Part 1

Transcriber's Notes.

Hyphenation has been standardised.

A number of different spellings have been retained, e.g. rubies/rubyes, encrusted/incrusted.

THE PEARL

THE PEARL

ITS STORY, ITS CHARM, AND ITS VALUE

BY W. R. CATTELLE AUTHOR OF "PRECIOUS STONES"

WITH SIXTEEN ILLUSTRATIONS

PHILADELPHIA & LONDON J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY MDCCCCVII

COPYRIGHT, 1907

BY J. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY

Published September, 1907

_Electrotyped and printed by J. B. Lippincott Company The Washington Square Press, Philadelphia, U. S. A._

NOTE

In these pages the story of the pearl is told from its birth and growth under tropic seas, through the search for it by dark skinned divers of the Orient and its journeyings by the hands of men who traffic in precious things, until it becomes finally the cherished familiar of the great. Historical and traditional allusions, the sentiment and superstitions, the romance of ancient and noble associations, drawn to it through the ages, are garnered here and to them added the more prosaic facts which a merchant's experience suggests, to enable lovers of the dainty sea-gem to discriminate. The qualities which make some pearls of great value and the imperfections which render others less valuable are described in detail, that owners and buyers may appreciate at their true value the gems they have or would purchase and the market price of all kinds is given. Means for the detection of imitations are included.

Long time has been given to microscopic research and though much remains to be learned of the genesis of the pearl, it is hoped that something of value has been added to the knowledge of Nature's wonderful and curious processes whereby through the humblest she makes a jewel fit to adorn the most beautiful of her creatures—woman.

* * * * *

My thanks are due Messrs. Combes & Van Roden of Philadelphia for the loan of the original photographs from which were made the reproductions of the portraits of Queen Alexandra, The Marchioness of Londonderry, Countess Torby and Princess Lazareff, which will, I trust, be of great interest to lovers of pearls: also to Mr. Ludwig Stross for much valuable information about Oriental pearl fisheries.

