The L'Anse sentinel., 1923-11-16

prepared by the National Geographic So
ciety. Washington. ID. c.
Ceylon has the oldest pearl fisheries
In the world save perhaps those of the
Persian gulf. And the Ceylon fisheries
have been among the most prolific. Mil
lions and millions of dollars worth of
those lustrous gems have come from
the waters Off the western and north
western shores of the island since this
fascinating sort of fishing began prob
ably 1000 years before Christ. Most
Of the pearls gathered In this long
period have gone to the rajahs and
princes Of India; and even In the re-
cent years In which there have been
fisheries, these same Unsuitable collec-
tors Of pearls have absorbed from 80
to 80 per cent of the Ceylon catch"
One unfortunate feature Of the Cey-
lon pearl fisheries Is their undependa-
bility. At intervals the pearl oysters
mysteriously disappear and number
of years may pass without their reap
pearance. Then just as mysteriously
hundreds OF millions of the young BIZ
valves will be found on the banks and
lucrative fishing will again be possible.
There was such disappearance tif-
teen years ago, and no important fish
Ing has been possible since. But this
year it has been found the sands and
rocks Of the banks are covered by count
less young oysters, and 1t Is believed
that once more in 1924 the famous old
Ceylon pearl banks will be adding
their wealth to India's vast stores.
The pearl oyster Of Ceylon, like
those of other lands, Is really not an
oyster at all. 1t Is more nearly re-
lated to- the mussels than to the oys-
ters. and 1t differs markedly from the
latter In having byssus, or bundle
Of tough fibers, by which 1t attaches
itself to the bottom. The maximum
size attained by the Ceylon pearl oys:
ter Is only four inches, and the shells
are so thin that they may be crushed
between the fingers.
Most Of Them In Gulf Of Manaar.
Pearl oysters are found on all parts
Of the coast Of Ceylon, but exist In suf-
ficient abundance to support an impor-
tant fishery only in the Gulf Of Manaar
which is large indentation between
Ceylon and India. lying Immediately
south of the line Of giant stepping
stones known as Adams Bridge.
z The pearl oysters are more or less
concentrated on banks, which occupy a
shallow, level plateau extending from
the shore for distance of three miles
In the southern section to 20 miles In
the northern and broadest part of the
gulf. This plateau Is bounded by the
ten or twelve fathom curve, and falls
away quite abruptly, so that within a
very short distance Of the fishing
grounds we may get soundlngs Of 100
fathoms, or even 1000 fathoms. The
area Of the pearling grounds is about
800 square miles. The bottom Is for the
most part sand. diversified by outcrop-
pings Of calcareous rocks, which form
fiat or slightly inclined lodges, on
which the pearl oysters grow. Aggre-
cations Of ledges constitute ''paars," or
banks, which centuries ago received
names that are still applied.
The largest and most important Of
these grounds is Cheval paar, lying
from nine to thirteen miles offshore at
depth Of five to eight and one-half
fathoms, and extending about six and
one half miles from north to south and
four and one-half miles from east to
west. g
The number of oysters produced are
absolutely beyond comprehension.
Some years ago, on one paar i've miles
long and two miles wide, small pearl
oysters were ascertained to be present
to the number Of 10000 per square
yard. in places forming q layer over
the bottom nine inches deep. One
diver. who was down only 30 seconds.
brought up S,225 young oysters by
actual count. This condition Of tho
grounds was determined In November
By government inspectors; in Decem-
Der Of the same year no oysters what