Beverly banner. [volume] (Beverly, N.J.) 1877-1964, 1925-03-27
Diving for Pearls at Thursday island.

our own day-the same methods OF
ding the catch on shore, and Of ex-
tracing the pearls.
The government controls pearling in
Ceylon and will not permit fishing until
an examination of the grounds by ex-
perts shows the presence of an album
dance of the oysters of the proper ma
turity. When place is designated
temporary town quickly springs up.
There is no particular style vessel
specially required in the pearl fishery
and consequently there is a great d.
versity of rigs, depending largely on
the regions from which the divers
come: narrow single-masted canoes
with an outrigger, square-sterned lug
gers, large sailing lighters, three
master canoes and clumsy doneys.
Some of the larger vessels carry 65
men, of whom about half are actual
divers, and the average crew of the
entire fleet is 80 to 80 men.
Owing to the boisterous seas and
strong winds of this region, the fishery
can be conducted only during a period
of a few weeks in March and April,
when the northeast monsoon has
waned and the southwest monsoon has
not begun. The fishery is thus of
fishery of Importance, and is charac-
terized by a strenuousness that is quite
foreign to the East
The. fishing boats start for the
grounds soon after midnight, so as to
be ready for work as soon as daylight
comes, about 6 a. m. They take posi-
tons about the government vessels
moored over the particular ground Sc
lected, anchor, and remain actively en-
gagged until noon, when the entire fleet
sets sail and starts for the shore AS
there is a crowd of peah merchants
eagerly awaiting an opportunity to
speculate, there Is considerable rivalry
among the diving boats in the matter
Of reaching land and discharging their
catch as soon as possible, and conse-
quently one witnesses some wild
scenes of excitement, when the oysters
oiC DVAA6 ulllOuuCQ lAkC SUIT anu tllC
natives are rushing into the kottus or
storehouse with their catch.
Australian Pearls and She'll.
Australias northwest coast is thx
the Indian ocean where pearls are
found. Pearl fishers, with their ASH
attic crews and divers, scour the coast
for 1000 miles, from Sharks bay to
the north of King sound Their ac-
tivities date back to the early fifties
Western Australia produces moro
than three-fourths of the worlds pearl
shell. and the principal center of thiA
valuable industry is Broome, strag
Cling township of some 1000 Asiatics
and few hundred whites, each group
| occupying its own section of the town.
Pearl fisheries of minor Importance
are found in the Dutch Indies, the Sulu
Archipelago Of the Philippines, and
on the shore of New Guinea. The fish
cries of New Caledonia, too, are be-
coming increasingly important. In
Japan few natural pearls are taken
but more important there are the "cul-
ture pearls" of less value, produced by
an oyster and leaving 1t until 1t Is
covered with nacre.
All over the South Sea pearl oysters
are found among the atolls. In only
few places, however do they occur
in sufficient quantities to make or
~oot,ad ,onitolizad 6chino nra6tohIa
One of the most important of the
South Sea fishing grounds Is in the
French Paumotus. Each year govern
ment officials at Papeete. Tahiti, des-
lgnate the place at which pearllng Is
to be permitted for the current sea-
son. heterogeneous collection of
men of many races gather at Papeete
awaiting the announcement: pearl buy
ers and shell buyers from America
and Europe; British East Indian and
Chinese traders: and beach combers
from islands far and near. When the
announcement Is made there Is
pearl rush" comparable to the gold
PUSHES Of pioneer America and Aus
tralia. The South Pacific "Pearl
Towns become sort of tawdry Coney
Island with merry o-rounds, movie
palaces" and all the rest of the lures
for easy money.
To the eastward Mexico's Gulf Of
California Is the next Important pearl
| ing ground, and La Paz, near the tip
of Lower California, Is the market
place. An interesting thing about the
Mexican pearls is that so many of
them are Of unusual colors black. gray.
brown. gold and many another delight
full tint. Such pearls cannot be coun.
terfeited easily by the makers Of arti