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I think some choice pieces I have seen far surpass the pearl itself in beauty, the combination 

 of the lustre of the pale green and pink shades being perfect. The material itself seems to me 

 admirably adapted for such a purpose, particularly if set with artistic skill in a very light and 

 delicate setting. Here again the savages seem to have observed its beauty and made use of it ; 

 but they seem to have used often that taken from the haliotis shell, perhaps better known as 

 Venus's ear, but which generally I think is too strong in colouring and lacks the delicacy in 

 shading so conspicuous in that which can be procured from some other shells. The lovely 

 play of colour in the opal and mother-of-pearl sometimes reminds me of the partly clouded 

 morning or evening sky, which is never by any accident seen twice exactly alike, the variety 

 of shades of colour being infinite. 



When gold was, comparatively speaking, a rare commodity, one does not wonder that it was 

 used heavily for personal adornment, but at the present time one would think those who have 

 good taste would use it sparingly, and only when by good artistic skill it was worked into devices 

 not easily copied. The great charm I think should be to have such things as are unique of 

 their kind, and not merely massive gold ornaments made by the thousand it may be, and these 

 often apparently used to show the weight of what is called precious metal in the possession 

 of the wearer. How curious it is when we consider what fashion is, and the relative value of 

 things ; probably a South Sea Island woman would feel prouder with the possession of a neck- 

 lace of various coloured glass beads than any English noblewoman would, who owned the finest 

 pearl necklace in the kingdom; or perhaps a Greenlander if he had his choice of a bar of 

 gold, or one of copper, or iron, he would choose the latter. 



