Chapter XII: Introduction (11)

Of the sailors who went with Christopher Columbus when he found the
pearls, the greater number were from Palos. As soon as these came to
Spain, they told about the country of pearls, displayed many, and
carried them to Seville to sell, whence they went to the court and
into the palace. Excited by this report, some persons there
hurriedly prepared a ship and made Pedro Alonso Niño its captain. He
had from the Catholic king license to go in search of pearls and
land, provided he should not go within fifty leagues of any
discovered by Columbus.

Niño embarked in August, 1499, with thirty-three companions, some of
whom had been with Columbus. He sailed as far as Paria, visited the
coast of Cumana, Maracapan, Port Plechado, and Curiana, which lies
united to Venezuela. There he landed, and a chief, who came to the
coast with fifty Indians, conducted him amicably to a large town to
take water, refreshments, and the barter he was in search of. He
bartered for and secured fifteen ounces of pearls in exchange for
pins, rings of horn and tin, glass beads, small bells, and similar
trifles. The Spaniards stayed in the town twenty days, trading for
pearls. The natives gave a pigeon for a needle, a turtledove for one
glass bead, a pheasant for two, and a turkey for four. For that
price they also gave rabbits and quarters of deer. The Indians asked
to be shown the use of needles, since they went naked and could not
sew, and were told to extract the thorns with them, for they went
barefooted: Niño brought to Galicia ninety-six pounds of rough
pearls, among which were many fine, round, lustrous ones of five and
six carats, and some of more. But they were not well pierced, which
was a great fault. On the route a quarrel arose over the division,
and certain sailors accused Niño before the governor in Galicia,
saying that he had stolen many pearls and cheated the king in his
fifth, and traded in Cumana and other places where Columbus had
been. The governor seized Niño, but did not keep him in prison very
long, where he consumed pearls enough.[270]

GRAY PEARLS FROM LOWER CALIFORNIA, AND DIAMONDS

Pan-American Exposition, 1901
]

This expedition of Pedro Alonso Niño was the first financially profitable voyage to America. After his return, the Cubagua pearl fishery became the object of numerous speculations, and many other Spaniards fitted out voyages, most of them sailing from Hispaniola or Haiti, nine hundred miles distant. Owing to the ill-treatment of the Indians and excessive cruelties toward them, much difficulty was experienced in securing divers. This was relieved in 1508 by transporting large numbers of Indians from the Lucayan or Bahama Islands and impressing them into the service. These were so expert in the work that individuals sold for upward of 150 ducats each.[271] With their aid the fishery prospered so greatly that in 1515 a settlement, called New Cadiz, was established on Cubagua Island by the governor of Hispaniola, Diego Columbus, son of the discoverer. This small island was dry and desolate, without water or wood, which were brought from the mainland twenty miles distant, or from Margarita Island about three miles to the northward.

An interesting description of the manner of securing the pearls by these early adventurers was given by Gonzalo Fernandez de Oviedo y Valdes (1478–1557) in his “Historia natural y general de las Indias,” written less than thirty years after the discovery of the mainland of America. A translation of this book was published in 1555 by Richard Eden in his “Decades of the New World”; from which we extract the following account, the retention of Eden’s quaint phraseology seeming permissible owing to this being one of the very earliest books on America.

_Of the maner of fyshynge for perles_

The Indians exercise this kynde of fyschynge for the moste parte in
the coastes of the North in _Cubagua_ and _Cumana_. And manye of
theym which dwell in the houses of certeyne particular lordes in the
Ilandes of _San Dominico_ and _Sancti Iohannis_, resort to the
Ilande of _Cubagua_ for this purpose. Theyr custome is to go fyve,
syxe, or seven, or more in one of theyr _Canoas_ or barkes erly in
the mornynge to sume place in the sea there about where it appeareth
unto them that there shulde bee greate plentie of those shell fyshes
(which sume caule muscles and sume oysters) wherein perles are
engendered. And there they plonge them selves under the water, even
unto the bottome, savynge one that remaynethe in the Canoa or boate
which he keepeth styll in one place as neare as he can, lookynge for
theyr returne owte of the water. And when one of them hath byn a
good whyle under the water, he ryseth up and commeth swymmynge to
the boate, enterynge into the same, and leavynge there all the
oysters whiche he hath taken and brought with hym. For in these, are
the perles founde. And when he hathe there rested hym selfe a whyle,
and eaten parte of the oysters, he returneth ageyne to the water,
where he remaynethe as longe as he can endure, and then ryseth
ageyne, and swimmeth to the boate with his pray, where he resteth
hym as before, and thus continueth course by course, as doo all the
other in lyke maner, being all moste experte swymmers and dyvers.
And when the nyght draweth neare, they returne to the Ilande to
theyr houses, and presente all the oysters to the master or stewarde
of the house of theyr lorde who hath charge of the sayde Indians.
And when he hath gyven them sumwhat to eate, he layeth up the
oysters in safe custodie untyll he have a great quantitie thereof.
Then hee causeth the same fyssher men to open them. And they fynde
in every of them pearles other great or smaul, two or three or
foure, and sumtymes five and syxe, and many smaule graines accordyng
to the lyberalitie of nature. They save the pearles bothe smaule and
great whiche they have founde: And eyther eate the oysters if they
wyl, or caste them away, havynge so great quantitie thereof that
they in maner abhorre them. Those oysters are of hard fleshe, and
not so pleasant in eatyng as are owres of Spayne. This Ilande of
_Cubagua_ where this manner of fysching is exercised, is in the
Northe coaste, and is no bygger then the Iland of Zelande.
Oftentymes the sea encreaseth greatly, and muche more then the
fyshers for pearles wold, bycause where as the place is very depe, a
man can not naturally rest at the bottome by reason of the
aboundaunce of aery substannce whiche is in hym, as I have
oftentymes proved. For althoughe he may by vyolence and force
descende to the bottome, yet are his feete lyfted up ageyne so that
he can continue no tyme there. And therefore where the sea is verye
deepe, these Indian fyshers use to tye two great stoones aboute them
with a corde, on every side one, by the weyght whereof they descend
to the bottome and remayne there untyl them lysteth to ryse ageine:
At which tyme they unlose the stones, and ryse uppe at their
pleasure. But this their aptenesse and agilitie in swimming, is not
the thynge that causeth men moste to marvaile: But rather to
consyder how many of them can stande in the bottome of the water for
the space of one hole houre and summe more or lesse, accordynge as
one is more apte hereunto then an other. An other thynge there is
whiche seemeth to me very straunge. And this is, that where as I
have oftentymes demaunded of summe of these lordes of the Indians,
if the place where they accustomed to fysche for pearles beynge but
lyttle and narrowe wyll not in shorte tyme bee utterly without
oysters if they consume them so faste, they al answered me, that
although they be consumed in one parte, yet if they go a fyschynge
in an other parte or on another coaste of the Ilande, or at an other
contrary wynd, and continue fysshing there also untyll the oysters
be lykewyse consumed, and then returne ageyne to the fyrste place,
or any other place where they fysshed before and emptied the same in
lyke maner, they find them ageine as ful of oysters as though they
had never bin fysshed. Wherby we may judge that these oysters eyther
remove from one place to an other as do other fysshes, or elles that
they are engendered and encrease in certeyne ordinaire places. This
Iland of _Cumana_ and _Cubagua_ where they fyshe for these perles,
is in the twelfe degree of the part of the said coaste which
inclineth toward the North.

