Western liberal. (Lordsburg, N.M.) 1887-1919, 1898-03-18
A CRUEL OPERATION.
THE PROCESS eY WHICH TORTOISE
SHELL 10 PROCURED.

SNete - FhSS0F61s
Fires Set On the Living Turtle ~ ssrs-
rate the Bony Layers Of the House In
which He Lives A Business That
Struck IN Observer as Hsartisss.
There are many articles Of daily and
hourly use constantly passing before
our eyes and through our hands about
the production Of which we know oom-
paratiyely little OF nothing An inter.
estiug example OF this is tortoise shell,
from which combs and hairpins are
made, besides q multitude of trinkets
for the dressing table, the desk and
the pocket. Fierce crusades have been
instituted in recent years against the
slaughter of birds for the procurement
Of their plumnge Tor hat trimmings.
and yet l venture to say that the proc.
ess Of procuring tortoise she'll is a cru.
city to animal life which far exceeds
that to which birds are subjected.
In the eighties happened to be down
IN Bluefiolds, ON that awful Mosquito
coast, and at the invitation Of one
Manuel Latona, who was the owner and
captain Of small schooner, went with
him to the cay Ell Roncador for tortoise
shell. This cay gets its name (Which in
English would be the Snorer) from the
exceedingly angry surf, which can be
heard for long distance breaking over
the reefs. This Is the cay on which q
couple of years back the historic old
ship Kearsnrge was wrecked and bat
tered to pieces. FL Roncador is nothing
moro or less than a typical coral is
land, such as Is found throughout tho
southern seas, three quarters of a mile
long, perhaps, aud not more than
quarter Of a milo across its widest part.
Surrounding the island is reef, inside
of which the water is smooth and rath-
er shallow, and at the bottom of this
shallow water there grows peculiar
kind of sea grass which Is a dainty
food for the turtle tribes. There is also
found ON the top of tie water inside the
reef sort of small blubber fish, called
in Spanish dedalcs, or thimble fish,
which is perhaps the greatest delicacy
of the entire turtle menu.
The turtle whose she'll Is valued in
commerce is a small species known as
the hawk hill. THERE are other vurie-
ties which come to FL Roncador to
spawn, but they are not molested. Dur
ing the night the turtles crawl up on
the shore to lay their eggs, each female
depositing Oh an average about 70. To
do this they dig holes in the sand about
two feet deep and after laying the eggs
| cover them over so dcftly that il Is Gl-
most impossible for q novice TO find
them. These eggs are really delicious
| when roasted, but the turtle fishers are
careful not to destroy those they do mt
take for food, no Gs to 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 tho turtles come up
out of tho water on the beach the" rush
| forth and turn them over ON their lacks
with iron hooks, leaving them secure in
this position until morning.
The tortoise shell Of commerce is not,
as is generally believed, the horny cover
ing or shell proper of the turtle; it is
the scales which cover the shield. These
scales are l3 in number, Of them be-
ing fiat and the other somewhat curved.
Four of those that are fat are quite
large, sometimes being as much as Ia
inches long and inches broad, nearly
transparent and beautifully variegated
in color with rod, yellow, white and
dark brown clouds, which give the ef-
fects 30 fully brought out when the shell
is properly polished. A Gurtle Of aver.
age size will furnish about eight pounds
Of these lamine, or scales, each piece
Icing from an eighth to quarter OF al
inch in thickness.
1t is the method by which these scales
are loosened which is the repulsive par
Of the business The turtles are no
killed, as that would lead 20 their ex
termination in very few years. Aftel
capturing them the fishers wait for day
light to complete the work. The tuftle
are turned over again in their natura
position and fastened firmly to TIN
ground by means of pegs. Then buncl
Of dried leaves or sea grass Is spreaC
evenly over the back of the turtle ant
set ahre. The heat is not great enougl
to injure the shell, merely causing it h
separate tho joints. A large blade, yer.
similar in shape to chemists spatula
, is then inserted horizontally between
the lamine, which are gently prie'
from the back. Great care must be TAX
en not to injuro the shell by TOO mucl
heat, and yet it is not forced of until
is fully prepared for separation by
sufficient amount Of warmth.
The operation, as one may readil.
= imagine, is tho extreme of cruelty, an
many turtles do not survive it. Most Z
them do live, however, and thrive, an
. in time grow new covering, just a
man will grow a new finger nail u
place of one he might lose The pecul
iarity of the second growth OF shell