METHODS OF FISHING
The
beds of the marine shell-fish from which pearls are taken lie always
under water. Unlike others which are sometimes left exposed by the
tides, to be gathered by man without difficulty, the pearl oyster is
never left uncovered by the sea. It is found usually on shoals some
distance from shore, sometimes but five to seven feet from the surface;
more frequently fifteen to forty feet deep, and often one hundred to
one hundred and twenty-five and even one hundred and fifty feet deep.
Everywhere,
then, man's quest for pearls is confronted by the heaving, restless
waters of the sea, for the greater part of the year rough and
turbulent, frequently lashed to furious racing by tropic tempests but
through which he must in any case go to get them. In a few places where
the beds lie in shallow inlets and sheltered bays they can be dredged,
but almost universally the oysters are gathered by divers. During the
greater part of the year, when storms 12 177
