236 GEMS AND PRECIOUS STONES IN THE
uncleaned.
He has paid some attention to pearl-collecting, and has never observed
more than one in a shell. He instances one as large as a small
hazel-nut. A few found by him were really finer in color than those
from the West Indies, although not so regular in form. The principal
shades are canary, salmon-pink, pink, and pure white. The value of none
was over $50. Conch pearls from the West Indies have occasionally been
observed half an inch in length and of very fine quality, and are
sometimes worth $1,000 apiece; yet the taste for pink pearls is on the
increase, although for years the demand has been somewhat limited in
the United States. A necklace of these pearls valued at $4,000 has been
collected, which is worthy of mention.
The
pearls of the queen conch vary in color from a rich yellow to a
yellowish-brown shade, and if anything are more highly polished than
those of the Strombus gigas, or pink conch. Cassis cornuta, C.
tuberosa, C. Madagascarensis, C. rufa, also contain pearly concretions,
varying from yellow to brown, somewhat similar to those from the common
conch, but no large ones have as yet been observed.
The
Abalone (Haliotis or Ear-Shell), the principal species of which are
Haliotis splendens and Haliotis rufescens (called ormer in the Channel
Islands, fuh-yu in China, awabi in Japan, and abalone in California),
also secretes pearls. (See Illustration.) The nacreous portion of the
shell itself is used for ornamental purposes, such as buttons, etc.,
and surface ornamentation in lacquer work, papier-mache\ etc. The
mollusk itself, called "mutton-fish" by the New Zealanders, has long
been known to the Indians of the Pacific coast as a valuable article of
food, and it is much sought after by the Japanese and Chinese for the
same purpose. The former take only the very smallest fish, and eat them
when freshly caught with cayenne pepper and vinegar, while the Chinese
seek out the largest, and eat them only after they have been dried.1
The
fishing is conducted at low tide, the principal grounds on the coast
being along the Catalina and Santa Rosa Islands, in the Santa Barbara
Channel, and from Monterey to San
1 From an article on this subject by Charles R. Orcutt.
