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Ch. 7: Sooloo Archipelago

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The Sooloo Archipelago.
139
on their part ; in the same way a Sooloo man will say he can do thirty fathoms ; and when challenged as to the possibility of such a statement, replies " Well, I can do fifteen fathoms down and fifteen up again. Is not that thirty ? "
The Sooloo Pearl-shell banks are worked by natives of Sooloo only, and there is no European engaged or even interested in the industry. There is very litttle shell in Sooloo waters under nine fathoms, but this is not of much consequence to the divers, as they seldom make more than fifteen dives in the course of a morning. On good ground a fair diver can obtain enough shell in five or six dives to support himself and his family for a month, and for the rest of the month he generally leads an idle life. Slaves have to go out more frequently and dive oftener, but even their day's work is far less than what a white man would expect from a man to whom he paid wages.
Every shell is opened on being brought to the surface, and the oyster, after being carefully searched for Pearls, is placed in the sun to dry for food ; a thin piece of bamboo, and not a knife, is used to open the shell.
The loss of life from sharks is not great,
Ch. 7: Sooloo Archipelago Page of 341 Ch. 7: Sooloo Archipelago
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