WHAT PEARLS ARE.
Pearls are carbonate of lime, the same substance of which the shell of the oyster is composed, and are identical with tke ' mother of pearl, which forms the interior of the pearl oyster shell. A higfc temperature will reduce any pearl to common lime, and in the beat of an ordinary fire a pearl will Completely lose its identity and become a pinch of white powder. All precious stones are injured by a Jiigh temperature ; the dimond, being almost pure carbon, is completely consumed at a temperature somewhat sreater than white heat. When the .St. Louis Southern Hotel was burned soi?w> f<^ s ago, a lady guest left her diamond n * her room. As the gems were large an * valuable, careful search was made for them after five α-ufee had cooled, and they were found, but tjic intense heat had covered every stone .with a white crust where partial combustion had taken place. Rubies, sapphires and emeralds lose their color on exposure to heat, while the semi-precious stojies, such as the amethyst, topez and garnet,, are completely ruined by a comparatively, low heat.
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Bibliographic details
Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 6414, 26 March 1892, Page 5 (Supplement)
Word Count
186WHAT PEARLS ARE. Daily Telegraph (Napier), Issue 6414, 26 March 1892, Page 5 (Supplement)
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