LAWS FOR PEARL HUNTERS 69 



been open and open another section to the pearl hunters 

 for a year, allowing three or more years as a closed sea- 

 son for the sections that are to be rested and restocked. 

 The duration of the closed seasons would necessarily 

 depend upon the kinds of marketable mussels that are 

 most common in the vicinity and the time required for 

 such mussels to grow to marketable size. In restocking 

 streams, the States should select a vanety of unio that 

 will thrive and mature rapidly in the locality, and that 

 will be a good pearl producer, and have a lustrous white 

 nacre and be good for button material without much 

 waste. In this method of restocking streams it will be 

 necessary to consider the interests of the pearl hunters. 

 Many of them cannot go far from their homes without 

 considerable inconvenience and expense, so the rivers 

 should be divided into small sections in order to allow 

 pearl hunters to work near their homes if it is possible to 

 do so. In order to maintain this kind of a law, the States 

 would probably need special mussel boats and men to re- 

 stock the depleted streams, or portions of streams and at- 

 tend to other things relating to the work. 



In addition to the suggestions regarding the laws, there 

 are some recommendations that might properly be in 

 order here. 



It seems that the Government should encourage mussel 

 farming and pearl culture. There may be some who 

 desire to raise mussels either for the market or for the 

 pearls, and who have suitable lakes, ponds, or streams 

 for the purpose. To such people the States should sup- 

 ply, free of all charges, fish that are infected with glo- 



