The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1901-01-28


IL, i not totally deaf InslgIeG' p2raly-
SIS IS another affection I hno" SOM II
GiaEs VINO were fine specimens OF hu-
mauiJy few years ago. and who. now
less than thjTty-Gve Years cid. are hopc-
lessiy paralyzed from too much pearl
diving during a few seasons
Inc effects o. diving on the nervous
system are very apparent. TIE more sdu-
! Gated and thoughtful the diver, 50 much
The verse for him. White he is at work
| he Is usaIIy in a bad temper and iTrita-
bic. AbOu, eighteen fathcms. or 1913 feet
IS the deepest safe depth \ diver can
remain only about ten minutes IN this
depth. while in five fathOmS ne can wOrE
lor j'-U hours O. more.
Our company has strict orders that no
J diver shall descend If he has had more
,-l&n light meal Of toast CT coffee Heavy
eating. and particularly meats. tends 10
/ make respiration difficult but strange as
| Il may seem. We have 10 keep close watch
I aa Cur men 10 force them 20 obey this rule
for their own safety Waffle Wallius
over tQe sea bottom the diver adopts a
! swinging, rapid gait. and his eyes scan as
( much Is possible OF the ground Even eX-
! FeTIeECeG divers are nervous while under
water 4 strange object such as a rock
( looming suddenly in sight. 4 strange fish.
/ CT an unusual growth. viii make the heart
/ beat mora rapidly and a feeling of uneasi-
! ness prevail
The pearl oysters are not found in
! beds. Ike our edible oysters. but are scat
! tered singly over . large area. the diver
! s2ii-t ,lIl"s having 10 walk many miles be
/ fore Killing his bag The shells are about
! the size Of small soup plates weighing
/ about pound each. and shaped much like
/ our oyster shell. only more rc-nd. Some
/ times in grasping a shell the hand comes
/ ~ contact with stone fish. 50 named by
/ toe divers, . yenO=n0us little fish hiding
! under rocks and shells. and scattering poi
! son This fish DunCtUres tie skin Of the
/ Rand causing the entire arm TO swell with
/ great pain. The remedy is TO remain be-
( lo| and suffer, Tor tas pressure Of the va
( ter causes The wound 10 bleed freely and
I the poison thus escapes.
/ The Chinese were the first to make ar
llncial pearls. They were at it centuries
ago Some Of the Chinese artificial pearls
used to be very deCeiying. The French
caught the idea from the Chinese, ard
/ nowadays they make q wonderfully fine
imitation OF the genuine article Pearl
making in China IS confined 10 two vii
/ la5eS N the northern part Of the province
of Chih-kiang. In the months Of May and
June large quantities OF mussels are
| brought in baskets from q lake thirty
miles distant, and the biggest OF them are
selected for the operation that is to be
performed. Into the she'll OF each mol
iusk are introduced small objects which il
is intended the bivalye shall coat with the
peaTIy substance IL sPCretes- Sometimes
/ little balls Cf earth are used Such pei
lets are made OF mud from che bottom Of
water courses dTaed and powdered with
the juice 81 the seeds Of The camphJT tree
| To pls &C these nuclei inside Of the
nussels IS a process CT no little difficulty.
The shell is opened with q small instru-
ment OF TaCthe--of-pearI the mantle of
the animal is gently lifted and the pellets
are laid beneath the mantle The shell is
then permitted TO close Finally the moi
/ lusES are deposited IN canals or pools
They are placed FIVE or SIX inches apart
ct depths of from two to FIVE feet. in lots
OF from 5.GG0 70 a Geo.
/ In November they are lifted and open
ed. The animals are removed from the
shells and the pellets are detached with a
sharp knife. By this time they are fast
eEed tightly to the inner surface OF the
shells and have become covered with q
/ coating Of nacre- Next a little hole is cut
in each pearl at t1e point where It has
been attached to the shell Of the mUssel.
/ Through this opening the earth which
composed the nucleus is removed. The
hollow pearl IS then filed with melted
yellow resin. and The orifice is artfully
/ covered with q piece Of mother-of pearl
The pearls thus formed are fat on the
bottom and II shape are somewhat more
than hemispl.sTes- They have much Of
the lustre and beauty Of the real gems.
and are sold so cheaply as 10 be procCra-
bic by all who care 10 possess them They
are employed to a considerable extent BY
jewelers.. who set them n tiaTas and or
naEenrS for women"