As
for David Ingram's perambulations to the north parts, Master Hakluyt,
in his first edition printed the same ; but it seemeth some
incredibilities of his reports caused him to leave him out in the next
impression; the reward of lying being, not to be believed in truths.1
Even the members of Raleigh's Roanoke Colony of 1585 reported pearls. Hariot stated :
Sometimes
in feeding on Muscles we found some Pearle: but it was our happe to
meet with ragges, or of a pide colour : not having yet discovered those
places where we heard of better and more plenty. One of our company, a
man of skill in such matters, had gathered from among the Savage people
about five thousand : of which number he chooses so many as made a
faire chaîne, which for their likenesse and uniformity in roundenesse,
orientnesse, and piednesse of many excellent colours, with equality in
greatnesse, were very faire and rare : and had therefore been presented
to her Majesty, had we not by casualty, and through extremity of a
storme lost them, with many things els in coming away from the countrey.2
So
far as we can learn, there is no evidence to show that, during the
sixteenth or the seventeenth century, any pearls of value were
received in Europe from within the present limits of the United
States, as was the case with the resources of Venezuela, Panama and
Mexico. Many of the accounts quoted above seem wholly fictitious, some
of them possibly drawn up for the purpose of promoting exploring
expeditions. It is also probable that knowledge of the enormous
collections at Venezuela and Panama misled some of the narrators into
recognizing as pearls the spherical pieces of shell or even the
cylindrical wampum which the Indians made in large quantities and used
as money.
However,
it is unquestionable that pearls of value were in the possession of
some of the wealthier tribes. Biedma's account of the 150 pounds or
more of damaged pearls in the graves at Cofaciqui seems wholly
reliable, and likewise many other statements ; and it is an
interesting problem to determine the source from which the Indians
obtained them.
Most
of the narratives refer to the pearls as coming from the coast of the
South Sea or Gulf of Mexico. The evidence of Fontaneda, who had spent
seventeen years in the country, throws some light on this. He states
that pearls were obtained at the mouth of Reed River near
Appalachicola, whence they were distributed throughout Florida. This
seems to indicate that on the west coast of Florida there might have
been extensive reefs of pearl-bearing mollusks, which have since become
extinct, although existing shell-heaps do not confirm this.
'"Purchas's Pilgrims," London, 1625, Vol. "Hakluyt's "Voyages," Glasgow, Vol.
IV, p. 179.
VIII, p. 357-
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