pearl fishery of
importance is the season less than four months in length, and in most of
them it extends through more than half of the year. Owing to this
restricted time, there is greater activity in the Ceylon fishery
compared with the value of the output than in any other pearl fishery in
the world.

Although the season is short, it is strenuous. Arising shortly after
midnight, the thousands of fishermen breakfast, perform their devotions
and prepare to get under way so as to reach the reefs about sunrise.
There each boat takes its position on the ground allotted for the day’s
work, and which has been marked in advance by buoys topped with flags;
and shortly afterward, on a signal from the guard vessel, the diving
commences. This is carried on in the same manner as already described
for the Persian Gulf, except that the Indian divers do not use
nose-clips, only compressing the nostrils with the fingers during the
descent. Rarely do they descend to a greater depth than ten fathoms.

The divers work in pairs, each pair using a single diving stone in
common, and descending alternately, precisely as in the Persian Gulf. It
is remarkable what few changes have occurred in the methods of the
fishery in the last six centuries; the description[139] of Marco Polo,
who visited the region about 1294, and of writers somewhat more recent,
indicating that, in the main features, it was then conducted in the same
manner as at the present time.

An exception to the usual mode of diving is practised by the Malayalam
fishermen, who, in some seasons—as in 1903, for instance—attend in large
numbers from Travancore and northward on the Malabar coast. These men
are rather low in skill and physical endurance.[140] They dive head
foremost from a spring-board, and even with this assistance,—or possibly
we should say, handicapped by this method,—they find the average depth
of eight fathoms too great for them to work in with much comfort, rarely
remaining under water longer than forty-five seconds.

The number of oysters secured on each visit to the bottom ranges from
nothing to seventy-five or more, averaging between fifteen and fifty.
This depends not only on the ability of the fishermen, but also on the
abundance of oysters and the ease with which they may be collected.
Sometimes they are held together in loose bunches of five to ten in
each, and a diver can easily gather one hundred in the short length of
time he remains submerged. In other localities they may be somewhat
firmly attached individually to the bottom, so that some force is
necessary to release them, thus reducing the possible quantity.
Ordinarily one dive clears a space of several square yards.

Since 1904, a steamer has been employed each season by the government
for dredging oysters in connection with experiments in oyster-culture.
The officer in charge of this work concludes that “dredging is
economically a more sound method of fishing than is diving.”[141] This
view is disputed by the superintendent of the fishery, who points out
that the average catch by the steamer when dredging mature oysters only
slightly exceeds that of an ordinary diving boat, and the cost of
maintenance and operation is vastly greater.[142] A remarkable tribute
to the skill of the nude divers, brought out by this discussion, is
that, during some days when they were at work, the sea was too rough for
dredging by the steamer, notwithstanding that she was a typical Grimsby
or North Sea trawler of 150 tons measurement, built in 1896.[143]

A rough comparison of the Ceylon method of catching pearl-oysters with
that practised by the American oyster-growers may not be uninteresting.
On a basis of 400 to the bushel, the total Ceylon catch of 81,580,716
pearl-oysters in 1905 represents a trifle more than 200,000 bushels, or
about the quantity annually produced by each of the half dozen leading
oyster-growers of this country. Each one of these growers requires only
about three steamers, at a total cost, maybe, of $25,000, and manned by
twenty-five men; instead of one steamer at a cost of $25,000 and 318
diving boats manned by 10,000 men, which was the equipment in Ceylon. To
be sure, the conditions under which the work is prosecuted are
different—however, not so entirely unlike as might be supposed—and the
American season is about six months long instead of the two months in
Ceylon; but the comparison is presented simply as a suggestion of the
possibilities of dredging on the Ceylon reefs.

Until 1885, one of the most novel features of the fishery was the
employment of shark-charmers or “binders of sharks” (_kadal-kotti_ in
the Tamil language, _hai-banda_ in Hindustani), whose presence was
rendered necessary by the superstition of the Indian divers. The
fishermen placed implicit reliance upon the alleged supernatural powers
of these impostors, resembling in some respects that reposed in the
“medicine men” by the American Indians, and would not dive without their
supervision. It is unknown at what period the influence of these
semi-priests developed, but at the time of Marco Polo’s visit about
1294, they were in the full bloom of their authority, receiving one
twentieth of the total catch of oysters,[144] which amounted to a very
considerable sum. It is probable that the number of shark-charmers was
then quite large, some writers more recently referring to one for each
boat. During the Portuguese occupation the number was reduced to twelve,
and at the beginning of the British influence, it was further reduced to
two.

Interesting descriptions have been given of the methods by which these
men exercised their alleged powers. In 1807, Cordiner stated:

One goes out regularly in the head pilot’s boat. The other performs
certain ceremonies on shore. He is stripped naked, and shut up in a
room, where no person sees him from the period of the sailing of the
boats until their return. He has before him a brass basin full of
water, containing one male and one female fish made of silver. If
any accident should happen from a shark at sea, it is believed that
one of these fishes is seen to bite the other. The divers likewise
believe that, if the conjurer should be dissatisfied, he has the
power of making the sharks attack them, on which account he is sure
of receiving liberal presents from all quarters.[145]

Amusing stories are told of the shrewdness displayed by these fellows in
inventing explanations to redeem their credit when a fisherman became a
victim of the sharks. These accounts are by men who evidently bore no
good-will toward the shark-charmers, and it would be of interest to hear
from the other side; but we have been unable to find any one who has
appeared in print in their defense.

The British government, in its policy of noninterference with the
superstitions or semi-religious customs of the natives, tolerated these
seeming impostors, owing, probably, in a measure, to the fact that the
superstitious belief in their necessity was favorable to the
preservation of the resources, since it restricted poaching on the
reefs. However, the government endeavored to prevent an extravagant
misuse of the influence, and restricted the compensation of the
shark-charmers to one oyster per day from each diver. Later, they were
remunerated by the government, and were not allowed, under any pretense
whatever, to demand, exact, or receive oysters or any other compensation
from the boatmen, divers, or any other persons. And, finally, in 1885,
the shark-charmers were done away with entirely, after having exacted
their toll for upward of six centuries at least.

The dangers to which the Ceylon divers are exposed have been greatly
exaggerated, and especially the risks from sharks. Poets tell how “the
Ceylon pearler went all naked to the hungry shark,” and the struggle of
the diver has been a favorite theme with sensational writers. As a
matter of fact, the trouble from this source is very slight, and the
occupation is less dangerous than that of most of the deep-water
fisheries, not to be compared, for instance, with that of the winter
haddock-fishery off the New England coast. Even in 1905, when 4991
divers and an equal number of assistants were employed in pearling, not
a single fatal accident was reported, and although much rough weather
prevailed, not a fishing boat was lost. In the important fishery of
1904, with 3049 divers, only one fatal accident occurred, this was an
elderly Moorman, whose death at the bottom was apparently due either to
apoplexy or to exhaustion from remaining under water too long.

The superintendent of the fishery reported that not a single shark was
seen during the 1904 season.[146] According to the statement of Sir
William Twynam, whose Ceylon pearl fishing experience and observation
equal those of any European, he has never known of a diver being carried
off by a shark, and has heard of only one case—“which was a very
doubtful one.”[147] Prof. James Hornell, the inspector of pearl banks,
reported in 1904: “During all the months I have spent upon the pearl
banks during the last two years and a half I have never had a glimpse of
a shark dangerous to man. Several times the boatmen have caught basking
sharks of considerable size, but all were of a species that lives almost
entirely upon small crustaceans.”[148] The late Mr. A. M. Ferguson wrote
in 1887: “I think it is pretty certain that in the whole course of the
Ceylon fisheries only two human beings have fallen victims to these
fierce fishes.”[149]

The diving continues until a signal is given from the guard vessel about
twelve or one o’clock, this time depending largely on the beginning of
the sea breeze which roughens the water and interferes with the work,
and likewise serves to speed the passage of the sail vessels to the
shore. Occasionally the breeze is unfavorable, and the boatmen are
obliged to row for miles, delaying their return in some instances until
nightfall. Then the shore is lighted up to guide them to the landings,
and extra precautions are maintained to prevent them from getting away
with some of the oysters in the darkness.

It is claimed—and doubtless with much truth—that it is not unusual for
the boatmen to take advantage of the time spent in reaching the shore to
surreptitiously open many of the oysters and extract the pearls
therefrom, throwing the refuse back into the sea. It would appear from
some authorities that this is a general practice. One official—and
probably the one in the best position to know—reported in 1905 that more
than 15,000,000 oysters, or nearly one fifth of the enormous catch
during that season, were illicitly opened.[150] However, this statement
is strongly disputed by the superintendent of the fishery, who states:

As a matter of fact the opening of oysters that goes on in the boats
is of a much more casual description than this. The divers
occasionally pick out some of the best looking oysters that happen
to be conspicuous, or some that open, and look inside them. It is
quite possible that a valuable pearl might be found in this way, but
the chances are against it. It is hardly likely that the divers
would throw into the sea an enormous quantity of perfunctorily
examined oysters in which they have a share and which contain
pearls, while they were aware that immediately on landing they could
get good prices for their shares.[151]

The government officials have endeavored to put a stop to whatever
looting may exist, searching boats and occupants at the shore, revoking
the license of any boat showing evidence of oysters having been opened
or carrying knives or other appliances for that purpose. The fishermen
are alleged to resort to all sorts of devices to secrete their illicit
find of pearls, concealing them in the nose, ears, eyes, and other parts
of the body, and even hiding them in parcels in the furled sails or
attached to the embedded anchor. In some seasons—as in 1904 and 1905—the
government employed a guard for each boat. But serious criticism has
been made of the integrity of these guards, who, with compensation of
only one rupee per diem, could scarcely be expected to resist the action
of thirty or forty fishermen and report their doings, when by silence
they would have much to gain, and “the guards simply add to the number
of thieves on board” was reported by one superintendent.

Doubtless the most interesting sight in the Ceylon fishery is afforded
by the return, about mid-afternoon, of the hundreds of novel,
sail-spreading boats running before the wind and crowded with turbaned
fishermen dressed in their few brilliant rags, and each anxious to be
the first at the wave-washed beach, where they are welcomed by an equal
if not greater number of officials, merchants, laborers, and camp
followers, gathered on the shore to learn the result of the fishery. The
fantastic appearance of the boats, the diversified costumes of the
people, the general scene of animation, afford a view which for novelty
is rarely equaled even in the picturesque Orient.

The average number of oysters brought in daily by each boat is about
10,000. Some days when the weather is unfavorable many of the boats
return empty; on other days they may have 25,000 or more. In 1905 the
maximum catch in one day for one boat was 29,990, while in 1904 a single
boat brought in 37,675 oysters. The catch by the entire fleet one day in
1905 was 4,978,686 oysters, or an average of 16,485 for each of the 302
boats out on that occasion.

Each person taking part in the fishery receives as his compensation a
definite portion of the oysters. By government regulations, published in
1855 and yet operative, each _sammatti_, _tindal_, and _todai_ receives
daily one dive of oysters from each diver in the boat to which they are
respectively attached. In some instances the hire of the boat is paid
for in cash—about Rs.1.50 per day from each diver,—but in most cases
either one fifth or one sixth of each diver’s portion is devoted to this
purpose. After these provisions have been made, each diver gives one
third of his remaining portion to his _manduck_, retaining the balance
for himself. The Moormen divers from Kilakarai commonly contribute one
dive daily to the mosque of their native town,[152] in addition to the
portions given to the _sammatti_, _tindal_, and _todai_. Previous to
1855, the Hindu temples of the Madras Presidency were allowed to operate
a certain number of boats on their own account, but this led to so many
abuses that it was abolished.

After the boats are run up on the firm, hard beach, all the oysters are
removed by the crews of the boats into the government _koddu_ or
palisade, a large wattle-walled and palm-thatched inclosure with square
pens, each bearing a number corresponding to that of each boat. This is
done under close supervision to prevent a diversion of the oysters from
the regular channels, which otherwise would be relatively easy among the
animation and excitement caused by the thousands of persons about the
landing-place.

Within the government inclosure, the oysters taken by each boat are
divided by the fishermen themselves into three portions as nearly equal
as possible. This applies not only to the oysters falling to the share
of the divers and _manducks_, but also to those set apart for the
_sammatti_, _tindals_, and _todais_, for hire of the boat and even for
the Kilakarai mosque. An official indicates one of these as the share of
the fishermen, who at once remove their portion from the inclosure
through a narrow gate on the landward side. By this arrangement a
satisfactory division of the oysters is secured and all cause for
complaint or unfairness is removed. Previous to 1881, the fishermen
received only one fourth of the catch as compensation for their work;
but in that year their portion was increased to one third, at which it
has since remained.

As soon as the fishermen pass out of the government _koddu_ with their
quota, they are met by a crowd of natives eager to buy the oysters in
small lots, and frequently at so many per rupee—ranging from eight to
twelve ordinarily. This “outside market” is one of the many interesting
features of the camp, for there are few persons on the shore who do not
risk small sums in testing their fortunes in this lottery. And a
wonderful lottery it is too, in which a man may risk a few coppers and
win a prize worth hundreds of dollars. A poor Tamil once bought five
oysters for half a rupee, and in one of them he found the largest pearl
of the season. Any not sold among this eager, animated throng are at
once marketed with a native buyer. The diver then hastens to immerse
himself in one of the bathing tanks provided for the purpose. It is
claimed that if this bath is omitted after immersion all the morning in
the salt water of the gulf, the diver is liable to fall ill; and a
sufficient supply of fresh water for this purpose is an important factor
in the arrangement of the camp.

Owing to their sale in much smaller lots, or as we may say, at retail,
the fishermen succeed in getting relatively high prices for their
oysters, and their earnings exceed one half of the government’s share.
In 1905 this amounted to probably £86,000, or an average of about $1350
for each of the 318 boats. However, some crews made very much more than
this, with a corresponding decrease for the others. Although 1905 was a
record year for large returns, even in an ordinary season pearl fishing
is relatively profitable, as a skilled diver earns five or six times as
much as a common laborer in Ceylon. The regulations particularly forbid
the employment of divers for a monetary consideration instead of for a
share of the oysters according to the established custom.

The remaining two thirds of the oysters in the _koddu_ are the property
of the government. These are combined and counted. At nine o’clock each
evening they are sold at auction, and by noon of the following day all
have been removed, and the inclosure is ready for the incoming catch.

At the auction the number of oysters to be sold that evening is
announced, and bids are invited. Some one starts the bidding at, maybe,
Rs.20 or 25, and this is advanced by successive bids until the limit
appears to be reached, which may possibly be Rs.50 or 60. The successful
bidder is permitted to take as many oysters in multiples of 1000 as he
chooses; and after he is supplied, other merchants desiring them at that
particular price are accommodated. If there is no further demand for
them at that price, the bidding on the remaining oysters is begun
precisely as at first, and when the maximum bid is reached, all
merchants willing to give that amount are furnished with as many as they
wish in multiples of 1000 as before. If this does not exhaust the
oysters, the bidding on the remainder is started up again, and so on
until all are sold.[153] No one knows at the time whether he is buying a
fortune in gems or only worthless shells.

The prices at which the oysters are sold at auction may differ greatly
from the estimated valuation of the samples secured in the February
examination. For instance, in 1905 the valuation of the South Madaragam
oysters was Rs.17.86 per 1000, yet the auction sales on the first day
began at Rs.53 and went up to Rs.61 per 1000, or three times the
valuation; and about the same general proportion of increase prevailed
for the oysters from the remaining banks, a result of great advances in
the market for pearls.

The auction prices for the different lots and from day to day are fairly
constant. But the shrewd Indian merchants know their business well and
keep in close touch with the yield, so that there are many variations in
the selling price that are puzzling to the uninitiated. A somewhat
higher estimation is placed on the oysters from certain banks, and also
on those from rocky portions of a particular reef, owing to their
reputation for yielding a larger percentage of pearls. The estimation of
particular oysters varies to some extent according to the amount of
adhering rock and coral growth. As already shown, the prices in 1906
covered the remarkable range of from Rs.20 to 309 per 1000.
Superstitious belief in luck also has its influence, and a buyer may
consider a certain day as unfavorable for him and abstain from bidding
on that occasion; or considering a particular day as lucky, he may bid
very high to secure a considerable portion of the sales.

The prices in different seasons vary greatly. In 1860, the average was
Rs.134.23 per 1000, which was unprecedentedly large; the nearest to this
was Rs.79.07 in 1874 and Rs.49 in 1905. In 1880, the average price per
1000 was only Rs.11, which was the lowest ever recorded. The records for
individual days greatly exceed these limits. The highest figures at
which oysters have sold on any one day was Rs.309 per 1000 in 1906, the
equivalent for each oyster of 10½ cents in American money. In 1874, the
price reached Rs.210 per 1000, and in 1905, the maximum price was
Rs.124, or about 4¼ cents for each oyster.

The oyster-buyers are principally wealthy Chetties from Madura, Ramnad,
Trichinopoli, Parambakudi, Tevakoddai, Paumben, Kumbhakonam, and other
towns of southern India. These are quite different from the scantily
clothed Naddukoddai Chetties so common in Ceylon. Many of them are
fashionably dressed in semi-European costume, with walking-stick, patent
leather boots, and other evidences of contact with Europe. Smaller
quantities of oysters are purchased by Moormen of Kilakarai, Ramnad,
Bombay, Adrampatam, Tondi, etc. A few oysters are also purchased by the
Nadans or Chánár caste people of Perunali, Kamuti, and Karakal. Over 99
per cent. of the 50,346,601 oysters sold by the government in 1905 were
secured by Indian buyers, and less than one per cent. by Cingalese. A
few of the oysters—from two to five per cent.—are sent to Indian and
Ceylon ports, but most of them are opened at the fishing camp.

The purchaser of only a small number of oysters may open them at once by
means of a knife, and with his fingers and eyes search for the pearls.
By this method very small pearls may be easily overlooked, and it is
scarcely practicable in handling large quantities of oysters. These are
removed to private inclosures known as _toddis_ or _tottis_, situated
some distance from the inhabited portions of the camp; where, exposed to
the solar heat, they are permitted to putrefy, and the fleshy parts to
be eaten by the swarms of big red-eyed bluebottle flies, and the residue
is then repeatedly washed.

Shakspere may have had in view some such scene as this when he spoke of
the “pearl in your foul oyster.” The lady who cherishes and adorns
herself with a necklace of Ceylon pearls would be horrified were she to
see and especially to smell the putrid mass from which her lustrous gems
are evolved. The great quantity of repulsive bluebottle flies are so
essential to success in releasing the pearls from the flesh, that a
scarcity of them is looked upon as a misfortune to the merchants.
However, except it may be at the beginning of a fishery, there is rarely
ever a cause for complaint on this score, for commonly they are so
numerous as to be a great plague to persons unaccustomed to them,
covering everything, and rendering eating and drinking a difficult and
unpleasant necessity, until darkness puts a stop to their activities.
But the intolerable stench, impossible of description, the quintessence
of millions of rotting oysters, fills the place, and makes existence a
burden to those who have not acquired odor-proof nostrils. This animal
decomposition seems almost harmless to health; indeed, the natives
evidently thrive on it, and eat and sleep without apparent notice of the
nauseous conditions. And yet vegetable decomposition in this region is
usually followed by fatal results. Notwithstanding sanitary precautions
and the usual quarantine camp and hospitals, cholera occasionally
becomes epidemic and puts a stop to the fishery, as was the case in
1889; but this probably was due more to the violation of ordinary
sanitary laws than to the decaying oysters.

In a large _toddi_ the oysters are placed in a _ballam_, or a dug-out
tank or trough, fifteen or twenty feet long and two or three feet deep,
smooth on the inside so that pearls may not lodge in the crevices. This
tank is covered with matting, and the _toddi_ is closed up, sealed, and
guarded for a week or ten days, when the fly maggots will have consumed
practically all of the flesh tissues, leaving little else than the
shells and pearls. The tank is then filled with sea water to float out
the myriads of maggots. Several nude coolies squat along the sides to
wash and remove the shells. The valves of each shell are separated, the
outsides rubbed together to remove all lodgments for pearls, and the
interior examined for attached or encysted pearls. The washers are kept
under constant supervision by inspectors to prevent concealment of
pearls; they are not permitted to remove their hands from the water
except to take out the shells, and under no circumstances are they
allowed to carry the hands to the mouth or to any other place in which
pearls could be concealed.

After the shells have been removed, fresh supplies of water are added to
wash the debris, which is turned over and over repeatedly, the dirty
water being bailed out through sieves to prevent the loss of pearls.
After thorough washings, every particle of the _sarraku_, or material at
the bottom of the _ballam_, consisting of sand, broken pieces of shell,
pearls, etc., is gathered up in a cotton cloth. Later the _sarraku_ is
spread out on cloths in the sun to dry, and the most conspicuous pearls
are removed. When dry, the material is critically examined over and over
again, and winnowed and rewinnowed, and after it seems that everything
of value has been secured, the refuse is turned over to women and
children, whose keen eyes and deft fingers pick out many _masi-tul_ or
dust-pearls; and even after the skill of these has been exhausted, the
apparently worthless refuse has a market value among persons whose
patience and skill meets with some reward. It is due largely to the
extreme care in the search that so many seed-pearls are found in Ceylon.

And this leads to a discussion of what is commonly known in Ceylon as
the “Dixon washing machine.” This is an invention of Mr. G. G. Dixon who
constructed it at Marichchikadde in 1904 and 1905, at a total cost to
the government of about Rs.162,000,[154] including all expenses
incidental to the experiment. The machine involves two separate
processes; the first consists in separating the shells from the soft
portion of the oysters, and the second in recovering the pearls from the
resultant _sarraku_ after it has been dried. In 1905, about 5,000,000
oysters were put through this machine,[155] but with what result has not
been announced.

The shells having pearls attached to the interior surface are turned
over to skilled natives, who remove the valuable objects by breaking the
shell with hammers, and then with files and other implements remove the
irregular pieces of attached shell and otherwise improve the appearance.

In no fishery in the world is the average size of the pearls secured
smaller, nor is the relative number greater than in that of Ceylon. It
is rare that one is found weighing over ten grains, and the number
weighing less than two grains is remarkable. For roundness and orient
they are unsurpassed by those of any region. However, Ceylon pearls
worth locally Rs.1000 ($400) are by no means abundant. The most valuable
one found in the important fishery of 1904, is said to have been sold in
the camp for Rs.2500. The fishery of 1905 yielded one weighing 76½
_chevu_, and valued at Rs.12,000.

The quantity of seed-pearls obtained in the Ceylon fishery exceeds that
of any other—probably all other parts of the world. The very
smallest—the _masi-tul_,—for which there is no use whatever in Europe,
have an established value in India, being powdered for making _chunam_
for chewing with betel. Those slightly larger,—_tul_ pearls—for which
also there is no market in Europe, are placed in the mouth of deceased
Hindus of wealth, instead of the rice which is used by poorer people.

The great bulk of the Ceylon pearls are silvery white in color, but
occasionally yellowish, pinkish, and even “black” pearls are found,
although the so-called “black” pearls are really brown or slate-colored.
In some seasons these are relatively numerous, as in 1887, for instance.

Notwithstanding the large product at the fishery camp, it is difficult
to purchase single pearls or small quantities there at a reasonable
price, the merchants objecting to breaking a _mudichchu_, or the lot
resulting from washing a definite number of oysters.

The shells obtained in the Ceylon fisheries do not possess sufficient
thickness of lustrous nacre for use as mother-of-pearl, and are mostly
used for camp-filling. A few are burned and converted into _chunam_,
_i.e._: prepared lime for building purposes, or to be used by natives
for chewing with the betel-nut. Forty or fifty years ago, before the
large receipts of mother-of-pearl from Australia and the southern
Pacific, there was a good market for the shell for button manufacture
and the like, but since 1875 only the choicest have been used for this
purpose, and these are worth only about $25 per ton delivered in Europe.

It will be observed that up to the close of the season of 1906, the
Ceylon fisheries were operated by the colonial government as a state
monopoly. In 1904, proposals were made to the British colonial office by
a London syndicate with a view to leasing the fisheries for a term of
years. The original suggestion was that they should be leased for thirty
years in consideration of an annual rental of £13,000 or Rs.195,000,
together with a share of the net profits after payment of a reasonable
rate of interest on the investment; and later it was suggested that the
rental be Rs.100,000 a year and twenty per cent. of the profits after
seven per cent. on capital had been paid to the shareholders. But the
government preferred a definite money payment without any rights to
share in the profits realized; and after lengthy negotiations this was
fixed at Rs.310,000 annually, with certain preliminary payments.
Accordingly, on November 30, 1905, a preliminary agreement was executed
between the crown agents for the colonies, acting on behalf of the
government of Ceylon, and representatives of the Ceylon Company of Pearl
Fishers, Limited. On February 27, 1906, this agreement was confirmed and
made effective by special ordinance[156] of the governor and legislative
council of Ceylon, and the crown agents were authorized to execute the
lease as of January 1, 1906.

The principal financial terms of this lease required the company to
purchase the expensive Dixon pearl-washing machine at a cost of
Rs.120,000, which was Rs.42,000 less than it cost the government during
the preceding two years; to purchase at a cost of Rs.62,501 the
steamship _Violet_, which the government had used in its experimental
oyster-culture; to reimburse the government each year the amount spent
in policing, sanitation and hospital services at the fishery camp, which
had in some individual seasons amounted to more than Rs.200,000; to
expend each year from Rs.50,000 to Rs.150,000 in the development of
pearl-oyster culture; and to pay an annual rental of Rs.315,000, a rate
based roughly on the average return of the preceding twenty years,
including the record year of 1905.

The company was authorized to take up the pearl-oysters by means of
divers, or by steam dredges, or by such other mechanical means as might
appear most advantageous, and to carry on such experiments with the
immature oysters as appeared most conducive to the profitable working of
the fisheries, provided they do nothing to make the resources less
valuable at the expiration of the lease.

One of the most interesting features of the lease is that relating to
the power of the colonial government to grant an exclusive right of
fishing on the banks outside the three-mile limit. The question of this
exclusive right arose in 1890, but was not conclusively determined.
Fearing lest this authority did not exist, the terms in which the right
of fishing was conveyed were carefully chosen by the attorney general to
protect the government from liability “should any international question
arise”;[157] and the government leased to the company “all the right or
privilege which the lessors have hereto exercised and enjoyed of fishing
for and taking pearl-oysters on the coasts of Ceylon between Talaimannar
and Dutch Bay Point, to the intent that the company _so far as the
lessors can secure the same_ may have the exclusive right, liberty and
authority to fish for, take and carry away pearl-oysters within the said
limits…. But nothing in this lease shall be taken to make the lessors
answerable in damages if _owing to any cause beyond the control of the
lessors_ the company is prevented from fully exercising and enjoying
such exclusive right and privilege.”[158]

In the meantime, while the negotiations were in progress, there occurred
the very profitable fishery of 1905, from which the colonial government
derived a revenue of Rs.2,510,727, or approximately eight times the
proposed annual rental; and before the lease was finally concluded
occurred the fishery of 1906, with its revenue of Rs.1,376,746. While it
is true that a succession of barren seasons prevailed from 1892 to 1902,
yet, as the revenue in 1903 was Rs.829,548, and in 1904 it was
Rs.1,065,751, there was, in the four years ending in 1906, a revenue to
the government of Rs.5,782,772, or nearly as much as the total amount to
be derived from the lease during the twenty years it was to run. These
figures seemed to furnish strong reasons for retaining such a valuable
source of revenue, with its possibilities of still greater expansion
under the supervision and direction of specialists in the employ of the
government.

