Marine and Fresh-water Animals in Japan 531 



6 feet. This is necessary to protect them 

 from cold, from the effects of which they 

 are apt to die in the course of winter if 

 left in the original places. The young 

 shells are then left quietly and allowed 

 to grow for three years, or, better, some 

 may be removed to deeper waters and 

 where they are given more space and get 

 more food, and grow better. At the end 

 of three years, when they are about 5 to 6 

 cm. across, they are taken out of the 

 water and the operations necessary for 

 inducing them to produce pearls — that 

 is, of putting in nuclei for pearls — are 

 performed on them. At present the num- 

 ber thus operated on in a year is only 

 250,000 to 300,000. They are then put 

 back in the sea and spread out at the rate 

 of about 30 to every tsubo (6 feet 

 square), and are left alone for four years 

 more. At the end of that time, or seven 

 years and a half from the beginning, 

 they are taken out of the water and 

 opened. Natural pearls, as well as "cul- 

 ture pearls," as I have named those pro- 

 duced from the introduced nuclei, are 

 thus harvested and put on the market. 



As in all culture enterprises, there are 

 many enemies of the pearl oyster, as well 

 as unexpected difficulties in the way of 

 its culture. Octopus, Codium, Clione 

 (sponges), all sometimes play a sad 

 havoc among the mollusks, but the most 

 dreaded enemy of all is the "red current" 

 or "red tide." This is an immense ac- 

 cumulation of a Dinoflagellata, Gonyau- 

 lax, causing discoloration of the sea 

 water, and, in some way not well ac- 

 counted for, causing in its wake an im- 

 mense destruction of marine organisms, 

 large and small. 



The "culture pearls" are, I regret to 

 say, either half pearls or only a little 

 more than half pearls, but as regards 

 luster, shape, and size, they are beautiful 

 beyond expectations, and meet the re- 

 quirements completely in cases where 

 only half pearls are needed. 



Pearl-oyster culture is still in its in- 

 fancy, but its promises are bright. If, 

 in addition to half pearls, full or "free" 

 pearls can be produced at will, as there 

 are some hopes, it will be a great triumph 

 for applied zoology. 



THE LUMBER BUSINESS OF THE 

 GOVERNMENT 



A NATURAL feeling among lum- 

 bermen toward the forest work of 

 the government is that the government is 

 not in the lumber business and can not, 

 therefore, take the lumberman's business 

 point of view. Yet a greater misconcep- 

 tion could scarcely exist. As a dealer 

 in stumpage, the government is the 

 largest lumber dealer in the country. 

 Further, it applies to its sales the prac- 

 tice of scientific forestry, requiring the 

 removal of the timber under the same 

 sort of instructions which it advises for 

 private operators. Thus the Forest 

 Service, in its reserve work, is giving an 

 object lesson on a huge scale to enforce 

 its teachings that conservative manage- 

 ment and profit may go hand in hand. 

 In the year 1905 the total sales reached 

 a value of $273,659.82. 



The restrictions governing the timber 

 sales, while effective, are simple. Appli- 

 cation is made to the local officer in 

 charge of the reserve from which the 

 timber is desired, who executes small 

 sales on the ground. In case of large 

 sales, the application is forwarded to the 

 Forest Service, from which the adver- 

 tisement of the sale is made. Applicants 

 for timber are required to send sealed 

 bids to the Forest Service. Small bid- 

 ders enjoy exactly equal opportunities 

 with large, and monopolization is effect- 

 ually forestalled. The highest bid fixes 

 the price. Should the first applicant de- 

 sire to begin cutting immediately he may 

 (except in California) do so, on condi- 

 tion that he pay in advance, at a price 

 already fixed by the Forest Service, and 

 that he obligate himself to pay the full 

 amount named in the highest bid. Thus 

 delav is avoided and the °overnment is 



