AFTER an interval of more than twenty-seven years, the pearl-oyster (Avicula fucafa, Gould) has produced pearls off the Madras coast of the Gulf of Manaar, in sufficient quantities to be worth the expense of fishing. The last fishery of the Tuticorin banks took place in the years 1860-62, and resulted in a net profit to Government of Rs. 3,79,297 ( 37,929 at par). In olden times, when Tuticorin was in the possession of the Portuguese and Dutch, the fishery used to be carried on much more frequently than it is at the present day, and a difficult problem, which remains to be solved, is, What are the causes of the decline of the pearl fishery, and how can the Tuticorin banks be made to yield a more frequent harvest? Whether the baneful influence of the Mollusca known locally as sooram and killikov (Modiota sp., and Avicula sp.), the ravages of the file-fishes (Balistes) and Rays (Trygon, &c.), poaching, or currents, are responsible for the non-production of an abundant crop of adult pearl-producing oysters during more than a quarter of a century, it would be impossible to decide until our knowledge of the conditions under which the pearl- oysters breed, develop, and live, is more precise than it is at present.
Superstition, as of old, still clings to the native divers ;
and 1 read, in a recent issue of the Times of Ceylon , that
“ at present there are said to be 1 Jo boats, with their full
complement of men, all waiting at Kilakarai in readiness to proceed to Dutch Bay, but they will not leave until
after some festivities which occur on the 15th instant,
when it is customary for them to pray for protection from
sharks, &c., while engaged in diving.” I can find no
record of a diver being killed, in recent years, by
a shark. But a case is cited, in which a native died
at Tuticorin from the poisonous stings of a jelly-fish.
At certain seasons of the year, jelly-fish are very abundant in the Tuticorin harbour, and a resident merchant
tells me that, so great is the dread of them among the
natives, that he has known coolies, engaged in carrying
loads of palmyra jaggery through the shallow water to
the cargo-boats, refuse to enter the water till a track
free from jelly-fish was cleared for them by two canoes
dragging a net between them.
The pearl-bank which is being fished at the present
time, is known as the “ Tholayiram Par,” which covers
an area of about five square miles, and lies more than ten
miles east of Tuticorin, in from 8 to 10 1/2 fathoms. The
following record, by the Superintendent of the Pearl
Banks, shows the condition of this bank as regards oyster-supply from the year 1560 to 1884, the oysters
which are now being obtained having been first noticed
at an early stage of growth in the latter year :—
April 1560.—Plenty of oysters three and a half years old.
November 1861.—Oysters scarce; nearly all gone.
April 1563 .—Sooram and killihoy with some young oysters.
November 1865 to April 1869.—Blank.
March 1571.—Five oysters with a quantity of sooram.
February 1872.—Five oysters of three years old found.
May 1873.—Three oysters found.
January 1875.—Three oysters of two years old found.
March 1876.—North part blank.
April 1877.—South part blank.
April 1878.—Thickly stocked with oysters one year old.
May 1579.—Blank.
May 1850.—Blank.
May 1881. — Some oysters mixed with killihoy.
May 1552.—No oysters; dead shells and sooram.
April 1883.—Three oysters found.
March 1584.—Plenty of oysters one year old; clean and
healthy.
This record shows very clearly how capricious is the
life of the pearl-oyster, how easily the hopes of a productive bank may be banished (witness the total disappearance of the oysters in 1879), and points to the evil
influence of sooram, which, spreading in dense masses
along the rocky bottom, crowds out the young pearl-
oysters.
Since 1584, the “Tholayiram Par” has been carefully
watched, and the growth of the oyster, from the young to
the adult stage, has steadily advanced.
In November last, 1
5,000 oysters were taken from
bank for the purpose of valuation by pearl-merchants, and
the product was valued at Rs. 13,12,8 per 1000 oysters.
