Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1889-01-04
FISHING FOR AMBER.
ONE WHO HAS SEEN IT DONE TELLS
HOW THE ARTICLE Is PROCURED.

| Taken Out Of the Surf at the Baltic-The
| Amber Territory Very small-Excite-
| ment of tbs Men and Women Who
| Gather It
| In the window of one of the largest tobacco
/ stores in Brooklyn there was displayed re-
markably fine collection Of amber. Some OF
it, as translucent as honey, fairly glowed
with color, as though it had caught the sun
shine of a thousand summers This had been
polished and differed as greatly from the
rough, dirty looking humps beside it as does
a cut from an uncut diamond, and yet the
latter was just as full of color, only it was
imprisoned.
"Where is amber obtainedr asked an
Eagle reporter, who had been attracted by
the display, Of the proprietor of the store.
''The bulk of the amber supply Of the
world" was the reply, "comes now from the
region known as Samland on the east Prus-
sian coast of the Baltic. | happen to know
something about it, because ! came from that
part of the world myself, although not from
that precise vicinity. From the Brusterot
lighthouse on the Baltic coast one can sec
with the naked eye the entire stretch of shore
on which this precious petrifaction is and
has been fould for the past 8, 900 years. The
stratum of blue earth on which the detached
fragments of amber are found lies from
twenty to thirty feet below the surface Of the
beach To some extent the amber may be
and is obtained by mining, but frequently
the vein is exposed by the action Of the water,
SO that fishing for amber is much easier than
digging, and most Of it is obtained in that
way.
WORKING IN THE SroEa.
amber fishermen are vigorous and hardy
people, and they need to be to carry on their
business They work in stormy weather,
when the huge waves have detached masses
of the amber from the ocean bed, and are
rolling it, mixed up with punches of seaweed,
in the surf The fishermen, half naked, wade
into the sea shoulder deep, armed with long
hook forks and hand nets. The women stand
along the shore as near as they can to the
waves. The men poke up the masses CT sea-
weed with their forks and drag them in to-
ward the shore as far as possible With their
nets they endeavor to secure the pieces Of
amber that may be floating in the water. AS
fast. as the seaweed is got to the shore the
women take it and pick out the bits Of amber
that may be clinging to it and place them in
bags, ready for the dealers. Some dealers
stay on the beach while the fishing is going
on, thus hoping to secure particularly fine
specimens"
SIT must be pretty interesting sight"
''Not only interesting, but exciting. The
whole scene is wild in the extreme The
Of CHI tba
men and the shrill screams of the women
mingle weirdly with the soughing of the
wind The most profitable part of the har-
vest, however, is gathered after the storm is
over The amber which can be gathered
while it is In progress is mostly in small
pieces, but large masses of it too heavy to be
moved within reach Of the fishermen by the
waves have been uncovered.
DIVERS WHO RAISE THE BLOCKS.
When the sea is smooth enough for the bot
tom to be seen through from five to fifteen
feet of water the fishermen row out and look
for these blocks, recovering them with their
hooks and nets. A more systematic way of
obtaining the amber is to get it from the
reefs which lie some three-quarters Of mile
off shore. Here, when the different currents
have met, it is heaped up with immense
quantities OF Seaweed and rubbish. For fully
ten months in the year little feet of black
boats is anchored over these reefs, the largest
and most valuable of which is GOO feet long
and 400 feet wide Each boat has diver,
who is sent down to poke over the seaweed,
discover the blocks of amber and raise it to
the surface Each diver remains under
water for five hours at a stretch, and the
labor is said to be very trying Sometimes
such large blocks are found that it takes the
united strength Of two or even three men to
bring them to the surface. Masses of such
size bring from SIS to $3.50 apiece, the price
for the ordinary amber being but about
$3.50 pound. During the fishing season the
water is icy cold and the work is prosecuted
under great hardships."
"What is amber used for mostly now2n
"For mouth pieces for pipes. Some years
ago, you know, iewelry was quite extensively
made Of it; but, with the exception of chill
dren's beads, it is not used for that purpose to
any extent now. The greatest rival amber
has nowadays is celluloid, out of which an
excellent imitation can be made. "-Brooklyn
Eagle.