Many of the inhabitants of Ceylon saw in this a decided objection to the
lease, and there was a general feeling of indignation in the colony,
with public meetings in protest, and the like. In reply to a memorial
prepared at one of these meetings held in Colombo, Lord Elgin, the
British secretary of state for the colonies, wrote under date of May 9,
1906:

The memorialists have protested against the lease on the double
ground that a lease on any terms is contrary to the best interests
of Ceylon, and that the rent agreed upon is “under existing
circumstances wholly inadequate.” There must always be in cases of
this kind a difference of opinion as to whether a fixed annual sum,
with immunity from all expense and sundry other advantages, is or is
not preferable to continuing to face all the risks for the sake of
all the profits. In the present instance the lease appears to me to
have been drafted with a sincere desire to safeguard to the utmost
the property and interests of the Colony.

It may be true that the development of the fishery upon a scientific
system affords good prospect of a greater return in the future than
has been obtained in the past, and affords at least the hope that
the barren cycles which have been so common in the past will not
recur to the same extent. But the operations necessary to that end
are of a highly technical and experimental character, and I am very
doubtful whether any machinery which could be set in motion by the
Government would be suited to develop processes at once so doubtful
and so delicate. In twenty years’ time the Colonial Government will
receive back the fishery, not only intact, but in the most perfect
state to which commercial enterprise and scientific methods can
raise it, and, in the meanwhile, a regular and substantial payment
is assured. Twenty years are no doubt a considerable period in the
lifetime of individuals; but if within that time all the resources
that science can contribute toward systematic development of the
fisheries have been applied and thoroughly tested, the period will
not, I think, be regarded as excessive or unfortunate in the history
of a fishery which has lasted for more than two thousand years.[159]

The Ceylon Company of Pearl Fishers, Limited, with a paid up capital of
£165,000, has just entered into possession of its lease, and it is
uncertain what changes will be made in the methods of the fishery or
what measure of success will follow the attempts at pearl-oyster culture
and the growth of pearls. The attention of the pearling interests of the
world is now directed to the work of this company in the development of
its magnificent leasehold, and it seems not unlikely that greater
changes will be made in the methods of the industry during the ensuing
decade than have occurred in the whole of the last ten centuries.[160]

A curious fishery, with the _Placuna placenta_ for its object, exists in
Tablegram Lake, a small bay in northeastern Ceylon adjacent to the
magnificent harbor of Trincomali, which Nelson declared to be “the
finest in the world.” At intervals during the nineteenth century, the
Ceylon government leased the Tablegram Lake fishery to native bidders
for a period of three consecutive years. In 1857, Dr. Kelaart visited
the place and calculated that in the three years preceding, eighteen
million oysters had been removed.[161] Owing to scarcity of the mollusk,
no fisheries have existed since 1890, but from 1882 to 1890 they were
regularly leased at an average of Rs.5000 for each term of three years.
Prof. James Hornell, who made a careful examination in 1905, reported
that if the business were carried on providently and systematically, “it
should become the source of a fairly regular annual revenue to
Government of from Rs.10,000 to Rs.12,000, possibly even more.”[162]

The _Placuna_ oysters are caught by Moormen divers, who are scarcely
equal physically to the pearl fishery in the sea. They rarely descend
more than four fathoms, and most of the work in Tablegram Bay is in less
than two fathoms. Each diver returns with from one to five or more
oysters, depending on their abundance, and receives one half of the
catch as his share of the proceeds. Unlike the method in the
pearl-oyster fishery of Ceylon, the _Placuna_ oysters are opened while
fresh, this work being performed by coolies, who are compensated at the
rate of about Rs.3 per 1000.

THE PEARL FISHERIES OF INDIA

There are two moments in a diver’s life:
One, when a beggar, he prepares to plunge;
Then, when a prince, he rises with his prize.

ROBERT BROWNING.

Notwithstanding the great fame of the pearl fisheries of India, those
prosecuted within the limits of British India proper are of small
extent. The only pearl resources within the empire are the rarely
productive reefs on the Madras coast in the vicinity of Tuticorin, the
relatively modern fisheries of Mergui Archipelago, and some small reefs
of only local importance on the Malabar coast and in the Bombay
presidency.

The celebrity of India in connection with the pearl fisheries has never
rested on the extent of those within the territorial limits or under the
control of this government. It originated in the fact that it is largely
Indian capital which finances the fisheries of Ceylon and of the Persian
Gulf; nearly all of the divers and others employed in Ceylon are from
the coast of this empire, and most of the pearls are purchased by
merchants of Bombay, Madura, Trichinopoli, and other large towns. Thus,
from an economic and industrial point of view, the pearl fisheries of
Ceylon, and to a less extent those of the Persian Gulf, have contributed
to the fame and to the wealth of the Empire of India.

The pearl fisheries off Tuticorin in the Madras presidency have been
referred to incidentally in the account of the fisheries of Ceylon. They
are separated by only a few miles of water, and are prosecuted by the
same fishermen and in precisely the same manner. Consequently, it is
difficult to discuss them separately, especially in their early history
and during the time that this part of the world was under the rule of
the Portuguese and later of the Dutch.

The fisheries of the Madras coast compete in antiquity with those of
Ceylon. Indeed, from the time of Ptolemy to the seventeenth century, the
industry seems to have been prosecuted largely from the Madras side of
the gulf, centering at Chayl or Coil on the sandy promontory of Ramnad.
This place appears to be the Κόλχοι of Ptolemy, the Ramana Koil of the
natives, as well as the Cael of the travelers of the Middle Ages. But
during the last three hundred years, the Ceylon side has been the scene
of the greatest pearling operations; and from the Madras coast, the
fisheries have not been prosecuted except at long intervals, averaging
once in fifteen or twenty years.

Owing to the scarcity of oysters and to other causes, the fishery was
prosecuted on the Madras coast in only eight years of the whole period
from 1768 to 1907. These years of productivity were 1822, 1830, 1860,
1861, 1882, 1889, 1890, and 1900; and even then the yield was relatively
small. The largest was 15,874,500 oysters in 1860, from which the Madras
government derived a revenue of Rs.250,276; and about half as many
oysters were obtained in 1861 with a revenue of Rs.129,003. Numerous and
prolonged experiments in conserving the reefs and in cultivating the
oysters have been made without success. The reason usually given for the
greater wealth of oysters on the Ceylon side is, that it is more
sheltered from the strong currents which sweep down the Bay of Bengal
into the Gulf of Manaar and impinge directly on the coast of the
mainland.

The headquarters of the fishery are at Tuticorin, near to Madura, the
Benares of the south, the holy “City of Sweetness” which the gods have
delighted to honor from time immemorial. But the camp is commonly
erected of palmyra and bamboo on the barren shore several miles distant
from Tuticorin. The 1890 fishery was at Salápatturai, and that of 1900
at a place which received the mouth-filling name of Veerapandianpatanam.

The preparations for pearling at Tuticorin are similar to those on the
Ceylon coast. In the autumn the reefs are examined by government
inspectors, and if the conditions seem to warrant a fishery in the
following spring, arrangements are made therefor and the proper
notification issued. The announcement follows the general plan of that
in Ceylon. The following, from the Fort St. George “Gazette,” Madras,
January 16, 1900, is a copy of the notification preceding the last
fishery which has occurred:

Notice is hereby given that a pearl fishery will take place at
Veerapandianpatanam on or about the 12th March, 1900.

1. The bank to be fished is the Theradipulipudithapar, estimated to
employ 100 boats for twenty days with average loads of 7,000 oysters
per day.

2. It is therefore recommended that such boat owners and divers as
may wish to be employed shall be at Tuticorin on or before the 1st
of March next and anchor their boats abreast of the government
flagstaff; the first day’s fishing will take place on the 12th of
March, weather permitting.

3. The fishery will be conducted on account of Government, and the
oysters put up for sale in such lots as may be deemed expedient.

4. The arrangements of the fishery will be the same as have been
usual on similar occasions.

5. Payments to be made in ready money in rupees or in Government of
India notes. Checks on the Bank of Madras or Bank Agencies will be
received on letters of credit being produced to warrant the drawing
of such checks.

6. All particulars can be obtained on application to the
Superintendent of Pearl Fisheries, Tuticorin.

Sd/—J. P. BEDFORD,
_Collector_.

Tinnevelly Collector’s Office,
16th November 1899.

On the long sweep of desolate shore at a place convenient to the reefs,
a temporary camp is erected, just as is done on the Ceylon coast.
However, this camp is not nearly so large, only about one fourth or one
fifth the size of that on the eastern side of the gulf. It resembles the
larger one in the quarters for divers and merchants, the bazaars, the
bungalows for the officials, the hospital, the sale and washing
inclosures, etc.; in addition to these is the temporary Roman Catholic
chapel.

The divers are mainly of the Parawa caste from Tuticorin, Pinnacoil,
Pamban, etc. on the Madras coast. Although influenced by many Hindu
superstitions, they are nominally Roman Catholics, as evidenced by the
scapulars suspended from the neck, their ancestors having been converted
and baptized through the zealous work of that prince of missionaries,
St. Francis Xavier, in the sixteenth century. Even yet a chapel at
Pinnacoil is held in special reverence by these people as a place where
the saintly father preached. Professor Hornell writes that the present
hereditary head of this caste is Don Gabriel de Croos Lazarus Motha Vaz,
known officially as the Jati Talaiva More, or Jati Talaivan. He resides
at Tuticorin, and is largely the intermediary between the government and
the Parawa fishermen.

In the details of its prosecution, the Madras fishery differs in no
important particular from that of Ceylon. The boats are manned and
operated in precisely the same way; they fish in the morning only,
taking advantage of the prevailing favorable winds; the divers carry the
oysters into the government inclosure, and divide them into three equal
lots, of which they receive one; the share of the government is
auctioned daily, the divers disposing of theirs as they choose; and the
oysters are rotted and washed in the same manner as in Ceylon.

In addition to the fishery for pearl-oysters at Tuticorin, two other
species of pearl-producing mollusks are collected in the Madras
presidency; one of these is a species of mussel (_Mytilus smaragdinus_,
according to Dr. Edgar Thurston of the Madras Museum), which is
collected from the estuary of the Sonnapore River near Berhampore; and
the other is the _Placuna placenta_, found in many places in this
presidency, and especially in Pulicat Lake and in the vicinity of
Tuticorin.

The Sonnapore mussels, which are small and bright green in color, are
found adhering to the masses of edible oysters in depths of ten or
twelve feet of water. They are caught in a novel manner, as described in
a letter from the acting collector of customs at Ganjam. Thrusting a
long bamboo pole deep into the bottom of the reef, the fisherman dives
down, and holding on to this bamboo, breaks off as large a mass of the
oysters as he can bring to the surface in one hand, helping himself up
the bamboo pole with the other. Removing the mussels from the mass, he
opens them with a suitable knife and by running his thumbs and fingers
over the flesh tissues, detects the pearls therein. These pearls are of
very inferior quality and of little ornamental value. They are sold
mostly for chunám and for placing in the mouth of deceased Hindus.

Along the west coast of India, in the Bombay presidency, a few pearls
are found at various places, but the output is of slight value. The most
important of these is off the coast of Nawanagar, on the south side of
the Gulf of Cutch, where the true pearl-oyster is found.

According to the “Jamnagar Diwan,” the yearly value of the Nawanagar
fisheries is about Rs.4000. This is smaller than formerly, as the reefs
are in a depleted state; to give them a chance to recuperate, a close
season was established in 1905. The oysters are found along a coast-line
eighty miles in length extending from Mangra, near Jodya Bunder, to
Pindera in the Gulf of Cutch, and also about the islands of Ajad, Chauk,
Kalumbar, and Nora, which are also situated in the Cutch Gulf. They are
not procured by diving, but are gathered off the rocks when the tide is
out. During the monsoon, the collection is limited to eight days in the
month; _i.e._, from the twelfth to the fifteenth of each half according
to the Hindu calendar.

The fisheries are by law restricted exclusively to the _waghers_ of ten
villages, which are Varinar, Sashana, Sika, Balachedi, Jhakher, Sarmat,
Bharana, Salaya, Chudesar, and Bedi. The collection of the pearls is
left entirely to these men, who at Divala—the Hindu new year—bring all
the pearls gathered by them to the durbar. There an estimate is made of
their value, one fourth of which is paid to the _waghers_, and the
pearls are turned over to the representatives of the state treasury for
sale. This method of conducting the industry has been long established.
In recent years the government experimented in farming out the revenue,
but the old custom has been resumed in order to placate the native
fishermen.

A few pearl-oysters are also found on the Ratnagiri coast below Bombay,
and likewise at Kananur in the Malabar district. In 1901–1902, there was
some local excitement about pearls found at Belapur and quantities were
reported as collected; but since then little has been heard of the
industry in that region.

Elsewhere on the west coast of India, pearls are obtained from the
so-called “window-glass” shell, of the genus _Placuna_. The individual
shells are flat, thin, and transparent, and are still used in Goa and
vicinity as a substitute for glass in windows. This mollusk is abundant
from Karachi, near the Baluchistan border, to the Kanara district south
of Bombay; and wherever it occurs in any abundance it is collected for
the sake of the small pearls found therein.

Of the fishery at Karachi, Mr. E. H. Aitken writes: “It is farmed out by
Government for a good sum. In 1901, the amount realized was Rs.3650 for
a period of three years; but the lessee lost heavily, and in 1904 the
highest offer for a similar period of three years was Rs.1851. Pearls
may be found in as many as ten to twenty per cent. of the mature
mollusks.” Pearls are far more numerous in the _Placuna_ than in the
pearl-oysters, but few of them are of sufficient size or luster to be
used as ornaments, ranking with the so-called medicinal pearls of
Europe. They are much softer in texture than the pearls of the
Margaritiferæ. The largest are commonly of irregular form, with the
surface slightly botryoidal or like the “strawberry” pearls of the
Mississippi. While not often used as ornaments, they are highly valued
by the Hindus in calcined or powdered form for medicinal purposes, and
especially to be chewed with the betel-nut, and are also used in the
original form in funeral rites, a small quantity being placed in the
mouth of a deceased person.

In the Mergui Archipelago, which is within the territory of lower Burma
and under the jurisdiction of the government of British India, patches
of pearl-oyster reefs are scattered over an area roughly computed at
11,000 square miles, taking 97° 40′ as the western boundary. They occur
principally in the strong tidal passages among the islands. The bottom
is formed largely of porphyritic granite interspersed with sand and
thinly covered with corals, coral cups, the long whip-like black coral
(_Antipathes arborea_), and other submarine animal and vegetable
growths.[163] These constitute a home most favorable to the growth and
development of molluscan life.

Of the several species of pearl-bearing mollusks occurring in the Mergui
Archipelago, by far the most important is the “mok,” or large Australian
pearl-oyster (_Margaritifera maxima_). The shell attains a maximum size
of about thirteen inches in diameter, and the nacre is of a milky or
silvery color. This species occurs in its two varieties of “golden lip”
and “silver edge,” the former being in greater abundance. The “silver
edge” shell is the more valuable owing to its uniformity of coloring,
and the pearls found therein are of superior luster and orient.

The “pate goung,” or Lingah pearl-oyster (_Margaritifera vulgaris_), is
similar to that of the Gulf of Manaar. It is circular in shape and
measures about two and one half inches in diameter. The nacre is
silvery, with slight yellowish tinge. Many of the pearls from this
species are of a silvery color, but most of them are yellowish or
golden. The fishery for this mollusk is of little importance compared
with that for the larger pearl-oyster, which is the species referred to
in Mergui when not otherwise mentioned.

The pearl fisheries of Mergui originated with the Selangs or Salangs, a
nomadic race of maritime gipsies, the last remnants of whom live among
the three thousand islands of this group. They are supposed to be of
Malay descent; but their early history is unknown, and they are rapidly
passing away in the conflict of existence with the neighboring peoples.
Probably in no part of the world are the pearl fisheries prosecuted by a
more primitive class of men. With their women and children, they live
mainly in roomy dug-out boats; but during the southwest monsoon they
erect temporary shelters on the shore, these consisting of a few frail
sticks, supporting coverings of braided mats, and floors of bamboo
strips.

They have few wants and derive a livelihood principally from gathering
and bartering shells, pearls, cured _thadecon_, and nests of the
sea-swallow (Collocalia). Within depths of six or eight fathoms they are
fairly good divers, both the men and the women, but their physical
endurance is slight. Their trade is mostly with Chinese merchants who
visit them in small vessels. No information exists as to when the
Selangs first found profit in searching for pearls; but it was probably
many centuries ago, and for a long time they made contributions of them
to the Buddhist rulers of Burma.

Shortly after the acquisition of Mergui Archipelago in 1826,
representatives of the British government brought experienced divers
from southern India to examine more fully the resources which the
Selangs had made known; but as only seed-pearls were secured, the
government concluded that they would yield an insignificant revenue, and
the attempt to develop these resources was given up.[164]

However, the Selangs continued to fish in their primitive fashion; and
as the market for the shell developed, the profits increased. But their
wants were easily appeased, and the increased profits were
counterbalanced by decreased activities. Old traders among the islands
tell of the opportunities of those days when choice pearls could be
obtained for a pinch of opium or for a few ounces of tobacco.

Far from the highways of the world, the Selangs remained undisturbed in
their beautiful seas until nearly twenty years ago. Meanwhile, 800 miles
distant, Singapore had arisen from a desert shore to the rank of a great
seaport, and the headquarters for the pearl fishery of the Malay
Archipelago and of the northwestern coast of Australia. In this fishery
the vessels were well equipped and depended on the use of diving
apparatus rather than on nude divers.

Beginning about 1888, some of these vessels made occasional visits to
the Mergui pearl-oyster reefs, and usually with very profitable results.
This was the first instance in which diving apparatus was successfully
introduced on any part of the Asiatic coast from the Red Sea to Malacca
Strait. So great was the profit that nearly every one on the lower coast
of Burma with sufficient capital or credit hastened to obtain a boat and
diving equipment. The success of some of these early ventures was
remarkable, single pearls worth $3000, $5000, and even $10,000 each
being secured. The reefs in the shoal waters were rapidly depleted, to
the great disadvantage of the nude Selangs, who can do little in deep
water.

With a view to deriving a revenue from these well-equipped vessels, the
government of Burma in 1898 divided the 11,000 square miles of pearling
territory into five definite areas known as “blocks.” The area within
each of these blocks was surveyed, marked, and charted; and the
financial commissioner from time to time determined as to each block
whether licenses for pearl fishing should be issued, or whether the
exclusive right therein should be leased. These leases were disposed of
either by inviting tenders and granting the lease to any of the persons
who might tender, or by public auction, as the financial commissioner
might direct. By the terms of the lease, the lessee was obliged to
register at the office of the deputy commissioner of finance the number
of boats and pumps employed by him; to declare by letter, at the end of
each month, the number, weight, and estimated value of all
mother-of-pearl shell and pearls collected during the month, and to
refrain from taking any mother-of-pearl measuring less than six inches
from lip to hinge.

Outside the limits of blocks in which the exclusive pearl fishing was
leased, licenses to use diving implements were granted in such number
and on payment of such fees, not exceeding Rs.1000 per apparatus, as
might from time to time be fixed, every such license expiring on June 30
next following the date on which it was granted, and no license was
transferable.

The five blocks in which the Mergui pearling rights were leased are of
large area, averaging somewhat over 2000 square miles each. The lessees
customarily granted permits to subsidiary fishermen to operate in their
respective blocks, on payment of a royalty, this ranging in amount from
12½ to 25 per cent. of the mother-of-pearl secured, and the pearls found
were the absolute property of the fishermen.

Until 1900 the pearling rights were leased by blocks as above noted.
Rights to catch trochus, green snail shells, and sea-slugs, were
included in the lease. It was noticed that European pearlers always
sublet the trochus and green snail rights, and it was decided to auction
these separately; while as regards pearling proper the auction system
was abolished in that year in favor of a system of licensing individual
vessels for a fee of Rs.400 each. The right to collect pearls by nude
diving was thought for some time to have been left free; but
subsequently it was auctioned along with the rights to collect green
snails, trochus and sea-slugs.

The following summary, compiled from data furnished by Mr. I. H. Burkill
of the Indian Civil Service, shows the extent of the pearl and shell
fisheries of Mergui for a series of years.

Year. No. of Revenue from Revenue from Reported Value of
Pumps. Pumps. Auction Rights. Yield.
Rs. Rs. Rs.

1904 70 28,000 22,500 149,239

1905 77 30,800 14,200 131,921

1906 80 32,000 15,300 124,798

1907 76 30,400 19,700

The local headquarters of the industry are at Mergui, but most of the
supplies are drawn from Maulmain and Rangoon, or from the more distant
Singapore, where the industry is financed. The season extends from
October to April or May, when the southwest monsoon begins and puts a
stop to the fishery on this exposed coast.

The boats used are mostly of Burmese build. They measure from 25 to 35
feet in length, and 7 or 8 feet in width, and have 18 to 24 inches of
draft, with curved or half-moon shaped keels, and with high square
sterns. Owing to the very light draft and the amount of free-board, they
are deficient in weatherly qualities; but are fast sailors before the
wind and are easily rowed from place to place. For this reason they are
especially suited to the industry in Mergui, because during the pearling
season calms and light winds prevail and oars form the principal motive
power, especially in the channels and passageways between the islands
where the tides are frequently very swift.

If a number of boats are of the same ownership, a schooner of thirty to
one hundred tons’ capacity is commonly provided as a floating station
and base of supplies for them; the gathering of such a fleet presents an
interesting sight, like a great white hen among her brood of chickens.

Most of the boats are from Mergui, and are chartered at a monthly rate
of from Rs.105 to Rs.120 each, including a crew of four or five Burmans
with their subsistence, consisting principally of rice and salted fish;
the charterer is further required to pay each member of the crew four
annas, or one rupee, for each day actually employed in operating the
diving pump. In addition to these men, each boat carries one diver and
an attendant, commonly known as “tender.” The boat is sailed or rowed by
the crew, as directed by the diver; and while the latter is submerged,
the boat and crew are under the supervision of the attendant.

The divers are the most important men in the fleet, for on their ability
and efficiency depends the success of the enterprise. A very
considerable portion of them are natives of the Philippine Islands,
although many Japanese have been employed recently, and the number is
increasing. The compensation is at the rate of £2 to £4 per month, and
£20 for each ton of mother-of-pearl secured. The attendants are likewise
mostly Manilamen, but many Malayans and Burmans are employed; the wages
range from Rs.50 to Rs.80 per month, including provisions. The peculiar
duties of the attendant are to help the diver into his dress, place the
shoulder leads into position, screw on the helmet, and especially to
receive and respond to signals and to direct the movements of the vessel
in accordance therewith.

The scaphander, or diving dress, is composed of solid sheet rubber,
covered on both sides with canvas. The head-piece is made of tinned
copper, and is fitted with three glasses, one at the front and one on
each side, so as to afford the diver as wide a view as is consistent
with strength of construction. It has a valve by which he can regulate
the pressure of the atmosphere. The dress has a double collar, the inner
portion coming up around the neck, and the other hermetically fastened
to the breastplate. The breastplate is likewise made of copper. The suit
is connected with the air-pump by means of a stout rubber tube which
enters the helmet, and through which air is supplied to the diver
incased therein. This air-tube consists of three or four lengths—each of
fifty feet—of light hose, commonly called “pipe.” This is buoyant so
that it may be easily pulled along, and may not readily foul among the
rocks. However, when working on very rough bottom with sharp-edged
stones, the lower length is of stouter material in order to resist the
chafing on the bottom. Before descending, the air-line is loosely coiled
around the diver’s arm to prevent a sudden strain on it when it is
tightened, and a signal-line is attached to his waist to enable him to
communicate with the men above.

In fishing, if the current is slight, the boat is permitted to drift
therewith, and if there is little or no current, it is propelled by oars
as may be required. The diver—fully dressed in the rubber suit with
helmet, etc.,—goes overboard easily by means of a Jacob’s ladder of five
or six rungs on the port side of the boat, and is lowered by an
attendant, who gives close attention to the lines, the crew having
manned the pump in the meantime. On reaching bottom, the diver walks
along, following the course of the moving boat and swinging his
shoulders from side to side to take in a wide vision in his search for
oysters. In clear water he can discover them at a distance of
twenty-five or thirty feet, even when fifteen fathoms below the surface;
but sometimes the water is so clouded that it may be necessary for him
to go almost on hands and knees to see them, and when the seaweeds are
thick and high, he may locate them almost as much by feeling as by
sight. Owing to this difficulty in seeing the oysters, the work is
suspended in rough weather and for many days following. The catch is
placed in a sack or basket of quarter inch rope, which is raised when
filled, emptied, and returned to the bottom by means of a rope.

Finding the shell is by no means an easy matter, and much natural
hunter-craft is necessary. Of a neutral color, it is not at all
conspicuous as it lies on a gray coral bed, itself covered with coral or
sponge or hidden in dense masses of gorgeous seaweeds. Still less
visible is the shell on a muddy bottom, for there it embeds itself and
exposes only half an inch or so of the “lip.” As the boat is impelled by
the tide, the diver may have to walk rapidly in a swinging gait; and if
he should stumble or fall while stooping to pick up the shell, recovery
of balance may be difficult. He must be constantly on the alert and has
many dangers to avoid. Sharks are numerous in these clear tropical
waters; but although disaster sometimes results, they are timid, a
stream of air bubbles from the sleeve of the dress sending them away in
fright. More fruitful sources of danger are fouled air-pipes, broken
pumps, falling into holes, and especially paralysis from recklessly deep
diving.

When the diver wishes to come up, he closes the escape valve in his
helmet; his dress fills and distends with air, causing a speedy return
to the surface, and the tender hauls him alongside by means of the
life-line. After “blowing” for a few minutes with the helmet removed,
and usually enjoying the indispensable cigarette, he returns to the
bottom.

When the Mergui reefs were first exploited by diving apparatus, the bulk
of the shells were secured from depths of ten to twelve fathoms. These
shallow reefs have been exhausted, temporarily, at least, and the divers
now work in deeper water, fifteen, twenty, and even twenty-five fathoms,
if the bottom is very uneven and rocky. Many shells are found in the
depressions between the large boulders, which may be twenty or thirty
feet deeper than the surrounding areas.

The oysters are opened by means of the long-bladed working-knife of the
country, known as _dah-she_. The flesh is thrown into a large basket or
washtub, where it is searched by the proprietor of the boat, who takes
each piece between the hands and squeezes and feels through every part
of it. After the flesh has been carefully examined, the sediment at the
bottom of the tub is washed and panned to obtain those pearls which have
fallen through the flesh tissues. The Mergui pearls are commonly of good
color and luster, and compare favorably with those from the Sulu
Archipelago or the Dutch East Indies.