W. R. C.

CONTENTS

PAGE

AT THE BOTTOM OF THE DEEP BLUE SEA 13

A PEARL OF LEGEND 25

ANTIQUITY OF THE PEARL 39

THE FASHION OF PEARLS 69

VARIETIES 89

COLOR 101

IMPERFECTIONS 111

GENESIS OF THE PEARL 127

METHODS OF FISHING 177

HABITAT OF THE PEARL OYSTER 199

PEARL FISHERIES 211

PRICE 275

IMITATION AND DOCTORED PEARLS 295

FACTS AND FANCIES 311

PEARLS IN LITERATURE 335

GLOSSARY 363

GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF PEARLS AND SHELLS FROM THE VARIOUS FISHERIES 369

ILLUSTRATIONS

PAGE

H. M. QUEEN ALEXANDRA AND HER PEARLS _Frontispiece _

THE RAJAH OF DHOLPUR 21 Whose Pearls Have Been Valued at $7,500,000

PRINCESS ABAMALEK LAZAREFF, NÉE DEMIDOFF 70 From the Painting by Vitelleschi

VARYING FORMS OF PEARLS 83

PANAMA PEARL-SHELL, SHOWING MUD-BLISTERS, BORERS AND PEARL 92

TUAMOTU PEARL-SHELL 127

AUSTRALIAN PEARL-SHELL 129

VENEZUELAN PEARL-SHELL WITH PEARL ATTACHED 131

MANILA PEARL-SHELL WITH THE LIP CONSERVED 144

MISSISSIPPI NIGGER-HEAD PEARL MUSSEL 146

VENEZUELAN PEARL-SHELL SHOWING BAROQUE 161

NATIVE AUSTRALIAN PEARL-DIVERS 188

EAST INDIAN PEARL-DIVERS RESTING 215

PEARL-FISHING IN THE MISSISSIPPI RIVER 262

THE MARCHIONESS OF LONDONDERRY 283

COUNTESS TORBY 326

AT THE BOTTOM OF THE DEEP BLUE SEA

The sea in all her moods has a strange fascination for the children of the dry land. The rumble and thunder of her never ending procession of rolling breakers, rising and falling, tumbling over the sands, to race hissing back to shelter under the curling crest of an eternal successor; the mad recurring dash which cannot be discouraged, of great waters upon unyielding rocks whose grim faces smile at the spume fountains falling back upon them; the wash and mutter of rocky shoals; the suck and bellow of her caverns and the monotone she chants, heedless of hearers to the ages; all these charm the hearts of men and bring them into the fellowship of spirits they feel, but cannot understand. For the moods of the sea and the ways of the wind are akin to the heart of a man. His eyes dance with the flicker of light in the path of the sun over watery wastes; his breast heaves in unison with the multitudinous swellings of the sea; he finds peace in the slumber of her calms and exults in her mad race before the drive of the tempest, but he seldom thinks below the surface and knows little of the things she hides in her deeps. Yet a world lives there, very strange and full of enchantments. Sheltered under the breasts of the sea and undisturbed by the furies of the upper world, myriads of living creatures, graceful, beautiful, wonderful, traverse the peaceful depths. In the vast and fathomless solitudes, things grow and take on form, meet for the eyes of the gods. In everlasting touch with soft currents, trees of coral grow from rocky beds and finny tribes of every shape and hue glide in and out among their fantastic branches. Water covering all, on hills, plateaus, shelving stretches, sandy bars and rocky shoals; in valleys, chasms and even in the dread abysses, are things as strange to man as Jupiter or Saturn holds; weird as the creatures of our dreams; uncanny as the pictures a riotous imagination paints and some as beautiful.

Near the shore and a few miles out, where the bottom of the sea is but a few fathoms deep and where man can go and come and live, there are among other marvellous creations, shells of wonderful structure and beautiful to look upon. One by one these have been discovered during past ages by the adventurous and for their usefulness or beauty have awakened the desire of those who dwell upon the earth. The chank, the sacred shell of the Hindus, has been used by the priests of Buddha for centuries as a horn to call the faithful. Shankar the Destroyer, of Hindu mythology, and Vishnu, each hold a chank shell in one of their hands.

The shell whorl usually runs from left to right, sometimes it is found with the whorl reversed and these were so highly regarded by Hindus, Cingalese and Chinese that in old times they were sold for their weight in gold. Even now they bring a good price in the eastern markets. They are kept in the pagodas of China to hold the sacred oil: the priests of Ceylon administer medicine by them. In Dacca the chank is cut into armlets and anklets for Hindu women upon whose persons they are left after death. The delicate pink cameos carved from the Queen Conch have delighted feminine eyes of almost every race. The Pearly Nautilus decks many a dainty lady's table and is wrought into a thousand quaint conceits. The silky byssus of the Pinna has been woven into fabrics of such fineness as to be thought worthy of acceptance by Popes and princes.

Before Europe knew of their existence, the people of China and Japan, the Maoris of New Zealand, the Indians of our Pacific coast and the brown skinned natives of far-off islands of the Southern Seas, were delighting themselves with the magnificent coloring and iridescence of the Haliotis even as ancient Greece and Rome made ornaments from the "Venus Ear-shell," as they called it, brought from the ruder coasts and islands further west. In these later days the costly outer garments of proud dames are ornamented with buttons cut from the same resplendent shell. But of all the beautiful things old ocean pays as tribute to the adventurous spirit of man, the pearl-oyster and the gem found sometimes in it are most precious.

From unknown times when man discovered them until now, mother-of-pearl shells and their pearly treasures have held desire constant and the eyes of modern queens brighten when the opening of the gift casket reveals a string of these spheres of beauty just as eyes did in the far-off Indies thousands of years ago. When Europe was a land of barbarians and America an unknown country of savages, dusky fingers that held the life and destiny of millions, toyed lovingly with pearls, even as now the favored few who enter the sanctum sanctorum of fortune, pride themselves in the possession of them and find pleasure for cloyed desire, in every addition to their store.

