The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1909-05-23

The market for pearls is seriously
threatened by a new japanese enter
prise, which has reduced the produc-
tion of these "gems of ocean, to
scientific basis, One concern i'll Japan
(it is stated by the United States
fisheries bureau) is at present turning
out $250,00O worth OF pearls annually
the business being a monopoly. They
are real pearls. it should he understood.
produced by introducing tiny pellets
of mother of pearl Ito serve as nucleD
into the shells of pearl oysters. In lus-
ter, shape and size, these pearls
''culturc pearls they are called-are
equal TO any pearls of natural origin.
They are, indeed (says the fisheries
bureau), most beautiful; and Il ready
market has already been found for
them both in our own country and IN
Europe.
In the production Of the ''culture
pearls. an important part is played
by rcdheadcd women. They are the
only women in japan who have red
hair-ths characteristic being due to
the fact that their trcsscs have keen
bleachcd by constant exposure TO salt
water. They are professional divers.
and are employed on the pearl oyster
farm to collect the pearl-bearing bi
valves The farm is located in the
island of Japan-the smallest of all
the japanese provinces, and celebrated
from earliest times for its women dl-
vers, who seem TO have inherited
through many generations special ap-
titude for water life They are verit
able human ducks, and for large part
OF the year are in the water from five
to seven hours daily.
The owner of the "farm' is an en-
terprising person named Mikimoto. Its
headquarters, including a few neces.
sary buildings, are on a small island,
called Tadoko, in the Bay OF Ago, a
few miles south of tho famous temple
of Use. This is on the Pacific side Of
central Japan. IT is quiet piece OF
water. excellently adapted for the pur
pose, with broken coastline full of
deep.running inlets and coves, in which |
tho water is from eighteen to forty |
feet in depth. About 1000 acres Of
water space are leased by Mikimoto,
and several millions Of pearl oysters
are planted in the beds. These are not |
the large, and familiarly-known mol
lusk:s, such as supply the pearl fisher
les in the Gulf of California and Ger.
tain other parts Of the world, but
small bivalyes, not more than three |
inches in diameter, with shells hardly |
thicker than paper The species Is
known to science as Avicula martcns'h'
Operations for the production of |
pearls are performed on about 100000 |
Of the oysters annually. For this pur-
pose they arc gathered from the bot |
tom by the women divers, and, being |
taken TO the island, tiny pellet OF |
mother-of pearl is inserted between the |
valves of each shcll-whereupon they |
are put back into the sea, To protect |
q
ing object, the mollusk covers it with
LAYER after layer Of pearl.stuff, thus
transforming it after while into
true pearl.
The pellets of mother-of pearl are
cut from shells of the large opecles OF |
pearl oyster above mentioned (Melea-
grina margaratifera) which are suit |
fine material-being, in fact, the |
source of the best mother-o of-pearl that |
comes to market. They are shaped with |
a file, the operation being so laborious
that a skilled workman can hardly |
turn out more than seventy-flve In a |
day.
shall not fall out, or be pushed out of |
the oyster after the latter has been re- |
planted in the sead. Accordingly, it |
is so inserted as to lie near the hinge |
of the lower, or under, valve, which |
is the deepest part Of the shell. Hlth-
erto it has been found necessary TO cut |
the pellets with one flat side, to pre-
vent them from rolling out-the event
ual result being pearls of correspond
ing shape, incompletely round. But
according to information recently re-
ceived from Mikimoto by our fisheries
bureau) means, not yet explained, has
been devised whereby this difficulty is
overcome, and perfectly spherical pearls
are produced.
The women divers employed on tho
"farm" earn ordinarily from fifteen
to twenty cents a day, but the most
expert get thirty cents. Each one has
a tub into which she drops the oysters
as she brings them to the surface, An