The cupidity of the proprietors of the fishery led to most cruel treatment of the divers and, if the accounts of the time are to be relied upon, a large percentage of them died under the harsh regime. About 1515 the unfortunate natives obtained an earnest and influential advocate in Bartolomé de las Casas, who, in 1516, prevailed upon the youthful Charles V to decree that the fishery should be prosecuted only in summer, that the divers should not be required to work more than four hours a day where the depth exceeded six fathoms, that they should receive good nourishment and half a quart of wine daily, should have hammocks or beds in which to sleep, and should be provided with clothes to put on as soon as they left the water.[272] And by later ordinances it was stipulated that death should be inflicted on any one forcing a free Indian to dive for pearls.

In 1528 the resources of Coche Island were exploited with so much success that within six months “1500 marcs (12,000 ounces) of pearls” were secured. Pearl banks were successively found at Porlamar, Maracapana, Curiano, and at various places on the coast from the Gulf of Paria to the Gulf of Coro, a distance of over five hundred miles, which became designated the “Pearl Coast.” For a number of years previous to 1530, the output exceeded in value 800,000 piastres annually, approximating one half the produce of the American mines at that time.[273] It was largely these pearls that enriched the cargoes of many of those famous caravels that crossed the Atlantic to Spain. Indeed, for several decades, America was best known in continental Europe as the land whence the pearls came.

An interesting account of an early effort to use dredges in the Cubagua pearl fishery was given by Girolamo Benzoni, who had lived in America from 1542 to 1555, and was familiar with the conditions. He states:

“At the time the pearl fishery flourished on this island there came
here one Louis de Lampugnan with an imperial license authorizing him
to fish such quantities of pearls as he pleased within all the
limits and bounds of Cubagua. This man set out from Spain with four
caravels loaded with all the necessary provisions and munitions for
such an enterprise, which some Spanish merchants furnished him. He
had made a kind of rake, the fashion of which was such that in
whatever part of the sea it was used, not an oyster would escape. At
the same time he would have raked and drawn out all that bore pearls
if he had not been disappointed. But the Spaniards in Cubagua all
banded against him in the execution of his privilege. They said the
emperor was too liberal with other people’s goods, and if he wished
to give he might give his own as he wished. As for themselves they
had conquered and kept that country with great labor and at the
peril of their lives, and there were far better reasons why they
should enjoy it than a stranger. Poor Lampugnan, seeing that his
patents did not avail him the value of a straw, and at the same time
not daring to return to Spain, partly through fear of being
ridiculed and partly on account of the money he owed, was ruined. In
fact, the business and its anxieties drove him crazy and he was
exposed to the mockery of all the world as a lunatic. In the end,
after dragging out five years in this miserable condition, he died
in this isle of Cubagua.”[274]

The average size of these pearls derived from the Venezuelan fisheries was small, specimens rarely exceeding twenty grains. In 1577, Urbain Chauveton wrote: “The pearls of Cubagua are mostly 2, 3, 4, and 5 carats. But the quantity of them is so great that the fifth part which is paid to the king of Spain yields every year the value of more than 15,000 ducats; this besides the frauds committed and the pearls which stick to the fingers of those who manage the business, and who pilfer the most beautiful in great numbers, sending them here and there for sale. They place themselves in great danger if the facts become known, but they do it all the same.”[275]

