THE PEARL FISHERIES OF CEYLON 
177 
tractive and unfortunate victims 
of their religion and caste ; here 
are Kandyans from the hill coun- 
try and outcast Veddahs ; here are 
native - born Dutch, Portuguese, 
and half-breeds, all mingling with 
Arabs, Chinese, and the scum and 
riff-raff of the mainland of Asia. 
It can readily be understood 
that the pearl town is a place of 
intense activity from the moment 
the government agent opens the 
fishery. The extensive business 
connected with the mere existence 
of the people would alone be suffi- 
cient to give great bustle and life ; 
but added to this are the special 
industries dependent on the vari- 
ous phases of the pearl fishery. 
As soon as the fishery is over, 
the entire place seems to dissolve 
in a day as if by magic, the people 
hurry to their homes, the pearl 
town lapses again into a solitary 
sandy waste, and the beasts of the 
jungle take possession. Marich- 
chukaddi may spring into being 
the next season, but may remain 
non-existent for many years. 
THK dive;rs, their boats and 
me;thods 
Four distinct racial types are 
represented among the divers who 
are attracted to the pearl town 
when a fishery is announced, and 
all of these and several others 
congregate on shore to supply the 
needs of the vessel crews. There 
are Tamils, most of whom come 
from the coast of the Madras 
presidency ; Moormen, who are 
chiefly drafted from villages on 
the Madura coast of the same 
state ; Malays from the southern 
part of the Malabar coast, and 
Arabs, mostly recruited from Co- 
lombo and Jaffna. The Tamils 
and the Moormen are the most 
numerous, usually representing 
about four - fifths of the total 
number ; the Arabs are the least 
numerous, but are the most pro- 
ficient as fishermen. 
There is no particular style of 
