768 MOLLUSCA—PEARL OYSTER. 
in America and Asia. The chief of these is carried on in the Persian gul? 
and at Ceylon. 
The wretched people that are destined to fish for pearls, are either negioes 
or some of the poorest of the natives of Persia. The divers are not only 
subject to the dangers of the deep, to tempests, to suffocation at the bottom, 
to being devoured by sharks, but, from their profession, universally labor un- 
der a spitting of blood, occasioned by the pressure of air upon their lungs in 
going down to the bottom. The most robust and healthy young men are 
chosen for this employment; but they seldom survive it above five or six 
years. Their fibres become rigid; their eyeballs turn red; and they usually 
die consumptive. 
It is amazing how very long they are seen to continue at the bottom. 
Some, as we are assured, have been known to continue three quarters of an 
hour under water without breathing; and to one unused to diving, ten 
minutes would suffocate the strongest. They fish for pearls, or rather the 
oysters that contain them, in boats twenty-eight feet long; and of these 
there are sometimes three or four hundred at a time, with each seven or 
eight stones which serve for anchors. There are from five to eight divers 
belonging to each, that dive one after another. They are quite naked, ex- 
cept that they have a net hanging down from the neck to put their oysters 
in, and gloves on their hands to defend them while they pick the oysters 
from the holes in the rocks; for in this manner alone can they be gathered. 
Ivery diver is sunk by means of a stone, weighing fifty pounds, tied to the 
rope, by which he descends. He places his foot in a kind of stirrup, and 
laying hold of the rope with his left hand, with his right he stops his 
nose to keef in his breath, as upon going down he takes in a very long in- 
spiration. They are no sooner come to the bottom, but they give the signal 
to those who are in the boat to draw up the stone; which done, they go to 
work filling their nets as fast as they can; and then giving another signal, 
the boats above pull up the net loaded with oysters, and shortly after the diver 
himself to take a new inspiration. ‘They dive to the depth of fifteen fathoms, 
and seldom go deeper. They generally go every morning by break of day 
to this fatiguing employment, taking the land-wind to waft them out to sea, 
and returning with the sea-breeze at night. The owners of the boats usual- 
ly hire the divers, and rest of the boat’s crew, as we do our laborers, at so 
much a day. All the oysters are brought on shore, where they are laid ina 
great heap, till the pearl fishery is over, which continues during the months 
of November and December. When opportunity serves, they examine 
every oyster; and it is accidental whether the capture turns out ade 
vantageous. 
