190 SPOLIA ZEYLANIOA. 



The Karaittivu Point ends in a long sandspit now nearly all 

 submerged, but in those daj^s doubtless it was high and dry, in 

 which case it ran right up to the largest of our present-day pearl 

 banks and lends somewhat to the support of the tale of our princess's 

 business capacity and her doubts as to the honesty of the divers she 

 employed. 



We now come to the Portuguese control of the pearl banks, but 

 they left little record, if any, of their fisheries ; they seem to have 

 fished more banks than Ave are able to now, and it is reported they 

 held a fishery off Mount Lavinia. 



Apropos of the Portuguese fishery off Mount Lavinia, the following 

 is an experience of my own when searching for pearl oysters. 



In March, 1905, some fishermen dredging for prawns off Mount 

 Lavinia brought up two oysters, in one of which was a pearl ; this 

 was sold for Rs. 10, but finding that the purchaser had disposed of 

 the pearl almost at once for Rs. 60, the fisherman complained to the 

 Government Agent, Mi\ Fowler. He gave the oyster shells and 

 the story to the Principal Collector of Customs, Mr. Jackson, who 

 told me. I took a launch and diving apparatus one morning and 

 proceeded to the spot, as near as the fisher headman could indicate 

 it ; I then proceeded to descend, but in a short time I found I was 

 getting no air. I found also that I could not reach the life line to 

 signal to be pulled up, and I had ascertained before descending that 

 the depth was over 75 feet. Well, I reached the bottom, and was 

 just able to make out that it was all soft sand and no oysters to be 

 seen, when I made a great gasp for breath, and the whole of my chest 

 frame seemed to cave right in. I felt furiously angry, and rather 

 like taking gas at the dentist's, and then I became unconscious. I 

 recovered consciousness on being pulled to the surface, and on 

 examining the air pump — which, by the way, was twenty-three years 

 old — we found that after a certain depth, when the pressure 

 increased beyond a certain amount, the air instead of going down 

 the rubber air pipe escaped into the atmosphere through the valves 

 of the pump ; that was a narrow but not such a very unpleasant 

 squeak as it sounds. 



Following the Portuguese we have the Dutch, who left many of 

 their terms, specially in the valuation of the samples taken to 

 ascertain if a fishery would prove lucrative. 



After the Dutch we come to our own domination of Ceylon and 

 its pearl fisheries. In the British time, the Master Attendant of 

 Colombo has been until 1903, and is now again, the Inspector of the 

 Pearl Banks, whilst the Government Agent of the Northern Province 

 was the Superintendent of Pearl Fisheries. 



Until recent years a good deal of mystery was purposely allowed 

 to enshroud the pearl banks practically ; no beacons or marks were 

 erected on the shore, and the difficulties of locating any banks were 

 increased wherever possible, whether to prevent poaching or not 



