62 Pearls. 



recognized. This idea too is immortalized in those 

 farniliar lines of Shakespeare — 



" Sweet are the uses of adversity, 

 Which, like the toad, ugly and venomous, 

 Wears yet a precious jewel in his head." 



That this superstition had its origin in India 

 there can be Httle doubt, though in later times the 

 right of the Pearl to this place of honor has been 

 called in question, and the rival claims of Amber, 

 and other precious substances, have each found 

 their respective supporters. 



It is worth noting that in the Malay Archipelago 

 certain Pearls are said to be found in Cocoa-nuts. 

 They are of a light yellow colour, generally of the 

 size of a small marble, and it is difficult to distinguish 

 them from ivory, or from the yellow porcellanous 

 Pearls that are produced probably by some uni -valve 

 mollusc, and often seen in the East. 



These Pearls, reputed to have had their birth 

 in cocoa-nuts, are frequently offered for sale by 

 the natives ; and Europeans are occasionally tempted 

 to purchase them at high prices. 



According to Chinese tradition, the origin of 

 certain Pearls may be referred to animals which 

 would hardly be classed by zoologists as true 

 Pearl-producers. 



By far the most ancient work that is known, 



