Islands,
and the Tuamotu Archipelago. Of the big yellow variety, the best are
obtained in the Merguian Archipelago and Dutch Indies. The shells of
this district at Ceram, Batjan, and elsewhere, vary somewhat but the
bulk of them are yellow.
Beginning
with the east coast of Africa, the pearl oyster is found in the Red
Sea, where it has been fished for ages. The shell here is of medium
size and weight; much larger than those of Venezuela, Ceylon, or the
Persian Gulf and smaller than the shells of the Pacific. The
mother-of-pearl is not of the finest quality and is used now for
inferior work only. It was more used formerly but since the fresh-water
unio shell of the United States came into the market, it has displaced
to a great degree the Egyptian and Panama shells. The inner edge of the
Red Sea shell is of a greenish gray color.
South
of the Red Sea, on the East of the African coast, pearl oysters are
found in a number of places between Zanzibar and Inham-bane,
particularly at the Bazaruto Islands, but nowhere in sufficient
abundance to develop the fishing for them into a regular industry. Good
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