The daily morning journal and courier., 1900-03-03
MISSISSIPPI RIVER PEARLS.
Some Fine Ones Occasionally Found in
 the Upper Reaches.

Some Fine Ones Occasionally Found in the Upper Reaches.
 In less than three years clam digging
 in the upper reaches of the Mississippi river has developed from an occasional
 pursuit into a science. The bivalves taken up resemble the saltwater arti- cle as much as rhinoceros resem-
 bles an elephant. They are not fit to
 eat they look raw, even when some ad- venturous tenderfoot boils them, and
 they have taste weirdly compounded
 of catfish and musk. They are in reali-
 ty mussels, and they are wanted not
 for their meat, but for the beautiful
 mother-of-pearl Things of the shells,
 from which buttons and hundreds of
 fancy articles are made. The shells
 when dried are sold by the ton to the
 local concerns that are known as but
 ton factories, though they do not often
 make buttons. They are in reality pol
 ishing shops and are fitted up with q
 vast number og steam driving wheels
 and brushes, emery circyes, etc., for
 smoothing the interior of the shell and
 grinding off the roug outer covering.
 This material Is shipped East to fac tories where buttons are made, as well as hundreds of other useful and, in many cases, beautiful articles.
 It requires close examination by an expert to tell this mothers f-pearl from the genuine South Sea article, and there is practically no difference in structure or appearance. There is in the house of Norwegian cattle- raiser near Viroqua, Wis, a black wal nut table inlaid with these clam bits, and it is a marvel of taste and delicate painstaking workmanship. It was done by cobbler of Lynxville, crook-shoul- dered fellow named Faluzzi, commonly called Fuzzy and It's owner would not take $500 for it. The man put in the odd hours of one year inserting the tiny bits, and got s75 from his patron.
 The most valuable pearl taken from a clam shell on the Mississippi river wac sold ultimately to New York jeweled for S3,000, and 1t is believed now to be in a private collection. The man who found it, Antoine Perrilat, a wood- chopper in the summer months, kept it secreted for some weeks, realizing that 1t was of great value but having no approximate idea of it's real worth Finally, having gone to Mscatine, Ia, he met a man from q Chicago jewelry house, who was proving about for pearls. To this man Antoine showed his treasure. It was large pure white pearl, pear shaped, and beautl- fully proportioned, of the purest quali- ty, and, in certain lights. showing distinct rose hue shade. First S200 was offered to the French woodman, but he refused it, though is semed an enor- nous amount to him. He shok his head at $225 S25O, $260 $500, S350, $400, $500 and closed at last for $500 cash paid in hand into his calloused palm in the shape of 30 yellow shining double eagles, mo puttier," as he said, zen amy pairl." He bought two additional teams and wagons with his capital, and is now prosperous on f1rewood, the only fuel used in that region.
 He is not the only lucky finder in Iowa and Wisconsin however, by 100 or so It is not often that a river pearl Is valuable enough to make it talked about in the little towns, but occasion ally happens that in an insignificant looking muS6el there IS JeWel lHdI lS worth thousands of tons of shells. One white pearl found last fall, went to St. Paul buyer, for $500. A yellow beauty dug from a clam bed brought s390. A negro boatman, taking hoi- day, and clamming for amusement, found a rose colored globular pearl for which he got $400 in St. Louis. There has been, so far as the records go, but one black pearl discovered. It was taken near Prairie du Chien, within 600 yards of the bank on which Antoine 'ound his $3,50O wonder, and was sold for exactly the sum he received for his -$60o Its finder was an old Irishman named McGuffin, who has been a wan , lerer up and down the stream for the 1 ast 40 years. The man who bought 1t was from Milwaukee and said he was private collector. No one knows } what has become of this pearl. l Tribune.
 THE COST OF LIVING IN MANILA.
 The cost of living has increased in | .,le,s.., ,i.,sr