The sea-green shell of the snail (_Turbo marmoratus_) is gathered in
large quantities by the nude diving Selangs, who barter it to Chinese
traders at the equivalent of Rs.8 or 10 per 100 in number. The flesh is
also dried and disposed of to these traders under the name of
_thadecon_, at about Rs.3 per _viss_ of 3.33 pounds. This mollusk yields
a few greenish yellow pearls.

In 1895, three pearl reefs were discovered off the Bassein coast in the
district of Irawadi.[165] These proved fairly remunerative for one
season and a portion of another, when they were abandoned.

THE PEARL FISHERIES OF THE RED SEA, GULF OF ADEN, ETC.

Under the Ptolemies, and even long after—under the Califs—these were
islands whose merchants were princes; but their bustle and glory
have since departed from them, and they are now thinly inhabited by
a race of miserable fishermen.

JAMES BRUCE (1790).

The Red Sea was one of the most ancient sources of pearls, furnishing
these gems for centuries before the Christian era, and particularly
during the reign of the Ptolemies. These pearls were alluded to by
Strabo, Ælianus, and other classical writers. Although the prominence of
the fisheries has suffered by comparison with those of Persia and
Ceylon, the yield has been more or less extensive from the days of
Solomon up to the present time.

Of the several pearl-yielding mollusks in the Red Sea and on the
southeast coast of Arabia, the largest and best known is that called
“sadof” by the Arabs, and which has been identified by Jameson as
_Margaritifera m. erythræensis_. This is closely related to the large
species in the Persian Gulf. It is commonly four or five inches in
diameter, and in exceptional instances attains a diameter of eight
inches and a weight of three pounds or more. In addition to its size, it
is distinguished by a dark green coloring about the edges, and a more or
less greenish tint over the nacreous interior surface; this color is
darker in the vicinity of Jiddah and Suakin than at the southern end of
the sea, or in the Gulf of Aden. This species occurs singly rather than
congregated in beds or reefs. Although it is found in depths of fifteen
fathoms or more, most of the fishing is in less than five fathoms of
water.

The “sadof” yields pearls only rarely, and is sought principally for the
shells, which afford good qualities of mother-of-pearl, the pearls
furnishing an additional but always looked-for profit to the regular
source of income. As in other regions, there is no constant relation
between the value of the pearls and the quantity of mollusks taken. The
oysters of some reefs are comparatively rich in certain years; while in
other seasons or on other reefs the mollusks may be numerous but yield
very few pearls.

The second species of importance in the Red Sea is similar to the Lingah
oyster and is known to the Arabs as “bulbul.” This is much smaller than
the “sadof,” averaging less than three inches in diameter. It is
collected for the pearls exclusively, the shells being too small for
industrial use; but only 3 or 4 per cent. of the individuals yield
pearls.

It is claimed by writers of authority that it is the red Pinna pearl
from this sea that is referred to in the Scriptures under the name
_peninim_ as the most precious product, and which has been translated as
rubies.[166] The shell is extremely fragile, and the nacreous interior
is white tinged with a beautiful red. It is of little importance in the
commercial fisheries of the Red Sea at the present time.

The “sadof” is more scattered and less numerous than the “bulbul”; and
in order to save much useless diving, it is customary to inspect the
bottom before descending. Therefore, operations are largely restricted
to calm weather, when the water is sufficiently clear to enable the
divers to sight the individual oysters on the bottom. In recent years,
water-telescopes have been used to assist in locating them. The most
popular form consists of a tin can with a sheet of glass inserted in the
bottom. The glazed end of the tin is submerged several inches below the
surface, affording a far-reaching and much clearer vision. In this
fishery the divers work from small canoes (_uri_), each manned by two
men, one of whom rows while the other leans over the bow and searches
for the oysters. When one is sighted, he dives into the water for it,
and then returns to the boat to resume the search.

The pearling season begins commonly in March or April, and continues
until about the end of May; it is renewed in the autumn, continuing
through September and October.[167] The vessels employed are of two
varieties: _dhows_ carrying from twenty to eighty men each, and the much
smaller _sambuks_ or sail-boats without decks, each with from six to
twenty-five men, most of whom are Negro slaves. Many of the large
vessels are from the Persian Gulf. The _sambuks_ are owned principally
by Zobeid Bedouins inhabiting the coast between Jiddah and Yambo, and
also the islands near the southern end of the sea, which are very
hot-beds of pearls, shells, religious frenzy and half famished Arabs and
Negro slaves.

The “bulbul” oysters are taken in nearly the same manner as in the
Persian Gulf. When the vessel is located over the reef, each diver
descends, commonly with a short stick of iron or hard wood, with which
he releases the oysters within reach; placing them in a sack, he is
pulled up by an attendant when his breath is nearly exhausted.

The fisheries are prosecuted along both sides of the Red Sea and in the
channels among the islands, from the Gulf of Akabah to Bab-el-Mandeb.
They are especially extensive among the Dahlak Islands on the coast of
the Italian colony Eritrea, where the population is largely supported by
them. This was the center of the industry during the time of the
Ptolemies and in the early Christian era. The fisheries are also
important in the vicinity of Jiddah, the port of entrance for Mecca and
Medina, holiest places of Islam. They likewise exist near Kosseir at the
northern end of the sea, and at Suakin, Massawa, the Farsan Islands, and
Loheia, near the lower end. They are carried on by Arabs, who succeed in
evading efforts at control on the part of the local governments. Even on
the African side, the Arab fishermen predominate, for the native
Egyptian has never evinced much fondness for venturing on the sea.

On the southeast coast of Arabia, pearl fishermen are to be found at the
various harbors from Aden to Muscat. Their fantastic dhows are met with
in the harbor of Makalla, and also in that of Shehr. On the Oman coast,
the ports of Sur and of sun-scorched Muscat do a considerable pearling
business, not only locally but to the Sokotra Islands, and even on the
coast of East Africa and Zanzibar, the trading baggalas adding pearling
and illicit slave-trading to their many sources of income. A number of
these traders, each with an instinct for pearls equal to that of a
trained hound for game, visit the fishing centers at intervals, and
exchange needful commodities for pearls and shells.

The Arab pearl-divers of the Red Sea have been noted for the depths to
which they can descend. Lieutenant J. R. Wellsted, of the Indian Navy,
who had unusual facilities for acquaintance with their exploits,
reported that in the Persian Gulf the fishermen rarely descended beyond
eleven or twelve fathoms, and even then they exhibited signs of
exhaustion; but that in the Red Sea they go down twice that depth. Among
the most noted of these divers of the last century was old Serúr, who
attracted the notice of many travelers. Lieutenant Wellsted states that
he saw him descend repeatedly to twenty-five fathoms without the
slightest evidence of distress; that he frequently dived in thirty
fathoms, and is reported to have brought up mud from the bottom at a
depth of thirty-five fathoms, which is about the record, the pressure of
the water being nearly 90 pounds to the square inch. His sons were also
remarkably expert; one of them when scarcely thirteen years of age would
descend to a depth of twenty-five fathoms.[168]

An interesting story of an Arab’s diving ability is told by Lieutenant
Wellsted: “In 1827, we were cruising in the sloop _Ternate_ on the pearl
banks. Whilst becalmed and drifting slowly along with the current,
several of the officers and men were looking over the side at our Arab
pilot, who had been amusing himself in diving for oysters. After several
attempts, his search proved unsuccessful. ‘Since I cannot get oysters I
will now,’ said he, ‘dive for and catch fish.’ All ridiculed the idea.
He went down again, and great was our astonishment to see him, after a
short time, rise to the surface with a small rock-fish in each hand. His
own explanation of the feat was, that as he seated himself at the
bottom, the fish came around and nibbled at his skin. Watching his
opportunity, he seized and secured his prey by thrusting his thumb and
forefinger into their expanded gills.”[169]

Owing to the character of the fishery and the lack of government
supervision, it is extremely difficult to determine accurately the
extent of this industry in the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf. All over
this coast extends the influence of the Hindu traders, who finance the
fisheries and purchase most of the catch. The pearls are sent mostly to
Bombay, and are not reported in the official returns of the Red Sea
ports. The fishermen are suspicious of outside inquiries, and are far
from anxious to impart reliable information. Probably the best estimates
of the catch are to be obtained from Bombay merchants, from whom A.
Perazzoli learned in 1898 that pearls to the value of 2,000,000 lire
($400,000) were carried from the Red Sea to Bombay each year.[170] In
the last four or five years the output has been smaller than usual,
owing to disturbed political conditions.

The annual product of “Egyptian” and “Bombay” shells in these fisheries
is usually upward of 1000 tons, worth from $100 to $600 per ton,
according to quality. Most of these go to Austria and France, only about
200 tons reaching London each year. Owing to the dark color and the lack
of thickness in the nacreous layer, they are scarcely suitable for
anything else than button manufacture. Many of them are sent to
Bethlehem and Jerusalem, where they are cut into various shapes for
crosses, crucifixes, wafer-boxes, beads, and nearly every conceivable
article in which mother-of-pearl is manufactured. Many of the choicest
shells are incised with scriptural or allegorical designs for sale to
tourists as well as for export. The best of the engraved shells sell for
$10 to $50, and the cheaper ones for less than $1 each. This industry is
of great importance in Bethlehem, giving employment to a considerable
percentage of the eight thousand inhabitants of the village.

Doubtless in no pearl fishery in the world are greater hardships endured
than in the Red Sea and along the coast of the Arabian Gulf. In
practically every other region, the industry is carried on under
government supervision, and there is little opportunity for
ill-treatment of the humbler fishermen. But the fanatics who control the
fishery on the Arabian coast—untrammeled by authorities and responsible
to none—show little consideration for the poor divers, and particularly
for the unfortunate black slaves brought from the coast of Africa.

These pearl fishermen lead a very eventful life, the divers especially.
They see some wonderful sights down below the surface-plant life and
creeping things and enemies innumerable. Dropping from the sun-scorched
surface down into the deep cool waters, everything shows “a sea change,
into something rich and strange,” just as the eyes of the drowned man in
Ariel’s song are turned into pearls and his bones into coral.

And there are enemies innumerable. The terrible sharks, prowling about
near the bottom, prove a source of perpetual uneasiness, and in the
aggregate many fishermen are eaten by these bloodthirsty tigers of the
sea. There are horrible conflicts with devil-fish equaling that in
Hugo’s “Toilers of the Sea.” The saw-fish is also a source of danger,
particularly in the Arabian Gulf, and instances are reported in which
divers have been cut in two by these animals, which sometimes attain a
length of twelve or fifteen feet, and possess a saw five feet long and
three inches broad, armed on each edge with teeth two inches in length.
Another menacing peril is the giant clam (_Tridacna gigas_), a monster
bivalve, whose shell measures two or three feet in diameter, and is
firmly anchored to the bottom. This mollusk occurs on many of the
Asiatic pearling grounds. Lying with the scalloped edges a foot or more
apart, a foot or a hand of the diver may be accidentally inserted. When
such a fate befalls a fisherman, the only escape is for him to amputate
the member immediately. Once in a while on the pearling shores a native
may be found who has been maimed in this manner, but usually the
unfortunate man does not escape with his life.

THE PEARL FISHERIES OF CHINA, JAPAN, SIBERIA, ETC.

Do churls
Know the worth of Orient pearls?
Give the gem which dims the moon
To the noblest or to none.

EMERSON, _Friendship_.

It appears from ancient Chinese literature, noted in the first chapter
of this book, that pearl fisheries have existed in the rivers of China
for several thousand years. The Chinese also derived pearls from the
sea, and especially from the coast of the province of Che-kiang. Little
is known of the early fisheries, but the fragmentary literature contains
so many allusions to pearls as to lead us to believe that they were of
considerable extent and importance.

It is related that about 200 B.C., a pearl dealer at Shao-hing, an
ancient city between Hang-chau and Ning-po, on the shore of Hang-chau
Bay, furnished to the empress a pearl one inch in diameter, for which he
received five hundred pieces of silver; and to an envious princess the
same dealer sold a “four-inch pearl.” A hundred years later, the
reigning emperor sent an agent to the coast to purchase “moon pearls,”
the largest of which were two thirds of an inch in diameter.

In the tenth century A.D., Mingti, one of the most extravagant of the
early monarchs, used so many pearls—not only in his personal decoration
but on his equipage and retinue,—that after a formal procession the way
would be rich in the jewels which dropped from the gorgeous cortège.
About 1000 A.D., an embassy to the emperor brought as tribute an
ornament composed of strings of pearls, and also 105 liang (8¾ lbs.) of
the same gems unmounted.

An interesting story is told of “pearl-scattering” by an embassy to the
Chinese court from a Malayan state about 1060. Following the customs of
their country, the ambassadors knelt at the threshold of the audience
chamber, and then advanced toward the throne, bearing a golden goblet
filled with choice pearls and water-lilies wrought of gold. These they
scattered upon the floor at the feet of the emperor; and the courtiers,
hastening to pick them up, secured ten hang (15 oz.) of pearls.[171]

The Keh Chi King Yuen, a Chinese encyclopedia, describes a pearl fishery
in the southern part of Kwang-tung province, in the department of
Lien-chau and near the city of Hóhpú. Fishing began in the spring, and
was preceded by conciliating the gods through certain sacrifices, in
order that the weather might be propitious and that no disaster might be
suffered through sharks and other agencies. The five sacrificial
animals,—horses, cattle, sheep, swine, and fowls,—were presented; but
ordinarily paper images of these were economically substituted, as
equally acceptable to the Chinese rulers of destiny. In the details of
the diving, the fishery resembled somewhat that prosecuted about the
same period in the Gulf of Manaar. The diver was let down by a rope, and
after collecting the mollusks and placing them in a basket, he was drawn
up at a given signal. Much complaint was made that the divers would open
the mollusks, extract the pearls and conceal them in the mouth before
returning to the surface.

The business became so perilous and the loss so great, that about the
beginning of the sixteenth century, according to the same encyclopedia,
dredges were adopted. These at first were simple rakes; later large
dredges were trailed along between two boats, by means of which great
quantities of shells were gathered. So important was the industry that
an officer was designated by the viceroy of Canton to collect a revenue
therefrom. It does not appear that pearls have been collected in
considerable numbers on this part of the Chinese coast for very many
years, probably not since the advent of Europeans.

Pearls are yet found in the river mussels in all parts of eastern Asia,
from Siberia to the Indian Ocean, and from the Himalayas to the Pacific.
It is represented that they are not from the _Unio margaritifera_, the
common river-mussel of Europe, but from other species, such as _Unio
mongolicus_, _U. dahuricus_, _Dipsas plicatus_, etc. It is quite
impossible to obtain a reliable estimate of the total number of persons
employed, or the output of pearls in China, but these items are
certainly very much larger than the average Occidental believes.

In the vicinity of Canton the _Dipsas plicatus_ has been used for
centuries by the Chinese in the production of artificial pearls, this
industry giving employment to thousands of persons.[172]

The pearl-mussel fishery is of importance in Manchuria, where it has
been carried on for hundreds of years, not only by the citizens, but by
the military department on account of the government, and especially in
the streams which flow into the Songari, a tributary of the Amur.
Jacinth relates that in case of a deficit, the officers and subalterns
were punished by a deduction from their pay, and also by corporal
chastisement.[173] Witsen speaks of the pearls from the River Gan, a
tributary of the Amur, and also from the islands of the Amur, the
boundary river of Manchuria. Pearl fisheries were established at these
places by the Russians nearly two centuries ago.[174]

Pearls become finer and more plentiful the further we penetrate into
Manchuria; and they are numerous in the lake of Heikow or Hing-chou-men,
“Black Lake” or “Gate of Precious Gems,” where they have long been
exploited for the account of the emperor of China.

The occurrence of pearls in many parts of Asiatic Russia was noted by
Von Hessling. In northern Siberia, according to Witsen, writing in
1705,[175] pearls were found in the waters about the town of Mangasea on
the Turuchan; and Von Middendorf notes that they were found in the
Tunguska River, which flows into the Yenisei. Whether, however, they
come from the _Unio margaritifera_ is considered doubtful by Von
Middendorf. Witsen referred to their occurrence in the rivers and
streams of Irkutsk and Onon, and this is confirmed by several writers of
more recent times. Pallas says that the mussels found there are quite
large, and speaks of the Ilim, which flows into the Angara, as another
river where they occur.

Ancient books relating to Japan repeatedly allude to the occurrence of
pearls on the coasts of that country. They are mentioned in the Nihonki,
of the eighth century, the oldest Japanese history.

Tavernier wrote about 1670: “It is possible that of those who have
written before me concerning pearls, none have recorded that some years
back a fishery was discovered in a certain part of the coasts of Japan,
and I have seen some of the pearls which the Dutch brought from thence.
They were of very beautiful water, and some of them of large size, but
all baroques. The Japanese do not esteem pearls. If they cared about
them it is possible that by their means some banks might be discovered
where finer ones would be obtained.”[176]

In 1727, Kaempfer wrote that pearls, called by the Japanese _kainotamma_
or shell jewels, were found in oysters and other mollusks almost
everywhere about Saikokf. Every person was at liberty to fish for them.
Formerly the natives had little or no value for them, till they learned
of their estimation by the Chinese, who were ready to pay good prices
for them, their women being very proud of wearing necklaces and other
ornaments of pearls. “The largest and finest pearls are found in the
small sort of oysters, called _akoja_, which is not unlike the Persian
pearl-oyster. These are found only in the seas about Satzuma and in the
Gulf of Omura (Kiusiu). Some of the pearls weigh from four to five
candareens[177] and these are sold for a hundred kobans each.[178] The
inhabitants of the Loochoo Islands buy most of those about Satzuma,
since they trade to that province. Those found on the Gulf of Omura are
sold chiefly to the Chinese and Tunquinese, and it is computed that they
buy for about 3000 taels[179] a year. This great profit occasioned the
strict orders, which were made not long ago by the princes both of
Satzuma and Omura, that for the future there should be no more of these
oysters sold in the market with other oysters, as had been done
formerly.”[180]

Kaempfer also noted that the Japanese obtained pearls from the yellow
snail shell and from the _taira gai_ (Placuna) in the Gulf of Arima, and
especially from the awabi or abalone (Haliotis). This mollusk was much
sought after for food, being taken in large quantities by the
fishermen’s wives, “they being the best divers of the country.”[181]

Of the several species of pearl-oysters which occur in the coastal
waters of Japan, the only one of importance at present is the
_Margaritifera martensi_. While this occurs in very many localities, it
is most numerous among the southern islands, where some fine pearls have
been secured. The fishery for this species was quite extensive thirty or
forty years ago, and the reefs were largely depleted. For nearly a score
of years it has been used in growing culture pearls, an account of which
is given on pages 292, 293.

A few pearls are obtained from several other bivalve mollusks in Japan.
Among the collections of the present writers are pearls from
_Margaritifera martensi_, collected at Bay Agu; from _M. panasisæ_,
about the Liu-kiu Islands; from _Pecten yezocusis_, in Sokhaido; from
_Mytilus crasitesta_, in the Inland Sea, and from North Japan, and from
a species of Dipsas found in Lake Biwa.

While the pearl fisheries of Japan are not of great importance in any
single locality, the distribution of the reefs is so extensive that the
aggregate yield is considerable.

The awabi or ear-shell (_Haliotis gigantea_), found on the coast of
Japan, Korea, etc., yields many pearly forms. This species is much
smaller than the California abalones. It has a fairly smooth, nacreous
surface, but its value is depreciated by the great size of the marginal
perforations, which render useless for commercial purposes all of the
shell external to the line of perforations. While its opalescent tints
make it desirable for manufacturing into certain styles of buttons and
buckles, its principal use is for inlaying work or marquetry, for which
it is especially adapted, owing to its fineness of texture and beauty of
coloring even when reduced to thin sheets.

Probably the most interesting of the abalone fisheries is that on the
shores of Quelpaerd Island, about sixty miles south of the Korean coast,
which is prosecuted largely by the women. Dressed only in a scanty
garment, these women swim out to the fishing grounds, distant several
hundred yards in some cases, carrying with them a stout knife and a
small sack suspended from a gourd. On reaching the reefs, they dive to
the bottom—sometimes to a depth of six or eight fathoms—and by means of
the knife, remove the abalones from the bottom and place them in the
sack. They may remain out an hour, diving repeatedly until the sack is
filled, when they swim back to the shore. Pearls are found only rarely;
in one lot of one hundred shells, only five were found bearing pearls;
two with three pearls each, two with two pearls each, and one with a
single pearl. The flesh of this mollusk after it has been cleaned and
dried, is quite popular as an article of diet. Although white when
fresh, the color changes to a dark red. The pieces of dried flesh, in
the form of flat reddish disks four or five inches in diameter, are
fastened on slender sticks—about ten to each stick—and displayed in the
grocery shops in Seul and other cities.

In the Gulf of Siam on the Asiatic coast, pearls are obtained from a
small oyster with a thin shell, presumably a variety of the Lingah
oyster. The beds have not yet been thoroughly exploited, as the Siamese
do not especially value pearls, attributing some superstitious
sentiments of ill luck to them. However, from time to time Chinese
traders have bought them from the Malay divers and sold them at great
profit in the Singapore market. The known beds occur chiefly in the
northern part of the gulf, on the west coast, and extend in a narrow
belt for a distance of about one hundred miles. The fishing is
prosecuted by nude divers in shallow water. A recent letter from Dr. K.
Van Dort, a mining engineer of Bangkok, Siam, states that in 1906 in six
weeks, with the aid of half a dozen divers he was able to collect 720
grains’ weight of pearls, mostly small ones, but including one of 20
grains, one of 14 grains, two of 12 grains each, and seven over 9 grains
in weight. He reports that the total value of the large ones in Bangkok
was $1500, but the small ones could not be sold to any advantage, as
they are little prized by the Siamese. The shells are of no commercial
value, as they are too thin for industrial use other than for inlaid
work. Some fine old specimens of marquetry in which these shells were
used exist in the Buddhist temples at Bangkok. This art of inlaying is
almost lost among the Siamese, and there is said to be only one man in
the king’s palace who can lay any claims to proficiency in working
mother-of-pearl shell.

VII

PEARLS FROM THE AFRICAN COASTS

VII
EAST AFRICAN PEARL FISHERIES

The Islanders with fleecy curls,
Whose homes are compass’d by the Arabian waves;
By whom those shells which breed the orient pearls
Are dived and fish’d for in their green sea caves.

TASSO, _Jerusalem Delivered_.

The principal pearl fisheries of the coasts of Africa are those
prosecuted in the Red Sea, between this continent and Asia. These have
already been described in the preceding chapter, among the Asiatic
fisheries; for, although situated between the two continents, they are
prosecuted largely by Arabs rather than by natives of the western shores
of the sea.

Other than those in the Red Sea, the only pearl resources in Africa
which have received attention are on the eastern coast, south of the
Gulf of Aden. Little information exists as to the origin of these
fisheries. In a paper published by the Lisbon Geographical Society,
January, 1903, Señor Ivens Ferranz states that, according to tradition,
in remote times the Ibo Archipelago, on the northeast coast of
Portuguese East Africa, was inhabited by a Semitic colony, which located
there to fish for pearls, and these were carried through the Red Sea to
King Solomon. He adds that there is little doubt that, after the great
emigration which started from the Persian Gulf in 982 and founded
Zanzibar, Kilwa, and Sofala on this coast, some Arabs engaged in fishing
for pearls about the islands near Sofala.

In 1609 Joao dos Santos wrote that on the sandy sea bottom about the
Bazaruto Islands, which are about 150 miles south of Sofala, there were
many large oysters which bore pearls, and the natives fished for them by
diving in practically the same manner as in the Persian Gulf.[182]

In a personal memorandum, Sir Robert Edgcumbe states that in the very
early times of Portuguese exploitation on the eastern coast of Africa,
pearl fishing was carried on in these waters. For a long period the
tenure of power exerted by the Portuguese was of a feeble character;
they practically occupied no position of importance on the mainland, but
seized upon stations on the islands which offered decent harbors. Thus
their chief settlements, such as Mozambique and Ibo, were on islands
lying off the coast, and until recent years they made no serious attempt
to occupy the mainland.

Arabs and Banyans carried on the commercial traffic of the country, as
they still do, and they were more truly the masters of this coast than
were the Portuguese, who were little more than nominal rulers. Trading
to and from India in their small dhows, the Arabs and Banyans had full
knowledge of the value of pearls, and undoubtedly secured all that were
obtainable. But they observed no restrictions, and without doubt—for a
time, at any rate—greatly impaired the productive power of the
fisheries.

The principal pearl reefs of East Africa, so far as known at present,
extend along the coast of the German East African territory from the
Province of Uzaramo to the Rovuma River, the southern limit of that
territory, and also into Portuguese East Africa as far south as Pemba
Bay, a total distance of about 300 miles. Along much of this coast,
there are islands lying from one to two miles off shore, and between
these islands are barriers of reefs, which create a series of lagoons.
In these lagoons, protected by the islands and the reefs from the
influence of the surf formed by the Indian monsoons, there are large
patches of coral rock and groups of living coral, which form excellent
attachments for the pearl-oysters.

It is only recently that serious attention has been paid to these pearl
resources, although year by year a considerable number of pearls have
been collected by the natives and sold to Arabs and Banyans, who have
sent them chiefly to India by way of Zanzibar. The natives of these
parts are not very expert in diving, and they collect the oysters
principally by wading out as far as they can at low tide. They do not
wait for the mollusks to attain a proper age, and as a result they find
few pearls of large size. Many parcels of pearls fished in this very
elementary way pass through the custom-house, where they are subject to
a small duty for export, and others are smuggled out of the country.
Quantities of seed-pearls are sent to India, where they are used
principally as a medicine and in cosmetics; and occasionally there are
rumors that some choice pearls have been discovered.

In the German territory a concession of the fisheries was granted a few
years ago to Dr. Aurel Schulz; and, although we are not in position to
say what success he has met with, it is reported that he has secured a
considerable number of pearls under four grains in weight, of fair shape
and quality and of good marketable value.

A concession of the pearl fishery on the Portuguese coast north of Ibo
has been granted to the East African Pearl Company. For this company an
examination of the resources is now being made by Mr. James J. Simpson,
acting under direction of Prof. W. A. Herdman, of the Liverpool
University, the technical advisor of the Ceylon Company of Pearl
Fishers.

At least four species of pearl-bearing mollusks exist here; these are
_Margaritifera vulgaris_, _M. margaritifera_, _Pinna nobilis_, and a
species of Perna, named in the order of their importance. A preliminary
report of Mr. Simpson (supplied through the courtesy of Sir Robert
Edgcumbe), states that among the Ibo Islands about one half of the
bottom is sandy and the other half is covered with detached pieces of
coral rock, groups of living corals, masses of nullipore, and expanses
of fixed seaweed. On all of these in the shoal waters, there is such an
abundance of pearl-oysters (_M. vulgaris_) that a single diver, by
simply descending and bringing up a few in his hands each time, can
secure about 200 in fifteen minutes. Oysters also occur singly on the
sandy bottom, but not so abundantly. Within the three-year-old oysters
there are many seed-pearls. It is evident that there has been an
extensive removal of large oysters in recent years and that large pearls
were then found; but the depredations of the natives now prevent the
mollusks from attaining an age and size which render them useful as
pearl-bearers.

