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THE BOOK OF THE PEARL
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for
many years and that was a most faultless match. Through all the years
of his search he had never informed any one of his intention to match
the pearl he already owned.
In
1879, at the time of the death of the father of Sultan Buderuddin of
the Sulu Islands, a box of large and fine pearls was among the
treasures he left behind him. Many of these disappeared, but some of
them came into the hands of Sultan Buderuddin and his mother. The
former sold those which he had inherited, in order to defray the
expenses of a pilgrimage to Mecca, in 1882. His mother, who exerted a
great influence over the conduct of affairs, retained a number of the
pearls, and it was always difficult to induce her to part with any of
them. When, as very rarely happened, she was persuaded to do so, she
invariably got a higher price for them than they would have commanded
in London, because she was never anxious to sell, and always said: "Why
should I sell my pearls? If the Spaniards come to attack us, I can put
them in a handkerchief and go into the hills ; but if I had dollars I
should need a number of men to carry them." We do not yet know what
became of the stolen pearls.
Many
times has a dealer put nearly all that he possessed into a fine pearl
or necklace, frequently without a reward; often gradually buying more
and more, hoping for some great patron to relieve him. When the client
appears, there is happiness, but when he does not, there is woe. This
instance is well illustrated when Philip IV of Spain asked of the
merchant Gogibus : "How have you ventured to put all your fortune into
such a small object?" "Because I knew there was a king of Spain to buy
it of me," was the quick reply. And Philip rewarded the faith of the
jeweler by purchasing the pearl.
Caire and Dufie1 state:
We
need have no fear that either the price or the use of pearls will
diminish when we consider the great demand for them both on account of
luxury and superstition. There is no Hindu who does not regard it as a
matter of religion that he should pierce at least one pearl on the
occasion of his marriage. This must be a new pearl which has never been
perforated. Whatever may be the mysterious signification, this very
ancient usage is, at least, very useful for the commerce of pearls.
In
1898, one of the writers had a long talk with his late chief, who had,
at that time, devoted sixty years of his life to the jewelry
profession. In the course of the conversation the latter remarked :
"It seems to me that pearls are too dear" ; to which the writer
rejoined : "Have pearls ever gone down in price during your entire
connection with the jewelry profession?" The answer was: "No, they have
always ad-
1 Caire and Dufie, "La Science des Pierres Précieuses appliquée aux Arts," Paris, 1833.
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