New-York tribune., 1890-01-26
SHELLS.

Tborc arc only few people who know anythlnA
about the beauty Of color and form III sHeNs soU
Hu,ldn ranks the nacrc Of shells Tar above i"o 'o
~ iroIs eNccptlng only the opal in lis native 9o'h'
\mons rare SHELLS the thorny or porcupule 'ld'"'
yl,h i, found in nature all variety Of SHADES from
a rich crimson 10 pale rose flushed "h'e' anu III
,,,r, ,rhite Is one Of the most expensive. "ood
.,,,clncus in which all the spines are perfect ana
the color beautiful, shaded rich In 'he shadoN anu
delicate and tender in the light bring olteh 20
smaller less perfect shells are - ana 90, sea
,~umpets notified in shades Of brown are sought ater
bv collectors Of curos and fine specimens reaoiAy
bring $50. -
Those strange looking shells with many horns
, 800, scorpiouS said a shell dealer talking OF MS
wares. these little ones are SPIDER Shells. Inc
,cr of horns varies with the place where the she'll
j., found This you see has only SIN horhs WHO
this has eight and this seven. They all came nom
dtrcreut locations. They are worth about 81
ah This she'll. Qoldng up an exquisite crumped
nu - , nurex from the Mediterranean Ocean,
We have black and white pure white like thlS one
white touched with color, and crimson IKE thls'
lie took up last beautiful murex shaded in rosecol'
or, and bringing to mind the roseate purple dyes
which the yrianS obtained from inc npuu sc0lc.cu W
a ,pecc, Of this mollusk
d. such Shells continued the dealer, are one and
two dollar, each. according to their quality This
small whOrled she'll is music shell; If you look al IL
closely YOU Will notice very fair reproduction OF
bar of music with notes. Tins small shell l. IN the
form of a harp and takes it, name from that, and this
specimen i, "A tent she'll; the black and brown lines
on il, surface look something like field of tents.
Thi, long spiked she'll i pearl oyster from the
Mediterranean. and this is an olive shell. This Is an
ear she'll the opening singuarly shaped like the
human car.'
The dealer now displayed a number Of beautiful
whorlcd HAT shells OF exquisite mother olpear soma
wer, cut out and traced the opening in pattern
resembling Honiton lace and mounted on piece Of
she'll "A, a base. These" he sad, nautilus
shells They come chiefly from the Indian Ocean
and are brought here by sailors. who sink the rough
shells in any dccayng part OF the irult that usually
strong enough To remove completely the outside coat
ng that lies over IL, beautiful mother of pearl. Tho
| oruamentatiOn of the shells Is also done By tho
sailors, who cover the surfaces with paste and etch
the patcrns on and out with acids, sometimes trcn
out the air chambers I'm the whor' The undccorated
nautilhsshcn IS generally preferred 10y collectors Of
.urios and makes beautiful hanging basket for A
| sunny window. where It's lovely ridescent colors
can be In their full beauty.
beautiful conch or fountain shells are also shown
AT the she'll store. From the queen conch. which Is
shaded in the loveest browns and copper reds shell
cameo, are cut. There are also many home like old.
time cOwry shells, which recall the faint rose leaf
fragrance of old fashioned paror, where one or moro
! of these smooth usually notified shells always dec
Grated the mantcl shelf. There Is the notified tiger
cowry the marbeized. and the serpentine cowry and
Others called from their marking. Some OF the
Snas In the Indian ocean produce the most
beautiful mother OF pearl. but after ALL said .he
} in this country, and we have to pay high for them
when get them. London is the great market for
shells, which are brought there from Zanzibar.
singapore and other ports under control of the British
Government. Very beautiful shells also sent from
madagascar and all coasts Of the Indian Ocean ana
] from the Mediterransan-s