soon
reducing the fishery to a very low stage. Subjected to frequent changes
in regulations, and burdened by heavy taxes, the industry remained in
poor condition until about 1895. Since then the enhanced value of
pearls, and the increased industrial activity on the coast, has
resulted in a very large development of the fishery.
In
recent years the government of Venezuela has granted concessions to
individuals and to companies for the exploitation of defined areas for
a limited period, exacting 10 per cent, royalty on the proceeds of the
enterprise. In granting these concessions, the government usually
reserves the right to examine the books, and to intervene when
necessary in any phase of the enterprise. For protecting its revenue,
the government requires that shipments of the. pearls must be signed by
its agent, and bills of sale must be countersigned by the Venezuelan
consul in the place where the sales are consummated.
The
Venezuelan pearl fishery now gives employment to about 350 boats,
manned by five or six men each, sailing from the ports of Juan Griego,
Cumana, and Carupano. These are sail craft, measuring from two to
fifteen tons each, and are licensed by the Venezuelan authorities at a
charge of 15 bolivars ($2.92) each. Most of the boats use dredges, but
some of them resort to nude diving, after the manner of the sixteenth
century. Attempts have been made to use the scaphander, or diving
armor, but without success, owing largely to the difficulty in
obtaining experienced workmen, and also to local prejudice against this
form of fishery. It is claimed that in using the scaphander, all
oysters are removed from the reefs, whereas the arrastra or
dredge spreads the oysters and thereby enlarges the reefs. This is the
principal and, except those at Sharks Bay and the Sulu Islands, the
only important pearl fishery in which the oysters are secured by means
of dredges. These are made of iron and are similar to those implements
used in the scallop fisheries of New York and Rhode Island. They are
dragged over the beds, and when filled are lifted and their contents
emptied into the boat, the fishermen culling out the desirable oysters
from the mass and throwing the refuse material overboard.
The pearl-oyster {Margaritifera radiât a) secured
on the coast of Venezuela is closely related to the Ceylon species. It
averages slightly larger in size, and there is a much greater range in
coloration. The pearls are of good quality. In color they range from
white to bronze, and occasionally a so-called black one is found. The
total output is valued locally at about 1,750,000 francs ($350,000) per
year. Most of them are sold in Paris.
Owing
to their small size and lack of thickness, the shells of the Venezuela
pearl-oyster are of little or no value in the mother-of-pearl
