Pearls and the Pearl Fisheries, 419 



boats along the entire coast, each boat containing from 

 10, 20, to 32 men. Of the above number of boats about 

 1 500 will belong to Bahrein. 



A large number of the boats employed in the Persian 

 G^ulf fishery are in the hands of pearl merchants, whether 

 Hindoo or other, who reside in the towns of the littoral, 

 rhese agents make advances of moneys to the divers during 

 :he non-diving season. As a rule, the diving may be in 

 Abater of four to seven fathoms in depth. The crew is told 

 )fif into divers and rope-holders, the former diving, while 

 :he latter keep the boat and stand by to haul the diver up. 



The value of the Persian Gulf fishery has been usually 

 estimated at ^^400,000 a-year. Lieutenant Whitelocke, 

 Lieutenant Wellsted, and other well-informed authorities, 

 ^ive this amount, and Colonel Pelly confirms it recently ; 

 'or he says the annual out-turn of this pearl fishery is 

 issumed to be as follows : — The Bahrein pearl divers, 

 ^200,000 ; divers from the Arab littoral of the Persian Gulf, 

 others than Bahrein, ;^200,ooo ; total, ;^400,ooo. The great 

 Dulk of the best pearls is sent to the Bombay market, 

 Adhere fancy prices are often given for good pearls. A large 

 lumber of pearls is sent towards Bagdad. As a rule, 

 ;he Bombay market seeks the pearl of yellowish hue and 

 Derfect sphericity ; while the Bagdad market prefers the 

 A^hite pearl. The small seed-pearls go principally to Bag- 

 dad also. The value of the pearls imported into Bagdad 

 Vom Bahrein was, in 1865, about 30,000; in 1 866,;^ 2 5, 000 ; 

 n 1 867, 1 8,000 ; but in the two following years the annual 

 mports did not average 8,000. 



The next fishery of any importance is in Central 

 America, on the Atlantic and Pacific sides ; but even here, 

 Vom over-fishing, the pearls have become exhausted, the 

 oysters not being allowed to reach maturity. 



