Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1896-12-19
dead" PEARLS HIS FAD.


A. Ohio Bunker Who Has n Queer Col
lection OF Fresh Water Gems.
Mr.. J. H. Harris of Waynesville,
O.. a banker and collector of fresh
water pearls and archaeological speci-
mems, has lately acquired Il largo
number Of what he calls dead
,earls. Mr.. Harris has for many
wears been known as an expert III
Judging pearls, and nearly all the
gems of any consequence that have
been found in the Little Miami river
have passed through his hands, he
having paid from 25 cents to S42'
for them as they came from the mus
sci shell.
His collection, varying in numbers
and value, as he has Mt different times
sold from and added to it, was for
the first time exhibited to the gen.
eral public Mt the Paris exhibition in
1879, where it attracted much atten'
ton. Two OF three years ago it was
believed that tho pearl industry III
the Little Miami had about died
away, and it is probable such is real.
ly the case, yet the high waters OF
the present year have unearthed
new mussel beds, and piles of fresh
Nv opened shells may be seen along
the banks of the little stream. A
. few pearls Of good quality have been
found, and Mr.. Harris, following his
usual custom, has secured some OF
thele,t of these and placed them all
: immediately in a safety deposit vault
Gin Cincinnati.
r6 A Stf nI9t 5I tiiS rt,if Irn, anu
ho has secured what could perhaps
not be found in any other collec
ton in this country He has been
prominently mentioned in nearly all
; tho books on gems and the articles
in newspapers and magazines on
pearls that have been published in
the last decade. Thus it was that a
Scotch1nan, who has been nearly all
over the world exploring rivers fol
whatever curiosities he might find
|, and who is always anxious for new
fields to look over, had his attention
drawn to the Waynesville collection
and visited him some months ago.
During conversation between the
two gentlemen it developed that the
. traveller had in his possession a guam
tity of what appeared to be pearls,
; but which wcro totally unlike any
thing heretofore classed with these
r valuablos. Mr.. Harris, ever on the
alert for something new, immediate
ly examined and gained possession
{ .of the entire lot, which he designated
as dead" pearls. They are identi
cal, in his opinion, with those thai
t .were ii, an ancient catalogue made IL
1740 by all Englishman, John Win
throp, T. r. S., classed as unript
. pearls.
The real value Of these dead pearls
1 Is very small, their worth lying only
Y tn their oddity and rarity, Many O.
S them aro of dark brown or nearly
dead black color, and they vary
from these through the shades O.
u lighter brown and very dull yellow
+ some of them having streaks ant
y blotches of nearly pearly white. 4
:, very few of them have points tina
u are almost brilliant, and these would
e make fairly good settings for stud
9 or other ornaments. In shape they
arc most oddly at variance and diff
cult of description. One is a littl'
V larger than the short cross section q
q common lead pencil and looks as
IS two small specimens Of the picturet
y old fashioned beehive had been fas
Sc tened together by their bases anoth
erresembles u toy top and another
miniature walking stick, Some ar
:. cone shaped, some irregularly elon
y gated, some bande$ by a raised sec
/ ton of lighter hue, and some loo]
G as if they had been turned out by
lathe. Tribune.