140 PEARLS AND PEARLING 



Peoria, Illinois, bought the fork from Mr. Platt and has 

 been using it on the Wabash and Illinois Rivers. 



It has been used continuously since it was purchased 

 in Linxville, and the tines are now badly worn under the 

 basket part of the fork. 



The forks are used generally to load or move shells, 

 but in times of low water they are used in a method of 

 shell gathering which is commonly known as "short fork- 

 ing." In this method the pearl hunter stands in the 

 warm water, which is usually up to his waist, and uses 

 the fork in almost the same manner a spade is used, un- 

 less the rocks are too great a hindrance. As soon as the 

 fork contains some shells they are lifted out of the water 

 and the stones and trash are taken out of the fork, and 

 the mussels are thrown into the boat. " Short-forking" is 

 generally done in July and August, or in the early part of 

 September, and although the season for this work is very 

 short in almost any locality, it is a very profitable method. 

 In new beds it is possible to load a boat in a very short 

 time. Occasionally in the older fisheries a pearl hunter 

 finds a new mussel bed and is able to load several boats 

 and hide them by sinking them in the shallow water by 

 the side of a good mark near the shore before the others 

 have learned that a new mussel bed has been discovered. 

 As a rule, however, the men find the new places without 

 much delay. If a pearl hunter stays very long in a new 

 location, some one will stop to see if shells are plentiful. 



Another use of the fork is in the method known as 

 "long- forking," which is also called "shoulder- forking" 

 in some localities. In this method the fork is attached 