Said Mr. Simpson in his report: “The women here play great havoc on the
reefs by going out daily and collecting the pearl-oysters at low tide.
All along the coast from Muliga Point to Arimba the shores are covered
with shells. At one place we came across a heap of freshly-opened
oysters which consisted of thirty or forty thousand at the lowest
estimate; while an older heap contained between forty to sixty millions.
Four women who were fishing on the reefs while we were there had over
two thousand oysters in their baskets. Thus it is evident that immense
quantities are annually destroyed. And the worst feature is that out of
those destroyed, not one per cent. were over two years old.”

It is the intention of the East African Pearl Company, as soon as the
investigation of the resources is completed, to police the fishing
grounds so as to put an end to the removal of immature oysters, which
yield only seed-pearls, and to permit them to attain maturity. In
addition to this, it is their purpose to utilize the extensive beds of
oysters lying in comparatively deep water, which are now inaccessible to
the natives owing to their lack of diving skill.

Sir Robert Edgcumbe writes that it is impossible to say more at present
than that these fisheries at one time bore a high repute, and that the
oysters have continued to exist in multitudes though fished by the
natives in the immature state; and there is every indication that if
properly policed and worked in a scientific way these fisheries should
once again become of much importance. The fact that the pearl-bearing
oysters are found there in large quantities, notwithstanding that they
have been poached without restriction by the natives, indicates that
only proper management and policing are necessary to make them valuable
and productive.

On the lower coast of Portuguese East Africa, pearl fishing has been of
some local importance. The reefs are most extensive about the Bazaruto
Islands, previously referred to as about 150 miles south of Sofala. In
1888, when famine prevailed on this coast, the inhabitants of this
archipelago, of both sexes and of all ages, fished for the large
pearl-oysters (known locally as _mapalo_), selling their catch at
Chiloane to Asiatic traders, who gave them a handful of rice for a large
basket of the mollusks. It was estimated that during two months of that
year, pearls to the value of eighty _contos_ ($83,500) were taken.[183]
In 1889 three British subjects attempted to renew the fishery by using
dredges, but without success, owing, it is said, to the great weight of
the implements.

The Kafirs of Bazaruto continue to fish irregularly, but their catch is
not of importance. These pearls are carried by traders to Zanzibar,
Muscat, and Bombay. The American consul writes that some years ago the
Portuguese government granted a concession to a company of American
fishermen to exploit the Bazaruto reefs, but the attempt to work the
concession failed through “bad management, lack of funds, heavy
expenses, and political difficulties,” a combination apparently
sufficient to wreck a similar attempt in the most favorable locality.

The American consul at Tamatave states that in 1907 the government of
Madagascar awarded two grants for pearl fisheries, covering the entire
western coast, a distance of one thousand miles, excepting two hundred
miles, for which two grants were given in 1906. Apparently no effort was
made to develop the earlier grants; the later ones may be operated,
perhaps jointly. These concessions are personal, and may not be sold or
transferred without the governor-general’s consent. The use of divers,
machinery, dredges, and other apparatus, and the building of necessary
stations are allowed, if there be no interference with navigation,
fishing, or coast travel. An annual tax is to be paid, with a stated
increase each year, and revised according to the success of the
enterprise. A report must be sent yearly to the governor-general. The
grants may be revoked if work is not begun within a stated period; if
the work is needlessly abandoned during one year, or if the tax is not
paid. Whenever the interests of the colony or of the public service
require it, the privilege may be withdrawn without indemnity.

VIII

EUROPEAN PEARL FISHERIES

THE BRITISH ISLES, THE CONTINENT OF EUROPE

VIII
PEARL FISHERIES OF THE BRITISH ISLES

And Britain’s ancient shores great pearls produce.

MARBODUS (_circa_ 1070).

The occurrence of pearls in the British Isles was known two thousand
years ago, and frequent references to them were made in Roman writings
of the first and second centuries of the Christian era.

In his “Lives of the Cæsars,” the biographer Suetonius, after speaking
of the admiration which Julius Cæsar had for pearls, states that their
occurrence in Britain was an important factor in inducing the first
Roman invasion of that country in 55 B.C.[184] If this be true, the
English-speaking people owe a vast debt of gratitude to these pearls in
bringing their Briton ancestors in contact with Roman civilization; and
the influence which they have thus exercised on the world’s history has
been greater than that of the pearls from all other regions or, we might
add, than all other jewels.

The naturalist Pliny (23–79) stated: “In Brittaine it is certain that
some do grow; but they bee small, dim of colour, and nothing orient. For
Julius Cæsar (late Emperor of famous memorie) doth not dissimble, that
the cuirace or breastplate which he dedicated to Venus mother within her
temple was made of English pearles.”[185]

This decoration of pearls was a very proper offering to the goddess who
arose from the sea.

The historian Tacitus noted in “Vita Agricolæ” that the pearls from
Britain were dusky or brownish (_subfusca ac liventia_).[186] In his
commentaries on the Gospel of Matthew, Origen (185–253), one of the
Greek fathers of the church, described the British pearls as next in
value to the Indian. Their surface, he stated, was of a golden color,
but they were cloudy and less transparent than those from India.

We have no certain information whether the pearls secured by the Romans
were from the edible mussel (_Mytilus edulis_) of the sea-coast or from
the Unios of the fresh-water streams. Tacitus’s statement that they were
collected “as the sea throws them up,” seems to locate them on the
sea-coast; but conditions in modern times make it appear more probable
that they were from the fresh waters.

Some of the very early coins of the country indicate that pearls were
used to ornament the imperial diadem of the sovereigns of ancient
Britain. In “Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum,” the celebrated
English monk, Bede (673–735) surnamed “The Venerable,” enumerated among
other things for which Britain was famous in his day, “many sorts of
shell-fish, among which are mussels, in which are often found excellent
pearls of all colours; red, purple, violet and green, but mostly
white.”[187] And Marbodus, Bishop of Rennes, in his lapidarium, written
about 1070, refers to the British pearls as equaling those of Persia and
India. About 1094 a present of an Irish pearl was made to Anselm,
Archbishop of Canterbury, by Gilbert, Bishop of Limerick.[188]

In the twelfth century there was a market for Scotch pearls in Europe,
but they were less valued than those from the Orient.[189] An ordinance
of John II, King of France, in August, 1355, which confirmed the old
statutes and privileges of goldsmiths and jewelers, expressly forbade
mounting Scotch and oriental pearls together in the same article, except
in ecclesiastical jewelry (Orfèvre ne peut mettre en œuvre d’or ne
argent parles d’Ecosse avec parles d’orient se ce n’est en grands
joyaulx d’église).[190]

Writing in the sixteenth century, the historian William Camden
(1551–1623) stated in his “Britannia”:

The British and Irish Pearls are found in a large black Muscle….
They are peculiar to rapid and stony rivers; and are common in
Wales, and in the North of England, and in Scotland, and some parts
of Ireland. In this country they are called by the vulgar _Kregin
Diliw_, i.e. Deluge shells; as if Nature had not intended the shells
for the rivers; but being brought thither by the Universal Deluge,
they had continued there, and so propagated their kind ever since.
Those who fish here for Pearls, know partly by the outside of these
Muscles, whether they contain any; for generally such as have them
are a little contracted or distorted from their usual shape. A
curious and accomplished Gentleman, lately of these parts, showed me
a valuable Collection of the Pearls of the Conway River in Wales;
amongst which I noted a stool-pearl [button-pearl], weighing
seventeen grains, and distinguished on the convex side with a fair
round spot of a Cornelian colour, exactly in the center.[191]

In 1560 “large handsome pearls” were sent from Scotland to Antwerp.[192]
In 1620 a great pearl was found in the Kellie Burn, in Aberdeenshire.
This was carried to King James by the provost, who was rewarded with
“twelve to fourdeen chalder of victuals about Dunfermline, and the
Customs of Merchants’ goods in Aberdeen during his life.” No record
appears of the reward paid to the finder; possibly it was not worth
recording.

In 1621 the Privy Council of Scotland issued a proclamation that pearls
found within the realm belonged to the Crown; and conservators of the
pearl fisheries were appointed in several of the counties, including
Aberdeen, Ross, and Sutherland. It was the duty of the conservators,
among other things, to nominate experts to fish for pearls during July
and August, “when they are at chief perfection.” The conservators and
fishermen were compensated by selling those pearls of ordinary quality,
but “the best for bignesse and colour” were to be remitted to the king.
It was reported to the Privy Council that the conservator in
Aberdeenshire did very well in the first year. “He hath not only taken
divers pearls of good value, but hath found some in waters where none
were expected.” The first parliament of Charles I abolished these
privileges.

Robert Sibbald, physician to Charles II, wrote that he had seen a
necklace of Scotch pearls which was valued at two thousand crowns; they
were “larger than peas, perfectly round, and of a brilliant
whiteness.”[193]

It is said that Sir Richard Wynne of Gwydir presented to Catherine of
Braganza, queen of Charles II of England, a pearl from the Conway in
Wales, which is said to be even yet retained in the royal crown. In his
“Faerie Queene” (1590), Spenser speaks of the

Conway, which out of his streame doth send
Plenty of pearles to deck his dames withal.

The White Cart River in Scotland, on which the city of Paisley is
situated, was distinguished, according to Camden, “for the largeness and
the fineness of the Pearls that are frequently found hereabouts and
three miles above.”[194] And the pearls from Irton in Cumberland,
England, were so noted at that time that “fair as Irton pearls” became a
byword in the north country. In their history of Westmoreland and
Cumberland,[195] Nicolson and Burn state that “Mr. Thomas Patrickson,
late of How of this county (Cumberland), having employed divers poor
inhabitants to gather these pearls, obtained such a quantity as he sold
to the jewellers in London for above £800.” But in 1794 Hutchinson[196]
stated that none had been seen for many years past.

Pearl fishing in Ireland was of some consequence in the seventeenth
century. Speaking of the Slaney River, Solomon Richards, in a
description of Wexford about the year 1656, said: “It ought to precede
all the rivers in Ireland for its pearle fishing, which though not
abundant are yet excellent, for muscles are daily taken out of it about
fowre, five and six inches long, in which are often found pearles, for
lustre, magnitude and rotundity not inferior to oriental or any other in
the world.”[197] In 1693 Sir Robert Redding wrote that there were four
rivers in the county of Tyrone in northern Ireland which abounded in
pearl-mussels, all four emptying into Lough Foyle and thence into the
sea. They were also to be found in several rivers in the adjacent
Donegal County. Redding gave an interesting description of the fishery:

In the warm months before harvest is ripe, whilst the rivers are low
and clear, the poor people go into the water and take them up, some
with their toes, some with wooden tongs, and some by putting a
sharpened stick into the opening of the shell; and although by
common estimate not above one shell in a hundred may have a pearl,
and of these pearls not above one in a hundred be tolerably clear,
yet a vast number of fair merchantable pearls, and too good for the
apothecary, are offered to sale by those people every summer assize.
Some gentlemen of the country make good advantage thereof, and I
myself, whilst there, saw a pearl bought for £2, 10s. that weighed
36 carats, and was valued at £40, and had it been as clear as some
others produced therewith it would certainly have been very
valuable. Everybody abounds with stories of the good pennyworths of
the country, but I will add but one more. A miller took a pearl,
which he sold for £4, 10s. to a man that sold it for £10 to another,
who sold it to the late Lady Glenanly for £30, with whom I saw it in
a necklace; she refused £80 for it from the late Duchess of Ormond.

The young muscles never have any pearl in them. The shells that have
the best pearls are wrinkled, twisted, or bunched, and not smooth
and equal, as those that have none. And the crafty fellows will
guess so well by the shell, that though you watch them never so
carefully, they will open such shells under the water, and put the
pearls in their mouths, or otherwise conceal them. Yet sometimes
when they have been taking up shells, and believing by such signs as
I have mentioned, that they were sure of good purchase, and refused
good sums for their shares, they found no pearl at all in them. Upon
discourse with an old man that had been long at this trade, he
advised me to seek not only when the waters were low, but on a
dusky, gloomy day also, lest, said he, the fish see you, for then he
will shed his pearl in the sand; of which I believe no more than
that some muscles have voided their pearls, and such are often found
in the sands.[198]

For several years following 1760, the Scotch pearl fisheries were of
considerable local value. The zoölogist, Thomas Pennant, wrote of them
several times in his “Tour of Scotland.” Referring to the Tay and Isla
rivers, then as now the center of the Scotch pearling, he states: “There
has been in these parts a very great fishery of pearl, got out of the
fresh-water muscles. From the year 1761 to 1764, £10,000 worth were sent
to London, and sold from 10s. to £1 6s. per ounce. I was told that a
pearl had been taken there that weighed 33 grains. But this fishery is
at present exhausted, from the avarice of the undertakers. It once
extended as far as Loch Tay.”[199] And he adds later that, some years
preceding, a pearl fishery was prosecuted in Loch Dochart with great
success and the pearls were esteemed the fairest and largest of any.

From 1770 to 1860 the pearl resources of Scotland remained almost
dormant, and Scotch pearls were rarely met with in the markets. In 1861
a German merchant, who was acquainted with the beauty of these gems,
traveled through the districts of Tay, Doon and Don, obtaining a great
number which the poor people kept for their own pleasure, not esteeming
them of any market value, and interested the fishermen in searching for
the mussels. The seemingly high prices which he paid and the abundance
of the pearls sent hundreds of persons to the rivers and small brooks.
Those who were otherwise employed during the day devoted hours of the
long summer nights to diligent search after the coveted shells; while
boys and old persons, who were without regular avocations, waded day
after day where there was a probability of reward. In the course of a
short time pearls, good, bad and indifferent, reached the originator of
the movement at Edinburgh, from Ayrshire, from Perthshire, and from the
Highland regions far beyond the Grampians. He was soon the possessor of
a collection which, for richness and variety, had seldom been surpassed.
A trade in these gems was developed, the patronage of royalty was
obtained, and once more Scotch pearls became fashionable, and their
vogue was enhanced by the fondness which Queen Victoria entertained for
them.

In addition to the rivers named, pearls were found in the Forth, the
Teith, the Ythan, and the Spey in eastern Scotland. The summer of 1862
was most favorable for pearling, owing to the dryness of the season and
the low water, and unusually large quantities of pearls were found, the
prices ranging ordinarily from 10s. to £2 6s. Queen Victoria is said to
have purchased one for forty guineas; others were bought by Empress
Eugénie and by the Duchess of Hamilton. A necklace of them was sold for
£350 in 1863.[200] The value of the entire catch in Scotland in 1864 was
estimated at £12,000 to the fishermen, the yield being unusually large
in that season owing to the unprecedented drought which permitted access
to the deep beds of the rivers. In some of the streams the resources
were quickly depleted, but in others the fisheries yielded profitable
returns for many years. While most of the pearls were small, some of
them were choice and of considerable individual value, ranging from £5
to £150, and £500 is said to have been paid for one fine specimen.

The pearl-mussel of the British Isles (_Unio margaritifera_) has a
thick, coarse and unsightly shell, from 3 to 7 inches in width and 1½ to
2½ inches in length from the umbo to the lip. The rough exterior is dark
brown, and it is sometimes twisted, distorted and barnacled.

It generally lies scattered and detached over the pebbly bottoms, but it
also exists in reefs or beds which are sometimes of considerable extent.
These occur usually where a stretch of water is still and deep, and
oftentimes where the depth places the mussels beyond the reach of the
fishermen. Apart from the pearls it contains, the mussel is of no
economic value except that in some localities the mollusk is used for
bait in cod-fishing.

In recent years the pearl-mussel has been numerous in several of the
rivers of Scotland, such as the Tay, Earn, and Teith in Perthshire; the
Dee, the Don, and the Ythan in Aberdeenshire; the Spey and Findhorn in
Inverness-shire, and also the classic Doon of Burns, the Nith, the Annan
and others in southern Scotland; however, it is rare in the Clyde and
the Tweed.

The Teith has long been famed for pearl-bearing, though like other
rivers it has become nearly fished out. The Tay produces many pearls,
yet as a rule they are not of the best class. Some of its tributaries,
as the Tummel and the Isla, also bear pearls; those in the Isla are
usually fine and rank higher than those from the Tay. The Earn is also
famous for the fine quality of its pearls, but the whole river was
robbed of its wealth some years ago by a body of professional fishermen,
and it has not yet recovered from the raid; few pearls now exist there
save in the deeper pools, where doubtless may still be hid “full many a
gem of purest ray serene.”

In Ireland pearls have been found principally in the rivers of counties
Kerry, Donegal, Tyrone, Antrum, etc. In an article in “The Field,”
December 10, 1864, Mr. F. T. Buckland stated that they abound near
Oughterard, and that a man called “Jemmy the Pearl-catcher,” who lived
there, told him that he knew when a mussel had a pearl in it even
without opening the shell, because “she [the mussel] sits upright with
her mouth in the mud, and her back is crooked,” that is, corrugated like
a ram’s horn. Pearls are yet found in several localities in the Emerald
Isle, notably in the river Bann in the northeastern part and in the
beautiful Connemara district in western Ireland. In 1892 the Bann
yielded one of the choicest pearls that ever came from Ireland. Within
the last twelve months Lady Dudley, wife of the Viceroy of Ireland,
presented to Queen Alexandra a number of pearls from the Connemara.
These were mounted in a green enameled brooch, and excited so much
admiration that an active demand for similar gems quickly developed in
County Galway.

Mr. D. MacGregor, a well-known jeweler of Perth, to whom we are indebted
for much information relative to pearls in Scotland, states that no
attention whatever is given to conserving the mussel; on the contrary,
the waters are unscrupulously despoiled by the greedy pearl fisherman
who destroys all that he finds, since, by chance, they may yield the
coveted gem. Immense numbers are thus wantonly destroyed, which if
allowed to grow and propagate would be more likely to contribute to the
pearl yield, as it is well known that it is the aged mussels in which a
pearl is most likely to be found. There is no close time, and so
extensive have been the raids upon the mussels in recent years that they
have been rapidly exterminated in places accessible to the fishermen;
and should the spoliation continue and extend to the deep waters, the
pearl-mussel may soon become extinct.

Pearl fishing is not prosecuted throughout the year, as it can be
carried on only in the dry season when the waters are low. There are a
number of professional fishermen who search in their favorite streams,
and sometimes very profitably, as much as £200 having been gained in a
single season by one fisherman. One of the most noted of these was
“Pearl Johnnie,” who a few years ago hailed from Compar-Angus, in
Perthshire, and who styled himself “Pearl Fisher to the Prince of
Wales,” by reason of some dealings he once had with his Royal Highness.
He was very successful in his experience of more than thirty years.
There is little mystery in the search; skill does not always avail, and
men, women and children are rewarded or disappointed indiscriminately.
The bed of the stream is searched until the patches of mussels are
discovered, and this is usually the most tedious part of the work. These
may be in very shoal water, where a small boy has only to wade with
water above his knees and pick up the mussels by stooping; but more
frequently the water covers a man’s hips, and at times he is immersed
almost to the shoulders.

The equipment of a pearl fisherman is simple. If he wades, he commonly
wears long boots with tops reaching to his breast. Provided with a pole
five or six feet long having a cleft at the lower end, and with a tube
several inches in diameter with the lower end closed by a glass, he
invades the home of the pearl-mussel. Thrusting the tube or water glass
beneath the surface, he scans the bed of the stream, and when a mussel
is sighted, the cleft pole is brought into use and it is picked up by
means of these primitive tongs. Owing to the close resemblance which the
pearl-mussel bears to the stones in the riverbed, good eyesight is
required to avoid overlooking it. A bag by the fisher’s side receives
the catch; and when this is well filled, he goes to the bank of the
stream and opens his lottery, in the great majority of cases to find
that he has drawn a blank.

A boat is seldom used, simply because it is not available, but in the
tidal waters it is indispensable. The “box” is a risky device for
fishing in the deeper waters. It is a small contrivance, somewhat like
the ancient British coracle, in which the fisherman sits or lies over on
his chest; venturing out in the deeper parts which can not be waded, he
carefully peers through the tube and draws up his find with the long
cleft stick. This is a tiresome method, but some places can not be
readily fished in any other manner.

In Aberdeenshire, Perthshire, etc., there are a few men who regularly
spend the season “at the pearls.” The knowing ones dispose of their best
finds to wealthy residents or to strangers and tourists who frequent the
vicinity. In addition to these experienced fishermen, many of the idlers
and unemployed about the riverside towns, and also the farm servants in
the country, search the waters in their neighborhood in the hope of
picking up some gems. But very often it is severe and disappointing
labor, for the pearl-seeker may travel far and endure privation and
hardships for days, and yet, after destroying hundreds and even
thousands of mussels, he may be rewarded with only a little almost
worthless dross; but again and again he returns to the elusive game,
inspired by the “hope which springs eternal in the human breast.”

The British pearls are in great variety of colors, but most of them are
practically valueless on account of the absence of orient or luster; for
one possessing the white pearly luster, fifty may be found of a dull
color and devoid of value. Many of these opaque pearls are dark,
lusterless brown, and handfuls of them sell for only a few shillings. A
large percentage are of a grayish or milky color, or of a bluish white
tinge; these seldom attain much value unless aided by excellence of
shape and purity of skin. A few are of a dark, fiery tint and of great
luster. Sometimes the pearl is of a beautiful pink tint, sometimes of a
light violet, or other exquisite shade. The fine pink ones are very rare
and are highly prized. The best are those having the sweet, pure white
light which constitutes the inimitable loveliness of a pearl; but few of
them are found even in the most favorable seasons, and usually these are
from the streams in the northeastern counties and some of the streams in
the southwest. Very few combine the qualities of perfection in shape and
luster; and the product of many seasons might be examined in vain to
furnish enough pearls to make a well-matched necklace of gems weighing
from five to ten grains each. But occasionally beautiful specimens are
discovered, weighing fifteen or twenty grains or more. One found in
Aberdeenshire a few years ago, perfect in shape and luster, weighed
twenty-five grains, and sold at first hand for £50. Another one, found
at the confluence of the Almond and the Tay in 1865, weighed thirty
grains.

While most of these pearls are sold to jewelers in Edinburgh, Aberdeen,
Inverness, Perth, and other towns, many of the finest specimens have
gone into the possession of prominent Scotch and English families, who
have a fancy for collecting them. Queen Victoria possessed a fine
collection of Scotch pearls, choice specimens of many years’ search,
obtained almost exclusively from the Aberdeenshire waters which murmur
round her beautiful Highland home. In 1907, a Scotch pearl was sold in
Perth for the sum of £80; this was of a good luster with a bluish tint,
it was spherical, measured seven sixteenths of an inch in diameter, and
weighed twenty-one grains.

The falling off in the yield of pearls in some streams is credited to a
certain extent to the building of bridges and the consequent abandonment
of fords. This is based on the theory that injury to the mollusk has
something to do with the production of pearls, and that they are to be
found more plentiful about fords and places where cattle drink. The
theory is beautifully stated by the lamented Hugh Miller: “I found
occasion to conclude that the Unio of our river-fords secretes pearls so
much more frequently than the Unionidae and Anadonta of our still pools
and lakes, not from any specific peculiarity in the constitution of the
creature, but from the effects of the habitat which it chooses. It
receives in the fords and shallows of a rapid river many a rough blow
from the sticks and pebbles carried down in time of flood, and
occasionally from the feet of men and animals that cross the stream
during droughts, and the blows induce the morbid secretions, of which
pearls are the result. There seems to exist no inherent cause why
_Anadon cygnea_, with its beautiful silvery nacre—as bright often, and
always more delicate, than that of _Unio margaritiferus_—should not be
equally productive of pearls; but secure from violence in its still
pools and lakes, and unexposed to the circumstances that provoke
abnormal secretions, it does not produce a single pearl for every
hundred that are ripened into value and beauty by the exposed,
current-tossed Unionidae of our rapid mountain rivers. Would that
hardship and suffering bore always in a creature of a greatly higher
family similar results, and that the hard buffets dealt him by fortune
in the rough stream of life could be transmitted, by some blessed
internal pre-disposition of his nature, into pearls of great
price.”[201]

The small blue mussel (_Mytilus edulis_) of the British seas yields
opaque pearls of a deep blue color, but most of them are more or less
white in some part. Sometimes a shell is found in which a blue pearl
will be adhering to the blue lip of the shell while a dull white one
adheres to the white portion of the shell. These pearls are commonly
flattened on one side, doubtless where they have been adjacent to the
shell. None of them is of more than very slight value.

Probably the principal fishery for the salt-water mussel pearls is that
in the estuary of the Conway in Wales. These are mostly quite small and
well answer the designation of seed-pearls, although a few are of fair
size. In color most of them range from dirty white to the dusky or
brownish tint noted by Tacitus eighteen centuries ago, but a few are of
a pure silvery tint. In some seasons London dealers have agents at
Conway for purchasing these pearls. The price is usually from eight to
thirty shillings per ounce.

THE CONTINENT OF EUROPE

Après l’esprit de discernement, ce qu’il y a au monde de plus rare,
ce sont les diamants et les perles.

LA BRUYÈRE, _Les caractères_.

Pearls occur in species of mussels found in the streams and lakes of
Europe, in some of which the fisheries have been of considerable local
interest. It appears that these resources were exploited by the Romans,
then by the Goths and the Lombards, and later the natives continued to
draw forth the treasures which lay hidden about their homes. These
pearls have attracted attention up to the present time; and while they
do not compare with those of the seas, either in quality or in aggregate
value, yet they are prized on account of their intrinsic worth as well
as because they are a product of the fatherland. In the densely
populated valleys, the rivers are so polluted by refuse and sewage that
the mollusks have been greatly depleted; but in the streams of clear,
cool water, draining the mountain regions of France, Germany, Austria,
and also in the rivers of Norway, Sweden, Russia, etc., the fisheries
are not unimportant.

The most celebrated of the pearl fisheries in France are those of the
Vologne, a small river in the extreme eastern part of the country, in
the department of Vosges. Its sources are in Lake Longmere in the Vosges
mountains on the Alsace frontier, and it flows into the Moselle at
Jarmenil, between Remiremont and Épinal. While the pearl-mussel occurs
to some extent in nearly the whole length of this river, and, indeed, is
to be met with in the wild brooks and forest streams of nearly all the
mountainous parts of France, it is most abundant in the vicinity of
Bruyères, where the Vologne receives the waters of the Neuré. These
resources were described in 1845 by Ernest Puton,[202] and in 1869 by D.
A. Godron;[203] to whom—and especially to Godron—we are indebted for
much of our information.

