EASTERN HINDOOSTAN. 



or about half-a-crown each, they abitain from fifliing that 

 year. 



The barks are protedted by two or three Dutch frigates, and 

 pay to that nation for every diver, or, as it is reckoned, accord- 

 ing to he Britn, ii. 84, for every llone, which, being faftened 

 to the foot of the diver, to accelerate his defcent, eight piafters. 

 The fleet of barks fometimes amounts to hundreds. A cord 

 is faftened under the arms of the divers, and held by the 

 perfons in the veffels ; the ftone, of eighteen or twenty pounds 

 weight, perforated and faftened to a cord, is fixed to his great 

 toe ; he is alfo furniflied with a fack, with the mouth diftended 

 with a hoop : he then defcends, and on reaching the bottom, 

 flips off the ftone, which is drawn up to the fnrfare, and 

 begins to fill his fack with the fhells. That done, he gives a 

 lignal by twitching the rope, and then he is pulled up by his 

 comrades*. The water he dives in is ufually of the depth of 

 twelve fathoms, and the diftance from the fliore four or five 

 leagues. When he is drawn up, he ufually ftays half a quarter 

 of an hour to take breath, then plunges again ; and a fuc- 

 cefTion of them continue this flavifti employ for ten or twelve 

 hours of the day : the ftiells are left in vaft heaps to putrify till 

 the feafon is entirely over. The gains of adventurers in the 

 pearl filTiery are very fmall, as the fuccefs is precarious. It is not 

 often that great pearls are taken, generally they are of tlie fmall 

 kind, what are called feed pearls, which are fold by the ounce, 

 to be converted into powder. 



The fliells are found adhering to the coral banks. Numbers 



* Sec Frontifpiece ii. to de Favanne's Conchyliogic. 



B 2 of 



