The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1897-10-02

is the cay on which, couple of years
back, the historic old ship Kearsarge
was wrecked and battered to pieces. Ell
RoncadOr is nothing more nor less than
a typical coral island, such as is found
Throughout the southern seas, three-quar-
ters of a mile long, perhaps, and not more
than quarter of a mile across it's wild
est part. Surrounding the island is a reef,
inside of which the water is smooth and
rather shallow; and at the bottom of this
shallow water there grows a peculiar kind
of Sea-graSs, which is a dainty food for
the turtle tribes. There is also found on
the top of the water inside the reef q
sort of small blubber fish, called in Span
ish dedalcs, or thimble-fish, which is, per-
haps the greatest delicacy of the entire
turtle menu.
The turtle whose shell is valued in COM
merce is a small species known as the
hawks bill. There are other varieties
which come to Ell Roncador to spawn, but
they are not molested. During the night
the turtles crawl up on the shore TO lay
their eggs, each female depositing on an
average about seventy. To do this they
dig holes in the sand about two feet deep,
and after laying the eggs cover them over
so deity that it is almost impossible for
a novice to find them. These eggs are
really delicious when roasted, but the
turtle-hshers are careful not to destroy
| those IDty 40 not take lOI lOOtli 81 eLo "
promote as much as possible the increase
of this valuable sea reptile. At night the
fishers conceal themselves along the shore
as well as possible and when the turtle
come up out of the water on the beach,
they rush forth and turn them over on
their backs with iron hooks, leaving them
secure in this position until morning.
The tortoise shell of commerce Is not,
as generally believed, the horny covering
or shell proper of the turtle; 1t is the scales
which cover the shield. These scales are
thirteen in number, eight of them being
fat and the other five somewhat curved.
Four of those that are fiat are quite large,
sometimes being as much as twelve inches
long and seven inches broad, nearly trans
parent and beautifully variegated in color
with red, yellow, white, and dark brown
clouds, which give the effects so fully
brought out when the shell is properly
polished. A turtle of average size viii
furnish about eight pounds of these lami-
nae, or scales, each piece being from an
eighth to a quarter of an inch in thick
ness.
1t is the method by which these. scales
are loosened which is the repulsive part
of the business. The turtles are not kill
ed, as that would lead to their extermina-
ton in a very few years. After capturing
them, the fishers wait for daylight TO
complete the work. The turtles are turn
ed over again III tHelI natural pO9iNiOii anu
fastened firmly to the ground by means
Of pegs; then a branch of dried leaves
or sea grass Is spread evenly over the
back of the turtle and set afre. The heat
is not great enought to injure the shell,
merely causing it to separate at the joints.
A large blade, very similar in shape to a
chemists spatula, is then inserted hori-
zontally between the laminae, which are
generally pried from the back. Great care
must be taken not to injure the shell by
too much heat, and yet il is not forced off
until it is fully prepared for separation
by a sufficient amount of warmth.
The operation, as one may readily i'm
agine is the extreme of cruelty, and many
turtles do not survive 1t. Most of them
do live however, and thrive and in time
grow a new covering, just as a man will
grow a new finger nail in place Of one he
might lose. The popularity of the second
growth of shell, though, is that instead of
reproducing the original number of thir-
teen segments, it is restored in one solid
piece.
To see the operation of taking the shell
from the living turtle once is about all a
man Of northern breeding wants OF it; and
If the helpless reptiles had the power Of
cries would tell Of as heartless a business
as man has yet engaged in. w. p. I.