The fisheries of the Vologne have been celebrated for nearly four
centuries. Writing in 1530, Volcyr stated: “In the river Vologne between
Arche and Bruyères, near the ancient castle of Perle, beautiful pearls
are found. In the opinion of jewelers and artists they closely resemble
the oriental.”[204] A few years later Francis Reues wrote: “There is
near the Vosges mountains in Lorraine a river fertile in pearls, yet
they are not very brilliant. The strange thing is that the quality which
they lack by nature is supplied by the aid of pigeons, which swallow
them and restore them purer than before.”[205] In a publication of 1609,
this little river is represented in the frontispiece by the figure of a
nymph bearing many pearls, while beneath is the emblem: _Vologna
margaritifera suas margaritas ostentat_.[206]

In his paper above noted, Godron recites several orders issued from 1616
to 1619 by the Duke of Lorraine, who then had jurisdiction over the
present department of Vosges, showing that a high value was attached to
these pearls and that the resources were well looked after. Writing in
1699, Dr. Martin Lister alluded to the many pearls taken from the rivers
about Lorraine and Sedan. A Paris merchant showed him a fresh-water
pearl of 23 grains, valued at £400, and assured him that he had seen
some weighing 60 grains each.[207]

In 1779 Durival gave an extensive account[208] of the Vologne fishery.
He records that for sixty years pearls had been abundant, but at the
time he wrote they were very scarce.

Puton states that, in 1806, when taking the baths at Plombières in the
Vosges, Empress Josephine formed a great liking for the Vologne pearls,
and at her request some of the mussels were sent to stock the ponds at
Malmaison. It does not appear that any favorable result followed this
transplanting.

Owing to the extensive fisheries, the mussels became so scarce that in
1826, when the Duchesse d’Angoulême was visiting in the Vosges, it was
impossible to secure enough pearls to form a bracelet for her. This
scarcity has continued up to the present time; and yet in the aggregate
many pearls have been secured, so that there are few prominent families
in the neighborhood who do not possess some of them. They are especially
prized as bridal presents to Vosges maidens.

While the Vologne pearls are of good form and of much beauty, they do
not equal oriental pearls in luster. The color is commonly milky white,
but some of them have a pink, yellow, red, or greenish tint. In size
they rarely exceed 4 grains. The Nancy museum of natural history
possesses one which weighs 5¼ grains and measures 6½ mm. in diameter.

In western France, according to Bonnemere,[209] the pearl-mussel is
widely diffused, and in the aggregate many pearls are secured therefrom.
They are somewhat numerous in the river Ille near its union with the
Vilaine at Rennes; though small, these are commonly of good color and
luster. In the department of Morbihan and that of Finistère, many pearls
have been secured, especially in the Steir, the Odet, and in the
Stang-Alla near Quimper. Small pearls, frequently of some value, are
found in the Menech near the town of Lesneven, a few miles northeast of
Brest, the great naval port of France.

The _Unio sinuatus_ (_pictorum_), the _mulette_ of the artists, which
has a shorter and smaller shell than the pearl-mussel, has also yielded
many small pearls of good quality, as well as shells for manufacturing
purposes. This species has been regularly exploited in the Adour, in the
Charente, in the Gironde and its tributaries—the Garonne and the
Dordogne and their affluents, and in some other streams in western
France.

There is a pearl fishery in the Charente River near the western coast of
France, and likewise in the Seugne, a small tributary entering it from
the south. The mussel is known locally under the name of _palourde_. In
an account of this fishery,[210] Daniel Bellet states that in the
Seugne, where the water is shallow and clear, the mussel is secured by
entering the pointed end of a wooden staff or stick between the valves
of the open shell as the mollusk lies feeding on the bottom; as the
shell is immediately closed tightly upon the intruding stick, it is
easily removed from the water.

In the deeper waters of the Charente, the fishery is prosecuted on a
larger scale. Until recently, the _palourdes_ were caught by means of a
dredge towed by a small boat, which was raised from time to time and the
catch removed. Ten or fifteen years ago the scaphander or diving
apparatus was introduced, requiring seven men for its operation, and by
its use large catches have been made. The mussels are taken to the bank
and there boiled for a time to cause the shells to open, so that the
contents may be easily removed.

The shells are examined one by one to find any pearls that may adhere
thereto, and then the flesh of the mollusk is crushed between the
fingers to locate pearls contained in the mass; this is done largely by
children, working under competent supervision. Many pearls of fairly
good size and luster are obtained. The flesh of this mollusk is edible
and well-liked in southwestern France; and the shells are also of value
in the manufacture of buttons and similar objects.

In Germany the pearl fisheries are most important in streams of the
southern districts, in Bavaria, Saxony, and Silesia. The pearl-mussel in
these waters is not so abundant as formerly; yet, owing to the care
which has been given to these resources, it is probably as numerous here
as in any other part of the continent. The mussel rarely occurs singly,
generally in small beds or banks contiguous to each other, and in some
favorable regions these are extensive.

The pearl fisheries of Bavaria have been prominent since the sixteenth
century. They exist principally in the districts of Upper Franconia
(_Oberfranken_) and Upper Palatinate (_Oberpfalz_), the several
tributaries of the Danube between Ratisbon and Passau, and in those
tributaries of the Main and the Saale which rise in the Bavarian
mountains, such as the Oelsnitz, the Lamnitz, Schwesnitz, Grünebach,
Vils, and the Perlbach; also in the district of Lower Bavaria, where in
nine districts alone there are one hundred pearl-bearing streams and
lakes, of which the most important are the Regen, the Isar, and the
Ilz.[211]

Early in the sixteenth century, the river Ilz had the reputation of
yielding the choicest pearls in Lower Bavaria. The right to them was
reserved to the bishop of Passau, and a decree was made in 1579 that
persons convicted of poaching on these reserves should be hanged.[212]
Since that time there have been few decades in which the gems have not
been found in the woodland brooks and mountain streams that flow through
the ravines and past quaint, interesting castles of the wonderful
Bavarian highlands. Most of the prominent families in this beautiful
region have collections of native pearls, and there is still some trade
in them in picturesque Passau, at the junction of the Danube, the Ilz
and the Inn.

Tavernier wrote about 1670: “As for the pearls of Scotland, and those
which are found in the rivers of Bavaria, although necklaces are made of
them which are worth up to 1000 _écus_ (£225) and beyond, they cannot
enter into comparison with those of the East and West Indies.”[213]

The official returns for the Bavarian fisheries, dating from the latter
part of the sixteenth century, were examined by Von Hessling in 1858. He
noted many gaps in the statements of the yearly returns, partly on
account of the loss of the records and partly because the pearls were
delivered directly into the hands of the princes. The results of the
first fisheries are recorded in the district of Hals for the years
1581–99, in Viechtach for 1581–83 and 1590–93, and in Weissenstadt and
Zwiesel for 1583. The range of the fisheries was enlarged through the
discovery of new areas during the first half of the seventeenth century;
but this was offset by the bad seasons and by disturbed conditions
during the Thirty Years’ War. From 1650 to 1783 the pearls in the forest
lands of the Palatinate were exploited regularly and uninterruptedly,
with the exception of the district of Wetterfeld and that of Neunburg
vor dem Wald, where they were prosecuted for a few years only. From 1783
to 1814, they were almost entirely neglected, and the take was confined
to a few streams in Upper Palatinate and in the Bavarian forests. In the
former episcopal principality of Passau, where, according to general
accounts, the waters were rich in pearls, the records were scanty
previous to 1786; this was probably owing to the fact that the head
gamekeeper was obliged to transmit the catch of pearls directly to the
prince-bishop. The records for the fisheries in the districts of Rehau
and Kulmbach began with the year 1733.

From these fragmentary returns—making no estimate for the years for
which there were no figures available—Von Hessling found that from 1600
to 1857 there were taken 15,326 pearls of the first class, which were
clear white in color and of good luster; 27,662 pearls of the second
class, which were somewhat deficient in luster, and 251,778 pearls of
the third or poorest class, or “_Sandperlen_,” which, though of poor
quality, had sufficient whiteness and luster to be used as ornaments.
Had the records been complete, these figures would probably have been at
least fifty per cent. greater, or a total of about 445,000 pearls in the
257 years. In the last forty-three years of this period, for which the
records are fairly complete, the annual average was 208 pearls of the
first, 395 of the second, and 3091 of the third class, a total each year
of 3694 pearls of all grades. This was divided among the districts as
follows:

ANNUAL AVERAGE

District First class Second class Third class Total
Upper Franconia 13 34 52 99
Upper Palatinate 38 77 207 322
Lower Bavaria 157 284 2832 3273
——— ——— ———— ————
Total 208 395 3091 3694

Probably the most interesting of the pearl fisheries in Germany are
those prosecuted in the extreme southwestern part of the kingdom of
Saxony, in the picturesque region known as Vogtland. This is not on
account of their extent, for the output rarely exceeds $2000 in value in
any season; but because for nearly three hundred years they have been
conducted with the utmost care and regard for the preservation of the
resources. Indeed, a record exists of practically every pearl obtained
for nearly two centuries.

The waters in which the Saxon Vogtland fisheries are prosecuted are the
Elster River, from the health resort of that name to a short distance
below Elsterberg; its tributaries, the Mülhaüser, Freiberger, and
Marieneyer brooks; the Hartmannsgrüner and the Triebel brooks, the
Trieb, the Meschelsgrüner, the Teil, and Loch brooks, and twenty-five or
more small ponds.

For most of the data relative to these fisheries, we are indebted
to J. G. Jahn’s “Die Perlenfischerei im Voigtlande,” Oelsnitz,
1854; to Hinrich Nitsche’s “Süsswasserperlen, Internationale
Fischerei-Ausstellung zu Berlin,” 1880, and to O. Wohlberedt’s
“Nachtrag zur Molluskenfauna des Königreiches Sachsen,”
“Nachrichtsblatt der deutschen Malakozoologischen Gesellschaft,”
Frankfurt-am-Main, 1899, pp. 97–104.

In the year 1621, the electoral prince, Johann Georg I, reserved the
pearl fishery of the Vogtland in Saxony as a royal privilege, and
appointed Moritz Schmerler as superintendent and fisherman. From that
time until the present, this fishery has remained a royal prerogative;
and, remarkable to state, except at the close of the seventeenth century
when the father-in-law of a Schmerler enjoyed the privilege, all the
superintendents of the fishery—twenty-four persons in number—have been
direct descendants of the second pearler, Abraham Schmerler, who, in
1643, succeeded his brother Moritz. The present superintendent Julius
Schmerler has been in charge since 1889.

This fishery is conducted in accordance with regulations of the chief
inspector of forests for the district of Auerbach. The present
regulations date from June 15, 1827. In compliance therewith an
inspection is made of the waters each spring to remove all obstructions
and debris that would injure the resources; and, if necessary, entire
beds of mussels are removed from one locality to another which appears
more favorable. No mussels are opened at that time, for the real search
for pearls does not begin until the season is far advanced and the
fishermen can wade up to the waist in the water without discomfort.

Dr. Nitsche states that the whole pearling district is not searched over
every year, but is divided into 313 sections, each one constituting a
day’s work for three fishermen, and rarely are more than twenty or
thirty of these fished in any one year. Thus each section or district is
permitted to rest and recuperate for ten or fifteen years before it is
again invaded. Every mussel is opened carefully by hand, with the aid of
a peculiarly constructed iron instrument. By inserting the edge of this
between the nibs of the shell and turning it at right angles, the valves
are opened sufficiently to determine whether a pearl is contained
therein. If none is observed, the instrument is released and the mussel
returned uninjured to the water; but if a pearl is found within, the
shell is forced open and the find removed. In case small pearls are
observed which give promise of growing larger in time, they are not
removed, but the year is marked upon the shell with the opening
implement and the mussel returned to the water. It often happens that
good pearls are later removed from shells marked in this manner.

Complete records exist of the yield of this fishery during each year
since 1719, when the Vogtland passed to the electorate of Saxony. The
following is a summary of these records arranged in series of twenty
years each.

Years Half
Clear clear Sand Damaged Average
pearls pearls pearls pearls Total per year
No. No. No. No. No. No.

1720–1739 1,809 727 1,201 552 4,289 214

1740–1759 1,412 578 484 281 2,755 138

1760–1779 1,042 272 427 219 1,960 98

1780–1799 1,261 243 357 179 2,040 102

1800–1819 1,603 261 325 203 2,392 120

1820–1839 1,659 340 326 326 2,651 133

1840–1859 1,884 610 387 505 3,386 169

1860–1879 1,618 682 450 514 3,264 163

1880–1899 471 394 86 373 1,324 66

1900–1905 79 161 22 86 348 58

—————— ————— ————— ————— —————— ———

Total in
186 years 12,838 4,268 4,065 3,238 24,409

Average per
year 69 23 22 17 131

In recent years the development of manufacturing industries in Saxony
and the resultant pollution of the water has greatly reduced the
abundance of the mollusks and consequently the output has been much
restricted. The average annual yield in the twenty years ending in 1879
was 163 pearls; in the twenty years ending in 1899 it was 66 pearls, and
in the six years ending in 1905 the annual average was 58 pearls. Owing
to high water, there was no fishing in 1888; and with a view to
permitting the resources to recuperate, the fishery was suspended from
1896 to 1899, inclusive. Omitting these five years, the average yield
during each season in the two decades ending 1899 was 88 pearls.

At the end of each season, the pearls secured are turned over to the
director of forestry for the district of Auerbach; by him they were
formerly sent to the royal cabinet of natural history, or to the royal
collection at Dresden, but since 1830 they have been sent to the royal
minister of finance, by whom they are sold each year. The total proceeds
from these sales now amount to about 55,000 marks.

In former times, according to Dr. Nitsche, it was customary to use these
pearls in making royal ornaments. This was the origin of the famous
Elster necklace, consisting of 177 pearls, now in the art collection in
the Grüne Gewölbe in the palace at Dresden. Another assortment in that
collection consists of nine choice, well-matched pearls, weighing 140
grains. For a necklace of Saxon pearls, the property of a duchess of
Sachsen-Zeitz, the sum of 40,000 thalers ($28,400) is said to have been
refused.

In Prussian Silesia the pearl-mussel is found in the upper tributaries
of the Oder, especially in Bober River from Löwenberg to the sources
among the foot-hills of the beautiful Riesengebirge, in the Lusatian
Neisse to Görlitz, the Queiss above Marklissa, and in the Juppel as far
as Weidenau. The Queiss has been famous for its pearls since the
sixteenth century, and even yet specimens of great beauty are obtained
therefrom. As long ago as 1690, Ledel complained of the diminution of
the number of mollusks owing to their wilful destruction by children;
and in 1729 the government issued a rescript in Upper Lusatia
(_Oberlausitz_) recommending the care of the young mollusks.[214]

Pearls are also found in the White Main a short distance from its
source, in the head waters of the Saale, and in numerous other
mountain-draining streams of middle Germany. Indeed, references could be
made to the discovery of pearls in nearly every stream of Germany at
some time during the last three or four centuries.

The records of pearl fisheries in the province of Hanover were traced by
Von Hessling as far back as the sixteenth century, when they were
prosecuted in the Aller, Ovia or Om, Lua or Low, and in the Seva in the
district of Lüneburg. During the reign of Christian Ludwig (1641–65) and
in that of George William (1666–1705), pearl fishing was carried on by
the state, and old records of the former district of Bodenteich note the
customs and practices of that period and of earlier times, and the
implements employed. In 1706, for instance, 265 clear and 292 imperfect
pearls were taken by three official fishermen from the Gerdauerbach.
Gradually, however, owing to indifferent management, the brooks yielded
less and less; the government seems to have entirely abandoned
supervision of them, so that, according to Taube’s “Communication,”[215]
slight results were obtained in 1766; indeed, only a few pearls could be
shown as curiosities.[216]

Regarding the condition of the Hanoverian pearl-brooks, especially of
those in the vicinity of Uelzen, Möbius wrote: “Uelzen lies at the
confluence of eleven small rivulets, three of which, the Wipperau, the
Gerdau and the Barnbeck, contain pearl-mussels. Fishing has been pursued
here for centuries, and there exists an old regulation of the sixteenth
century in regard to the pearl fisheries in the Ilmenau. Even at the
present day, hundreds of pearls are found here which command a good
price when they are bright and of good form. These either have a silvery
sheen or they are of a reddish color. The season for fishing is during
the months of July and August. The pearls are usually found in deformed
shells. Their shape varies greatly; most of them are flat on one side.
Naturally those which are spherical are the best, but the pear shapes
are highly prized.” Möbius frequently failed to find one pearl in a
hundred shells, but at other times he came across six or eight in this
quantity. Most of the mussels are found in the deepest places,
especially near the banks of the streams. One end of the shell usually
projects out of the sand. The fisherman is represented as feeling about
the bottom with his feet, and when he finds a shell, he seizes it
between his toes, picks it out, and then places it in the basket
suspended from his neck.[217]

In Baden and in Hesse are small pearl fisheries. In 1760, Elector
Maximilian III sent to Mannheim, then in the Palatinate, eight hundred
living pearl-mussels from the Bavarian forests, and again in 1769, he
sent four hundred mussels from Deggendorf on the Danube, so that they
might be established in the Palatinate. The mussels were placed in the
Steinbach not far from Heidelberg, where they thrived so well that
fishing was instituted in 1783. Soon, however, most of the mussels
became buried in the sand, and the remainder were transplanted into a
quieter portion of the Steinbach, between Kreutzsteinach and Schönau,
about five miles northeast of Heidelberg. Here they seem to have been
forgotten, and were left undisturbed until, about 1820, a fine pearl
valued at two louis d’or was found near Schönau. This discovery soon led
to such reckless exploitation that the government reserved the fishery
as a state monopoly. The mussels were examined and sorted, and a portion
of the brook was specially prepared for their reception. However, the
cost of supervision was greater than the proceeds of the fishery, and
the business was rented to private parties for a very small amount. This
was paid as late as 1840 by the Natural History Society of Mannheim, the
annual rate then being ten florins.

An effort was made nearly two hundred years ago to develop the pearl
fisheries in Hesse. In 1717, Landgrave Prince William requested his
cousin, Duke Moritz of Saxony, to send a pearl fisherman “to examine
some streams in his territory where mussels have been found and to
determine whether they are fitted for pearl fishing and whether
fisheries can be established.”[218] In the following year, a member of
the famous Schmerler family from the Saxon fisheries was sent to Cassel,
but with what result is unknown.

When the pearling excitement developed at Schönau about 1820, Landrath
Welker, of Hirschhorn on the Neckar, requested the grand duke of Hesse
to place him in charge of the fishery, and when the proposition was
declined, he formed a small company for pearl-culture. In 1828 his
company had 558 mussels, 88 of which showed pearl formations; in 1833,
out of 651, 98 contained such objects, and in 1851, 117 mussels were
found with pearl formations out of 867 examined.[219] Owing to the
policy of the company in selling the pearls only among the members
thereof, the profits were altogether insufficient to cover the expenses,
and gradually the fishery dwindled down until it was prosecuted only as
a pastime.

Pearls are found in the province of Schleswig-Holstein, which formerly
belonged to Denmark, but since 1866 has been a part of the kingdom of
Prussia. Möbius relates that the Bavarian soldiers in 1864 collected
large quantities of pearls from the streams of this province and sold
many of them to jewelers in Hamburg.[220] Most of them were of good form
and luster; milky white was the prevailing tint, but some were pink and
others were rose-tinted.

In Austria, pearl fisheries are most important in the province of
Bohemia, where they are prosecuted in the headwaters of the Moldau from
Krumau, a few miles above Budweis, to below Turenberg, and to a much
less extent in its tributary, the Wottawa, on the northeastern slopes of
the Böhmer Wald or Bohemian Forest mountains. From very early times the
right of fishery belonged to those domains and estates through which the
streams flow, as for example, the cloister of Hohenfurth, the domain of
Rosenberg, of Krumau, etc. The Schwarzenberg family formerly drew a
considerable revenue therefrom. Over a hundred years ago the fishery was
actively prosecuted by Count Adolph Schwarzenberg, who exhibited at the
Bohemian Exposition, held in Prague in 1791, an interesting collection
of shells, apparatus employed in the fishery, and many beautiful pearls
obtained from his domains. The fisheries of the Wottawa were noted in
1560 by the Swiss naturalist Konrad von Gesner,[221] and again in 1582
by the district treasurer, Wolf Huber von Purgstall. In 1679, Balbinus
referred to the excellent qualities of the pearls, estimating the value
of many of them at twenty, thirty, and even one hundred golden florins
each. He described the methods by which they were taken, and also
complained of the destruction of the reefs by depredations of
poachers.[222]

The Wottawa or Otawa River has long had linked with its name the epithet
“the gold- and pearl-bearing brook.” Formerly, along its shores gold
washing was more or less carried on, as well as the fresh-water
pearl-mussel industry. At the present time, every third or fourth year,
these mussels are gathered, by means of small, fine-woven nets, from the
bed of the river, and a goodly number of pearls are collected.

The reefs in the Moldau from Hohenfurth to Krumau were almost entirely
ruined in 1620 by the troops who were cantoned there when the Bohemian
Protestants were overthrown near the beginning of the Thirty Years’ War,
and they never regained the reputation they formerly enjoyed. According
to the Vienna “Handels- und Börsenzeitung,” the output of the pearls
fifty years ago in the upper Moldau, in the Wottawa, and in the
Chrudimka—a tributary of the Elbe—reached in some years the sum of one
million florins in value, and as much as eighty and sometimes even one
hundred and twenty florins were paid for an individual specimen.[223]
These pearls closely resemble those from Passau in Bavaria, and some
approach the oriental gems in luster.

In the archduchy of Austria, pearls occur in several of the tributaries
of the “beautiful blue Danube.” They are especially important in streams
within the former district of Schärding, such as the Ludhammerbach, the
Ranzenbergerbach, the Glatzbachenbach, the Brambach, the
Schwarzbergerbach, the Mosenbach, and the Hollenbach; those in the
former district of Waizkirchen, including the Pirningerbach, the
Kesselbach, and many of their tributary brooks, and the Michel, the
Taglinsbach, the Fixelbach, and the Haarbach, in the domain of
Marbach.[224] Fishing in the Pirningerbach and the Kesselbach was
prosperous about 1765, and Empress Maria Theresa received a beautiful
necklace and bracelets of the pearls therefrom. In the district of
Marbach, the fishing was prosecuted as long ago as 1685 for the account
of the archbishop of Passau.

In Hungary from time immemorial, the native pearls have been popular
with the Magyar women, and very many yet exist in the old Hungarian
jewelry worn with the national costume. A century ago there was scarcely
a family of local prominence which did not possess a necklace of pearls,
although these were frequently not of choice quality or of considerable
size. With a falling off in the output of the native streams there has
been a great increase in the quantity of choice oriental pearls
purchased by the wealthy families, and some of the most costly necklaces
in Europe are now owned here.

In the kingdom of Denmark no pearl fisheries are now prosecuted, but
three centuries ago the gems were taken in the Kolding Fjord in the
province of Veile, Jutland. The great Holberg, who ranks first in Danish
literature, wrote that the governor of the castle at Kolding employed as
a pearl fisherman a Greenlander who had come to Denmark in 1605 or 1606,
and who “had given the governor to understand that in his native land he
was accustomed to fish for pearls.” Being required to work continuously,
both winter and summer, he fell ill and died, and as no one else wished
to pursue the occupation, the fishery ceased.[225]

In many of the Norwegian brooks, pearl fishing has been carried on for
two or three centuries, and often with satisfactory results. It appears
from ordinances dated November 10, 1691, May 14, 1707, and May 28, 1718,
that the fisheries were under special supervision as a royal prerogative
of the queen of Denmark.[226] Jahn notes that in 1719 and in 1722, Saxon
pearl fishermen were sent for. In 1734 Charles VI of Denmark requested
the elector of Saxony to send one of the pearl fishermen of Vogtland to
examine the brooks of Norway in reference to the pearl resources, and to
determine the practicability of establishing fisheries there. In
response to this request, C. H. Schmerler was sent to Copenhagen and
thence to Christiania, where he began an investigation of the Norwegian
waters, the governor himself attending at the beginning of the work. So
great was the estimation of its importance, that Schmerler was soon
afterward received in audience by the king and queen of united Denmark
and Norway at Frederiksborg palace near Copenhagen, and was awarded a
gift of one hundred ducats and a life-pension.[227]

In 1751, according to Pontoppidan, Bishop of Bergen, the Norwegian pearl
fisheries were placed under the jurisdiction of the diocese of
Christiansand. Among the principal pearling regions at that time were
the Gon, Närim and Quasim rivers in the Stavanger district or amt; the
Undol, Rosseland and other brooks in the Lister and Mandal province; and
several streams in the district of Nadenäs.[228]

The returns from the Norwegian fisheries gradually decreased. After 1768
the rights were leased, and the revenue therefrom was paid into the
royal treasury. Owing to small returns, this source of revenue received
less and less attention, and about a century ago it was altogether
neglected, although from time to time choice finds were made. Due to
unusually low water in 1841, a number of valuable pearls were found near
Jedderen in the province of Christiansand, some selling as high as $300
each; several of these were shown at the London Industrial Exhibition by
the diocese of Christiania.

The pearl fisheries of Sweden were noted, nearly four centuries ago, by
Olaus Magnus, Archbishop of Upsala.[229] The gems were sought for by
expert fishermen in the interior districts, and were brought in large
quantities to the coasts for sale, the women and girls of all classes,
rich and poor, using them extensively in personal decoration.

The celebrated Linnæus left a detailed account of the method by which
mussels were caught in Sweden nearly two centuries ago. He wrote: “In
the summer season, if the water is shallow, the fishermen wade in the
stream and gather the mussels with their hands. Should the water be
deeper, they dive for the mussels and place such as they find in a
vessel made of birch bark, which they carry with them. Sunny days are
selected, because then they can see deeper into the water. But, should
this not suffice, they traverse the river on rafts which are painted
white beneath so that the bed of the stream may be illumined by the
reflected light. The men lie prone on the rafts and look down into the
depths so that they may immediately seize with wooden tongs the mussels
which they discover. Or else, hanging by their hands to the rafts, they
seize them in the water with their toes. If the water is too deep even
for this, they dive and feel around on the bottom with their hands until
it becomes necessary to rise again to the surface in order to breathe.
However, out of a hundred mussels, scarcely one contains a good pearl;
but sometimes as many as twenty pearls of the size of a grain of sand
are found in one shell. Many of the larger pearls are reddish or dark,
but occasionally a beautiful white pearl is hidden under such a
covering; although, naturally, it is rare that this is altogether
perfect. It has been noted that mussels seven years old contain pearls;
and in each of two mussels eighteen years old, a pearl was found
attached to the shell.”[230]

The list of streams in Sweden from which pearls were taken, as noted by
Olaf Maimer, J. Fischerstein, and Gissler[231] a century and a half ago,
seems to cover nearly all the rivers and brooks which flow from the
mountains of this beautiful country.

In Russia the love for the pearl has been almost as great as in Persia
and India. During the Middle Ages, pearls were worn upon the clothes of
nearly all well-to-do Russians. The great head-dresses of the women were
ornamented with them; and they were used in decorating the stoles,
vestments, crosses, and the priceless relics in the churches.

