The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1866-08-03
A CHAPTER ON PEARLS.
BY AN EXPERIENCED JEwELLER.

the pearl oyster, found at great depths in the
Indian Seas. These oysters are of great size,
measuring from nine to ten inches in diameter,
and known to naturalsts as the Mdedgrjnd
Morgd,TtJeTu. The larger pearls are usually
found in the beard Of the fish, the smaller in the
flesh. The deeper the water, according to the
experience of the divers, the larger the pearls,
Pearls are composed of a series of concentrlc
layers, of a thin gelatnous membrane, alteTna-
ting with layers of carbonate of lime (speci6c
gravity 26S), and are supposed to be concre-
tons formed by disease peculiar to this species
of oyster.
Besides those known as oriental, there is a
class commonly called Scotch pearls, procured
from particular variety of mussel found in
Scotch rivers, and in other rivers of Europe as
the Moldava in Bohemia, the Conway in Wales,
etc. The Tay, near Perth, according to Mr.. Pen.
nant, produced at one time great number, the
value OF which was reckoned at several hun.
dTeds year; but the supply is now very limited
ana the pearls themselves of little value Some
however, OF agood size aud fine lustre are occa
slonally picked up here and there. Suetonius
asserts, and it will be new to many, that Julius
Cesar, great admirer of pearls, was induced
10 invade Britain, in order to secure the valuable
pearls found there. According to Pliny and
Tacitus, he brought back to Rome a buckler
covered with British pearls which he dedicated
20 venus GenetrlX, and caused 1t to be hung up
n her temple.
Besides the pearls got in the OYSTER there are
often excrescences upon the mother-oEpearl
she'll, somewhat OF the nature OF the pearl itself
sud which often assume very Irregular and gro.
fesque shapes; they are called barOques, and,
when large and fine, bring high prices One OF
the most singular OF the baroques represents
Chinese, with crossed legs, aud another has the
appearance of bearded dog; this term is also
applied to a flat or il-shaped pearl if OF con-
siderable size. When pearl shells are smooth
and regular in shape, there is less chance of
finding pearls inside, but, when deformed or dis
t'rted, they are almost sure to yield some
The richly variegated substance so well known
al mother-Of-pearl (FTench, ndcre), "dyed with
Itinbow tlnts," and beautifully opalescent, is
tie shell OF the oyster formed by the cacareous
eluvie of the fish 1t has "the brightness of
The morning, or the glo wing tnts OF the evening
sky;' in other words, the color of the prism
sotened, retained, and made permanent. The
t1est nacreous shells are those OF Manila, which
are very large and brilliant, with yellow edges
Those from Singapore are larger but of dead
wlite.
The whittier the pearl the more highly is it
yahed; not OF chalkv but OF a brilliant silvery
brightness, called orient IRON the resemblance
which this lustre has to the first faint blush of
the rising sun mnghng with the silvery clouds
lustre which cannot be impaired TO factitious
pearls, whatever resemblance they may other
wis. possess. Some pearls are so slightly
colTed as only to be detected by comparing
then with others which are perfectly white;
buta large number are decidedly yellow, others
Tavrnler mentions having seen six, weighing
together twelve hundred carats, as black as let,
but0o purchaser could then be found for them,
although blacklsh and pink pearls are now in
demand, to some extent. The whitest pearls
hap the greatest number of layers; those fished
OIL he coasts of Kurah and Congo are said TO
be Df superior color and roundness, many of
then having eight layers while those got at
OTTER tishings have sometimes only five. The
water on these coasts is too deep, unfortunately,
TO make the fishing profitable.
Pearls cannot be assisted by art; when taken
iron the shell they merely require to be drilled,
and cleaned with the dust produced by the
operuon-those not drilled are called in the
tradt virgin pearls. Some dealers try to inn
prov ll-colored pearls by boiling them in a
solution of potash, which, if it makes them
whltr, does so at the expense of their lustre
and tnacity; others bake them in bread put
into ne oven; some, again, recommend rubbing
themwith boiled salted rice, when hot 1t is
said hat, in Ceylon, "wido ws"-that is, pearls
dscoored by having been worn for a length of
tlme-are restored to their original Whteness
by beng swallow wed and retained in the stomachs
OF Ch;kens Tor few hours, until acted upon by
the astriC juice. Pearls are sized by passing
themhrough sieves OF ten different degrees of
fpenss.
Peals are extremely difficult to match, espe.
cialyhose OF large size. On this account they
were allied unio Tor single) by the Romans. 1t
may OpeaT, at hrst sight, singular that such
ditlicIty should exist; but size, shape, shades
OF COlr, and many circumstances besides, make
1t all ht impossible to make up even single
row perfectly matched pearls, jewellers
havin sometimes TO wait tor years to complete
rowontaining not more than thirty or forty,
only tlerably well matched, alter all. Before
the lp Emperor Nicholas could make out
sutticiOt number of wellmatChed pearls tor a
necklae to present to the Empress he had to
wait tentv-tive years. BY purchasing every
fine perl which came in his way and eXchang-
ing oters during that period, he at length
succeeded in laying at the feet of her Imperial
Highnss one supposed to be the finest in the
world.
Pear of good color, although badly shaped,
were Sailable Tor much of the strung pearl
work vogue about thirty years ago. out,
althOuh not altogether questionable, this class
of woI is less pstronized, at present, than 1t
was TIM. Although the use of pearls, whether
set or trung, has been on the decline for at
least tty years, their price has kept rising, not
Withsmding.
Seebearls are not sold in single rows, but so
much a ounce; they are little used in England
exceptor strung pearl work, but are more used
In Frace and other European countries, from
being orked into embroidery, The great mart
for th6ale of seed pearls is China and other
parts the East, where they are not only used
eXtensely for embroidery Of every description,
but aTsupposed to form one OF the most potent
ingrednts OF the majoon or elixir of life-a
univenl panacea throughout China, Hlndoo-
stan, lrsia, and the Japanese Empire. These
maiool, under the name of electuaries, were,
at a Tie not very remote, highly thought of in
this olntIy, and were composed of many
preCioI stones, besides pearls. The world-re-
nowne, medicine called the Give Precious
FragmIts," consisting of ruble7, sapphire, eme-
raids paZes, and acinths; these pounded and
mixed Ith pearls and other substances of a
more cOestib!e kind, were considered q soVe.
reign rnedy for every complaint.
DuriJ the last illness OF King Edward l, at
LanneDst, in 1907 among other medicines pre-
1nFlhp0Wag a COMFORTING plpptnarV W