The shells of the oysters which are now being brought
in daily are in crusted with various marine animals
(Sponges, Polyzoa, &c.), and enveloped in masses of
delicate Algee ; but, among very many thousands which
I have examined, I have met with no sooram , and only
very few specimens of killikoy. The oysters are living
either on sand, by which they are partially buried, or on
coral rocky ground (Turbinaria, Montipora, Porites, &c.),
and are often brought up attached by their bussus to dead
branches of Madrepores, or Melobesian nodules. Large specimens of the big anai mullu shanku (Murex sp.) are
frequently brought up by the divers, and the tough
animal, when removed from the shell, is served up for
the evening meal.
The improvised camp, from which the fishery' is conducted, is situated on the coast about two miles north
of Tuticorin, and, on the way thither across a long
stretch of sand, the kilns in which coral and shells are
converted into chunam are passed, and the chank
godowns, in which the chunks (Turbinetla rapa), whose
shells afford an annual source of revenue to Government,
are.stored, the animal matter being got rid of by the combined influence of insects and bacteria. The camp, which
is built of bamboo and palmyra, is made up of residential
huts, tents, and bungalows, offices (treasury, dispensary,
He.), sheds called kottoos, in which the oysters are
counted and submitted to the unsavoury washing process,
and the native basar, gaily decorated with flags, in which
the product of the oysters is exposed for sale.
As soon after midnight as the land wind sets in, the
signal gun is fired on the shore by the native beach
master, and, amid a good deal of shouting, all sail is set,
and the fleet, which is unfortunately composed of less
than fifty boats, with its complement of divers, makes for
the bank, which should be reached by daylight. The
hoisting of a flag on the schooner which is stationed on
the bank is the signal for the day’s fishery to commence.
The limits of the entire bank are marked out by' buoy's,
and the divers are supposed only to work, on any given
day', over an area which is also indicated by buoys ; but,
owing to adverse winds and other causes, it is sometimes
found impossible to keep the boats within the prescribed
area. A stone, to which a rope is attached, is put over
the boat’s side, and a basket or net fastened in a similar
way. These ropes the diver takes in one hand, and,
placing one foot on the stone, he draws in a deep breath,
closing his nostrils with his other hand ; or the nose is
inserted into a clip, which tightly' compresses the nostrils.
At a given signal the ropes are let go, and the diver
descends to the bottom. The slacking of the ropes shows
that this is reached. The diver then lets go the stone,
which is drawn up to the surface, and, after filling the
basket or net with oysters, he ascends to the surface to
regain his breath. The divers work in couples, two to
each stone, and the oysters brought up are kept carefully
separated from those of other divers. The other day
237,000 oysters were brought up by 454 divers, in about
5 A hours, giving an average of 524 oysters to each
diver. A European diver is engaged experimentally
on the bank, but his greatest haul in a day' has been
only 1500 oysters.
The diving operations cease for the day about 1.30 p.m.,
and the boats start for the land, the signal gun being
fired and the Union Jack run up on the flagstaff as soon
as they are sighted. On reaching the shore the boats are
secured, the oysters carried to the shed, rapidly counted,
and divided into three heaps. The superintendent of the
fishery, or some other responsible officer, touches with his
stick one of these heaps, which becomes the property of
the divers, who receive a pass and carry their hard-
gained earnings outside the shed, where a swarming
crowd of natives is waiting, eager to try their luck by
purchasing a few oysters at a rate varying from about
fifteen to forty for a rupee. Until long after dark crowds
of natives may be seen squatting in circles on the sand,
opening .their oysters and carefully examining the flesh
with a knife in search of even the smallest pearls. The
utmost good temper prevails, and the possessor of only a
few seed pearls is, apparently, perfectly happy. The two
heaps which are left by the divers constitute the Government share, and are carefully counted by' Government
coolies. The beating of the tom-tom then announces
that the Government auction is about to commence.
The oysters are put up for sale in lots of 1000, and the purchaser has the option of taking a certain number of
thousands at the same rate. As soon as the purchase
money has been paid, the oysters are handed over to the
purchaser, who sends them off by train, or deposits them
in the kottoo at the northern end of the camp, where
various natural agents bring about the requisite process
of dissolution of the animal matter. After some days
the residue is carefully washed, the prevailing maggots
skimmed off, and a careful search made for the pearls.
Pearl Camp. EDGAR. THURSTON.
© 1889 Nature Publishing Group
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