The Pearl Fishers

d big seas tumbling along the reef, the spray finding the oysters that they had put out on the coral, otherwi

to work. "This is worse than salving car

it's worse for me than you, for I have an olfactory sense more acute than ord

half stunned me; they are enough to make one forge

rably. Schumer had brought a piece of sailcloth, also a canvas

Schumer, with the eye and hand of an expert, doing the manip

red, drained of their mushy contents

ger a sense of smell, and then, as the heap of shells steadily grew wi

e beginning of the business; there's no kno

of his hand, examined what was in his palm,

all black stone abou

it?" as

er la

it's fortune, all the same. We have struck it! A hundred

heeled overhead, and the sun burned on the blue sea and the foam of the reef, and the wind blew the spray

67] a perfect black pearl, not large, but of splendid

ll, we mustn't chuckle too soon; it may be the only pearl in the lagoon, though

"Of course, I know nothing about them, and th

m, but there it is. Some are black like this, and a few are pink, and I've seen some gray-they aren't much good. Pink a

which he had taken off. Then, having placed a lump of coral on the coat t

of shell, and the sun was setting when th

our more, though larger, were not of good shape or quality, but there were three white beauties. The largest, Schum

some seed pearls, tiny

like that," said Floyd, "we

shook

ible we may have just struck the richest corner. In a lagoon like this a lot depends on the different tem

eir camping place, and the day's take was

h that of the Tonga in the same box, and Floyd had agreed, seeing the wisdom of cen

ust not be counted in their mutual assets. Schumer had agreed, though evidently with reservations. The money of the Tonga was a different ma

it was a matter entirely to do