The pearl-mussel is found in very many of the Russian streams. It occurs
throughout Archangel, in most of the rivers which flow into the White
Sea, into Lake Ladoga, Lake Onega, and the Baltic Sea; and likewise in
the Volga watershed. Von Hessling states that east of the Volga its
southern boundary extends to Lat. 56°, while on the west it extends
further southward, so that in the region of the Dnieper it reaches Lat.
51°. The extreme southern limit is near the mouth of the Don, about 47°
north latitude.[232]

In northern Russia pearls are secured in the provinces of Livonia.
Esthonia, and Olonetz, and in the grand duchy of Finland, where they
have been sought after for three centuries or more. Most of them are
bluish gray in color and they attain a maximum weight of about twelve
grains. Although not equaling the oriental gems, these pearls are of
good quality and are highly esteemed, not only by the peasants but by
the nobility and by the royal family of Russia. For reference to most of
the historical data relative to the fishery in Livonia, we are indebted
to an account written by H. Kawall.[233]

So long ago as 1612, Dionysius Fabricius compared the pearls of Livonia
with those of India. Said he: “Nor should I omit to mention that there
are rivers in Livonia wherein large pearls are produced in shells; and I
myself have seen some as large as the oriental, especially when they are
well grown. But because the peasants of this region are too ignorant to
determine with certainty when they mature, they are unable to collect
them properly, and therefore the pearls have become rarer.”[234]

According to Mylius,[235] in the seventeenth century, when Livonia
belonged to Sweden, the pearl resources received attention from the
government. Charles IX of Sweden decreed October 22, 1694, that the
pearls therefrom should not be exported but should be sold to officers
of the crown at a definite price. In 1700, an inspector of the fishery
in Livonia, whose name was Krey, reported that the peasants collected
pearls secretly from the small rivers and brooks, and forwarded them to
Moscow for sale. As the peasants objected to selling them to the king’s
commissioners at the prices fixed, the fishery soon dwindled in extent.
However, on the annexation of Livonia to Russia in 1712, and the removal
of these restrictions, it revived and became of local importance during
the last years of the reign of Peter the Great.

In 1742 the Livonian fishery was reorganized at the suggestion of a
Swede named Hedenberg. Furnished by the government with funds and an
escort, he began an exploration of the pearl-bearing waters, commencing
with Lake Kolk, where he secured many pearls of value, some of which
were presented to Empress Elizabeth.[236]

The fishery then came into great favor. To the nobility of Livonia, in
whose domains the brooks were situated, the crown accorded sixty rubles
for each half ounce of choice pearls secured, and for every half ounce
of the second class, thirty rubles; but the nobles were obliged to
renounce their rights to the fisheries and to permit the lakes and
brooks to be guarded by imperial soldiers. Owing to the very great
destruction of mussels which yielded no pearls, a reward was offered to
any one who would discover a method of determining from external
characteristics those individual shells which contain gems of value.

In 1746, when the Empress Elizabeth passed the summer in Livonia, large
quantities of pearls from the neighboring brooks were presented to her.
But, owing to the cost of supervision, the expenditures soon exceeded
the revenues and the government abandoned the guard and dismissed the
fishermen. Little by little the search decreased, and by 1774 relatively
few pearls were found.[237]

According to Hupel, the Schwarzbach River, near Werro, was celebrated
for its pearls, which were noted for their size and beauty; one of the
tributaries of this river is named Perlenbach (Pearl Brook). The Ammat
and Tirse streams, and forty other brooks and lakes also yielded them.
Pearls of slight value were likewise produced in the Palze and the
Rause, near Palzmar; the Paddez, a tributary of the Evest which empties
into the Düna, and the Voidau and the Petribach, each of which flows
into the Schwarzbach. Near the Tirse was a very old road house,
patronized by the peasants, which from time immemorial had borne the
name Pehrlu-kroghs (Pearl Tavern).

Formerly some of the brooks of Esthonia on the Gulf of Finland, and
principally those near Kolk and the adjacent lakes, furnished beautiful
pearls. From these waters came the beautiful necklace which is yet an
heirloom in the Kolk family. The choicest of these weighed from five to
ten grains, and the color was grayish blue. The Emperor Alexander I is
said to have received a present of pearls collected in the vicinity of
Tammerfors, in the government of Tavastehus, in the grand duchy of
Finland. The development of manufacturing in that region, however, has
destroyed most of the mussels.

Von Hessling notes that in the province of Olonetz, pearls are found in
the Poventshanka, in the Ostjor, and in the Kums, where they are secured
by the neighboring peasants who sometimes make valuable finds.[238] When
the brooks dry up, the mussels are easily secured; old inhabitants note
that on one occasion of this kind many superb pearls were found in the
Poventshanka, and a necklace of them was presented to the Empress
Catherine Alexievna. These pearls rarely leave the province in which
they are collected, as the inhabitants are fond of using them for
personal decoration. Young girls attend to the fishing, and workmen
pierce them for about two copecks each. Choice ones sell for thirty to
one hundred rubles apiece.

In the government of Archangel pearls have been collected for centuries
from the streams flowing into the White Sea and the Arctic Ocean. An
extended account of the fisheries of this region was given by Von
Middendorff.[239] He states that the _Unio margaritifera_ inhabits all
the rivers in which the descent is not too rapid, and especially in the
Tjura, the Tuloma, the Kovda, Kereda, the Kanda, etc. The fisheries have
been conducted exclusively by the shore Laplanders; but they have been
neglected in recent years owing to the small returns. Von Hessling notes
that the pearls are dull in color; in the opinion of the fishermen this
is caused by the mysterious influence of the copper money which they
carry with them. The Tuloma was formerly a productive river; its pearls
were sold in Kola, whence they were carried to Archangel, 335 miles
distant, where they were pierced by expert workmen. The Tjura also
yielded many pearls; but since a Laplander was drowned while fishing for
them, a legend has spread that the spirit of the river guards the
pearls, and the natives hesitate about seeking them.

Probably the occurrence of so many in the home streams had much to do
with developing in Russia that great love for the pearl which has made
it the national ornament, all classes finding pleasure in its
possession. While the superb gems treasured by the nobility are mostly
from oriental seas, a considerable percentage of those worn by the
peasantry are from the native waters. An interesting account of this
fondness among a certain class of Russian women—the Jewesses of Little
Russia—was given sixty years ago by the German traveler Kohl.

In Alexandria, a small city in the government of Kherson in South
Russia, a Jew kept a café, and his charming daughter served us with
coffee. We paid her compliments on her beautiful eyes and teeth. But
she seemed to be much less vain of these natural ornaments than of
the acquired ones in the magnificent glittering pearl-cap which she
wore upon her head. For all the women through South and Little
Russia even as far as Galicia wear a certain stiff, baggy cap which
is very disfiguring, and is covered all over with a great number of
pearls, upon a foundation of black velvet. It is called a “mushka.”
This cap, with very unimportant modifications, has almost always the
same form; the only difference is that, in the case of the wealthy,
the pearls are larger, and sometimes a number of small pearls and
precious stones are suspended here and there, set in the same way as
the earrings of our ladies. It is common for them to wear half their
fortune on their heads in this way. For these caps generally cost
from five hundred to one thousand roubles, and many are worth five
or six thousand and even more; they wear them every day, holidays as
well as ordinary days, and strut around the kitchens and cellars
with their “mushka.” They spend their last penny in order to secure
such a pearl-cap, and even when they are clad in rags their head is
covered with pearls. In order to furnish the requisite material for
this wide-spread fashion, the commerce in pearls of Odessa, Taganrog
and some other places in southern Russia is not unimportant. There
may live in the region where the pearl-caps of which I speak are
worn at least 2,000,000 Jewesses. Let us estimate that among them
there are but 300,000 adults, and that only half of these, 150,000,
wear pearl-caps (only the most indigent and the most aristocratic do
not wear the “mushka”); let us then estimate the average value of
such a cap at only five hundred roubles—these are the lowest minima
and fall far short of the real figures—and we have a total capital
of 76,000,000 roubles, which the Jewesses of this region wear upon
their heads. Naturally the annual diminution of this capital is
small, since these pearls are transmitted from the mothers to their
daughters and granddaughters. Still, if we estimate that they last
for a century, the necessary yearly contribution amounts to nearly
one million. It is, however, probable that a much larger capital is
employed in the commerce of pearls. They are, for the most part,
oriental and come by way of Turkey and Odessa or else by way of
Armenia and Tiflis. We inquired of our beautiful Jewess whether she
was not in perpetual dread on account of her pearl-cap, and how she
protected it from thieves. She answered that she wore it on her head
all day and at night placed it in a casket which rested under her
pillow. So that the whole short life of these Jewesses of the
steppes revolves around their pearl-cap as the earth does around the
sun.[240]

Several species of marine mollusks on the coasts of Europe yield pearly
formations, but none of much ornamental or commercial value. Probably
the most interesting of these are from the Pinna on the Mediterranean
coasts, and especially on the coast of Sardinia and the shores of the
Adriatic. An interesting collection of these Pinna pearls was furnished
to the writers by Alexandro Castellani of Rome.

IX

ISLANDS OF THE PACIFIC

SOUTH SEA ISLANDS, AUSTRALIAN COASTS, MALAY ARCHIPELAGO

IX
PEARL FISHERIES OF THE SOUTH SEA ISLANDS

Sea-girt isles,
That, like to rich and various gems, inlay
The unadorned bosom of the deep.

MILTON.

Gathering pearl shells and pearls is the principal industry of the
semi-amphibious natives of the hundreds of palm-crowned and foam-girdled
islands of the southern Pacific, commonly known as the South Sea
Islands. Among these the most prominent for pearl fishing are the
Tuamotu Islands or Low Archipelago, the Society Islands, the Marquesas,
the Fiji Islands, Penrhyn or Tongareva, and New Caledonia. These are
under the protection of the French government, except Fiji and Penrhyn,
which belong to Great Britain.

Almost ever since the South Sea Islands have been known to civilization
they have contributed pearls; and the fishery has been one of the
principal industries, not only for the natives, but also for the not
inconsiderable number of sailors who, preferring the lotus on shore to
the salt pork and monotony of ship life, have yielded to the insular
attractions and formed domestic ties. The industry has been especially
extensive during the last seventy years, when there has been a
profitable market for the shells. Most of the natives—men, women, and
children—follow it for a living. Domestic duties rest very lightly upon
the women, and many of these, and even young girls, find employment in
diving, in which at moderate depths these dusky mermaids are nearly, if
not quite as expert as the men and boys.

Tahiti, the largest of the eleven Society Islands, is the center of the
pearling industry of French Oceanica. It is situated in about Lat. 17°
S. and Long. 150° W., and has an area of approximately 410 square miles
and a population of 11,000, nearly one half of whom live in Papeiti, the
principal town. This is one of the most agreeable of the “Summer Isles
of Eden,” Nature furnishing food in abundance, and climate and social
customs requiring little in the way of dress and habitation.
Notwithstanding its importance as the headquarters of the pearling
industry, few pearl-oysters are caught at Tahiti, most of them coming
from the archipelagoes of Tuamotu, Gambier, and occasionally Tubai.

The Tuamotu Archipelago is the scene of the principal pearl fisheries of
the South Seas; and from the local importance of this industry the group
is sometimes called the Pearl Islands. These coral-formed islands are
strung out for a distance of 900 miles in a northwest and southeast
direction, and extend from Lat. 14° to 23° S. and from Long. 136° to
149° W. They number about seventy-eight, many of them made up of small
atolls only a few feet above the surface of the ocean, and with an
aggregate area of about 360 square miles. The total population is
approximately 6000, with many visitors from Tahiti and other neighboring
islands during the pearling season. The principal products are pearl
shell and pearls, copra, and cocoanut oil; and nearly one half of the
islands yield nothing but shell and pearls. The chief port is Fakarava
on an island of the same name, and the trade is almost entirely with
Tahiti.

As the Tuamotus are of coral formation, they produce little vegetable
growth, and the people seem often on the brink of starvation, forming a
striking contrast with those of the neighboring Society Islands. Drawing
their subsistence entirely from the sea, except for the native cocoanuts
and breadfruit, these people have, at times, been in great straits for
food, and it was doubtless severe hunger that drove them to the acts of
cannibalism with which they have been charged. And the sea which
supplies them with food has also visited them with great destruction. As
recently as January, 1903, a great storm swept over this group, drowning
over 500 of the inhabitants, and destroying a very considerable portion
of the pearling fleet and other property.

The pearl-oyster reefs of the Tuamotu Archipelago are very extensive,
only eight or ten of the islands failing to contribute to the supply.
They occur in the protected lagoons of the atolls, where the bottom is
well covered with coral growth, with numerous elevations and depressions
of various sizes; and it is about the bases and in the recesses of these
coral growths that the best shells are usually found. Most of them are
of the black-edged variety of _Margaritifera margaritifera_, which here
attains a great size, reaching a diameter of twelve inches in extreme
cases.

While pearl-oysters are found about nearly all of the Tuamotu Islands,
the reefs are richest at Hikueru or Melville Island. When that lagoon is
open it is the scene of the greatest operations, and it is credited with
nearly one half of the total product of the archipelago. At the opening
of the season, this is the resort of fishermen from all over the group,
even from a distance of five hundred miles, and thousands of natives
camp in temporary leaf-thatched huts among the cocoanut-palms on the
beach, those from the different islands congregating in isolated
settlements. As many as five thousand persons are sometimes brought
together in this way.

The volcanic-formed Gambier Islands, with high peaks reaching, in one
instance, an altitude of over 1200 feet, present a striking contrast to
the Tuamotu atolls. This group consists of five large and several small
islands, surrounded by a coral reef of an irregular triangular figure.
The 1100 inhabitants of the Gambier Islands derive a large percentage of
their support from the pearl fishery. The patches of pearl-oysters are
located between the islands and the barrier reefs. They are numerous
about the island of Mangareva, which is well surrounded by them on the
north, east, and southeast. Oysters from the reef of Tearae, which
extends from the eastern point of Mangareva to the small island of
Aukena, a distance of two miles, are especially rich in pearls. On this
reef, where the water is from one to four fathoms in depth, the mollusks
are small, rarely exceeding five or six inches at maturity, but the
shell is very thick and coral covered; these yield many pearls. In
greater depths, the oysters attain a larger size, but they yield few
pearls.

The first white man to attempt the exploitation of the pearl resources
of the Tuamotus appears to have been Mörenhout. In a voyage to the
Oceanic Islands in 1827, he learned of the great wealth of pearl shell,
and applied to Queen Pomaré at Tahiti for permission to employ the
natives in the fishery. With an eye to business, she required a fee of
$5000 for herself before granting the desired authority.[241]
Considering this excessive, Mörenhout attempted to deal with the natives
without permission of the dusky queen, but under these adverse
conditions he found the trade unsatisfactory and soon abandoned it.

In 1830, and the years immediately succeeding, desultory pearling
voyages were made from Valparaiso, Chile, and these were followed by
expeditions from America and elsewhere. An interesting account of the
trade at that time is contained in Lucatt’s “Rovings in the Pacific from
1837 to 1849,” published in London in 1851.

The Mormon influx in 1846 resulted in a further development of the pearl
fishery; and Grouard, the local leader of that denomination, is credited
with making a fortune in the business.

From the beginning of the industry up to 1880, when control of the
islands passed to the French government, it is estimated that about
15,000 tons of pearl-oysters were secured. The extent of the fishery
during the few years preceding 1880 made such drains upon the
productiveness of the reefs that many of them gave signs of exhaustion.
With a view to adopting methods for conserving the industry, so
essential to the welfare of the natives, the French Ministry of Marine
and Colonies in 1883 inaugurated an investigation of its condition, and
of the possibilities for improvement. This was made under the immediate
direction of G. Bouchon-Brandely, whose interesting report[242] contains
much data on this subject.

As a result of these investigations and recommendations, a restricted
season for fishing was adopted, and only a portion of the reefs was
thrown open each year, a decree of the governor, published in the
“Journal Officiel” of the colony, determining the islands in which the
fishery might be prosecuted. This interdiction, known locally as
_rahui_, is for the purpose of permitting the oysters to develop, and
thus prevent the exhaustion of the reefs.

By decree of January 24, 1885, a restriction was made against taking
shells measuring less than 17 centimeters in diameter on the interior
nacre, or weighing less than 200 grams per valve. But this was repealed
in 1890, and since then there has been no restriction on the size of the
oysters that may be fished.

The pearl fishery and the isolated leper station are the principal
claims which attract the attention of the outside world to the island of
Penrhyn or Tongareva, one of the Manahiki group, in Lat. 9° S., and
Long. 158° W. This desolate atoll island consists of a ring of land a
few hundred yards in width, inclosing a lagoon nine miles long and five
miles wide, and it produces little else than pearls and pearl shell. The
white gravelly shore yields little vegetation except cocoanuts, which
share with fish in furnishing sustenance to the semi-amphibious natives.

At Penrhyn the pearl fishery is carried on in the clear, limpid waters
of the atoll where the oysters are undisturbed by storms. The shells
belong mostly to the golden-edged variety, and are of good quality, the
value in London ranging from £100 to £250 per ton. Relatively few pearls
are found, amounting in aggregate value to only about one fourth of the
value of the shells. These are the principal objects of the fishery; the
finding of pearls is incidental, but careful search is always made for
them, and some choice specimens have been secured.

On the coast of New Caledonia, pearling is of recent origin, dating as
an industrial enterprise from 1897, although previous to that time some
shells and pearls had been secured by native beach-combers. This island
is 220 miles in length and 30 in width, situated 850 miles southeast of
Australia, and about the same distance from New Zealand. It is a French
colony, and has been used by that government as a penal settlement since
1864.

In 1897, rich beds of pearl-oysters were discovered off the west coast
of this island. They are most numerous between the shore and the barrier
reefs on the west coast from Pouembout River to Gomen Bay, and
especially about the small island of Konienne at the mouth of the
Pouembout River. They are also abundant among the Loyalty Islands off
the eastern coast of New Caledonia, and especially at the island of
Lifu.[243] The shell is similar to that from Torres Straits, and the
yield of pearls is very large. Several concessions have been obtained to
exploit these beds, one of them covering 130 miles in length. The
industry is carried on by means of scaphanders, in a manner similar to
that of Torres Straits. Virtually all of the catch is sent to France.

The natives of the South Sea Islands, and particularly of Penrhyn and
the Tuamotu group, are doubtless the most expert divers in the world.
This can be readily appreciated by those who have read of Hua Manu in C.
W. Stoddard’s thrilling narrative, or have heard the story of the brown
woman who swam for forty hours in a storm with a helpless husband on her
back. Accustomed to the water from infancy, these human otters swim all
day long as readily as they would walk, go miles from shore without a
boat in search of fish which they take by means of baited hook and line,
and boldly attack a shark single-handed. Seemingly fabulous stories are
told of their descending, unaided, 150 feet or more beneath the surface,
and remaining at lesser depths for nearly three minutes, far surpassing
any modern records of the divers of India.

The water in the South Seas is wonderfully clear, enabling the fishermen
to detect small objects at considerable depths, and especially so when
using the water-telescope, similar to that employed in the Red Sea
fisheries. By immersing this to a depth of several inches and cutting
off the light from the upper end as he gazes through it down into the
waters, the fisherman can readily inspect the bottom at a depth of
fifteen fathoms, and thus locate the shells before he descends.

The diving is quite unlike that in Ceylon and Arabia. The men do not
descend on stones, but swim to the bottom. The diver is stripped to his
_paréu_ or breech-clout, his right hand is protected by a cotton mitten
or by only a wrapping of cotton cloth, and in his left hand he carries a
pearl shell to assist in directing his movements and in detaching the
oysters at the bottom. In preparing for a deep descent, he sits for
several minutes in characteristic attitude with hands hanging over
knees, and repeatedly inflates his lungs to the fullest capacity,
exhaling the air slowly through his mouth. After five or six minutes of
“taking the wind,” the diver inhales a good breath, drops over the
gunwale into the water to give him a start, and descends feet foremost.
At a distance of twelve or fifteen feet below the surface, gracefully as
an otter or a seal, he bends forward and turns head downward and, with
limbs showing dimly in frog-like motion, he swims vertically the
remaining distance to the bottom. There he assumes a horizontal position
and swims slowly just above the ground, searching critically for
suitable oysters, in this way traversing a distance possibly of fifty
feet or more. When he has secured an oyster, or his breath is
approaching exhaustion, he springs from the ground in an erect position
and rapidly swims upward, the buoyancy of his body hastening his ascent
so that he pops head and shoulders above the surface, and falls back
with laboring pulse and panting breath. In case the dive has been
unusually extended, a few drops of blood may trickle from the nose and
mouth. His find—consisting frequently of nothing and rarely of more than
one oyster—is carried in a cocoanut fiber sack suspended from the neck,
or is held in the left hand, or may be hugged beneath the left arm.

Ordinarily in actual fishing operations, the fishermen do not descend to
greater depths than fifteen fathoms, and remain from sixty to ninety
seconds. Writing in 1851, a trader who had spent several years in
collecting pearls and pearl shells among the Tuamotus stated: “I timed
several by the watch, and the longest period I knew any of them to keep
beneath the water was a minute and a quarter, and there were only two
who accomplished this feat. Rather less than a minute was the usual
duration. It is unusual for them to attempt deep diving; and let the
shells be ever so abundant, they will come up and swear there are
none.”[244]

However, in mutual contests or in special exhibitions, reports of
twenty, twenty-three, and even twenty-five fathoms are numerous, and
they have repeatedly been timed two and a half to three minutes.
Bouchon-Brandely speaks of a woman at Anaa, one of the Tuamotus, who
would go down twenty-five fathoms and remain three minutes under
water.[245] This seems very unusual, but there are numerous reports of
two and a half minutes at about seventeen or eighteen fathoms. In
October, 1899, at Hikueru Island, another of the Tuamotu group, a young
native made an exhibition dive for the officers of the United States
Fish Commission steamship _Albatross_. He reached bottom at a depth of
102 feet under the boat’s keel, and remained submerged two minutes and
forty seconds. The water was so transparent that he was clearly seen
from the surface. After he touched bottom at that great depth, he calmly
picked over the coral and shells to select a piece to bring up.[246] The
diver was ready to go down again only a few minutes after he came up.

In his work on French Oceanica, Chartier states: “There are three women
well known in the archipelago [of Tuamotu] who have no equals elsewhere;
they explore the depth at twenty-five fathoms and remain not less than
three minutes before reappearing at the surface.”[247] However, these
unusual depths and extensions of time are dangerous, and care must be
taken or serious results follow. Most of the catch is obtained in about
ten fathoms of water.

At the request of the writer, Mr. Julius D. Dreher, American Consul at
Tahiti, made inquiries among the South Sea Islands in regard to the
record of the best divers, and wrote as follows:

Mr. J. L. Young, who has lived in these islands for thirty years,
informs me that he has never seen a diver remain under water longer
than 80 seconds, and that at a depth of twelve to fifteen fathoms.
At one time he tested a man who claimed to be able to stay under for
three minutes, yet this man could hold his breath on land less than
80 seconds by the watch.

Elder Joseph F. Burton, who has spent many years as a missionary in
these islands, states that once in Hikueru, of the Tuamotu group, he
went out in a boat with the divers to time them. The best record
made was 107 seconds, but he was informed that there were better
divers on the island than those he tested. He thinks the water was
ten to twelve fathoms in depth. A native of Takaroa, named Metuaro,
told Mr. Burton that he could stay under water three minutes or
longer. When these divers come up they take a breath and immediately
put their head under water to prevent headache.

Mr. J. Lamb Doty, formerly Consul and now Vice-Consul at Tahiti, who
has spent eighteen years here, is willing to be quoted as affirming
that he once timed a diver who remained under water 2 minutes 35
seconds.

Mr. Henry B. Merwin, a leading trader with the Tuamotu Islands, is
willing to be quoted as saying that he saw a diver remain under
water 4 minutes 45 seconds by the watch. This is generally regarded,
so far as my inquiries go, as improbable; but most persons
interviewed believe that men do remain under water 2½ to 3 minutes.
A native of Takaroa, named Tai, assured me in the presence of others
that there were twenty men in that island who could remain under
water 2½ to 3 minutes at a depth of twenty fathoms. He claimed to be
able to stay 3 minutes at that depth.

Diving-suits, or scaphanders, have been used at most of the South Sea
Islands, but in a very irregular manner. In 1890 the use of scaphanders
was restricted in the Tuamotu group, and by decree of December 28, 1892,
it was interdicted altogether with a view to preserving the industry to
the natives, as it represents their principal means of livelihood. The
suit commonly employed at Penrhyn consists of a helmet and a jumper,
neither boots nor trousers being worn. Owing to the absence of weights
on the feet, it rarely but nevertheless sometimes happens that a diver
turns upside down, and the unwieldy helmet keeps him head downward while
the air rushes out under the bottom cord of the jumper and he is
suffocated. Also, when a good patch of shells has been located, the
temptation to remain down too long is great, and paralysis often
results. On the whole, these diving-suits have proven very dangerous to
the light, graceful swimmers of these southern seas, to whom they are
about as much of an impediment as was Saul’s armor to the shepherd lad
who slew the giant with the simple pebble from a sling.

And there are dangers also in nude diving, even to those who have spent
a lifetime about the water. Sharks and sting-rays and devil-fish there
are in abundance, and many of them know the taste of diver’s flesh; on
the other hand many a daring South Sea Islander could tell of a fierce
combat more thrilling than even those pictured by Victor Hugo. One of
the chief advantages of the diving-suit is that in case a shark comes
along, the diver can bide his time until the fish is ready to leave, or
he can frighten it away by ejecting air bubbles from the sleeve of his
suit or by other demonstrations; whereas a nude diver is obliged to seek
the air without delay, and in the retreat is seized by the fish who,
human like, has his appetite increased by the visible retreat of the
object of his desire.

Not Schiller nor Edgar Allan Poe ever conjured up a picture more
ghastly than that of a Penrhyn diver caught like a rat in a trap by
some huge, man-eating shark or fierce kara mauua, crouching in a
cleft of the overhanging coral, under the dark green gloom of a
hundred feet of water, with bursting lungs and cracking eyeballs,
while the threatening bulk of his terrible enemy looms dark and
steady, full in the road to life and air. A minute or more has been
spent in the downward journey; another minute has passed in the
agonized wait under the rock…. Has he been seen?… Will the
creature move away now, while there is still time to return? The
diver knows to a second how much time has passed; the third minute
is on its way; but one goes up quicker than one comes down, and
there is still hope…. Two minutes and a half; it is barely
possible now, but—the sentinel of death glides forward; his cruel
eyes, phosphorescent in the gloom, look right into the cleft where
the wretched creature is crouching, with almost twenty seconds of
life still left, but now not a shred of hope. A few more beats of
the laboring pulse, a gasp from the tortured lungs, a sudden rush of
silvery air bubbles, and the brown limbs collapse down out of the
cleft like wreaths of seaweed. The shark has his own. (Beatrice
Grimshaw in the “Graphic.”)

At the end of the day’s work, the catch is opened by means of a large
knife, and carefully searched for the much prized pearls. Usually the
fisherman finds none; occasionally he discovers a small round one or a
large baroque, and at long intervals—possibly once in two or three
years—his search is rewarded with a fine pearl for which he may receive
$50 or $60, and there is always the chance that the very next oyster
will disclose a gem which will make him independent for the remainder of
his life; and if no pearls whatever are found, there are the shells, the
sale of which furnishes sufficient to purchase tobacco, knives,
fish-hooks, the gaudy cotton cloths, the flour and other simple articles
of food, and especially rum, that fatal gift of civilization which has
been the curse of so many primitive peoples.

