﻿18 
  MUSSELS 
  OF 
  CENTRAL 
  AND 
  NORTHEEN 
  MINNESOTA. 
  

  

  QUALITY 
  OF 
  SHELLS. 
  

  

  The 
  Lampsilis 
  or 
  mucket 
  group 
  are 
  the 
  only 
  mussels 
  in 
  this 
  drainage 
  

   that 
  possess 
  any 
  commercial 
  value. 
  While 
  the 
  pocketbook 
  docs 
  not 
  

   attain 
  the 
  size 
  or 
  the 
  quality 
  of 
  those 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  Shell 
  Kiver, 
  and 
  

   the 
  fat 
  mucket 
  is 
  not 
  as 
  thick 
  at 
  those 
  found 
  in 
  Snake 
  River 
  and 
  Pokeg:- 
  

   ama 
  Lake, 
  yet 
  on 
  the 
  whole 
  the 
  shells 
  are 
  of 
  medium 
  size 
  and 
  good 
  

   quality. 
  They 
  are 
  very 
  plentiful 
  in 
  many 
  places; 
  at 
  the 
  outlet 
  of 
  

   Lake 
  Bemidji 
  3 
  tons 
  were 
  obtained 
  in 
  one 
  week 
  from 
  a 
  space 
  only 
  

   a 
  few 
  rods 
  in 
  length. 
  These 
  mussels 
  are 
  like 
  those 
  in 
  the 
  Shell 
  River, 
  

   in 
  that 
  they 
  are 
  buried 
  deep. 
  The 
  man 
  who 
  collected 
  them 
  told 
  us 
  

   that 
  he 
  dug 
  down 
  into 
  the 
  sandy 
  bottom 
  2 
  and 
  3 
  feet 
  for 
  them 
  and 
  

   found 
  them 
  nearly 
  as 
  thick 
  as 
  they 
  could 
  lie. 
  

  

  The 
  shells 
  were 
  remarkable 
  for 
  the 
  small 
  size 
  of 
  the 
  cardinal 
  teeth, 
  

   indeed 
  a 
  few 
  valves 
  were 
  found 
  entirely 
  destitute 
  of 
  teeth. 
  

  

  Another 
  excellent 
  locality 
  is 
  up 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  above 
  Lake 
  Irving. 
  

   The 
  conditions 
  here 
  are 
  excellent 
  and 
  several 
  carloads 
  of 
  shells 
  could 
  

   easily 
  be 
  obtained. 
  The 
  Schoolcraft 
  River 
  comes 
  into 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  

   here 
  from 
  Lakes 
  Marquette 
  and 
  Plantagenet 
  and 
  both 
  the 
  river 
  and 
  

   the 
  lakes 
  are 
  reported 
  to 
  be 
  full 
  of 
  good 
  mussels. 
  

  

  The 
  black 
  sand-shells 
  throughout 
  this 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  

   have 
  the 
  hinge 
  margin 
  very 
  strongly 
  curved 
  like 
  those 
  already 
  de- 
  

   scribed 
  from 
  the 
  Red 
  River 
  and 
  the 
  Crow 
  Wing 
  drainage. 
  

  

  The 
  fat 
  muckets 
  here 
  are 
  not 
  thickened 
  like 
  the 
  shells 
  from 
  Pokeg- 
  

   ama 
  Lake, 
  Pine 
  County, 
  and 
  many 
  of 
  them 
  are 
  dwarfed 
  after 
  the 
  

   manner 
  of 
  ordinary 
  lake 
  shells. 
  In 
  addition, 
  those 
  from 
  Wolf 
  Lake 
  

   proved 
  to 
  be 
  chalky 
  and 
  brittle 
  when 
  tested 
  for 
  button 
  making, 
  but 
  

   those 
  above 
  Lake 
  Bemidji 
  were 
  of 
  medium 
  size 
  and 
  furnished 
  good 
  

   button 
  material. 
  

  

  The 
  Anodontas 
  form 
  but 
  a 
  very 
  small 
  percentage 
  of 
  the 
  mussel 
  

   fauna, 
  nearly 
  all 
  the 
  shells 
  seen 
  being 
  some 
  form 
  of 
  Lampsilis. 
  The 
  

   mussels 
  in 
  this 
  region 
  would 
  all 
  be 
  obtained 
  with 
  a 
  fork 
  or 
  a 
  rake; 
  

   there 
  is 
  no 
  locality 
  where 
  the 
  water 
  is 
  deep 
  enough 
  to 
  use 
  a 
  crowfoot 
  

   dredge. 
  

  

  PEARLS. 
  

  

  Quite 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  pearls 
  and 
  slugs 
  have 
  been 
  obtained 
  by 
  pro- 
  

   fessional 
  pearlers, 
  especially 
  in 
  the 
  region 
  about 
  Bemidji. 
  One 
  beauti- 
  

   fully 
  colored 
  pearl 
  as 
  large 
  as 
  a 
  hazelnut 
  had 
  been 
  purchased 
  by 
  a 
  

   firm 
  of 
  jewelers 
  in 
  Bemidji 
  just 
  before 
  our 
  arrival 
  there 
  and 
  was 
  

   valued 
  at 
  $200. 
  It 
  weighed 
  21 
  grains, 
  but 
  had 
  a 
  slight 
  blemish 
  on 
  

   one 
  side. 
  Some 
  pearling 
  has 
  also 
  been 
  done 
  in 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  below 
  

   the 
  power 
  dam, 
  which 
  is 
  situated 
  11 
  miles 
  down 
  the 
  river 
  from 
  Lake 
  

   Bemidji. 
  One 
  pearl 
  found 
  here 
  in 
  July, 
  1912, 
  was 
  valued 
  at 
  $300. 
  

   There 
  was 
  also 
  a 
  display 
  of 
  pearls 
  and 
  slugs 
  and 
  manufactured 
  

  

  