In all ages, pearls have been the social insignia of rank among the highly civilized. No other gem was so abundantly used for adornment by the princes of the east. Above great diamonds from the mines of India or glowing rubies from Burmah, the ocean gem became peerless among the ancient nations of Asia and as their power began to wane and the tide of empire swept westward, there went with it the love of pearls. The rulers of Rome when she was Empress of the world sought pearls, so also have the rich and powerful of every nation as it rose to affluence, and now in this new western star of Empire the men who hold the vast wealth of these United States in their hands, when they place their consorts on the last plane of social eminence, buy pearls.

Before the machine-like system of modern industry had combined ownership and seized the vast natural reservoirs which hold the diamonds of Africa, and brought the output to a known average yield of so many carats to so many loads, and established the cost of mining, washing, shipping and marketing, separately or together, to the fraction of a penny, there was a fascination in the hunt for diamonds there, the charm of which drew thousands to the fields.

From the discovery of them as baubles in the hands of children and the Hottentots, or plastered in the mud walls of Boer farm-houses through the search for them along the Vaal River, to the time where findings led men to the kopjes, which capped the great chimneys of diamond bearing clay, where they staked and worked their individual claims, the ever present hope of finding a royal gem among the small stones which formed the every-day yield, gave edge to appetite and the spur to toil, and the stories of fortunes diverted from one man to another by the lapse of a few minutes at the beginning or expiration of a lease, or by the line separating the mining rights of one from another, read like fairy tales.

More exciting yet is the search for them when, as in Brazil, they lie scattered over the river beds where one man hunts in vain and another by chance stumbles upon a pocket full, or as in India, where one must dig for them blindly into detrital matter ten or twelve feet under a later covering of earth. Who has not felt the stir of it while reading of miners in Brazil using diamonds worth a king's ransom as counters in their games of chance, or of a naked Hindu, emaciated and diseased carrying about his person, wrapped in a bit of soiled cloth, a gem found by chance which the richest prince of India would covet. So also do the tales of rubies brought from Death's Valley of Burmah renew within us the glow which fired the heart of youth when we read of Aladdin and his lamp.

But none of these are so redolent of romance as the story of the pearl. Beneath the rolling of the sea, where the waves pace softly and restlessly like caged lions, or lift themselves roaring to answer the voice of the storm; where at times the water lies green and placid under burning skies; at times, lashed by tornado and monsoon, becoming a seething caldron of black perdition; where spice-laden vessels sail, and where in the old days, privateers and pirates lay in wait for prey, there, at the bottom of the sea, unruffled by storm or pirate, unmindful of sun and calm, myriads of delicate creatures toil ceaselessly to strew old ocean's bed with gems. The chaste spheres with which you toy, while counting up the cost of hanging them round some fair neck, at one time lay fathoms deep, the ocean rolling over them. Dusky fishermen, at risk of life, brought them up and turbanned merchants gave great sums of money to own them; ships carried them, and dealers in precious things handled, sorted, examined and matched them, ere they came to rest in festooned rows within the velvet covers your jeweller opens to you.

On almost every tropical sea that washes a shore near the equator, when the time of storm is over, boats ride over the shallows, and men dive from them for the pearl oyster as they have done for ages. Black slaves for Arab masters in the Red Sea and the Persian Gulf: Tamil and Singhalese in the Indian waters: Polynesians about the islands of the South Seas: Indians and other natives along the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of tropical America, and not a few white men in "dress" off the coasts of Australia. Your pearls have seen the dusky man-fish come silently and swiftly from the world of air to wrench the gaping shells that held them, from their anchorage. It may be your pearl lay twenty fathoms deep in the clear water of some lonely atoll in the great Pacific, among branching coral, and found its way from water's solitudes to the light of the Sun and admiring eyes by the hand of a bright-eyed Polynesian. It may have come from Egypt or the Indies, from Australia or Mexico; but from whatever quarter of the globe it came and by whom, it was born and grew somewhere at the bottom of the sea.

