BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 327 



On the islands of the Pacific the pearls are classified as follows :* 



(1) Pearls of a regular form and without faults; in value, those weigh- 

 ing a decigram, are worth about 2.7 crowns [$0.72] ; those weighing 

 from U to 2i grams, from 1,800 to 2,600 crowns [$482.40 to $690.80]. 



(2) Bound white pearls of great luster ; 30 grams, containing 800 

 pearls, would be worth only 72 crowns [$19.30] ; while the same weight 

 in 50 pearls would be worth 1,080 crowns [$289.44]. 



(3) Irregularly formed pearls, not without faults ; 30 grams of this 

 kind would be worth oo to 75 crowns [14.74 to $20.10], according to 

 their condition, 



(4) Pearl-bulbs, which are found attached to the shells ; 30 grams 

 are worth from 25 to 36 crowns [$6.70 to $9.65], according to their regu- 

 larity of form and brilliancy. 



(5) Seed-pearls, which are worth from 36 to 55 crowns [$9.65 to $14.74] 

 per pound. 



Mother-of-pearl fetches from 25 to 50 ore [6i to 13J cents] per pound. 

 The principal markets for pearls from the Pacific are Hamburg, Am- 

 sterdam, London, and St. Petersburg. 



Besides the pearl-oyster, there is often found in the lagoous of the 

 Pacific Ocean a kind of Venus shell, which often contains pearls of great 

 value. The fishermen do not look for these pearls at all, but it is pre- 

 sumed that it would i^ay to examine these shells more systematically. 



In the Pacific there is found another pearl-producing mollusk, whose 

 shells greatly resemble those of the common oyster. Thej' are always 

 found attached to rocks, invariably one by itself; and they are quite 

 rare. Their pearls are always perfectly roun^i, with a fine luster and 

 a gold color, of about the size of a pea. 



The Central American pearl fisheries are carried on on both sides of 

 the Isthmus of Panama. In the Bay of Panama are located the Pearl 

 Islands, of which San Jose is the most important, yielding every year 

 from 800 to 1,000 tons of mother-of-pearl. In 1809 the English im- 

 ported pearls valued at about 800,000 crowns [$214,400] from Xew 

 Granada and St. Thomas ; while the average annual yield of the Pan- 

 ama fisheries is about 500,000 crowns [$134,000]. In the lower part of 

 the Bay of Mulege, in the Gulf of California, and near Los Coyntes, 

 pearls of great value have been found. It is generiilly supi^osed that a 

 row of pearl beds extends from the Gulf of Darien to California. In 

 the last-mentioned bays, and on the coasts of Costa Eica and Central 

 Mexico, pearl fishing has long been a remunerative employment. The 

 principal fisheries on the Mexican coasts are carried on between Mulege 

 and Cape San Lucas. Near the Islas Tres Marias and in the neighbor- 

 hood of Acai)ulco the fisheries are not near so important. The mol- 

 lusks found are Meleagrina margaritifera and Haliotis rufescens. 



The fisheries are carried on from July till October ; during the rest 

 of the year storms and cold weather prevent fishing. Diving suits are 



* See Simmonds's Commercial Products of the Sea, p. 425 (Part III, Chap. III). 



