﻿[13] 
  PEARLS 
  AT 
  TAHITI 
  AND 
  TUAMOTU. 
  3fi5 
  

  

  After 
  the 
  work 
  of 
  the 
  day 
  is 
  over 
  the 
  divers 
  begin 
  to 
  open 
  the 
  oysters, 
  

   using 
  for 
  this 
  purpose 
  a 
  Large 
  knife, 
  which 
  they 
  handle 
  very 
  skilfully. 
  

   By 
  the 
  first 
  cut 
  the 
  adductor 
  is 
  severed. 
  Each 
  shell 
  and 
  its 
  contents 
  

   are 
  then 
  examined 
  with 
  the 
  greatest 
  care, 
  so 
  that 
  no 
  pearl 
  may 
  escape. 
  

   The 
  masters 
  never 
  fail 
  to 
  assist 
  in 
  this 
  operation; 
  for, 
  although 
  divested 
  

   of 
  all 
  clothing, 
  the 
  native 
  of 
  Tuamotu 
  can 
  quickly 
  swallow 
  a 
  pearl 
  the 
  

   moment 
  he 
  has. 
  discovered 
  it. 
  The 
  shells 
  belonging 
  to 
  independent 
  

   fishermen 
  are, 
  after 
  they 
  have 
  been 
  emptied, 
  placed 
  in 
  moist 
  sand 
  till 
  

   the 
  day 
  of 
  sale, 
  so 
  that 
  they 
  may 
  not 
  lose 
  any 
  of 
  their 
  weight 
  by 
  evap- 
  

   oration. 
  

  

  Diving 
  for 
  pearl-oysters 
  is 
  going 
  on 
  from 
  one 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  year 
  to 
  the 
  

   other, 
  but 
  especially 
  during 
  the 
  months 
  of 
  November, 
  December, 
  Jan- 
  

   uary, 
  and 
  February. 
  In 
  Juno, 
  July, 
  August, 
  and 
  September 
  it 
  takes 
  

   place 
  only 
  in 
  the 
  afternoon, 
  the 
  water 
  being 
  too 
  cold 
  in 
  the 
  morning. 
  

  

  Exhaustion 
  of 
  the 
  Tuamotu 
  lagoons. 
  — 
  After 
  my 
  arrival 
  in 
  the 
  Tua- 
  

   motu 
  Islands 
  my 
  first 
  care 
  was 
  to 
  make 
  an 
  investigation 
  of 
  the 
  condi- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  the 
  waters, 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  ascertain 
  if 
  what 
  has 
  been 
  said 
  regarding 
  

   the 
  gradual 
  exhaustion 
  of 
  the 
  lagoons 
  was 
  exaggerated: 
  in 
  other 
  

   words, 
  whether 
  the 
  Tuamotu 
  Islands 
  were 
  threatened 
  with 
  approach- 
  

   ing 
  ruin. 
  The 
  danger 
  is, 
  I 
  am 
  sorry 
  to 
  say, 
  only 
  too 
  real. 
  The 
  lagoons 
  

   become 
  poorer 
  in 
  oysters 
  every 
  day, 
  and 
  the 
  time 
  has 
  come 
  for 
  taking 
  

   energetic 
  measures 
  if 
  their 
  complete 
  exhaustion 
  is 
  to 
  be 
  prevented. 
  

   This 
  state 
  of 
  affairs 
  is 
  not 
  of 
  recent 
  date. 
  M. 
  de 
  Bovis, 
  in 
  his 
  work 
  on 
  

   the 
  colony 
  of 
  Tahiti, 
  urged 
  as 
  far 
  back 
  as 
  18G3 
  that 
  the 
  fisheries 
  in 
  this 
  

   archipelago 
  should 
  be 
  protected, 
  and 
  expressed 
  the 
  fear 
  that 
  sooner 
  or 
  

   later 
  the 
  lagoons 
  would 
  become 
  entirely 
  exhausted. 
  Later, 
  Mr. 
  Mariot 
  

   called 
  attention 
  to 
  the 
  constantly-increasing 
  gravity 
  of 
  the 
  situation, 
  

   and 
  did 
  not 
  hesitate 
  to 
  predict 
  that 
  if 
  no 
  measures 
  were 
  taken 
  to 
  check 
  

   the 
  progress 
  of 
  the 
  evil 
  the 
  pearl-oysters 
  would 
  soou 
  become 
  entirely 
  

   exterminated. 
  

  

  The 
  divers 
  all 
  agree 
  that 
  mother-of-pearl 
  is 
  constantly 
  becoming 
  

   more 
  scarce; 
  that 
  large 
  oysters 
  are 
  found 
  only 
  in 
  exceptional 
  cases, 
  

   aud 
  that 
  even 
  oysters 
  which 
  are 
  barely 
  salable, 
  namely, 
  those 
  measur- 
  

   ing 
  about 
  7 
  inches, 
  are 
  found 
  only 
  at 
  a 
  great 
  depth, 
  while 
  formerly 
  

   they 
  were 
  found 
  even 
  close 
  to 
  the 
  shore. 
  Those 
  times 
  have 
  passed 
  when 
  

   vessels, 
  carrying 
  seventeen 
  divers, 
  could 
  gather 
  in 
  less 
  than 
  a 
  year, 
  near 
  

   the 
  island 
  of 
  Tikahau, 
  120 
  tons 
  of 
  mother-of-pearl. 
  Mother-of-pearl, 
  

   as 
  it 
  has 
  become 
  scarcer, 
  has 
  also 
  become 
  dearer. 
  According 
  to 
  Mr. 
  

   Mariot 
  the 
  kilogram 
  was 
  worth, 
  in 
  1873, 
  from 
  30 
  to 
  GO 
  centimes,* 
  but 
  

   about 
  1 
  franc 
  iu 
  1875. 
  At 
  the 
  present 
  time 
  it 
  sells 
  at 
  Tuamotu 
  at 
  1 
  

   franc 
  75 
  centimes 
  to 
  2 
  francs 
  25 
  centimes 
  per 
  kilogram. 
  t 
  

  

  * 
  100 
  centimes=l 
  franc=|0. 
  193. 
  

  

  tThis 
  is 
  the 
  nominal 
  value. 
  By 
  paying 
  part 
  in 
  goods 
  and 
  part 
  in 
  Chilian 
  dollars, 
  

   these 
  prices, 
  hoth 
  thoso 
  of 
  1873 
  and 
  1875, 
  and 
  those 
  of 
  1884, 
  should 
  be 
  reduced 
  one- 
  

   third 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  be 
  brought 
  to 
  their 
  exact 
  proportions. 
  

  

  