A PEARL OF LEGEND

Long ago, ere the great Nations of Europe came into existence; before Rome was, or Greece had made history: when the power of the Earth dwelt in the lands of the Sun and was for good or evil in the hands of princes, there lived in Travancore a ruler of renown. Of those who came from the north, he with his followers had subjugated the fierce native tribes inhabiting the country for many miles along the seacoast and back to the mountainous interior. Over all, to the utmost bounds of his territory, the land was fertile and very beautiful. Along the shores, but a short distance from the ocean, were numerous shallow stretches of water, formed by the meeting of the inland streams with the swift current of the sea which there sweeps the coast. In them fish abounded, yet were they free from the dangers of the outer waters, so that young and old could there disport themselves without fear. Though the tropic heat was often great there were no parched and barren wastes in the land, for the rains were many and the streams which ran to the sea from the mountains were numerous. Everywhere luxuriant verdure swayed to breezes that played to and fro over the rolling lowlands and about the hillsides, now coming from the water and now from the mountains. Coffee, rice, the palm, cocoanut, the areca-nut, the pepper, tamarind, and other tropical fruits and trees grew in rank abundance, and huge forest timbers sheltered many noble creatures of the wild.

At the first coming of this prince, fighting was constant and bloody. The hill tribes, more war-like than those of many lands, made frequent descents from their fastnesses, seeking by every ruse of barbarous warfare to exterminate the intruder. But this man was wary and alert. Possessing the confidence of his followers, they obeyed him with unquestioning obedience. Quick to move, merciless in his reprisals, he was soon feared by all the surrounding country and as it became known that he was also just and generous, peace presently followed.

Then did he seek to establish his kingdom wisely and well. He encouraged his subjects to cultivate the land, to fish the waters, and to trade with those who came by ship and over-land bringing all manner of things for barter.

Though he and his people were devout believers in the Veda, yet did he tolerate the faith of others, and considered the low-born, for Brahmanism had not yet established the extremes of caste which came later. He himself was a Kshattriya but he ruled the Brahmans and would not permit injustice to the Sudras, therefore was he as a god among his people.

And this prince was good to look upon. Tall and straight as a tree of the forest, the fine lines of his grave impassive face were made alive by the light of eyes keen as an eagle's, inscrutable as those of a lion when he looks beyond.

One son only had he, for the others had all fallen in battle. The son was like the sire, and the father's heart was knit to him as steel when it is welded.

Now the time came when it was good that the young prince should marry, for he was man-grown and had been invested with the sacrificial cord. So the prince his father said to him, "My son, thou standest alone to guard the manes of thy fathers. It is meet that the sons of my son be alive upon the earth, that when the time is come I die in peace and return to the place from whence I came, in confidence. I will find for thee a wife." And the young prince answered, "Let it be as my lord wills."

Now there was in the country beyond the hills, on the eastern coast of India, a prince whose daughter was famed for her beauty and he also was Kshattriya. To him the ruler of Travancore sent certain of those who were near him, and a wise priest in whom he had great confidence, to treat with the father of the maid. And these when they had arrived, made haste to do their lord's bidding, nor was it difficult to obtain his desire, for the prince of Travancore was in great repute. So as soon as could be, the maid become the wife of the heir of Travancore.

Report had not lied concerning the beauty of the girl, and such other qualities had she that the heart of her husband melted to her and became as the gold of a jewel when it holds a ruby most precious.

In due time a son was born to them, and the father and his sire and all the people with them were exceeding glad, for said they, "Now is wisdom and power established on the throne of Travancore and a son's son will guard the name of our lord."

Now when the princess was a maid in the land of her father, a Rover from the coast of Kandy had greatly desired her, and when she was carried away to Travancore he was very wroth. It was told that he would seek vengeance, but another year passed and another son came and both the children and the mother thrived.