The enormous demands made by the Spaniards soon had its effect on the resources, for Chauveton adds: “It is apparent they decrease and not so many are found as in the beginning. The reason for this is that the Spaniards are so eager to gather large quantities of them quickly that they are not content to use their divers to search for them in the depths of the sea, but they have conceived and invented I know not how many machines of rakes and drags to scrape up everything. In fact they have at times collected them all so that another could not be found, and have had to abandon their fishing for a considerable time to give the oysters a chance to lay their eggs and grow their pearls.”[276]

The decrease noted by Chauveton was probably not very serious, for the Spanish historian, Jose de Acosta, reports that in 1581 he saw “the note of what came from the Indies for the king; there were 18 marcs of pearles, besides 3 caskets; and for private persons there were 1265 marcs, and besides them, 7 caskets not pierced, which heretofore we would have esteemed and helde for a lie.”[277] Also the records show that in 1597 Spain received from the Venezuelan fisheries “350 pounds’ weight of pearls.” It is to be regretted that the Spaniards so frequently reported the yield of pearls by pounds’ weight, for—owing to the great variation in quality—this is about as unsatisfactory as to report the wealth of an individual by the pounds’ weight of his title-deeds or of his stock certificates. The value of “350 pounds of pearls” might have been anywhere from twenty thousand dollars to as many millions. Assuming that all were two grains each in weight and of good quality, the total value would approximate $600,000 according to the valuation of that period; and on a basis of eight grains each, it would be $9,600,000, or sixteen times as much. But as original parcels of pearls from the fisheries, these figures should be divided by three.

Following 1597, the productiveness of the Cubagua beds rapidly decreased. By acts of cruelty and oppression the Spaniards had converted the surviving Indians into deadly foes, ready to take advantage of any opportunity to avenge themselves on their oppressors, and thus terrifying the settlers into abandoning the enterprise. Early in the seventeenth century the development of mining resources in Mexico, Peru, etc., attracted the adventurous Spaniards. A considerable decrease in the value of pearls, brought about by the skilful manufacture of imitations at Venice, and elsewhere in southern Europe, also affected the prosperity of the fisheries. As a result of these combined influences, the output in Venezuela was greatly reduced, and it ceased long before the close of the following century. Thus ended an enterprise which, for a number of years, represented the greatest single industry of the European people on the American continent.

According to General Manuel Laudecta Rosales, the Venezuela archives contain no reference to any renewal of the fishery until early in the nineteenth century. At the time of Humboldt’s visit in 1799, the fishery was entirely neglected around the islands of Margarita, Cubagua, and Coche, and the only evidence of pearls was a few very insignificant ones picked up about Cumana and sold among the natives at a piaster per dozen.[278]

After the overthrow of Spanish authority on this coast, Messrs. Rundell, Bridge and Rundell, a firm of well-known goldsmiths of London, obtained, in 1823, from the government of Colombia, a ten-year monopoly of the fishery at several places on the coast of the new republic, in consideration of one fifth of the pearls secured.[279] After the independence of Venezuela in 1829, the taxes imposed were so heavy that the industry languished, and about 1833 it was practically abandoned.

Owing to the improved physical condition of the reefs, the fishery developed largely in 1845; and for several years an average of 1600 ounces of pearls were secured, an ounce of good quality selling for 150 to 500 bolivars (one bolivar = 19½ cents), and the inferior quality at 80 to 100 bolivars.[280] At that time there was a tax of sixteen bolivars per boat monthly. In 1853 this was increased to forty-eight bolivars per boat, and the use of dredges (_arrastras_) was interdicted, soon reducing the fishery to a very low stage. Subjected to frequent changes in regulations, and burdened by heavy taxes, the industry remained in poor condition until about 1895. Since then the enhanced value of pearls, and the increased industrial activity on the coast, has resulted in a very large development of the fishery.

In recent years the government of Venezuela has granted concessions to individuals and to companies for the exploitation of defined areas for a limited period, exacting 10 per cent. royalty on the proceeds of the enterprise. In granting these concessions, the government usually reserves the right to examine the books, and to intervene when necessary in any phase of the enterprise. For protecting its revenue, the government requires that shipments of the pearls must be signed by its agent, and bills of sale must be countersigned by the Venezuelan consul in the place where the sales are consummated.

The Venezuelan pearl fishery now gives employment to about 350 boats, manned by five or six men each, sailing from the ports of Juan Griego, Cumana, and Carupano. These are sail craft, measuring from two to fifteen tons each, and are licensed by the Venezuelan authorities at a charge of 15 bolivars ($2.92) each. Most of the boats use dredges, but some of them resort to nude diving, after the manner of the sixteenth century. Attempts have been made to use the scaphander, or diving armor, but without success, owing largely to the difficulty in obtaining experienced workmen, and also to local prejudice against this form of fishery. It is claimed that in using the scaphander, all oysters are removed from the reefs, whereas the _arrastra_ or dredge spreads the oysters and thereby enlarges the reefs. This is the principal and, except those at Sharks Bay and the Sulu Islands, the only important pearl fishery in which the oysters are secured by means of dredges. These are made of iron and are similar to those implements used in the scallop fisheries of New York and Rhode Island. They are dragged over the beds, and when filled are lifted and their contents emptied into the boat, the fishermen culling out the desirable oysters from the mass and throwing the refuse material overboard.

The pearl-oyster (_Margaritifera radiata_) secured on the coast of Venezuela is closely related to the Ceylon species. It averages slightly larger in size, and there is a much greater range in coloration. The pearls are of good quality. In color they range from white to bronze, and occasionally a so-called black one is found. The total output is valued locally at about 1,750,000 francs ($350,000) per year. Most of them are sold in Paris.

