THE BOOK ABOUT THE SEA GARDENS 



are then ready for the market. The natural 

 colour of the sponge so prepared is the colour of 

 the Nassau sponges a dull-brown yellow, as a 

 rule. Those which are pale yellow have been 

 chemically bleached, and while the process does 

 not do much harm, they are certainly less durable 

 than those which are not so treated. No sponges 

 in Nassau are bleached, and beyond a rough clip- 

 ping undergo no other kind of preparation. 



There are seven varieties of sponges that are 

 commercially valuable, namely: 



I. The Wool, in two grades bar wool and mud 

 wool. The best wool sponges come from Abaco, 

 but the best Bahamian wool sponges are consid- 

 ered inferior to the best from Cuba and Florida. 



II. The Velvet, in two grades hard back and 

 cay velvet. Here again the Abaco velvet sponges 

 are considered the best, superior not only to those 

 of Cuba and Tarpon Springs, but also those from 

 the Mediterranean and elsewhere. 



III. The Reef sponge. 



IV. The Fine Hardhead sponge. 

 V. The Yellow sponge. 



VI. The Grass sponge, which though large, 

 holds little water and is not very durable. 



VII. The Glove sponge. 



Besides these there are the Bastard Grass 

 sponge, the Key West sponge, and the Wire 

 sponge. 



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