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of six divers and one thodai who tends the divers’ 
lines, drawing up the stone and securing it at the gunwale 
ready for use again, after each man dives. Healso looks 
after the baling of the boat, the supply of drinking water 
and such odd jobs. He is paid by a contribution either 
in cash or in shells from each diver. 
When the morning breeze be favourable—a land 
breeze preferably, the canoes set sail from shore by sun- 
rise, or as soon as ali the laggards can be rounded in. 
Sometimes the thodai has a headache and does not 
appear, in which case, the divers of hiscanoe generally 
disperse and take a holiday ; it does not seem to occur to 
them to manage without him! When catches are good 
and winds light, the men go earlier, sleeping on the sands 
by their canoes till 2 or 3 A.M. when they set off. But 
the inducement must be considerable or such energy is 
not possible ! 
Now that a motor launch is available, the men have 
an easier time and when calms and headwinds prevail the 
launch tows the canoes to the fishing ground or until a 
favourable breeze comes. 
Usually a par-mandadi or fisherman-pilot, paid by 
Government, accompanies the boat to guide the divers to 
whatever chank bed or piral they may fancy. This par- 
mandadi is usually a line-fisherman with extensive know- 
ledge of all the fishing grounds within a radius of 10 miles 
from Tuticorin. Sometimes when beds which havea good 
reputation give poor yields or when a revisit to the place 
which gave good results the previous day is eee 
ing, the divers vent their spleen on the par-mandadi 1 
unparliamentary language; a row ensues and a new 
par-mandadi may have to be sought for. The buoying 
of good banks was also carried out during the past two 
seasons and is to be further developed when a fisheries 
inspection vessel becomes available. ‘Till a rich bed be 
found the canoes are allowed to drift, the divers descend- 
ing from time to time to prospect. When they are 
satisfied with the result, the canoe is anchored and 
serious work begins. Under favourable conditions about 
25 descents are ‘tuade yielding anything from nothing to 
eight shells per dive. Unlike the custom followed in the 
local pearl fisheries no second line attached to a net 
bag isemployed. On reaching the bottom by means of 
