828 POPULAR SCRIPTURE ZOOLOGY.

And his children one by one,
When they look upon the sun,
Curse the toil by which he drew
The treasure from its bed of blue.”

A double-pointed stick is sometimes carried by the divers,
to thrust into the mouth of the shark in such a position,
that in attempting to seize their victim, the jaws close on
the two points. This and other precautions are, however,
often unavailing, and the poor diver loses his life, or is
maimed in a terrible manner.

The pearl is not mentioned very early in the Sacred Nar-
rative, at least in our version; but in Genesis ii. occurs the
word “bdellium,” which is a gum, once famous for its
medicinal properties; but the word translated dde//ium
is in the Arabic version rendered pear, and there seems
much probability that this was really intended ; it is men-
tioned with gold and gems, and if, as is supposed, the land
of Havilah lay near the Persian Gulf, it would be natural to
mention this, one of its most valuable productions. Job
names the pearl, in enumerating the riches of the world, all _
of which could not be put in competition with the treasures |
of wisdom : “ It cannot be gotten for gold, neither shall silver
be weighed for the price thereof. It cannot be valued with