Some of the individual pearls secured have been remarkably large,
weighing 100 grains and over. Returning visitors from Tahiti, with views
magnified doubtless in proportion to the distance of the objects of
their description, credited Queen Pomaré with the possession of some
sufficiently large to be used for billiard-balls. Sixty years ago superb
pearls could be obtained from the natives for a few gallons of rum or a
small number of pieces of cheap calico, and several shrewd traders made
great profits in the business. But as trade at the islands was open to
vessels of all nationalities, the competition increased, with the result
that the natives gradually learned the high estimation in which pearls
are held, and in recent years it has not been unusual for one of medium
grade to sell higher in Oceanica than it would in Europe.

It is difficult to form a reliable estimate of the value of the pearling
industry of the South Sea Islands. The Tuamotu group, with 4000
fishermen, yields, in an average season, about 450 tons of
mother-of-pearl, worth about £65,000 in London, where most of it is
marketed. The yield at the remaining French islands is less than that of
the Tuamotus. Probably the total yield of mother-of-pearl in all the
South Sea Islands is not far from 900 tons, worth about $700,000.

No statistics whatever are available regarding the yield of pearls, and
the estimates sent from the islands are small compared with those made
by London and Paris firms who import the pearls. A large number of
persons living in Papeiti and many traders visiting the islands depend
very largely on pearl-dealing for a livelihood. From the yield of pearl
shell and estimates made by dealers, we are inclined to put the value of
the pearls secured in an average season from all the South Sea Islands
at about $125,000, only a small portion of which goes to the fishermen
themselves, the greater part representing profits of the traders.

PEARL FISHERIES OF AUSTRALIA

Ocean’s gem, the purest
Of nature’s works! What days of weary journeyings,
What sleepless nights, what toils on land and sea,
Are borne by men to gain thee!

UNKNOWN.

As regards area of distribution the most extensive pearl-oyster grounds
of the world are situated on the northern and western coasts of
Australia. These are located within the jurisdictions of Queensland,
Western Australia, and South Australia; and extend in irregular patches
from near Cooktown on the northeast almost to Fremantle at the
southwest, a distance of nearly 3000 miles. Those in Queensland are
commonly known as the Torres Straits fisheries, as they are especially
important there; but they extend a considerable distance beyond each end
of the strait, and pearling expeditions are made from the limits of the
Great Barrier coral reef northward to the vicinity of New Guinea.[248]
Those of Western Australia are commonly spoken of as the Northwest
fisheries.

The fisheries of Queensland and of Western Australia are approximately
equal in extent, as regards number of vessels, boats, and men employed,
and the quantity and value of the catch, with the advantage slightly in
favor of the Northwest fishery in the last four or five years. In 1905,
according to the official figures, the Queensland fishery gave
employment to 348 vessels and 2850 men, and yielded shell and pearls
worth £135,000, which was the smallest output since 1890. The Western
Australia fishery, exclusive of Sharks Bay, employed 365 vessels in
1905, and about the same number of men as in Queensland, and yielded
£196,000 worth of shell and pearls. The fishery of South Australia
employed about 60 vessels and 375 men, and yielded about £25,000 worth
of shell and pearls. This makes for the whole of Australia, except
Sharks Bay hereinafter noted, a total of 773 vessels, 6075 men, and an
output worth £356,000. It should be understood that the South Australia
fishery is not prosecuted on the southern coast of the continent, but on
the northern coast, in what is known as the Northern Territory of South
Australia.

Three species of pearl-oysters are found in Australian waters. The
largest species, _Margaritifera maxima_, which is by far the most
important and widely distributed, occurs to a greater or less extent
throughout the whole of this region. This yields the standard
motherof-pearl of commerce. Although the pearls which it yields are
among the largest and finest in the world, this mollusk is sought more
particularly for the shell, the value of which from season to season
averages three or four times as much as that of the pearls. Ordinarily
this shell is uniformly white over the entire inner surface, and is
commonly known locally as “silver lip”; but some “golden-edged” shell
occurs on the muddy grounds in narrow passages between the islands on
the northwest coast.

While this species is gregarious, it is not located in densely covered
beds, but is scattered in patches over the reefs. Some of these are
miles in length and contain scores of tons, but visually they are very
much smaller. The oysters occur principally on rocky bottom, and also on
clay and sand when well covered with seaweeds, but are rarely found on
muddy ground. They are most numerous in the channels where the current
is strong. The small oysters are generally loosely attached by the
byssus to rock, gravel or other shells; while the mature ones lie
loosely on the bottom or slightly turned in the sand.

The second species of the Australian pearl-oysters, _Margaritifera
margaritifera_, is smaller, rarely exceeding eight inches in diameter
and a weight of two pounds. The distinguishing characteristic is the
black edge bordering the inner surface of the shell, whence it acquired
the local designation “black lip.” This variety is not rare in
Queensland, and in Western Australia its range extends as far as
Champion Bay in Lat. 29° S. However, the catch is small compared with
that of the _Margaritifera maxima_, amounting to only two or three per
cent. in Queensland. In 1905, the export of “silver lip” and
“golden-edged” from Thursday Island was 527 tons, and of “black lip”
only 11 tons; in 1904, these figures were 778 and 7 respectively. In
Western Australia the percentage of yield is much larger than this.

The third species, _Margaritifera carcharium_, is confined almost
entirely to the limits of Sharks Bay, on the extreme western coast of
Australia. At maturity it is the smallest of the three, averaging three
or four inches in diameter, and about equals in size the Lingah
pearl-oyster of the Persian Gulf. The percentage of pearls therefrom is
relatively greater than from the larger variety; but, owing to its small
size and lack of thickness, the shell is of little commercial value. The
value of the output in recent years has approximated two or three
thousand pounds sterling, which is very much less than formerly, the
value of the shell having greatly decreased since the introduction of
the Mississippi shell in button manufacture.

The pearl fishery on the coast of Australia originated about 1861. It
appears that an American sailor named Tays was the pioneer in the
business; and on his death by drowning, the business was conducted by
his partner named Seubert.[249] This was on the northwest coast, and the
output reached the market by way of Singapore. At first the oysters were
so abundant in shallow water that they could be picked up at low tide,
and beach-combing was profitable, especially when carried on with cheap
native labor. As the beach-beds became exhausted, the natives were
encouraged to wade out to greater depths, and soon they became
accustomed to “bob under” for those oysters visible from the surface.
The Australian blacks were thus taught to dive, and in 1867 diving from
boats in two or three fathoms was attempted with such success that in
the following year the practice was generally adopted, the depth in
which they worked gradually extending to six or eight fathoms. In diving
from a boat, the men imitated “bobbing under” which they had practised
in shoaler water; they slipped off the gunwale feet foremost, and when
six or eight feet below the surface, turned and swam downward.

Owing to the close labor relations existing between the natives and the
sheep-raisers of northwestern Australia, the latter were brought into
the business, and for a number of years pearling and sheep-raising were
closely associated. The blacks were employed in various duties in
connection with raising and shearing sheep, and it was important to find
some occupation for them when ranch-work was slack, not only for their
own subsistence but for the protection of the herdsmen and their
property. Fortunately, this opportunity was furnished by the pearl
fishery, for which these men were well qualified.

The profits of the business soon attracted many outside capitalists, and
it became difficult to procure divers. Not only did the pearlers—and
particularly new-comers—resort to impressing the blacks into service,
but skilled fishermen were brought over from the Malay Archipelago, and
in some cases the methods used in securing them were by no means
regular.

In 1871 the Northwest pearl fishery gave employment to 12 vessels of 15
to 50 tons each, and yielded about 180 tons of mother-of-pearl. During
the same year, in Torres Straits, where the industry had extended about
1868, there were 10 vessels—mostly from the port of Sydney—and the catch
of mother-of-pearl approximated 200 tons, valued at £60,000 in
London.[250] Each vessel was commonly manned by two or three white men
and from ten to fifty divers, who worked from dinghys, in gangs of six
or eight each with an overseer in charge.

As the fishery increased rapidly in extent, the problem of securing nude
divers became a serious one, and “nigger hunting” became rather common,
the Australian black man representing the cheapest form of labor,
working for his food, tobacco, and the simplest articles of clothing.
There was no complaint that the men thus impressed were treated with
inhumanity; on the contrary they were well fed and cared for; yet, with
a view to protecting them and preventing even a suspicion of
wrong-doing, the Australian government enacted regulations restricting
pearling contracts with the natives. Nearly every year these regulations
became more stringent, affecting the hours for diving, and limiting the
work to depths of six and a half fathoms, so that the employment of
Australian aborigines in the fishery became extremely troublesome and
annoying.

The government of the Netherlands also placed severe restrictions on the
employment of natives of the Dutch Indies, requiring security of £20 per
head for the repatriation of each man; and the local chiefs or rajahs
also expected a rake-off before permitting their men to ship. These
Malays—from the islands of Solor, Allor, Adonare, etc.,—also expected
much better pay and better provisions than the Australian blacks.

The following interesting account by Henry Taunton gives a graphic
description of the fishery as carried on at that time:

The work was far from easy. It was exhausting and perilous for the
divers, and full of privation, exposure, and danger for the white
men. Only the hope of a prosperous season reconciled one to the
life. When shells were plentiful and the weather fine, the work was
exciting and interesting enough; but during rough weather, when one
had to be constantly straining at the oar to keep the dinghy from
drifting too rapidly, or when hour after hour might pass without the
men bringing up a single shell, the discouragement was great. The
rays of the vertical sun beating down on one’s shoulders at such
times seemed as if it would never reach the western horizon, which
was the signal for returning on board.

As may well be imagined, when three or four white men had to control
and compel some thirty or forty natives to carry on work which they
detested, a very strict discipline had to be maintained. It was the
rule that no talking was allowed amongst the divers when in the
dinghy, nor were they even permitted to address the white man,
unless, maybe, to answer a question as to the nature of the bottom,
whether _nanoo_ (sand) or _bannin_ (shelly bottom), etc., or unless
some urgent necessity arose. Sometimes, indeed, I have pushed off
from the vessel’s side of a morning and have not heard a word spoken
until we returned on board at night, unless chance might take me
within hail of some other dinghy, when felicitations or condolences
would be exchanged, as good or bad luck might happen. At times, when
the “patch” was small, the dinghys of the whole fleet might be
congregated on a very small area, in which case the scene was
animated enough. On all sides you could see divers slipping into the
water and others just coming to the surface, puffing, blowing, and
coughing to clear their eyes, ears, and mouth from the salt
water—some with, others without shells. Others would be swimming to
regain their dinghy or squatting in their places for the few
minutes’ rest permitted, and, if the wind were at all fresh,
shivering with cold; for although the weather might be extremely
hot, the constant plunging in and out for many hours at a time
tended to reduce the bodily temperature considerably. The white men
would be seen standing up in each dinghy. They were lightly clad,
with shirt sleeves and trousers rolled up, in all varieties and
colours of costume, from the regulation shirt, trousers, and felt
hat, with leather belt sustaining sheath-knife and pouch, to the
more comfortable pyjama suit, or even the Malay sarong. Some would
be straining hard at the end of the scull-oar, forcing the boat
against wind and tide in the endeavor to keep it as long as possible
on the “patch,” which was marked by the discoverer’s buoy, which
also might be observed nodding on the surface, and canted over by
the swiftly rushing tide. Others, their men all being below, just
kept the dinghy’s head to wind until, by judicious use of the oar
and well-calculated drifting, all the divers reappear on the surface
within a short distance from their own boat. This is the secret of
saving the divers from wasting their powers and time uselessly….
As may be supposed, where the tide sweeps the divers along the
bottom at the rate of three or four or even six miles an hour, they
have to be very smart in seeking and grabbing any shell within
reach. I have never tested them with a time-keeper; but by counting
seconds on many occasions, from the moment a diver’s head sank below
until it again came above the surface, I estimated the average time
under water was fifty-seven seconds. Part of this is of course
expended in swimming to the bottom, where they can remain only a
very few seconds, as time must be allowed for reaching the surface
before letting go their breath. Practice in ever-varying depths
enables them to gauge this limit of time to a nicety. But sometimes
they cut things too fine, and then a catastrophe was inevitable,
unless much watchfulness was exercised by the white man, who has to
keep his eyes turned in all directions once his men are down. So
long as a diver can hold his breath the pressure forces him to the
surface at a speed which seldom requires accelerating by strokes
with the hands or feet; but the moment he lets go his breath—if
under water—his upward course is arrested and his body commences to
sink. Now, when the white man sees this, either he must plunge in to
the rescue himself, or direct such divers who may be on the top to
do the needful.

On a calm day, when one can see far into the blue clear depths
below, I have often seen one of my men shooting rapidly upwards
until within perhaps a foot or two from the surface, when a sudden
gush of bubbles from the man’s mouth would tell its own tale.
Instantly he would begin to sink gently downwards, and only quick
action could save this diver who had miscalculated his time.
However, as it was not infrequent for divers to go down and never
come up at all, one may conclude that, where the time to be allowed
is comprised in so few seconds, even the most experienced make fatal
errors.[251]

The difficulties in securing labor at length resulted in experiments
with the scaphander or diving dress, and gradually its adoption by most
of the pearling fleet. The labor problem and the exhaustion of the
oysters in medium depths developed more quickly in Torres Straits than
on the northwest coast, and diving outfits were introduced there about
1879, while this was delayed about five years longer on the northwest
coast. The outfit did not immediately supplant nude diving in either
locality. In 1883, only 80 of the 206 Queensland vessels were supplied
with scaphanders, the others continuing to use nude diving, and even yet
nearly one third of the vessels depend on that form of fishery. Of the
353 vessels fishing in 1904, 108 depended on nude divers and 245 were
supplied with armored equipment.

In 1881 the Queensland government took cognizance of the rapidly
developing industry, and enacted a license system and other regulations.
For every boat under two tons an annual license fee of £1 (in 1886 this
was reduced to ten shillings) was enacted, and for every vessel of ten
tons or under, the sum of £3, with an additional amount for vessels in
excess of that measurement; but not exceeding £20 in any case.[252] In
1886 it was required by the Queensland government that every person
employed “as a diver, and using a diving apparatus,” must be licensed
annually, for which a fee of £1 is exacted.[253] And in 1891 it was
required that “every diving dress and air-pump and all air-tubes and
gear used in the fishery in connection with diving must be submitted to
an inspector for examination once at least in every period of six
months.”[254] The license system was adopted in Western Australia in
1886, a fee of £1 per annum being exacted for each vessel engaged in the
fishery.[255] In 1891, South Australia adopted the license system,
requiring that every boat of two tons or under should pay ten shillings,
and that each boat over that measurement should pay twenty shillings.

With a view to protecting the reefs, the government of Queensland in
1891 enacted a law forbidding the sale or removal—except for cultivation
purposes—of any pearl shell “of the kind scientifically known as
_Meleagrina margaritifera_, and of either of the varieties commonly
known as ‘golden-edged’ and ‘silver lip,’ of which the nacre or
mother-of-pearl measures less than six inches from the butt or hinge to
the opposite edge or lip, but this does not apply to the variety
commonly called ‘dwarf-shell.’”[256] Owing to the difficulty in
enforcing this regulation, the size restriction was reduced in 1897 to
five inches from the hinge to the opposite lip, or six and one half
inches exteriorly, shells of this size weighing approximately one pound.
It is claimed that many oysters less than five inches in length are
raised, opened for pearls, and then cast back into the water.[257] In
1899 the governor of South Australia interdicted the capture in the
waters of that territory of any shell of “_Meleagrina margaritifera_
measuring less than four inches from the butt or hinge to the opposite
edge or lip.” Competent evidence exists that a good-sized pearl has been
found in an oyster measuring one inch in diameter.

The fishermen of Western Australia rendezvous at Broome, about one
thousand miles by water north of Perth, the nearest railway station.
With only a thousand or so inhabitants, under normal conditions, this is
a scene of great activity, and bears a reputation of being no
Sunday-school when the fishermen are in, with tons of shell and many a
pickle bottle more or less full of pearls. Cossack and Onslow are also
important stations.

In 1905, 340 luggers and 25 schooners were employed in the pearl
fisheries of Western Australia, exclusive of Sharks Bay. Of this number
about 85 per cent. hailed from Broome. The schooners ranged in size from
13 to 133 tons, and the luggers were mostly about 12 tons, with a
minimum of 3 and a maximum of 14 tons. The total number of fishermen
approximated 2900, a medley of races, Japanese, Malays, Chinese, Arabs,
native aboriginals and South Sea Islanders working together more or less
harmoniously. The yield consisted of 1394 tons of mother-of-pearl, with
a declared value of £146,225, and about £50,000 worth of pearls, a total
of £196,255 for the year, which was an increase of £32,286 over
1904.[258]

The headquarters for the fishery of the Northern Territory of South
Australia are at Port Darwin. In 1905 this fishery employed forty-nine
sail vessels and two canoes manned by Europeans, and two proas and
twelve canoes manned by Malays. The crews, numbering about 375,
consisted mainly of Malays, Japanese and Filipinos. In 1905, 42 per
cent. were Malays, 24 per cent. were Japanese, and 20 per cent. were
Filipinos. Owing to the low price of pearl shell, the fishery was not
prosecuted actively, and many of the Asiatics left for the pearling
reefs at the Aru Islands. The total value of pearl shells reported among
the exports for that year was £18,526; during the preceding year it was
£28,391. No record is available for the value of the pearls.

The Queensland pearling fleet has its rendezvous at Port Kennedy,
Thursday Island, which was originally maintained by the British, the
Queensland, and the New South Wales governments as a harbor of refuge
for mariners. Politically this port is important as the strategic key to
the northeast of Australia, but its prosperity is almost wholly
dependent on the pearl-oyster fishery. The population approximates 1600,
consisting largely of Japanese, Malays, Cingalese, Pacific islanders,
and Australian aborigines, with specimens from nearly every Asiatic and
European nationality, and some from America and Africa. The Japanese
predominate, their influx dating from 1891; and at present the industry
is largely dependent on these Scotchmen of the Orient for its most
skilful workmen. The heterogeneous nationalities, and the abundance of
sand-flies, mosquitos, etc., make this island rather less desirable as a
place of residence than it is interesting from a political and
ethnological point of view.

The Queensland fishery in 1905 employed 348 vessels, and yielded 543
tons of shell, according to the government returns. In 1904, 353 vessels
were engaged, and the catch was 798 tons of shell.

During the last fifteen years there has been a very steady decrease in
the average catch of pearl-oysters per boat in the Australian fishery.
The average catch in the Queensland fleet in 1890 approximated 7 tons
per boat; from 1898 to 1903 it was about 3 tons annually; in 1904 it was
only 2¼ tons, and in 1905 a trifle more than 1½ tons. The yearly
increasing number of boats would naturally lower the average, but the
decrease is generally ascribed to the denudation of the reefs, due to
close working for thirty-five years without giving them a chance to
recuperate.

The small yield in Queensland in 1904 and 1905 was due largely ta the
extended rough weather and the accompanying thick or muddy water, which
presented an obstacle to the prosecution of the work. Mr. Hugh Milman,
the government resident at Thursday Island, states that each year the
beds in the more sheltered spots have been extensively fished, rendering
it necessary for the fleet to go farther afield in places where the
depth of water is greater, and where the vessels are more exposed to the
full force of the southeast winds which prevail for about seven months
of the year, and which were unusually severe in 1905.[259] The general
denudation of the beds is not the principal cause of the decreased take.
An additional cause for the falling off in 1905 was the deflection of a
large percentage of the fleet to new fields of operation, 110 vessels
leaving for the Aru Islands in the Arafura Sea, when the season was
about half finished.

For vessels using diving apparatus, the season continues throughout the
year, but it is frequently interrupted by storms, which may cause the
boats to lie in harbor for ten days, or even two weeks at a time. The
nude divers suspend work from December to March, and also during the
season of gales.

Each vessel is manned by a diver, his attendant, and a crew of four men,
who in pairs take alternate shifts at the manual pump for supplying air
to the diver. The entire force of men take part in managing the vessel
and in caring for the catch. The vessel is provided with full equipment
and supplies of food, water, etc., to last two or three weeks, depending
on the distance of the fishing grounds from the shore station, or the
frequency of trips made by a supply vessel.

Except a number of owners and their representatives, there are now very
few white persons engaged in pearling in Australian waters. Even the
persons in charge of the vessels are largely natives of the Pacific
Islands. Owing to the hardships encountered and the small remuneration,
it is difficult to secure white labor; and aliens from Japan, the
Philippines, Java, Singapore, India and New Guinea, are employed.

The divers are of many nationalities, principally Japanese and Malays,
and the former are said to be the most efficient. Previous to 1890, they
were mostly whites, and were paid at the rate of £40 per ton of shells;
but increased competition and the influx of cheaper labor caused a
considerable decrease in the rate of compensation, driving most of the
white men out of the employment. At present the Japanese almost
monopolize the business. Of the 367 divers licensed at Thursday Island
in 1905, 291 were Japanese, 32 were Filipinos, 21 were from Rotuma
Island, 16 were Malays, and 7 were of other nationalities; this shows
how completely the white man has been driven out of this skilled branch
of labor.

The oysters are so scattered that considerable walking is necessary to
find them. They usually lie with the shells partly open, and in grasping
them the fisherman must be careful not to insert a finger within the
open shell, or a very bad pinch will result. The progress of the vessel
must be adapted to that of the diver, and when a good clump of oysters
is found it may even be desirable to anchor. If the current and wind are
just right, the vessel may repeatedly drift over a bed, the diver
ascending and remaining on board while the vessel is retracing its
course to the windward side of the reef. On new grounds, the nature of
the bottom is determined by casting the lead properly tipped with soap
or tallow, and the prospects for oysters thus determined without
descending.

During good weather and in eight or ten fathoms of water, a diver can
work almost continually, and need not return to the surface for two
hours or more; but as the depth increases, the length of time he may
remain at the bottom in safety decreases almost in geometric ratio, and
he comes to the surface frequently for a “blow” with helmet removed.
Evidence secured by a departmental commission of the Queensland
government in 1897, showed that in good weather at a depth of eight or
ten fathoms, a diver works from sunrise to sunset, coming to the surface
only a few times. In a depth of over fifteen fathoms the attendant
usually has instructions not to let him remain longer than fifteen
minutes at a time; yet a diver’s eagerness in working where good shell
is plentiful sometimes impels him to order the attendant to disregard
this rule. The very great pressure of the water—amounting to thirty-nine
pounds or more to the square inch—is liable to cause paralysis, and
death occasionally results. In working at a depth of twenty to
twenty-five fathoms, a diver is rarely under water longer than half an
hour altogether during the day. The greatest depth from which shell is
brought appears from the same evidence to be “30 fathoms and a little
over”; but at that depth—where the pressure is seventy-eight pounds to
the square inch—the fisherman remains down only a few minutes at a
stretch, and should be exceedingly careful. The work is injurious, and
even under the best conditions the diver not infrequently becomes
semi-paralyzed and disqualified in a few years. Notwithstanding that the
work is performed by men in vigorous health, nearly every year there are
from ten to twenty-five deaths in the Queensland fleet alone;[260] three
fourths of these are due to paralysis, and most of the remaining result
from suffocation, owing largely to inexperience in use of gear. From
five to ten years is the usual length of a man’s diving career, although
in the fleet may be found men who have been diving for twenty-five years
or more.

On the vessels manned by Japanese, commonly several members of the crew
are competent divers and take a turn at the work, although only one
license is secured. Such a vessel carries only one head-piece, but two
otherwise complete suits, the helmet fitting either, so that as soon as
one exhausted diver comes up to rest, a successor is ready to have the
helmet screwed to his body-dress and descend without delay, thus saving
about half an hour in the changing.

The nude divers in the Australian pearl fisheries are mostly Malays and
Australian aborigines. They work from dinghys operated from a vessel,
each dinghy carrying six or eight divers, usually with a white man as
overseer. The man in charge sculls against the tide to keep the boat
stationary over the ground, and all the fishermen of a particular dinghy
descend together for greater safety from sharks, and to cover the ground
systematically. On rising, each diver swims to the boat, throws his
catch over the gunwale, and climbs in to rest for a few minutes.
Sometimes two or possibly even three oysters may be brought up at a
single descent, but a diver is doing well if he brings up one oyster in
ten descents. The average daily catch of each man is probably two or
three oysters, but a fisherman has been known to bring up fifty in one
day. On some vessels, those who fall behind in the catch are punished by
extra duty aboard ship.

The pearling industry has had a marked effect on the industrial and
social condition of the natives of the Australian coast and the adjacent
islands. Many of these natives now have boats of their own, and others
seek employment on other vessels. Law and order and decent respect for
property have arisen, with schools and churches. The result is all the
more remarkable when it is considered that scarcely more than a
generation has passed since labor among the men was unknown, the women
doing all the work necessary to meet their scanty requirements.

As now carried on in Australia, pearling is a hard life, the men working
for two thirds of the season in a dead calm and oppressive heat, while
in the remaining months they are rolling day and night. The members of
the crew are not allowed ashore without a written permission from the
captain of the boat, and men and luggage are searched on leaving the
vessel. In addition to these objections, life on board is not unusually
made intensely disagreeable by the myriads of inch-long cockroaches,
which are attracted by and multiply rapidly on the shreds of muscle left
on the pearl shell stored in the hold. Storms are frequent on the coast.
In February, 1899, three schooners and eighty smaller vessels were
wrecked, and eleven white and four hundred colored men were drowned.

At the end of each day’s fishing, the oysters are cleaned of submarine
growths. Sometimes this is by no means an easy task, as many of the
shells are so covered with weeds, coral, and sponge as to bear little
resemblance to oysters. After they have been scrubbed and the edges have
been chipped, they are washed and stored on deck. Early the following
morning they are opened and examined for pearls. This opening is done
carefully to avoid injury to any pearl that may be within. The hinge of
the shell is placed on the deck and a broad knife forced down so as to
sever the adductor muscle, causing the shells to spring open and
permitting the removal of the soft parts. The flesh is carefully
examined, both by sight and by feeling, to locate all pearls, which are
picked out by hand and placed in a suitable receptacle. Within the
adductor muscle are found seed-pearls and small baroques; the large
pearls are found embedded in the mantle, where their presence may be
detected as soon as the shell is opened, the pearly gleam contrasting
with the light blue of the mantle. Sometimes, though rarely, large
pearls are found loose within the shell, whence they roll out when the
shell is opened. Valuable pearls are occasionally removed from blisters
on the surface of the shell, or from within the body of the nacre
itself. Even when empty, these blisters are valuable, and are especially
adapted for brooches and other ornaments requiring a broad and
relatively flat surface.

