VALUES AND COMMERCE OF PEARLS 361
but
slightly button on each side, weighing about 44 grains, and beautiful
as are American pearls, is held at a fanciful valuation of over $6000.
The
cupidity of many of the American pearl finders and pearl dealers
cannot be exceeded even by that of the foreign pearl finder in any
other land, and this is shown by the variety of materials that from
time to time are sold to the unsuspecting public, or that are sent to
pearl dealers in the large cities. This is surprising and suggests
either that the sender believes the pearl dealers are not familiar with
these deceptions, or else that he himself has been imposed upon, and is
innocent in his commercial deceit. Among the notable examples are,
first, spheres made out of the various shells, either from a good part
of the material or from hinge-material, or else from the spot where the
mussel is attached, these pieces of the shell being rounded and
polished ; such spheres vary in color from white to pink or yellow,
just as the shell itself may have been colored. Second, the pupils of
fish-eyes. Third, imitation pearls. Fourth, yellow or brown translucent
or transparent masses of hinge-binding material having no greater
hardness than horn, and about the same appearance. The most
interesting, however, are the absolutely beautiful, smooth spheres of
anthracite coal, which admits of a rich polish and has a peculiar
luster; these they attempt to pass off as black pearls.
It
is interesting to note that in Arkansas a negro sold a very valuable
pearl for a few dollars, under the persuasion of a white man, who, it
is said, resold the pearl for nearly a hundred times more than what he
paid for it. The local authorities investigated the matter; the case
was brought to court, and the negro received a large advance on the
price that had originally been paid him.
If
a list were kept of the thousand and one different methods of wrapping
American pearls for shipment to the larger cities, it would show how
much ingenuity is displayed in environments that frequently differ very
much from each other. A box that has contained the pills that relieved
him of fever, ague, and other ills due to swamps and damp climates,
serves a secondary purpose for the fortunate finder of a pearl in
forming a receptacle in which he can ship it to the greater market.
Sometimes they are sewed in leather cut from gloves and shoes, or in
strips of cloth, generally of the humbler varieties, such as calico or
blue jean; in other cases they are wrapped in tissue-paper and
newspaper; and occasionally they are packed in boxes made by hollowing
out a bit of wood, a cover being nailed over the opening. In almost
every instance they have been treated with a certain degree of care.
The
majority of conch pearls which are carried by individuals to New York,
London, or Paris, are generally brought in small papers or
