The American Pearl Fisheries. 223 



Columbian discovery of the New World — long before 

 the written history of America begins — the ancient 

 inhabitants who built the huge mounds that are so 

 widely spread through the Mississippi Valley, were 

 in the habit of collecting and treasuring Pearls. 

 Messrs Squier and Davis, the explorers of so many 

 of these pre-historic tumuli, discovered in some of 

 the Ohio mounds great numbers of Pearls that had 

 been perforated for use as beads, but were rendered 

 friable by the partial calcination to which they had 

 been subjected on the hearths of the ancient mounds. 

 The explorers were led to believe that most of 

 these beads were not fresh-water Pearls, derived 

 from the neighbouring rivers, but w^ere true marine 

 Pearls which must have been obtained, directly or 

 indirectly, from the sea coast. 



When Columbus visited for the first time some 

 of the islands in the Gulf of Mexico, he found the 

 natives fishing for Pearls, which they used as beads 

 for necklaces. It is curious to note that the views 

 of the Indians as to the origin of Pearls, were 

 identical with those which obtained for ages such 

 wide credence in the old world ; and which have 

 been set forth in the early chapters of this work. 

 The Indians of America regarded them, in fact, as 

 congealed dew-drops, which had been caught by the 

 gaping oysters. 



During one of the expeditions of Ferdinand 



