River Pearls; British and Foreign. 257 



preventing the secretion of good nacre, or killing 

 them, according as the quantity may be great 

 or small. 



In November the shells are carefully collected 

 by the hand, the muscular portion removed, and 

 the Pearls detached by a sharp knife. If the basis 

 of the Pearl be of nacre it is not removed, but the 

 earthen and metallic matrices are cut away, melted 

 yellow resin poured into the cavity, and the orifice 

 artfully covered by a piece of Mother-of-Pearl. 

 In this state these more than semi-orbicular pearly 

 pellicles have much of the lustre and beauty of 

 the solid gem, and are furnished at a rate so cheap 

 as to be procurable by all who care to possess them : 

 they are generally purchased by jewellers and others, 

 who set them in tiaras, circlets, and various or- 

 naments of female attire. Those formed on the 

 image of Buddha, are finished in the same manner, 

 and are used as ornaments and amulets on the 

 caps of young children. A few shells are retained 

 with their adhering Pearls, for sale to the curious 

 or superstitious, specimens of which have by this 

 time found their way into the principal public and 

 private cabinets of Europe and America. They are 

 generally about 7 inches long and 5 broad ; con- 

 taining a double or triple row of Pearls or images ; 



as many as 25 of the former and 16 of the latter 



R 