Owing to their small size and lack of thickness, the shells of the Venezuela pearl-oyster are of little or no value in the mother-of-pearl trade. Thousands of tons of them, the accumulations of scores of fisheries, lie in heaps and ridges along the coast, as though in years long past vast armies of oysters, engaged in deadly combat, had left their innumerable myriads of slain comrades to bleach on the shores.

THE PANAMA PEARL FISHERIES

The bordring Ilands, seated here in ken,
Whose Shores are sprinkled with rich Orient Pearle,
More bright of hew than were the Margarets
That Caesar found in wealthy Albion.

ROBERT GREENE, _Orlando Furioso_ (1594).

From the point of view of the Spaniards of his day, the greatest result of Balboa’s immortal journey in 1513 across the Isthmus of Panama to the broad waters of the Pacific, was the discovery of the pearl resources of the Gulf of St. Michael, now known as the Gulf of Panama. Probably the best description of this is given by Lopez de Gomara in his “Historia general de las Indias,” published in 1554, from which we translate the following account.

After Balboa had reached the Pacific in 1513, he proceeded a short distance along the coast until he met with an Indian chief by the name of Tomaco. Being questioned about the gold and pearls which some of his people wore, Tomaco sent for some gold and 240 large pearls and a great number of small ones—a rich present, which filled the Spaniards with pleasure. Seeing the Spaniards so delighted, Tomaco ordered some of his men to go and fish for pearls. These went and in a few days obtained 64 ounces, which also he gave them. The Spaniards were surprised to see such pearls, and that their owners did not value them; they not only gave them away, but their paddles were decorated therewith, for the principal income and wealth of these chiefs was the pearl fishery. Tomaco told Balboa that these riches were nothing in comparison with those of Tararequi, which had pearls larger than a man’s eye, taken from oysters the size of sombreros. The Spaniards wished to go there at once, but fearing another tempest, left it for their return. They dismissed Tomaco and rested in the country of Chiape, who, at the request of Balboa, sent thirty of his men to fish. These did it in the presence of seven Spaniards, who looked on and saw them take six loads of small shells. As it was not the season for that fishery, they did not go into very deep water where the shells were. Not only did they not fish in September and the following months, but they did not even travel by water, on account of the stormy weather which then prevails in that sea. The pearls which they extracted from those shells were like peas, but very fine and white. Of those received from Tomaco, some were black, others green, blue, and yellow.

On the return of Balboa’s expedition to Darien in 1514, the sight of the pearls and the wonderful reports made by the men, caused his successor, Pedrarias, to fit out another expedition, an account of which we likewise translate from Gomara.

By command of Pedrarias, Gaspar de Morales went in the year 1515 to
the Gulf of St. Michael, with 550 Spaniards, in quest of the island
of Tararequi, which was said by Balboa’s men to be so abundant in
pearls and so near the coast. The chief of that island sallied forth
with many people to prevent his entrance, and clamored and fought
three times with our people on equal terms, but the fourth time he
was defeated. He then made friends, carried the chief of the
Spaniards to his house, which was a large and good one, gave him
food to eat, and a basket of pearls which weighed 110 marcs [880
ounces]. The chief received for them some looking-glasses, stringed
beads, bells, scissors, axes, and small wares of barter, which he
valued more than he had the pearls. He promised to give as tribute
to the emperor, in whose guardianship he placed himself, 100 marcs
of pearls every year. With these the Spaniards returned to the Gulf
of St. Michael and from thence to Darien.

Tararequi is within five degrees of the equator. It possessed a
great fishery for pearls, which are the largest and best of the new
world. Many of the pearls which the cacique gave were like filberts,
others like nutmegs, and there was one of 26 and another of 31
carats, pear-shaped, very lustrous, and most perfect, which Peter of
the Port, a shop-keeper, bought of Gaspar de Morales for 12,000
castilians. The purchaser could not sleep that night for thinking on
the fact that he had given so much money for one stone, and so he
sold it the very next day to Pedrarias de Avila, for his wife Donna
Isabel de Bovadilla, at the same price, and afterwards the Bovadilla
sold it to Donna Isabella the Empress.

Pedrarias, who delighted in such fishery, requested the cacique to
make his men fish for pearls in the presence of the Spaniards. The
fishermen were great swimmers and divers, and seemed to have spent
all their lives in that employment. They went in small boats when
the sea was calm, and not in any other manner. They cast a stone for
an anchor from each canoe, tied by strong, flexible withes like
boughs of the hazel. They plunged to search for oysters each with a
sack or bag at the neck, and returned loaded with them. They entered
four, six, and even ten fathoms of water, for the shell is larger
the deeper they go, and if at times the larger ones come in shallow
water it is through storms, or because they go from one place to
another in search for food, and having found their pasture they stay
there until they have finished it. They perceive those who search
for them, and stick so close to the rocks or ground, or one to
another, that much strength is needed to detach them, and many times
the fishermen cannot raise them and leave them, thinking they are
stones. In this fishery many persons are drowned, either by
remaining too long at the bottom, or because they become entwined or
entangled in the cord, or such carnivorous fish as the shark devour
them. This is the manner of fishing pearls in all the Indies, and
many fishermen die from the dangers aforesaid, and from the
excessive and constant labor, the little food, and the maltreatment
they have. The emperor was led to enact a law among those whom
Blasco Nunez Vela brought, which imposed the penalty of death upon
him who should forcibly compel any free Indian to fish for pearls.
He thought more of the lives of the men than of his interest in
pearls, though they were of great value. The law was worthy of such
a prince and of perpetual memory.[281]