After the flesh has been carefully examined throughout, it is discarded,
as it is not considered suitable for food, and the shell is dried for
half a day or so to make the hinge brittle in order that it may be
broken without injury to the mother-of-pearl. After the shell has been
roughly cleaned, it is placed in the hold, if the vessel is operating
from a shore station, as is commonly the case in Torres Straits. Since
long exposure to the sun affects the quality of the mother-of-pearl, it
is important that it be kept under cover. On returning to the station,
it is thoroughly cleaned, assorted, dried, the dark edges clipped off,
and the cleaned shell is packed in shipping cases, each containing from
250 to 325 pounds. On the west coast, where the vessels at times operate
200 or 300 miles from port, the shell is cleaned, assorted and crated on
the vessels; whence it may be delivered direct to the steamers. The
Northwest shell is somewhat smaller than the mature shell of Torres
Straits, averaging about 1100 to the ton, whereas that of Thursday
Island runs about 725 to the ton.

It is very difficult to prevent the theft of pearls by the fishermen as
they are liable to treat them as perquisites if not carefully watched.
Indeed, on the Torres Straits vessels it has come about that pearls do
not constitute a recognized source of income to the proprietors. There
the fishery is now conducted almost exclusively for the shells, as the
wage-earners secrete probably as many valuable pearls as they turn over
to the rightful owners. The hot sun causes many of the oysters to open,
and deft fingers quickly pick out such pearls as may be visible. An
oyster may be induced to open its shell by being held near the galley
fire on the lugger, and the insertion of a piece of cork holds it open
while a pearl is shaken out or hooked out by means of a piece of wire.
Then the cork is removed and the oyster closes again with no evidence of
robbery. The proprietors of boats who themselves open the oysters almost
invariably secure larger yields of fine pearls than those who depend on
paid employees, who rarely have the luck to find choice pearls, judging
from what they turn in. The government of Queensland has endeavored to
put a stop to pearl stealing, and by enactment[261] of 1891, it
restricted all selling or buying of pearls within the fishing region
except through regularly licensed dealers, whose transactions are open
to examination.

But the fishermen seem to have little difficulty in evading the laws,
and throughout the fleet the men have become so adept that they regard
the pearls as their contraband perquisites. And the ease with which
these may be secreted is surpassed only by the facility with which they
may be sold, notwithstanding legislation to the contrary. Indeed, some
employers make no claim to the pearls found, thus enabling them to
secure fishermen at lower rates of wages.

As previously noted, the pearls constitute only an incidental catch in
the fisheries on the Australian coast, but in the aggregate the yield is
very large. The yield in the northwest Australian fishery in 1906 is
estimated at £50,000, local valuation; in the Queensland fishery
£33,000; in that of South Australia £5000, a total of £88,000 or
$440,000.[262] Relatively few seed-pearls are obtained, and some of the
pearls are of great size. Some beautiful specimens have been found, but
usually they have less luster and are more irregular in form than the
Persian or the Indian output.

Among the remedies suggested for improving the condition of the
Australian pearl reefs may be mentioned the establishment of six inches
as the minimum size of the shell that may be taken (five inches is now
permitted in Queensland, and there is no restriction in Western
Australia), the closure of certain areas for stated periods from time to
time, and a limit on the number of vessels employed. The government
resident at Thursday Island, Mr. Hugh Milman, who has had long
acquaintance with the industry, strongly recommends the adoption of a
system of artificial culture; and in the meantime, to foster the
industry, “licenses should be granted to a reduced number of boats and
certain sheltered areas should be closed altogether for a few years to
give the beds time to recover. This latter procedure, however, the
pearlers themselves are not in favor of, as they are of the opinion that
the weather conditions against which they have to contend are sufficient
protection to prevent the denudation of the principal grounds.”

A few years ago certain areas in Torres Straits were proclaimed closed
for a period against the removal of pearl shell; but, owing to the want
of effective patrol, the shell was poached to a very large extent, and
consequently the good that should have resulted from the experiment was
not apparent. Owing to the impracticability of continuous patrol, and
the want of proper legislation to bring die offenders to book, it was
decided to remove the restrictions.

The Sharks Bay fishery, to which we have previously referred,[263] is
prosecuted by means of small sail-boats using light dredges, except in
the case of the very shallow or “pick-up banks,” where the oysters are
commonly removed by hand. Some years ago this fishery was of much local
importance; but the developing scarcity of the oysters, and the present
low value of this grade of shell in Europe, due to the competition with
Mississippi shell, have resulted in a great reduction. In 1905, the
industry gave employment to 17 small boats and 42 men, of whom 18 were
Europeans, 13 Asiatics, and 11 aboriginal natives. The yield of pearls,
according to official report of the government of Western Australia,
approximated £2000 in value, and of pearl shell there was 88 tons, with
a declared value of £607. In 1896 the government of Western Australia
surveyed the Sharks Bay reefs, and opened them to preëmption in small
areas for cultivating this species of pearl-oyster. At present they are
mostly held under exclusive licenses for a period of fourteen years. The
business is under an elaborate system of regulations; but as appears
from the above figures the results have not been important.

Pearls are more numerous in this pearl-oyster than in the two other
Australian species. In removing them from the flesh, a modification of
the Ceylon process is adopted. The mollusks are opened by means of a
knife, and the contents of the shells are placed in vats or tubs—known
locally as “poogie tubs”; and, exposed to the hot sun, are allowed to
putrefy. Sea water is added, and the putrid mass stirred; after several
days the water and the thoroughly disintegrated flesh tissues are
decanted, leaving the pearls at the bottom. The odor from a number of
these “poogie tubs” is said to almost rival that of the “washing
toddies” at Marichchikadde.

The Sharks Bay pearls are commonly yellowish or straw-colored, and
sometimes have a beautiful golden tinge. Although obtained from small
shells, they are sometimes of considerable size—twenty grains or more in
weight, and fine specimens sell for several hundred dollars each. China
and India furnish better markets for them than Europe or America.

PEARL FISHERIES OF THE MALAY ARCHIPELAGO

My thoughts arise and fade in solitude;
The verse that would invest them melts away
Like moonlight in the heaven of spreading day.
How beautiful they were, how firm they stood,
Flecking the starry sky like woven pearl.

SHELLEY, _My Thoughts_.

For nearly four hundred years, pearls and pearl shells have been the
most beautiful objects which have reached the outside world from the
many islands of the Malay Archipelago. On his visit to this part of the
world in 1520, Pigopitta, a companion of Magalhães, reported pearls
among the prized possessions of the natives. The fisheries have never
been of great importance, although the reefs are widely scattered
throughout the archipelago, and the possibilities seem favorable for
very great development. Thomas de Comyn stated a century ago, that pearl
fisheries had been undertaken “from time to time about Mindanao, Zebu,
and some of the smaller islands, but with little success and less
regularity, not because of a scarcity of fine pearls, but on account of
a lack of skill of the divers and their well-established dread of
sharks.”[264]

Giacinto Gemmi,[265] writing of Philippine pearls, repeats a strange
tale from the “Storia de Mindanao” by the Jesuit father, Combes, to the
effect that in a certain spot, under many fathoms of water, there was a
pearl of inestimable value, as large as an egg; but, although the king’s
ministers had made every effort to have it secured, they had always been
unsuccessful.

During the last thirty years, pearls and pearl shells have been secured
from most of the inshore waters of Malaysia, but the output has not been
so regular or so extensive as the conditions seem to warrant. Our
observation leads to the conviction that this is not due so much to lack
of skill on the part of the divers, or to their dread of sharks,
mentioned by Comyn; but to the fact that foreign capital, attracted to
this part of the world, has found more security and profit in developing
plantations, and the natives have not had sufficient enterprise to
systematize and develop the fishery resources.

Throughout Malaysia, including the Philippine Islands, the pearl is
known as _mutya_, _mootara_, or a similar name, closely resembling the
Sanskrit _mukta_ or the Cingalese _mootoo_, indicating the source of the
influence originating the fishery and trade.

The most widely-known pearl fisheries of Malaysia are in the Sulu
Archipelago, a group of islands comprising about 1000 square miles in
area, and containing a population of 100,000. The beautiful yellow
pearls shared with the many acts of piracy in attracting attention to
this group previous to 1878, when the islands were brought under the
influence of Spanish rule; and since the Spanish-American War, pearl
fishing has been the leading industry, though it has received less
attention from outside sources, perhaps, than has the existence of
slavery and harems as part of the social system.

Writing in 1820, John Crawfurd stated that the annual export of pearls
from Sulu Islands to China approximated 25,000 Spanish dollars in value,
and the mother-of-pearl similarly exported was worth 70,000 dollars.
“Considering the turbulent and piratical habits of the natives of the
Sulu group, it is certain that a greater share of skill and industry
than can at present be applied to the fisheries, would greatly enhance
the value and amount of their produce.”[266]

In the Sulu Archipelago, the pearl-oyster reefs exist from Sibǔtu Pass
to Basilan Strait, and roughly cover an estimated area of 15,000 square
miles; that is, in the most favorable localities throughout this area,
pearl-oysters occur to a greater or less extent. The fisheries are
prosecuted by Malays and Chinese, and are largely centered at Sulu.

Pearl-oysters occur about many other islands. They exist at Maimbun and
Parong; and also off the island of Tapul and its neighbor Lagos, both
southwest of Maimbun. In the channels among these islands, on the rocky
gravelly bottom where there is a good current, oysters are commonly
found. They also occur off Laminusa, northeast of Tawi-Tawi, at Cuyo
Island, and in the waters about Malampaya and Bacuit.

The large mother-of-pearl oyster (_Margaritifera maxima_) known locally
as _concha de nacr_, is by far the most abundant. When full-grown in
this region it is ordinarily between ten and thirteen inches in
diameter. The young oyster attaches itself to the bottom by means of the
green byssus; but after attaining a weight of one pound, it is too heavy
to be easily moved by the tide, and the ligature gradually disappears.
The Australian “black lip” (_Margaritifera margaritifera_), known here
as _concha de nagra_, is also found. In these waters it attains a
diameter of about eight inches, but most specimens are considerably
smaller.

There is another pearly shell in the Philippines, a spiral gasteropod
known locally as _caracoles_, which is ordinarily five or six inches in
diameter, and has a beautiful pearly surface. This yields very few
pearls; it is sought for pearl-button manufacture, selling for about the
same as the _concha de nagra_.

Streeter states that it is declared by the natives of the Sulu
Archipelago that pearls of a yellowish hue have been found in the pearly
nautilus (_Nautilus pompilius_), one of the group of cephalopodous
mollusks. As, however, there is a superstition that they bring ill luck,
the natives say that they throw them away, believing that any one who
should fight while wearing one of these pearls in a ring, would
certainly be killed. If we consider the habits and organism of this
remarkable animal, and the splendid nacreous coating of its shell, the
assertion that pearls are found in it seems quite natural. Indeed, the
occurrence of pearls in the pearly nautilus is generally recognized.

For many years the successive sultans of Sulu exercised authority over
the fisheries and—in addition to exacting certain percentages and
presents from the fishermen—claimed as their perquisites all pearls
exceeding a designated weight. The fisheries were prosecuted by nude
divers, of whom there were a large number. A Chinese company had been
particularly fortunate in its relations with the Sulus, and had an
extensive equipment in the fishery, consisting of a number of small
vessels, each carrying a crew of seven men, who used diving-suits. In
addition to these, some of the native Moros owned boats from which
diving-suits were employed.

Following the Spanish-American War and the transfer of the Philippine
Islands to America, several vessels proceeded to engage in the fisheries
without previously consulting the representatives of the Sultan of Sulu.
This called forth from that official an appeal to the American
authorities for protection in his claims. He gave an account of the
pearl fishery in this interesting document, which we quote at
length—through the courtesy of the American Bureau of Insular
Affairs—because of the light it throws, not only on the industry, but
also on the characteristics of these people with whom the American
government is now dealing.

STATEMENT MADE BY THE SULTAN OF SULU RELATIVE TO THE PEARL FISHERIES

(Forwarded by the Governor of Moro Province.)

[Translation.]

(SEAL of the SULTAN.)
No date.

I beg to inform my father, the civil governor, Major Scott, as you
want to know about the mother-of-pearl shell, why it is the right of
all Sulu people, above all my own right, this is the reason:

The forefathers of the Sulu people used to take the mother-of-pearl
shell from the downs because the mother-of-pearl shell belonged to
the downs, and they took them to eat the oyster with other food; of
the shell they made plates and saucers to put the food on, and the
pearls they used to make a hole through and put them on a string as
necklaces for their children. This was at a time when no other
nation had come to Sulu to buy the mother-of-pearl shell.

Later, a big boat, called the _Sampang_, wandered from China to
Sulu; there were on board many people, all Chinese; it was loaded
with merchandise. The people came ashore and saw the mother-of-pearl
shell which the Sulu people were carrying. The captain of the boat
said: “Have you many more of these things?” and the people answered,
“Plenty; this is what we take from the downs to eat with other
food.” The Captain said. “Gather me plenty. I will buy them from
you.” The people went and gathered them and bartered them for plates
and saucers. When all the shells from the downs were finished they
looked into the deep, and that is how they found the pearling
grounds, and the people noted them, and remembered them. This is
what they agreed upon; whoever finds pearling grounds they belong to
him from generation to generation. That is what they agreed upon.
That is the reason why the Sulu people have the right, and that they
came to make the dredge (_badja_) to get the mother-of-pearl shell
from the deep, because they can not see them.

Later Salips came from Mecca of the Arab nation; they came to Sulu
to convert the people into Mohammedans, as they had no religion. And
when the Sulu people, including the islanders, adopted the faith,
then they agreed to have a sultan and they elected Saripul Hassim to
be sultan. Saripul Hassim said: “I don’t want you to make me your
sultan if I do not know what the rights of the sultan are, and who I
have to govern over, because this is not my country, this is your
country.”

And this is how everybody agreed to accept him as sultan over Sulu
and all the islands; this is how he became Sultan and governed over
all, and this is how Saripul Hassim accepted to be the sultan of
Sulu, to have full power over land and sea, and the people’s rights,
where they got their living from on land and sea, were left to them,
because they were the means of their getting their livelihood.

But a law was made, if they found valuables in the sea, such as
pearls, tortoise shell, ambal or anything extraordinary, they have
to show it to the sultan, and if the pearls weigh six chuchuk or
over they become the share of the sultan; if they do not have that
weight, the people can do with them as they please and sell them. If
the sultan wants them, he will buy them according to custom. As to
tortoise shell, if they weigh two ketties, they go to the sultan,
and as to the ambal, whether it is much or little, it falls to the
sultan. Whoever finds it must take it to the sultan. Whoever of his
subjects violates this law as agreed upon, the sultan can punish him
as he pleases.

They accepted this law as agreed upon, to be carried out by them
(sultan and people), and their descendants, and not to be changed;
but they asked of the sultan not to let any other nation take a
share in this industry; it is enough for them; and the sultan agreed
to this because they did not know how to earn their living
otherwise. This is what the sultan and his subjects agreed to
because the Sulu had no other treasures on land beyond the
cultivation; the treasures came from the sea only, therefore other
people are forbidden because this is the property of all my
subjects, and especially my own.

Recently, in my time and in the Spanish time, there came to me
Captain Tiana; he wanted to dive for pearl shells. I said “I cannot
give you my consent at once because since our forefathers (sultan
and people) we have an agreement, I will confer with my people.” I
sent for the chiefs and the dattos and I told them about it, that
Captain Tiana came to me and asked to dive for pearl shells. They
said it cannot be done, because there is an agreement between our
forefathers that other nations cannot join in this industry of the
Sulu seas, because there is no other means of earning a living for
your subjects.

I informed Captain Tiana of it. He said: “Allow me to dive for pearl
shells, I will give toll to you as sultan and I will also give toll
to the owners of the pearl grounds according to what we agree upon.”

So I informed all the owners of the pearling ground, and they said,
“If he is really in earnest to give toll to us owners of the ground
according to what we agree upon, if we don’t agree, we will not
allow him to fish.” Thereupon Captain Tiana and I went to the
Spanish governor to bear witness. The governor said: “All right;
anything you agree upon; I cannot change the law of the Moro people,
and I will not interfere.”

That is how I allowed Captain Tiana to fish, and I gave him a letter
of the truth according to agreement. Therefore if any person of
other nation wants to fish for mother-of-pearl shell, he will have
to do as Captain Tiana did, and ask me for a letter of truth, and if
he has no letter and does not pay toll to the owners of the ground,
and especially to me, he cannot dive, and if he violates this and if
anything befalls him, I am not responsible and do not want to be
held responsible, because the mother-of-pearl shells are like the
property in our boxes given to us by God. They do not go away from
the places where they are put, they are not like fish that go about.
Therefore, we forbid it. It is our heritage from our forefathers.

(Signed) HADJI MOHAMAD JAMAUL KIRAM,
Sultan of Sulu.

[SEAL OF THE SULTAN.]

Following these representations, the legislative council of the Moro
province, by authority of the Philippine Commission, interdicted all
fishing for pearl-oysters within three marine leagues of any land within
the territorial limits of the Moro province, without license first
obtained from the treasurer of the district within which the vessel
carries on the major part of its operations.[267] No license was to be
issued to any vessel not owned in the Philippine Islands or in the
United States, and not wholly owned by citizens of the United States, by
natives of the Philippine Islands, or by persons who have acquired the
political rights of natives,[268] except that foreign vessels which for
one year immediately preceding had actually engaged in pearl fishing
might secure license to continue therein for a period of five years
thereafter.

Licenses were of two kinds, according to the nature of the fishery. To
engage in fishing with the aid of diving-suits, the fee was five hundred
pesos annually, for each of the greatest number of divers beneath the
surface of the water at any one time. For fishing without submarine
armor, the fee was five pesos annually, for each of the greatest number
of nude divers to be employed by the vessel during any voyage, and the
same sum for each of the greatest number of dredges or rakes to be
employed beneath the surface at any one time; but this did not apply to
vessels under 15 tons, owned and operated wholly by native Moros, until
January 1, 1906.

It was also made unlawful to catch or to have in one’s possession within
the Moro province “any pearl shell or any bivalvular or lateral plate,
or any pearl shell of less than 4½ inches in diameter, measured with a
flat, rigid measuring rod along the line of the ligament which joins one
binocular or lateral plate to the other at the hinge, unless the lateral
plate of such shell be more than 7 inches in diameter measured with a
flat, rigid measuring rod from the outer edge of the horny lips to the
center of the hinge, the rod being so placed as to form a right angle
with the line of the hinge.”[269]

According to a report furnished by the Mining Bureau at Manila, there
were seven vessels fishing with diving-suits in the Sulu Archipelago in
1905, each representing an investment of about 6000 pesos. In 1906 there
were ten vessels engaged in this industry, and the collection on
licenses for that fiscal year amounted to 3375 pesos. These vessels are
mostly small Moro craft which cannot venture upon distant cruises in the
archipelago for prospecting purposes, and their operations are confined
for the most part to the immediate vicinity of Jolo. Each vessel carries
one diver, a tender, a cook, and four sailors. In addition to food
supplies, the sailors and the cook each receive twelve to fifteen pesos
per month, the tender thirty to forty pesos per month, and the diver the
same amount and in addition thereto a bonus of twenty cents for each
shell secured. Near Jolo the vessels work throughout the year, but
farther north very little fishing is done from December to April, when
monsoons prevail. The man in charge of each vessel is obliged by law to
keep an accurate record of the number and weight of shells found, and
his figures are checked up by a customs official at either Jolo or
Zamboanga, the ports of discharge.

To enable them to secure pearl-oysters at depths of from twenty to forty
fathoms, the Sulus have long made use of a dredge (_badja_) peculiarly
constructed of native materials, and admirably adapted to the purpose.
This consists of five or more long wooden teeth slightly curved and
spreading outward, with an expanse at the ends of twenty inches or more.
The dredge is properly balanced by two stones, and a bridle rope is so
attached to it that, when thrown overboard and towed behind a canoe
drifting with the current or the wind, the implement rests on the curve
of the teeth, which are in almost a horizontal position. As the teeth
enter the gaping shell of an oyster lying on the bottom, the animal
instantly closes tightly on the intruder and effects its own capture.
The principle is similar to that of the “crowfoot” dredge of the
Mississippi River, although the design of the implement is radically
different. A second rope is attached so as to raise and lower the
implement and to detach it from corals, rocks, and other objects against
which it may catch in its course on the bottom. This dredge is designed
for very deep areas, where the bottom is relatively smooth.

The Moros employ yet another method of fishing, using a _magtung-tung_
or three-pronged catcher, which is let down by a rattan rope and by
means of which individual shells sighted from the surface are obtained.
When the water is perfectly clear this implement can be operated where
the depth is fifteen or eighteen fathoms, but its use is impractical
where the water is clouded or there is even a slight ripple on the
surface.

However, the bulk of the catch is made by the nude divers, of which
there are hundreds at Maimbun, Tapul, Lugus and elsewhere. In their
small boats these Moro fishermen visit the reefs, where the boats are
anchored. Provided only with a short, heavy knife, with which to release
the shells from the bottom or, perchance, as a weapon of defense against
sharks and other fish, they enter the water feet first, but soon turn
and descend head downward, precisely as on the Australian coast,
swimming toward the bottom with bold strokes. The Sulu pearl-divers—and
especially those at Parang, Patian and Sicubun—are among the most expert
in the world. They easily penetrate to twelve fathoms and, if necessary,
to eighteen or twenty fathoms. But they are not very industrious, and
seldom descend more than twelve or fifteen times a day, preferring
rather to go with their wants half satisfied than to satiate them by
more active exertions.

Many descents may be necessary to locate and obtain a single oyster, but
when this is secured the shell alone may ordinarily be traded for
sufficient to supply the fisherman’s needs for several days, and there
is always the chance of a pearl. After a short day of labor, the
fishermen return, and the oysters which they have secured are opened and
examined for pearls. After the flesh has been carefully searched it is
placed in the sun to dry and, later, to be used for food, and the shells
are carefully cleaned and placed under cover until they may be bartered
or sold.

The Sulu shell is characterized by a peculiar yellowish tint around the
rim, by means of which it is readily distinguished. Its size and
beautiful iridescence make it very attractive, and for choice individual
specimens high prices are received. It is the largest of the
mother-of-pearl shells, single half-shells of “bold” size average one
and one half pounds in weight, while some attain a weight of six pounds.
The body of the shell furnishes the most beautiful of all
mother-of-pearl, yet the necessity for discarding the yellow rim, or,
rather, for using it separate from the rest, makes it unpopular with
manufacturers. The annual product is estimated at 200 tons, valued in
London and New York at $200,000, and of pearls about $30,000 worth.

The Sulu pearls are frequently large and of choice quality, but they are
far more inclined to a yellowish tint than those from Australian waters,
1300 miles southward. The sultans accumulated the finest collection of
them, and some of these found their way into the markets from time to
time as the condition of the exchequer ran low or royal emergency
required, as in 1882, for instance, when it was necessary to defray the
expense of Sultan Buderoodin’s pilgrimage to Mecca. During the last six
or seven years, much has been heard of the present sultan’s collection,
which he largely inherited, and some fairly good specimens have been
presented to prominent Americans.

Pearl-oysters are among the important resources of the inshore waters of
the Dutch East Indies, including the surrounding seas of Sumatra, Java,
Borneo, Celebes, the Aru Islands, the Moluccas or Spice Islands, and
Papua or New Guinea. For very many years the natives have gathered pearl
shell and pearls from these waters, and especially on the coast of the
Aru Islands, at Gilolo or Halmahera, and the islands thereabout, on the
east coast of Celebes, and about the Sunda group. The collections were
made in the shallow waters by beach-combing and by nude diving, and were
bartered with the Chinese and Arab traders sailing from Singapore,
Macassar, and other ports. Occasionally a pearling vessel from Singapore
or from Torres Straits would try its luck in these waters; but, except
for the work of the natives, the reefs were practically untouched
previous to 1883.

As the Australian fleet increased in size and the oysters became scarce
in Torres Straits and on the northwest coast, some of the vessels
occasionally visited the Aru Islands, the coast of Papua, etc. These met
with considerable success and the number of trips increased, especially
in 1893, when oysters were unusually scarce in Australia.

The following year, 1894, the government restricted the fishery to
inhabitants of the Netherlands and of Netherlands India, or to companies
established in those countries and operating under the Dutch flag. Owing
to the activity of Dutch capital in coffee, tobacco and other plantation
enterprises, the pearl resources received very little attention from
them. The success of the Australian fishery encouraged the formation in
1896 of an Amsterdam company to exploit the Aru grounds; but apparently
without financial success, for it liquidated in 1898.

In the meantime, residents of these islands paid more and more attention
to the pearl fishery; also Europeans, Chinamen and Arabs arranged with
the native chiefs for fishing in their territorial waters, paying
therefor a fixed sum in cash or a percentage of the catch, which was
permitted on approval by the governor-general of Dutch India. The fleet
continued to increase from year to year, and in 1905 there was a very
large influx of vessels from the Australian fisheries, 110 luggers and 7
tenders coming from Thursday Island alone.

The species are the same as occur on the northern coast of Australia,
the “silver edge” or “golden lip” (_Margaritifera maxima_) occurring in
greatest abundance, and the “black lip” (_M. margaritifera_) to a less
extent.

The shells are the principal object of the search, and the pearls found
incidentally form an additional source of revenue. These shells divide
with those of Australia the reputation of being the most valuable in the
world. They are commonly known in the trade by the name of the port from
which they are originally shipped, as Manila, Macassar, Banda, Ceram,
Penang, Mergui, etc. Before the exploitation of the Australian grounds,
they sold at very high prices, and $2000 or more per ton was sometimes
realized for those of the best quality. Singapore is the headquarters
for supplies for the industry in all this region, and it is from that
port that the shells and pearls are mostly distributed.

The pearls obtained in Netherlands India are of choice quality and of
relatively large size, a considerable percentage of them weighing over
eight grains, and fairly good pearls of fifty grains or more are
occasionally reported. Colored pearls are rarely met with, nearly all of
them being clear white, like the beautiful Macassar shell.

At Pados Bay, island of Borneo, one hundred or more persons find
employment fishing the Placuna oysters, selling the shells for about $2
per picul (139 pounds to the picul), the dried meats at $4 to $6 a
picul, and the seed-pearls (_seleesip_) at about $2 per mayam. Many of
these pearls are sold in the village of Batu Batu. When a fisherman buys
his few necessaries at the Chinese shops, he pulls out his little
package of seed-pearls and pays in that currency, the Chinaman making a
good profit by the transaction.

X

AMERICAN PEARLS

VENEZUELA, PANAMA, MEXICO, AMERICAN FRESH WATERS, MISCELLANEOUS

X
PEARL FISHERIES OF VENEZUELA

When I discovered the Indies, I said that they composed the richest
country in the world. I spake of gold and pearls and precious
stones, and the traffic that might be carried on in them.

Extract from Columbus’s Fourth Letter.

The Caribbean Sea furnishes one of the most interesting chapters in the
history of the pearl fisheries. In no region of the world have these
resources caused more rapid exploitation or affected the inhabitants to
a greater extent than on the shores of Venezuela.

Before the discovery of America, the natives of this region collected
pearls from the mollusks which they opened for food in times of
necessity, and also sought them for ornamental purposes. And although
they had large collections which they used for personal ornamentation
and for decorating their temples, it does not appear that they prized
them extravagantly, readily bartering them for small returns.