The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1886-10-27
DIVING FOR PEARLS.

Ga, Invention to Make Il More Safe. -
You know pearls are found in shell
fish, ri the very bottom Of the sea, and
the little fish sticks to the rocks. We
d. not know certainly what those pearls
are, nor from what they are formed.
There are several opinions on the sub
jees. and you must read all about it in
Your natural history. Iwant to tell
You something about the dangers OF
docking for these precious pearls, and
then Jou will never see one that you
win not think about the risk Of human
Djfe which, has led to it's being found.
IT. il between the island OF Ceylon and
Cape Comorin that pearl oysters are
mos. " found. The strait in which the
hcd OF oysters ia situated is very dan
senyds from rocks and whirlpools. The
men who learn this business begin in
easly youth. for II requires great prac-
dec and much courage. They have to
exercise q great deal in diving. and see
how long they can remain under
water The season commences in
April, and weeks before, the d.
vers begin to diet and rub them
selves with oil At sunrise they
90 In boats to the bank of pear! oys-
tiers, about five leagues from the CONT
nent Then the diver takes off his
clothing, and under one arm fastens a
sponge which he uses for breathing,
and ties plant before his mouth,
which will not absorb the water. He
puts cord around his waist, the end
Il which is fastened to the boat, and
puts . thlrty-pound weight to his feet,
- order to sink the faster. He takes
= kmfs and net, and plunges into the
Ses lie picks up the oysters as fast
~ possible. II he wants breath. he
vulls the cord, and his companions
'aw HIM up. The oysters are laid
on the sand. exposed to sun and air
It'll the shells open. There are gen.
ally found in them dozen pearls,
hich are cleaned and prepared for
lc. They brings a large sum, and
.e oyster shells are sold for mother
uf-Hearl. Before the divers go into the
water they take oil into their mouths,
which they discharge on reaching the
BOTTOM, and 1t makes the water clear
eE Many accidents occur to these poor
men. Some are seized by the inhabit-
ANTS of the deep, and. sometimes re-
manning too long in the water. they are
alrangled. Some divers have killed 9th
ers at the bottom of the sea, because
one would pick up the oyster which the
other wanted. The best diver can re-
main under the water only about eight
minutes generally, but some Indians
have remained fifteen minutes. This
employment is so hard that divers usu-
ally die young. They seldom can fol-
how II more than ten years, and some
much less time.
During the last century. All invention
vas made for the help of divers; for the
pearl fisheries. II resembled bell.
and the diver places himself in it. This
bell is filled with air. and therefore
prevents water from filling the inside
of the machine as it falls into the sea.
You will understand this if you will
plunge the mouth of little glass into
y tub of water, when you will see that
the water comes up only to a certain
height in the glass. The bell is COW
cred with lead, to make it sink; at the
bottom is a floor, and seat, so the
diver can work. sitting or standing,
md, in good weather, he can read or
write in his bell, at the bottom of the
ca A glass window at the top gives
i'm light, and q cock let's out the air
which he has breathed. He can re-
Give air without the water coming
INTO the bell, by means Of leather
pipes, which reach up to the vessel
from which the bell Is suspended. The
air in one of these pipes being ex-
hausted, another is let down. A leaden
mask was also invented, which
covers the head, and enables him to
leave the bell and go some distance in
the sea. This mask contains enough
air to last some minutes, and has an air
pipe communicating with the bell, and
guides him back to it, that he may not
miss his way. which would of course
he death to him. By this machine. they
60 for pearls to the very bottom of the
deep, and remain more than an hour.
When the diver finds that he must
ascend, he gives signal to the vessel
by pulling his rope, that goes up from
the bell. When he first comes up,
however, he must be cautious how he
breathes. as sick man recovering has
To be cautious about the quantity Of
food he eats. -Pansy.