PEARL FISHING. 77 



Meleagrinse furnish the greatest quantity and yield the mosf 

 beautiful pearls. 



17. The chief pearl fisheries are in the Gulf of Manaar on the 

 coast of Ceylon, in the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Panama, and 

 on the coast of California ; but there are banks of Meleiigrinae 

 (pearl oysters) in many other localities, such as the coasts of 

 Japan, Cumana, &c. To obtain these precious mollusks, men 

 accustomed to the exercise dive to the bottom of the sea and 

 collect them at depths of from twenty to fifty feet. To accel- 

 erate his descent the diver seizes a stone (weighing from 15 to 

 25 pounds) with his toes, and on reaching the bottom he aban- 

 dons the diving stone (which is drawn up by attendants in the 

 boat, to be prepared to take him down again), clings to the 

 ground, and begins to fill a net which he carries down with him 

 for the purpose. When, from the necessity of breathing or fear 

 of sharks, he wishes to ascend, he checks the cord of the net, 

 which is instantly felt by the attendants, who commence pulling 

 up as fast as they are able ; the diver remains with the net until 

 it is so far clear of the bottom as to be in no danger of upsetting, 

 and then commences hauling himself up by the cord (hand 

 over hand), which his attendants are likewise pulling; when by 

 these measures his body has acquired an impetus upwards, he 

 forsakes the cord and rapidly ascends to the surface, swims to 

 his diving stone, and by the time the contents of his net have 

 been emptied into the boat, he is ready to go down again. One 

 diver will take up in a day from one to four thousand oysters. 

 The diver seldom exceeds a minute under water; the more 

 common time is from 53 to 57 seconds. In order that the banks 

 may not be devastated, they are under regulation, and it is sup- 

 posed that seven years are required for the oyster to attain its 

 full size. At Ceylon the fishing season lasts from the middle of 

 February to the end of March. 



" During this period, the shores of Arippo are enlivened by crowds of 

 people from all parts of the country ; divers, boat-owners, speculators, and 

 the curious, assemble to behold 



' Pale glistening pearls, and rainbow-colour'd shells,' 



while the lapidary attends with his wooden stand and bow, to drill the 

 pearls and fit them to be strung-, so soon as they are got out of the 

 oyster, which, according 1 to all accounts, is a tedious and rather disgusting 

 operation. The oysters are put into pens, and there left until the animal 

 matter becomes softened by putrefaction, when it is subjected to frequent 

 washings, and the pearls shine forth, emblems of purity in the loathsome 

 mass. Some are of a bluish, some of a yellowish, and some of a whitish 

 lustre; each class finds a ready market among its admirers; in the East, 

 the bluish and yellowish varieties are most prized, but in the eyes of the 

 Christian fair the pure white shines brightest." Ruschenberger''s Voyage 

 round the World. 



17. How are pearls obtained ? 



7* 2X 