CLARA EUGENIA, DAUGHTER OF PHILIP II

Painting by Gonzales, in the Galeria del Prado, Madrid Most of these
pearls were doubtless from the early American fisheries
]

Gonzalo de Oviedo referred to the pearl resources of Panama in his “Historia natural de las Indias,” Toledo, 1526, mentioned in the chapter on pearl fisheries of Venezuela. After describing the resources of Cubagua and Cumana on the Venezuelan coast, he states, according to Eden’s quaint translation:

Lykewise pearles are founde and gathered in the South sea cauled
_mare del sur_. And the pearles of this sea [the Caribbean coast]
are verye bygge. Yet not so bigge as they of the Ilande of pearles
cauled _de las perlas_, or _Margaritea_, whiche the Indians caule
_Terarequi_, lying in the gulfe of saincte Michael, where greater
pearles are founde and of greater price then in any other coaste of
the Northe sea, in _Cumana_, or any other porte. I speake this as a
trewe testimonie of syght, havyng byn longe in that South sea, and
makynge curious inquisition to bee certenly informed of all that
perteyneth to the fysshvnge of perles. From this Ilande of
Tararequi, there was brought a pearle of the fasshyon of a peare,
wayinge xxxi carattes, which Petrus Arias had amonge a thousande and
soo many poundes weight of other pearles which hee had when
capitayne Gaspar Morales (before Petrus Arias) passed to the saide
Ilande in the yeare 1515, which pearle was of great prise. From the
saide Ilande also, came a great and verye rounde pearle, whiche I
brought owte of the sea. This was as bygge as a smaule pellet of a
stone bowe, and of the weight of xxvi carattes. I boughte it in the
citie of Panama in the sea of Sur: and paide for it syxe hundredth
and fyftie tymes the weyght therof of good gold,[282] and had it
thre yeares in my custodie: and after my returne into Spaine, soulde
it to the erle of Nansao, Marquisse of Zenete, great chamberleyne to
youre maiestie, who gave it to the Marquesse his wyfe, the ladye
Mentia of Mendozza. I thyncke verely that this pearle was the
greatest, fayrest, and roundest that hath byn seene in those partes.
For youre maiestie owght to understande that in the coaste of the
sea of Sur, there are founde a hundredth great pearles rounde after
the fasshyon of peare, to one that is perfectly rounde and greate.
This Iland of Terarequi which the Christians caule the Ilande of
pearles, and other caule it the Ilande of floures, is founde in the
eyght degree on the southe syde of the firme lande in the provynce
of golden Castyle or Beragua. (Arber, “The First Three English Books
on America,” Birmingham, 1885.)

In addition to the gems noted by Oviedo, these waters furnished many other beautiful pearls in the sixteenth century, and added largely to the collections of the Spanish court and of the cathedrals of Seville, Toledo, etc. The Italian traveler, Gemelli-Careri, who visited the Panama fisheries in 1697, reported that they yielded pearls equal to those of Ceylon. He mentioned one weighing 60 grains, for which the owner—a Jesuit priest—refused 70,000 pesos.[283]

In 1735, the Spanish admiral, Antonio de Ulloa visited the Panama pearl fisheries and wrote an extended description of them.[284] According to his account the pearls were then found in such plenty that there were few slaveholders in the vicinity who did not employ at least a portion of their Negroes in the fishery. These were selected for their dexterity in diving, and were sent to the islands in gangs of from eight to twenty men each, under the command of an overseer. They lived in temporary huts on the shore, and visited the pearl reefs in small boats. Anchoring in eight or ten fathoms of water, the Negroes would, dive in succession to the bottom, returning with as many oysters as possible. It was laborious work, attended with danger owing to the numerous sharks.

Every one of these Negro divers is obliged daily to deliver to his
master a fixed number of pearls; so that when they have got the
requisite number of oysters in their bag, they begin to open them,
and deliver the pearls to the officer, till they have made up the
number due to their master; and if the pearl be but formed, it is
sufficient, without any regard to its being small or faulty. The
remainder, however large or beautiful, are the Negro’s own property,
nor has the master the least claim to them, the slaves being allowed
to sell them to whom they please, though the master generally
purchases them at a very small price.... Some of these pearls,
though indeed but few, are sent to Europe, the greater part being
carried to Lima, where the demand for them is very great, being not
only universally worn there by all persons of rank, but also sent
from thence to the inland portions of Peru.[285]

During the hundred years following, the pearl reefs of Panama were not very productive, and relatively little attention was paid to them. The development of a market for the shells in the mother-of-pearl trade, about 1840, enhanced the profits of the few natives engaged in pearling in a desultory manner, and led to an increase in the number of fishermen. During some years when industrial and market conditions were favorable, large quantities of shells were exported. In 1855, for instance, 650 tons of these shells were shipped to England alone, and in 1859 the reported quantity was 957 tons. Those from the Island of San José, one of the Pearl Archipelago, were said to be the largest and choicest in the bay. Many of them were used in decorating the twin towers of the stately old cathedral at Panama.

Since then the industry has fluctuated greatly, depending on the market for the shell. Many outsiders have experimented in the fishery, but most of these attempts have resulted in financial loss, through mismanagement, storms, sickness, or other causes. A story is told locally of a party of thirty men, principally from Scotland, who arrived at Panama equipped with a diving-bell and such necessary machinery as air-pumps, windlasses, etc. Much was expected of their operations, but soon yellow fever broke out among them, and within six weeks two thirds of the members of the party had died. The remaining members, becoming disheartened, and in fear of the dread disease, lost no time in leaving the country. The diving-bell and machinery remained for several years as a curiosity at Panama, for no one returned to claim them, nor has the use of similar apparatus been attempted since then.

