The Harrison times., 1915-07-03

shortly after nightfall Of pleasant evening
our little steamer sailed out of the harbor Of Co
lombo bound for the "poarly shores" for an
anchorage few miles off the port Of Arlppu,
near which place the pearlnshing fleet was to be-
GIN operations at the rising Of the sun, In Cey
Ion the oyster beds are under government super
vision, and about March Of each year great
pearl.ishing expedition hoyers over the waters
OF the Gulf Of Mannar The personnel Of the
fleet Is made up of Malays, Arabs Indians, Singa
lese, and those from various other branches Of
midas teeming millions
The experience Of the stranger with the unique
fleet Is not disappointing, The sight Of thou.
sands Of divers from hundreds Of little boats,
plungng into the water or riding downward
astride heavy weights, rising with their treas.
ures others returning TO the watery depths, the
babel Of strange voices combine to paint a pic.
turesque and lasting impression upon the mind
OF the visitor
The waters around Ceylon and those Of the
Gulf OF California have the richest pearproduc,
Ing oyster beds In existence, Situated on oppo,
site sides of the earth It Ia interesting to com,
pare the work Of the pearl hunters or divers, 30
Far separated, yet pursuing many methods IN
common In tho search for precious gems beneath
the waters In Ceylon upon q given signal the
diving begins the boats are small and hold com,
fortObly eight or twelve persons The men
wear few clothes, and each man takes u turn at
diving, for oil OF them appear to be experts A
rope with weight attached s thrown over the
side OF the boat, the diver attaches himself to
the rope, and his assistant lowers him into the
water Other divers plunge downward unaBsst.
ed, Around the diver hangs u bag within which
he places the oysters ag rapidly Os he can pick
them from the sea bottom
On the Mexican coast, Of which la paz IN the
general rendezvous, the method Of pcOrng N
much the same Na In Coylon Many Of the yes,
sells used ere larger, and the modern diving suit
II more IN evidence, There IA usually large
sailboa called the mother" and probably half a
dozen smaller ones termed "uggers,' The lat.
ter are manned by n crew Of six or eight mon,
one or two Of whom are divers, The small boats
transfer their catches at frequent intervals 10
the larger vessel atOnding by, where the shells
are opened and carefully examined for pearls,
What Ia pearl2 Before considering other
pearhBhng grounds, especially those Of the
Americas, II may be Of interest to know just how
the pearl IN produced that H., 10 far ~ the scon.
tIno reader Ii concerned one OF tho shortest
and most striking definitions In that suggested
by q French scientist who says "a pearl In the
brilliant aarct lhagua 0f n worm" Others 30
moro into detail and declare that tho growth Of
the pearl IN often associated with n possible de-
gree Of annoyance or pain, The tiny deposit that
finds itself within the shell Of u moluak or oyster
may be introduced accidentally or pufpoBey, aa
We shall see later, The foreign substance within
the holl Ia believed 10 lrrItolo tho oyster aud
he begins 10 cover II with norlou OF thin layers
Of calcium carbonate Little by little these pc.
ouliar layers are formed and in u few years a
beautiful pearl may be the result, or the Tofma
tion may prove absolutely worthless,
Forthcoming mollusks are widely distributed
over the world and they may be unlyalyes or
byalyes, In the former shape we sometimes find
them In eonchs and In the latter classification In
clans and oysters, The subject In various rOml'
deatIons has proved interesting aud fascinating
10 investigators but this story Ia only general
talk about the pearl, and the selenlilc details are
left TO those who make serious study Of The
nature Of this famous and muoh'prlsed ornament
Saltwater pearl fishing In the Americas has
been pursued from our earliest history and while
these pearling waters may not be az ancient 40