39 



fisheries has occurred on former occasions, and Mr. G. Vane, 

 who conducted the fisheries from 1855-60, writes as follows : 



" Then come flies, innumerable, of the largest kind ; indeed 

 flies are constant plagues, but are worse with a southerly wind, 

 everytliing being covered with a black mass ; a glass of wine or 

 water must be drunk as poured out, or it is filled with flies, but 

 southerly winds do not last long, and it seems as though provi- 

 dentially arranged that the prevailing winds should aid the 

 purposes and needs of a pearl fishery." 



Early in the morning of the day following my arrival 

 at Dutch Bay my suspicion that something was wrong was 

 confirmed by the receipt of information that deaths from 

 cholera had occurred in camp, and that there was a panic 

 among the divers, who had struck work. It was promptly 

 decided to abandon the fishery, and permission was given 

 for the boats to leave. The divers' quarters and sale kottus, 

 the fences of which had begun to throw out leaves, were, as 

 a matter of precaution, burned down, and by 4 p.m. most of 

 the boats were out at sea, many making for the Madras 

 coast. 



The general arrangement of the Dutch Bay camp corre- 

 sponded, in all essential particulars, with the arrangement of 

 the Tuticorin camp. The latter is, in fact, based on what 

 1 may term the Ceylon type. 



The camp is described by a newspaper correspondent in 

 the following words ^ : — 



" What was only the other day a sandy desert is now a 

 popidous and thriving town, with rows of buildings and well- 

 planned streets. The two principal streets run parallel to each 

 other. Each is about a mile long and 120 feet wide. These 

 are again intersected by cross roads at intervals of 200 feet, an 

 arrangement which permits of free ventilation, &c. Along the 

 centre of each principal street there is a row of wells and 

 lamps .... That portion of the town described above is situated 

 at the south end of Dutch Bay, and is occupied by merchants, 

 boutique-keepers, divers, et hoc genus omne. To the west of this, 

 where the buildings are of a superior order and more apart from 

 each other, we have the custom-house, court-house, police station 

 with the Union Jack flying gaily in front of it, the Government 

 Auditor's quarters, the doctor's buildings, the general hospital, 

 out-door dispensary, rest-house, &c. On the spit of sand (a sand 

 bank) are built the Government and private kottus and the sale 



^ Qeylmi Observer, 2nd March 1889. 