The scattered pearl reefs extend from the east side of the Bay of Panama nearly to the Costa Rica boundary. However, this gives an exaggerated idea of their area, as much of this territory yields no pearl-oysters whatever. The principal reefs and the headquarters of the fishery are at Archipelago de las Perlas or Pearl Islands, which are from thirty to sixty miles southeast of the Pacific terminus of the projected Panama Canal. This archipelago contains sixteen small islands, on which are about twice that number of small settlements of Negro and Indian descendants, with a total population of perhaps one thousand. About half of these live on Isla del Rey, the largest island, about fifteen miles long and half that in width. The chief village, San Miguel, is the center of the pearling industry, and consists mostly of palm-thatched huts and a handsome stone church, more costly than all the remaining buildings of the town combined. While the soil is fertile and some vegetables are raised, the inhabitants depend almost wholly on the fisheries.

In 1901, the Republic of Colombia invited bids for the right to operate the pearl and coral fisheries for a term of fifteen years, but nothing seems to have come of it, and the establishment of the Panama Republic in 1903 terminated the authority of Colombia in these resources.

The Panama fisheries differ widely in their character from those of Venezuela. The mollusk is much larger, averaging about six inches in diameter when fully grown, thus furnishing a valuable quality of mother-of-pearl. The shell constitutes the principal object of the fishery; the pearls themselves are of incidental importance, but are always looked for and anxiously expected.

The season extends from May to November, with a rest during the remaining five months of the year. The fishery is open to natives and to foreigners alike. While the leading fishermen employ diving-suits, which were introduced here about 1890, nude diving is yet practised to a considerable extent, the men descending in eight or ten, and some even in twelve fathoms of water. There is no restriction whatever on the nude fishermen, but for each machine diver an annual license fee of $125 United States currency is exacted.

Owing to the low market price for Panama shell during recent years, the fishery has not been vigorously prosecuted, and it has even dwindled to low proportions. A letter from one of the leading pearling companies in Panama states that the machine divers number about twenty, while there are about four hundred nude fishermen; and another firm likewise prominent, estimates these fishermen at twenty and three hundred respectively.

Yet a third pearling company writes that there are fifteen machine divers and two hundred head divers; and adds that the small demand for this quality of mother-of-pearl has made the condition of the industry about as bad as it could be; many who have capital invested are getting out of the business, and unless the market improves, the industry may be abandoned. Probably with the introduction of new capital and methods in the infant republic, the pearl resources may receive greater attention and a large development ensue.

The Panama pearls are of good quality and frequently of large size. In color they range from white to green and lead-gray, and frequently greenish black. Valuable pearls are not common, but occasionally the fisherman is amply rewarded. A letter from the American consul at Panama states that in 1899 a native boy, fifteen years old, fishing in shallow water, as much for sport as for profit, found a pearl which he sold to a local speculator for 4000 silver dollars ($1760); this speculator delivered the same pearl to a dealer in Panama for 10,000 silver dollars ($4400), and an offer of 30,000 francs was refused for it later in Paris. A pearl worth $2400 was reported as found within half a mile of the steamship anchorage at Panama. A pearl from a giant oyster resembling Tridacna, was an absolute egg-shape, pure cocoanut white, and weighed 169 grains; it was 21 mm. at the longest and 16.5 mm. at the narrowest part. The surface showed very distinctly a wavy structure, occasionally with a tiny, brighter central point; the surface under the glass resembling a honeycomb network. At the smallest point there was a radiated center with quite a brilliant field. It was worth only $100.

Not always, however, does the poor, ignorant fisherman receive the full value of his find; and many a story is told of some thoughtless improvident native, who, for less than a mess of pottage, “like the base Indian, threw a pearl away, richer than half his tribe.”

Most of the Panama pearls are sold in Paris, relatively few of them coming to America direct. This is not because of any greater estimation of them in Paris or higher prices obtained; but the trade relation has been long continued and the credits are well established. From Paris many of these pearls reach the American market.

THE PEARL FISHERIES OF MEXICO

Then, too, the pearl from out its shell,
Unsightly in the sunless sea,
(As ’twere a spirit, forced to dwell
In form unlovely) was set free,
And round the neck of woman threw
A light it lent and borrowed too.

THOMAS MOORE, _The Loves of the Angels_.

Pearl-bearing oysters are found at various places on the Pacific coast of Mexico, and especially along the coast of Lower California, where extensive fisheries are prosecuted. The pearls are noted for the great variety of colors which they display. A large percentage are black, others are white, brown, peacock green, etc. Generally they are small and of irregular form, yet sometimes very large ones are secured, weighing 100, 200, and even 300 grains.

European knowledge of the pearl resources of Mexico dates from the conquest of that country by Hernando Cortés about 1522. The diary of his lieutenant, Fortuno Ximines, tells of finding native chiefs living in primitive huts along the sea-shore, with quantities of beautiful pearls lying carelessly around. From a tribe near the present site of Hermosillo, in the State of Sonora, Cortés secured great quantities of the gems. It appeared that the fishery had been in existence for centuries. The location of the pearl reefs was prominently noted on Cortés’ map of this coast, made in 1535, a copy of which was procured by the Rev. Edward E. Hale when in Spain in 1883.

