Corals. 67 



bark. Such a branch replaced carefully in a large vessel of fresh 

 sea-water will after a short time show at numerous points of its 

 surface the expanded coral-animals, each with its eight feathery- 

 tentacles. Each individual has the structure of a polype, as 

 described above, and is organically connected with all the others 

 by means of canals, which transmit food from one living polype 

 to the other. In the covering, besides these canals, are numerous 

 microscopic spindle-shaped particles of carbonate of lime; the 

 axis is formed by a fusion of such particles. This structure of the 

 coral is very readily distinguished under the microscope, by the 

 aid of which instrument all imitations can easily be detected. 

 The Red Coral reproduces by means of eggs or by buds. There 

 exist separate male and female colonies, besides those which bear 

 both sexes ; sometimes, too, hermaphrodite polypes (individuals with 

 both male and female reproductive organs) are found. The egg 

 develops within the maternal polype into a pear-shaped organism, 

 which makes its way out through the mouth of the mother-polype 

 and swims about freely for some time ; after this it fixes with one 

 end and becomes transformed into a polype, which forms new 

 individuals by budding and thus gives rise to a new colony. 



The Red Coral is a gift of the Mediterranean. Here it grows 

 on rocky banks near the coast at a depth of from 40 to 100 fathoms, 

 rarely deeper, and is especially obtained on the Ionian Islands 

 and on the coasts of Algiers and Tunis. In the seventies coral- 

 banks were discovered off Sciacca in the South-West of Sicily, 

 the extraordinary richness of which caused a crisis in the Italian 

 coral trade. For some years past, however, only dead pieces of 

 coral have been found on these beds, the colonies having ap- 

 parently been destroyed by a submarine earthquake. Of late 

 Japan has been dangerous to the Italian coral industry, but the 

 Japanese coral is far behind the better kinds from the Mediter- 

 ranean both in beauty and evenness of structure, in spite of the 

 richness of the banks in the far East. 



The apparatus for coral-fishing consists of a cross made of 

 heavy wooden beams to which are attached pieces of old nets, 

 untwisted rope-ends and other such material ; the whole is dragged 

 by means of a strong rope over the bottom of the sea. The branch- 

 ing corals are entangled in the nets and ropes, break off and are 

 pulled up with them. To use the corals, the "bark" with the 

 polypes is brushed off and the outermost layer of the skeleton 

 filed away; afterwards it is ground with emery-powder and oil, 

 and finally polished with steel. The beads are turned and pierced 

 on a lathe, figures are cut out with graving-tools. The value 

 of corals varies greatly, even before they are worked. The 

 thicker roots are often perforated by boring animals (worms 

 and sponges) and fetch between 5 and 20 frs. per kilogramme. 

 Good ordinary pieces are sold at 40 — 70 frs. and choice, salmon 



