Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1921-11-10
PEARLS OF A PRICE
Philadelphia Gem Experts Say That
Japanese Culture Pearls Are Not a
Success-Artlficlal Gems Worn
by bles-How They
Are Made
BY GEORGE NOX MCCAIN
DEARLS are the rage nowadays.

| BY GEORGE NOX MCCAIN
! DEARLS are the rage nowadays.
J L They have superseded all other gems in
| fashionable Philadcphia's + estimation.
| The gem expert of one of the leading
| jewelry houses is my source of information.
| Ills statement was corroborated by other
| high authority connected with another large
| importing house.
Leading jewelers. Of this city nre not los
| ing any sleep either in fear that japanese
! culture pearls will take the place of the
| natural pearls.
| string of pearls can, under the present
| decree of fashion, wear them at breakfast
| luncheon, dinner, on the street or at q dance
at night, said the gem expert.
Isn't it tritle bizarre to doll up with
| pearls for n morning walk" I inquired
was the place where ladies wore diamonds
| to breakfast"
IL spoke in relative way. The wearing
of pearls at any time, day or night, is now
| considered perfectly good FORM" he ex-
| planned.
They are in high favor There is
greater demand for them than for dia.
| monds'
| 7 ASKED him about the cablcd report from
L London that n certain expert had de-
| Clarcd that japanese culture pearls are GEN
| from the oceans depths
lie shook his head in n dcprecatory way
with a slow snilc.
Nothing to it. In the first place. Jap
ancSe pearls are very small. They lack the
sheen of the genuine even though they are
formed in the same way They are i'm
perfect in shape and difficult to match.
Japanese pearl CulturiSts want TO make
money too quickly. If they would wait
forty or fifty years, they would have a gem
n gi A,,I
They remove the pearl in the course of q
few years before it has grown"
uERE'S another interesting thing.
l. Scores Of Philadelphia ladies are today
wearing beautiful pearls that are not pearls
at all. They are artificial.
They cost tidy bit of money even though
they are not genuine.
n short string of small artificial pearls
of certain make and of high lustcr and
perfect shape brings as high as $3.50 or
$500 in leading jcwelry establishment on
Chestnut street.
1t requires an expert to tell them from
the genuine and then only after q micro.
SCOpiC examination.
They are formed by the dipping process.
The core is dipped repeatedly in a solution
of melted fish scales taken from n certain
fish found in Bchrng Sea.
Genuine pearls are found all over the
world: in fresh water mussels and clans
in the United States and in the oceans.
large pearl was found by Daniel Howels
IN Bound M. BROOK, \. j., sixty years ago.
which Tiffany & Co. subsequently, sold TO
the Empress Eugcnie for 12,50O francs.
Few of the "fEesh- water variety nrc nov
found cast of the Ohio River
TWENTY years ago the upper reaches
l. of the Mississippi and Missouri Rivers
produced thousands of dollars worth of
them.
In 1850 there was stamncdc 70 Sugar
River. Wis. whore pearls had been found
in clans and muS~cls
Shell fish in that river wcrc in few
months practically cxtcrminatcd. In Rock,
Green: l.afnyctt" and Grant Counties of
that state SlO.OOO worth was sent 70 Now
York within three months.
onc pearl sold for more than $500. Among
beauty and COlOring
In 1901 at Red Wing. Mimi. found
scores of these jewel drcdgcrs at work. hut
with very Indifferent success. " ~ '"'
JNliE American ahorigincs used fresh
4 wntcr pearls for embroidery az wc uxc
bcNds W. "~'
Th" Peabody Museum Of ArchcoIocv ot
,nMhrIdgr' Mass. has II collection of gbout
10000 Of 'h" fresh water variety. Two
bushels of them.
Prof. +. W. Putnam found them on nm
altar in one of the moundS in tho Turner
group in tho Little Miami Valley, O.
ihcN were valucIrSS except for their ms.
TTociation. The mound builders. and the
InoiahS after them. pierced them by means
q, hcatcn copper wire 50 they could string
thTm. Ihoy were also burnt by altar fires
IT. Daniel &. Brinton, the archcoloyist
oi 'hiS "Ity, who was Il surgeon in the ;,nIon
ArmE during the Civll War. found the SOL
"icrS frequently eating musScls from the
Cumberland River. '''
The same kind of Chollo ,.o,s r...
Indian graves along with small pearls
iheF had been placed thcr" to serve M rond
umr!nR 'he Journey TO the happy hunting
M FRIEND. the gem expert, informed
N'A N" that tho choicest of these ccms
come from the Indian Ocean.
IN" nhrro, or luStrr. is finer than those
f"unh in any other par, Of tho world
Three fuurthS Of the catch hcIongs w .b,
Government and the rest goes 70 tho worI,org
IN" Spanish conQuiStadorrs in nortbnrr
south america in their inhuman grord for
W'aIth killed the n0>y" Indian pearl divers
ny 'h"HSandS In the course of wears
thcy exhausted the beds.
Thcy forced the aboriginrs n diva ro
nr0''dIN for tho precious shells without snf-
trl"nt r"'t or breathing spells md tI,v
drowned by hundreds. '"''
round IN" natives Of Cawpano, ON tho
nor nor'h%rm "cI, roaSt of N"nCzuela some years
t"hrn near III" Island of marguerite, Of thn
coast. ''' va NV
They were Inferior in shape and co,or
ana were offered for a song
Tn THEIR formnton according n satan.
i tStS, pearls nrc like m onion. consist.
ing OF many c"nr"ntriC spherical laycr.
NO matter how far you may nnri T.
,Mnr;'yLtsn, you VIII rarely find the object
Wh!ch caused the construction of tho pcuS
n tp IL l,fo