Following Cortés’ explorations of the Pacific coast of Mexico (1533–1538), a number of expeditions were fitted out for securing pearls by trading with the natives, by forcing them to fish, and by even more questionable means. Several of these expeditions found record in history either by reason of their unusual success or through the extreme cruelty with which they were conducted. The contact of the Spaniards with the Indians resulted in very bitter feelings on the part of the latter, so that it became risky for small traders to venture among them. From time to time, successful expeditions were made, especially the one of 200 men sent in 1596 by the viceroy of Mexico to “the rich Isles of California,” mentioned by Teixeira.[286] Antonio de Castillo, a Spanish colonist, with headquarters south of Mazatlan, was one of the most successful of the early adventurers, and Iturbide Ortega and José Carborel were also among the fortunate ones of that period.[287] Ortega marketed his pearls in the city of Mexico, and the reported sale of one for 4500 dollars had considerable effect in stimulating the industry.

The advent of the Jesuits to western Mexico in 1642, developed amicable relations with the Indians; and although the missionaries were agriculturists rather than fishermen, the restoration of harmony resulted in a more favorable prosecution of the fisheries. The colonists of Sinaloa and Nueva Galicia, who had formerly, in small vessels and with great danger, made occasional visits to the pearl beds, built larger vessels and made more frequent visits without apprehension. The skilful Yaqui and Mayo Indians were employed or impressed as divers, just as natives of the Bahamas had served in the fisheries of Venezuela. Great profits resulted from the operations. Venegas wrote that “it was certain that the fifth of every vessel was yearly farmed for 12,000 dollars.”[288]

So profitable was the fishery that the Spanish soldiers and sailors stationed in the Gulf of Cortes—as the Gulf of California was then called—were frequently charged with devoting more attention to pearling than to their official duties. In order to put a stop to this evil, in 1704, Father Silva-Tierra, who was in authority in that part of the country, ordered that no soldier or sailor should engage in the fishery. With a view to removing the demoralizing influences of promiscuous adventurers among the Indians, the industry was later restricted to persons specially authorized.

Probably the most successful of the early pearlers was Manuel Osio, who is credited with having marketed “127 pounds’ weight of pearls in 1743,” and “275 pounds’ weight” in 1744.[289] He operated in the vicinity of Mulege and northward, employing the Yaqui Indians; and through his pearling interests is said to have become the richest man in Lower California.

Gulf of California and the pearling territory of western Mexico
]

The revenue from the royal fifth, somewhat later, was reported by Alvarado[290] at 12,000 dollars per year; but this was disputed by Jacob Baegert, a Jesuit priest. Baegert spent seventeen years in Mexico and, returning to Europe on the expulsion of his order from that country in 1767, published a report in 1772, containing rather an unfavorable view of the fishery. He stated that each summer eight, ten, or twelve poor Spaniards from Sonora, Sinaloa, and elsewhere on the mainland, crossed the gulf in small boats to the California shore for the purpose of obtaining pearls. They carried supplies of Indian corn and dried beef, and also a number of Indians who served as divers, the Spaniards themselves showing little inclination to engage in the work when native fishermen could be employed so cheaply. Provided with a sack for receiving the oysters which they removed from the bottom, the fishermen dived head first into the sea, and when they could no longer hold their breath they ascended with the gathered treasure. The oysters were counted before opening; and, when the law was complied with, every fifth one was put aside for the king’s revenue. Most of the oysters yielded no pearls; some contained black pearls, others white ones, the latter usually small and ill-shaped. If, after six or eight weeks of hard labor and deducting all expenses, a Spaniard gained a hundred American pesos, he thought he had made a little fortune, but this he could not do every season. “God knows,” said Baegert, “whether a fifth of the pearls secured in the California sea yields to the Catholic king an average of 150 or 200 pesos in a year, even without frauds in the transaction. I heard of only two persons—with whom also I was personally acquainted—who had accumulated some wealth, after spending 20 or more years in the business. The others remained poor notwithstanding their pearl fishing.”[291]

Father Baegert’s statement of the returns seems to be substantiated by the reports of the royal fifth a few years later. For the period from 1792 to 1796 this was placed at “2 lbs. 2 ozs.” by some writers; and according to others, from 1788 to 1797 it amounted to only “3 lbs. 9 ozs.,” which is the quantity assigned by some accounts to 1797 alone.[292] These returns apparently indicate that a great decrease had occurred since the days of Osio; but it seems very doubtful whether, under the conditions existing in Mexico at that time, the royal treasury received its due share of the proceeds.

Shortly following the independence of Mexico in 1821, and after a period of little activity, several attempts were made to exploit the pearl resources. The great prosperity in England, ensuing upon the termination of the Napoleonic Wars, resulted in much speculation and the promotion of stock subscriptions in many visionary schemes. Among these was “The General Pearl and Coral-Fishing Association of London,” which in 1825 equipped and sent out to Mexico, by way of Cape Horn, two vessels prepared to exploit the pearl resources by the use of diving-bells similar to those formerly employed in submarine construction. This expedition was under the direction of Lieutenant R. W. H. Hardy, whose report thereon presents an interesting exhibit of the condition of the pearl fishery at that time.

Hardy found the fishery at a very low ebb, owing, largely, to the scarcity of oysters and the uncertainty of depending on the native divers. He adds with peculiar naïveté: “I had almost forgotten to mention a very curious circumstance with respect to the pearl-oyster, namely that on the coast of Sonora there are none at all, except at Guaymas.” He states also that to the northward of 28° 30′ not the trace of a shell could be discovered on either side of the gulf.

