Sept. 1, 1902.] THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST, 177 
murders committed among themselves, thougli 
details of such occurrences rarely reach the out- 
side world. The white members of tlie community 
are small iu numbers, and totally un- 
able to cope with any serious disturbance that 
might arise ; and, besides, they are mainly res- 
ponsible for the demoniacal state of afiairs usually 
existing. With one or cwo notaide exceptions, 
the master pearler, be he captain of a schooner or 
lugger, does not remain on shore at this settle- 
ment any longer than is necessary tor him to 
tran-act his business and engage his crews for 
the season, for any trip he may be comtemplating. 
These exceptions, and one of them is very notori- 
ously notable indeed, run the vile beer saloons, or 
"stagger juice factories," as they are often called, 
for the nature of the fluid vended is villainous 
in the extreme. 
A TWO MASTRD PEARLING LUGGER. 
Tne pearling Ivgsrer is a small two-masted 
craft, or schooner, varying from 30 to 35 feet in 
length, and having a beam of about twelve feet. 
It is specially peculiar in having a very low free- 
board, so low, in fact, as to render its life on 
a choppy sea somewhat precarious; but this design 
is brought about because of the heavy -weighted 
diver's inability to climb or defceuJ over a 
high gunwale without considerable assistance, 
which assistance can rarely be forthcoming, owing 
to the few men considered necessary tor the 
proper manning of such boats. At one time 
aboriginal divers were in the habit of descending 
in the shallower waters without the aid of either 
helmet or diving dress, but the numerous sharks 
and octopoda have just put an end to that practice, 
though many lives were lost before any precau- 
tion was considered necessary. The average 
depth ao which the pearl-shell beds are found 
is twelve fathoms, but now and again a rich 
strike may be made at the fifteen or even twenty 
fathoms level, though no diver cares to work for 
any time in these deeper waters, and with the 
present form of 'living-dress the pressure on the 
limbs is very severe even when but a few fatlioms 
down. It is often stated that divers occasionally 
explore the coral deeps at thirty and forty fathoms, 
but such assertions are utterly absurd and the 
writer may say with truth that a colossal fortune 
awaits the inventor of a diving dress by which the 
lower shell levels of North-\Vest Australia may 
be exploited. 
HOW PEARL DIVERS WORK. 
When above "a patch" the diver is lowered 
overboard with little ceremony, and commences his 
work when he recovers himselt at the bottom, 
after first examining the plunger line, which has 
been his sole guide in the descent, and making 
sure that it has not sagged against the myriad 
coral cups surrounding him, for he ni 'v have to 
depend his weight on this line, should uny chasms 
intervene in his course. The vessel above glides 
slowly onward with all sail furled, moving by the 
force of the various currents or the water's ripple 
only. The anchor is never used, for the pearl 
oysters are few and far between, and a score of 
yards an t more may divide each pair of shelN. 
So the diver follows below in the lugger's wake 
colleoiing his finds into a small net he carries at- 
tached to his left arm, and when this receptac'e is 
filled he s'gnals to be r used to tlie surtace, « here 
he is quickly riMievecl of his preci'ms loud. With 
luck a good diver may raise sevtral hundred- 
weight of shell in a day, but more often he has to 
be content with very much less. The owner of a 
lugger pays the diver by results, so that he is 
assured of the latter's conscientious effort, but 
sometimes days may pass without much >eturn 
when new levels are being prospected. The shell is 
a very valuable commodity, and forms indeed the 
backbone of the fascinating industry, for 
pearls are scarce, and though commanding 
fabulous prices, they would not in them- 
selves pay for the labour expended ia 
searching for theni. When it is calculated that 
mother-of-pearl is worth about £150 a ton, it is at 
once evident that the pearler pursues quite a lucra- 
tive profession even if he should never be fortunate 
enough to find a single pearl. 
PEARL HUNTING IS SOMETIMES »ANGEROUs. 
The life, as may be imagined, is one strangely 
^^traitive, but at times a eloom falls over the en- 
tire fleet when some of the luggers' crews mutiny, 
and in their fiendish rage wreak a dire vengeance 
on the one or two white men at their mercy ; for 
these coloured crews have a long simmering 
hatred against their employers, whom they judge 
by the standard of the renegade whites who, while 
dispensing their villainous intoxicants, cheat the 
poor wreiches out of their «avinga. The Ninety- 
Miles Beach, in the summer season, is a favorite 
haunt of the pearlers. This coast extends from 
Cape Bossut southwards to Pot Headland, and 
scores of luggers then make Lagrange Bay their 
headquarters instead of Broome ; and the supply 
schooners, also, rather than remain anchored at 
sea, seek the shelter of the numerous salt water 
creeks inshore, and thus they form a township of 
stranded vessels, which would strike the stranger 
as being a most peculiar sight indeed. 
A MOSQUITO-INFESTED REGION. 
It is no exaggeration to say that the mosquitoes 
of this region make one of the principal objec- 
tions to the country. A " new chum" appearing 
in their midst would be positively eaten alive. 
The air is black with them, and at. night their 
vague hum is intensified to a vicious shriek, 
wliich sounds as a, long sharp note on the quivering 
air. Even the toughest whisky sodden specimens 
of humanity cannot withstand their attacks. I 
hare known men imbibe an enormous amount of 
the afore-mentioned " stagger-juice " in order to 
remain unconscious of the "torpedoes'" onslaughts, 
but I have also seen them wake up before mid- 
night, sober as judges, cursing the torturing 
pests as only such men can. 
"THE LEGION THAT NEVER WAS 'LISTED." 
There are some very fine men engaged in the 
pearling traffic, as well as some of the worst pro- 
ducts of humanity, but the former are well in the 
majority, and by them the whole industry is in- 
fluenced. One well-known individual on the 
"grounds" at the present time is known as 
"Gentleman George." He has been for twenty 
years a self-exile from civilisation, and the pro- 
bability is that he will never return to his native 
land ; but many men with strange histories are 
encountered in the fur remote corners of our 
Empire, and such cases arouse little surprise in the 
wanderer. This man, however, leads an active and 
useful life; he w.is the pioneer of the north-west 
coast, and has ever been a reckh sa dare devil, 
feared by many, yet respected by all around. Hia 
name was given him spontaneously many years 
ago, ani he deserves his title in its true sense. — 
New Zealand Mail, Juue 26, 
