FISHERY RESOURCES OF THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS. 89 



is of the shell alone ; that of the pearls secured during this time is 

 unknown, but doubtless it amounted to several thousand pesos. 



No export duty is charged on shell, but wharfage to the amount of 

 1..50 pesos per ton is collected. 



The price of shell at the present time is from 60 to 100 pesos per picul 

 for those of the first class of the gold lip variety, and about 30 pesos per 

 picul for the black lip variety. The picul is counted at 63.3 kilograms 

 (139.5 pounds, 16 piculs to the ton) . Almost all the shell is sent either to 

 Singapore or to Europe. There is one button factory located in Manila 

 which has a capacity, when running constantly, of about 6,000 gross per 

 jjTonth, requiring aboiit 300 tons of shell per year; otherwise, all the shell 

 is exported. 



During the past year about 56 tons of shell were taken from the Davao 

 pearl bed. These were of very large size and first class in every respect. 

 They gave a very small yield of pearls, the value of which was probably 

 not more than 6,000 pesos. Some very beautiful pearls are to be found in 

 the Sulu fisheries, and it was my pleasure to examine two of these, each 

 valued at 5,000 pesos, secured from this region during the past year. 



Almost all the fishing for pearl oysters is carried on by the use of 

 diving armor, in water of from 15 to 20 fathoms. Shells are occasionally 

 found in shallower water, but in such cases naked Moros usually dive for 

 them, or they are secured by a primitive rake-dredge worked by a rattan 

 line from a native canoe and which can be used only in smooth water. 

 The natives frequently soak dry shell in water for several days before it 

 is sold, in order to increase the weight; and I have seen Chinese and 

 other middlemen doing the same thing. The shells are usually opened 

 on the boats and all the pearls extracted soon after the oysters are 

 brought up. 



THE PEAELING FLEET.* 



At present about 30 vessels are engaged in pearling in the Sulu 

 Archipelago. These boats range from 5 to 15 tons, and usually carry a 

 crew of seven men, including the diver. All boats with armored divers 



' The following boats constituted the Zamboanga pearling fleet for the year 

 1908: Sirena and Nautilus, owned by J. F. Maddy; Cleopatra, Galatea, and 

 Maritima, owned by J. Wilson; loenix and Placido Reyes, owned by the Cebu 

 Pearling Company; Mitm, Burtandy, Ida, and Manny, owned by Capt. Chas. 

 Linberg; Paragua, Zamboanga, and Sapit, owned by G. W. Langford; Alice 

 Holmes, Rosario, and Olinga, owned by Mr. Holmes; Mindanao, owned by Mr. 

 Teck ; Pruno, owned by V. Sision. All of these boats carried on more or less active 

 operations during the past year. 



The Jolo pearling fleet is composed of the following boats : Victoria, Helena, 

 Santa Maria, and Elisabet, owned by Ong Tiam Teng; Almosouth, owned by Hadji 

 Abubacal; King of Spades, owned by Richard H. Gibbs; Ramon, owned by Her- 

 nandes &. Co.; and Alfonso and Nena, owned by Asing. 