The center of the industry was then at Loreto, a village of 250 inhabitants; but another small station existed at La Paz. At Loreto six or eight vessels of twenty-five tons each were employed, each having three or four sailors and fifteen or twenty Yaqui Indians who served as divers. Head-diving was in vogue, the work proceeding from 11 A.M. to 2 P.M., and the depth ranging from three to twelve fathoms. The annual catch of pearls was “4 or 5 pounds’ weight, worth from $8000 to $10,000.”[293] After the government’s claim of one fifth had been set apart, the owner and captain of the vessel received one half and the divers the other half.

It was found impossible to use diving-bells when the sea was at all rough, and even during calm weather they were impracticable on account of the unevenness of the ground and the strong undercurrents. An effort was made to employ native divers, but owing to the disorganized state of affairs only four could be secured. In the Gulf of Mulege a large number of oysters were collected, but when these were opened “six very small pearls” were all that could be found. After spending about three years on the coast, Hardy returned to England, and the company abandoned the enterprise.

In the early history of the Mexican pearl fishery, the shells were of no market value; but about 1830 a French trader named Combier made experimental shipments to France, securing cheap freight rates by using the waste shells largely as ballast for the vessels.[294] The best quality sold for about 600 francs per ton, and the market was found sufficient for regular shipments. The value gradually increased, and in 1854 it approximated 2000 francs per ton in France, placing the industry upon a very remunerative basis. This resulted in much activity in the fishery, and an increase in the number of boats and divers.

In 1855, the fishery gave employment to 368 divers, and yielded $23,800 worth of pearls, and 350 tons of shells worth $13,500.[295] It was estimated by Lassepas that from 1580 to 1857, inclusive, 95,000 tons of oysters were removed from the Gulf of California, yielding 2770 pounds of pearls, worth $5,540,000.[296]

For protection of the reefs, the Mexican government in 1857 divided the Gulf of California into four pearling districts, and provided that only one of them should be worked each year, and then only in areas leased for the season to the highest bidders, thereby permitting the reefs successively to remain undisturbed for three years.

The yield of pearls in 1868 approximated $55,000, and that of shells $10,600 in value; while in 1869 these items were given as $62,000 and $25,000, respectively.[297] The local prices ranged from $15 per ounce for seed-pearls to $1500 for a choice gem.

At that period the fishery was carried on from shore camps or from large vessels, each carrying twenty to fifty divers, who were mostly Yaqui Indians from the eastern shore of the gulf. The camp or vessel was located in the vicinity of the reefs or beds, and the fishing was prosecuted from small boats, each carrying three or four nude divers. Fastened to the waist or suspended from the neck was a net for the reception of oysters, and each diver carried a short spud or stick with which to detach them from the bottom, and to some extent for use as a weapon of defense against sharks and similar enemies. The diving progressed mostly in the morning, when the sea was unruffled by the breeze which usually begins shortly after noon. The season lasted from May to late in September, when the water became too cold for further operations.

The divers were paid a definite share of the catch, and kept in debt-bondage by means of advances and supplies. Little clothing was necessary, and the provisions consisted principally of corn, beans, and sun-dried beef. Luxuries were added in the form of tobacco, and of mescal distilled from the maguey plant, indulgence in these constituting the chief remuneration for the season’s labor. The finding of an unusually choice pearl brought to the lucky fisherman a gratuity of a few dollars, and shore leave for several days in which to spend it. Dressing in his best calico garments, he hastened to the nearest town to indulge in release from restraint, in drunkenness and debauchery—the highest dreams of happiness of a Yaqui Indian—thoughts of which served to bring him to the fishery each year from his home across the gulf.

From the Spanish conquest until 1874, the Mexican pearl fishery was conducted exclusively by nude divers. The experiments with the diving-bell in 1825 had been without favorable result, and also an attempt by an American in 1854 to use a diving-suit with air-pump, etc., this failure being credited to imperfection of apparatus. In 1874, through the influence of European pearl merchants, two schooners, each of about 200 tons’ measurement, one from Australia and the other from England, visited the Mexican grounds, with a dozen boats fully equipped with scaphanders or diving armor, including helmets, rubber suits, pumps, etc. Owing to their working in deeper water than the nude divers were able to exploit, their success was remarkable, and they secured upward of a hundred thousand dollars’ worth of pearls and shells during the first season.

The hitherto somnolent inhabitants of Lower California were amazed at seeing their resources thus easily removed, and were awakened to the opportunities afforded them to acquire the wealth which nature had scattered at their very doors. With this object-lesson before them, companies were formed for raising sufficient capital for the business, and the leading operators equipped their men with scaphanders, to the great annoyance of the would-be independent fishermen, who had not sufficient means to purchase the costly equipment. Many of these continued to employ nude divers, but after 1880 this method of fishery was subordinate to the use of diving apparatus. The change was accompanied by many accidents, and rarely did a month pass without the loss of a man, due in most cases to faulty apparatus or to inexperienced management.

In 1884 President Gonzalez inaugurated the policy of granting exclusive concessions to the pearl reefs. On February 28 of that year, five concessions were granted to as many persons, giving them and their associates and assigns the exclusive right to all shell fisheries in their respective zones of large area, for a period of sixteen years, in consideration of a royalty and export duty, amounting altogether to about $10 per ton of shells exported in the first three years, and $15 per ton for the remaining thirteen years of the term. Immediately these five grants were consolidated, forming the Lower California Pearl Fishing Company (“Compañia Perlífera de la Baja California”), incorporated under the laws of California with an invested capital of $100,000.