But one day, when many sea-boats lay within the harbor of a city of Travancore where much trading was done with men who came from far-off countries and when multitudes were gathered there, it chanced that the princess passed by the market-place. Suddenly, a great number of them that were there from foreign shores, gathered together, and drawing swords, rushed upon the guards which accompanied her. These, with the bearers they over-powered, and ere the bewildered populace knew the meaning of the tumult, the princess was dragged from her attendants and hurried to a boat waiting and ready to sail. Immediately this glided swiftly toward the sea followed by many others manned by ruffians who had lately mingled with the men on shore as peaceful traders. They were followers of the Kandy Rover.

In a very little while, the King, with the trusted priest of his household, the prince and many picked men of the King's body-guard rode furiously to the water-side. The face of the King was very stern, but only in the flashings of his eyes could be seen the unrelenting vengeance which moved him. Quietly he gave orders to man his ships of war. Then it was found that every one of them had been damaged. Not until the sailors made ready to sail were the hindrances observable, and in no case was the evil great, or so that it could not be presently repaired, for fearing discovery the doers of it sought only to delay the sailing of the King's ships, as the ships of the Rover were swift, and after they were out of the harbor, Travancore had none which could overtake them. Then was the wrath of the King terrible to look upon.

Now while the prince and his followers chafed, and the dismayed populace watched the work of the men who sought to make the boats ready to sail, the King filled them with the fiercest of his soldiers, being resolved that if the pirate escaped him on the sea he would follow him to his lair with swift and overwhelming vengeance. While these things were being done, the Rover passed out to the open sea and in sight of all the people turned his prows to the south.

Then the Brahman, standing where the lapping waters encircled his feet, stretched forth his hands toward the white sails as they spread to the west wind and called upon Shankar to destroy the despoiler. Immediately the wind died out and the ships were becalmed. Then the heart of the King swelled with fierce joy.

At his orders all the lighter boats were filled with men and oars were provided that they might row to the attack, and the young prince stood in the front of the fastest one. But while the people whetted themselves for battle, the Brahman still stood and prayed. And presently the air became thick. Though no clouds appeared the sky faded rapidly from sight, and the sun could no more be seen and the light of it was as the color of fire in thick smoke only.

Darkness as of chaos and a silence like that of a dead world encompassed the people, and a great dread gripped them. Suddenly there came from the sea a breath of sighing broken by sobs very heartrending, and this was followed by the sound of churning and lashing water. Soon a furious wind swept the coast in gusts which rested only that they might gather strength to rage, as the rush of rioters is momentarily stayed between whiles. And the black air, writhing like smoke, was driven hither and thither, and shaken by the din of thunder. Fierce lightnings pierced the darkness and in passing gave lurid glimpses of the sea's frenzy and the wind-swept earth. But though the storm raged so that the roaring sickened the hearts of the people, the Brahman remained unmoved, his hands stretched toward the sea where the Rover and his fleet were when it began.

Presently the wind passed, and the people looking seaward saw that there were no ships there, but the foam of the surf was black with wreckage, and tossing in it were the forms of dead men. The Rover and his followers had all perished. But the joy of the King and his people was savage, and their thoughts were black, for the princess was with them that were destroyed. Then the people made haste to spread themselves along the coast to watch if perchance the gods might cast her ashore alive, but no living thing appeared, neither was her body seen.

Now while these things were being done, great clouds, very thick and black, gathered, and rolling together, poured themselves in torrents into the sea. So thickly did the rain fall that the waves were beaten down and the sea became as a threshing-floor on which the rain fell white and hissing. The Brahman watching, said "Behold! the Heavens weep," and turning, he went straightway to the temple.

For many hours thereafter did the torrents fall and all Travancore mourned, the lamentations of the people being very loud, for the King and his son were much beloved and it was known that the prince was sorely distressed, and the more so that his sword must needs be idle for there were none left upon whom he could take vengeance.