LEST ER. Ly... 
PEARLS. 
To * * & *¥ 
WE now pass on to a very different portion of our 
subject, and have solely to consider the formation of 
the Pearl, the “‘ Margaron,” or globe of light, from 
which, and the Persian name Mervarid, that is, the 
offspring of light, was derived ‘‘ Margarites,” the 
appellation in southern Kurope. 
Neither ancient nor modern naturalists have ac- 
counted satisfactorily for the formation of this valu- 
able gem. Pliny, and after him Solinus, struck with 
its similarity to a drop of dew, imagined that the 
Pearl Oyster rose every morning to the surface of the 
water, and expanded its shell to imbibe the dew of 
heaven, which silently descending like a liquid pearl, 
entered the body of the creature, and assumed the 
