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Ch. 5: Pearl

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CHAPTER V
THE PEARL
IN its purity, liquid beauty, and charm of romantic and poetical association the pearl —aristocrat of gems—leads even its peers of the highest rank, the diamond, emerald, ruby, and sapphire. The sea-gem has throughout all recorded time formed the fitting necklace of feminine royalty and famous beauty; the state decorations of dusky Oriental potentates and their principal treasures have been pearls. From the ocean's bed and the turgid streams of mid­land North America, from almost anywhere that is the habitat of the oyster or the humble mussel come these pale, lustrous treasures that may prove to be almost priceless. The exist­ence and recognition of the beauty of the pearl as a personal ornament and treasure is undoubt­edly prehistoric on every continent. The dis­coverers and conquistadores from old Spain found quantities of them in the western Indies, on the Spanish Main, in Florida, Mexico, and
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Ch. 4: Emeralds Page of 451 Ch. 5: Pearl
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