The Book of the Pearl / The history, art, science, and industry of the queen of gems

For several years following 1760, the Scotch pearl fisheries were of considerable local value. The zoölogist, Thomas Pennant, wrote of them several times in his “Tour of Scotland.” Referring to the Tay and Isla rivers, then as now the center of the Scotch pearling, he states: “There has been in these parts a very great fishery of pearl, got out of the fresh-water muscles. From the year 1761 to 1764, £10,000 worth were sent to London, and sold from 10s. to £1 6s. per ounce. I was told that a pearl had been taken there that weighed 33 grains. But this fishery is at present exhausted, from the avarice of the undertakers. It once extended as far as Loch Tay.”^[199] And he adds later that, some years preceding, a pearl fishery was prosecuted in Loch Dochart with great success and the pearls were esteemed the fairest and largest of any.

From 1770 to 1860 the pearl resources of Scotland remained almost dormant, and Scotch pearls were rarely met with in the markets. In 1861 a German merchant, who was acquainted with the beauty of these gems, traveled through the districts of Tay, Doon and Don, obtaining a great number which the poor people kept for their own pleasure, not esteeming them of any market value, and interested the fishermen in searching for the mussels. The seemingly high prices which he paid and the abundance of the pearls sent hundreds of persons to the rivers and small brooks. Those who were otherwise employed during the day devoted hours of the long summer nights to diligent search after the coveted shells; while boys and old persons, who were without regular avocations, waded day after day where there was a probability of reward. In the course of a short time pearls, good, bad and indifferent, reached the originator of the movement at Edinburgh, from Ayrshire, from Perthshire, and from the Highland regions far beyond the Grampians. He was soon the possessor of a collection which, for richness and variety, had seldom been surpassed. A trade in these gems was developed, the patronage of royalty was obtained, and once more Scotch pearls became fashionable, and their vogue was enhanced by the fondness which Queen Victoria entertained for them.

In addition to the rivers named, pearls were found in the Forth, the Teith, the Ythan, and the Spey in eastern Scotland. The summer of 1862 was most favorable for pearling, owing to the dryness of the season and the low water, and unusually large quantities of pearls were found, the prices ranging ordinarily from 10s. to £2 6s. Queen Victoria is said to have purchased one for forty guineas; others were bought by Empress Eugénie and by the Duchess of Hamilton. A necklace of them was sold for £350 in 1863.^[200] The value of the entire catch in Scotland in 1864 was estimated at £12,000 to the fishermen, the yield being unusually large in that season owing to the unprecedented drought which permitted access to the deep beds of the rivers. In some of the streams the resources were quickly depleted, but in others the fisheries yielded profitable returns for many years. While most of the pearls were small, some of them were choice and of considerable individual value, ranging from £5 to £150, and £500 is said to have been paid for one fine specimen.

The pearl-mussel of the British Isles (Unio margaritifera) has a thick, coarse and unsightly shell, from 3 to 7 inches in width and 1½ to 2½ inches in length from the umbo to the lip. The rough exterior is dark brown, and it is sometimes twisted, distorted and barnacled.

It generally lies scattered and detached over the pebbly bottoms, but it also exists in reefs or beds which are sometimes of considerable extent. These occur usually where a stretch of water is still and deep, and oftentimes where the depth places the mussels beyond the reach of the fishermen. Apart from the pearls it contains, the mussel is of no economic value except that in some localities the mollusk is used for bait in cod-fishing.

In recent years the pearl-mussel has been numerous in several of the rivers of Scotland, such as the Tay, Earn, and Teith in Perthshire; the Dee, the Don, and the Ythan in Aberdeenshire; the Spey and Findhorn in Inverness-shire, and also the classic Doon of Burns, the Nith, the Annan and others in southern Scotland; however, it is rare in the Clyde and the Tweed.

The Teith has long been famed for pearl-bearing, though like other rivers it has become nearly fished out. The Tay produces many pearls, yet as a rule they are not of the best class. Some of its tributaries, as the Tummel and the Isla, also bear pearls; those in the Isla are usually fine and rank higher than those from the Tay. The Earn is also famous for the fine quality of its pearls, but the whole river was robbed of its wealth some years ago by a body of professional fishermen, and it has not yet recovered from the raid; few pearls now exist there save in the deeper pools, where doubtless may still be hid “full many a gem of purest ray serene.”

In Ireland pearls have been found principally in the rivers of counties Kerry, Donegal, Tyrone, Antrum, etc. In an article in “The Field,” December 10, 1864, Mr. F. T. Buckland stated that they abound near Oughterard, and that a man called “Jemmy the Pearl-catcher,” who lived there, told him that he knew when a mussel had a pearl in it even without opening the shell, because “she [the mussel] sits upright with her mouth in the mud, and her back is crooked,” that is, corrugated like a ram’s horn. Pearls are yet found in several localities in the Emerald Isle, notably in the river Bann in the northeastern part and in the beautiful Connemara district in western Ireland. In 1892 the Bann yielded one of the choicest pearls that ever came from Ireland. Within the last twelve months Lady Dudley, wife of the Viceroy of Ireland, presented to Queen Alexandra a number of pearls from the Connemara. These were mounted in a green enameled brooch, and excited so much admiration that an active demand for similar gems quickly developed in County Galway.

Mr. D. MacGregor, a well-known jeweler of Perth, to whom we are indebted for much information relative to pearls in Scotland, states that no attention whatever is given to conserving the mussel; on the contrary, the waters are unscrupulously despoiled by the greedy pearl fisherman who destroys all that he finds, since, by chance, they may yield the coveted gem. Immense numbers are thus wantonly destroyed, which if allowed to grow and propagate would be more likely to contribute to the pearl yield, as it is well known that it is the aged mussels in which a pearl is most likely to be found. There is no close time, and so extensive have been the raids upon the mussels in recent years that they have been rapidly exterminated in places accessible to the fishermen; and should the spoliation continue and extend to the deep waters, the pearl-mussel may soon become extinct.

Pearl fishing is not prosecuted throughout the year, as it can be carried on only in the dry season when the waters are low. There are a number of professional fishermen who search in their favorite streams, and sometimes very profitably, as much as £200 having been gained in a single season by one fisherman. One of the most noted of these was “Pearl Johnnie,” who a few years ago hailed from Compar-Angus, in Perthshire, and who styled himself “Pearl Fisher to the Prince of Wales,” by reason of some dealings he once had with his Royal Highness. He was very successful in his experience of more than thirty years. There is little mystery in the search; skill does not always avail, and men, women and children are rewarded or disappointed indiscriminately. The bed of the stream is searched until the patches of mussels are discovered, and this is usually the most tedious part of the work. These may be in very shoal water, where a small boy has only to wade with water above his knees and pick up the mussels by stooping; but more frequently the water covers a man’s hips, and at times he is immersed almost to the shoulders.

The equipment of a pearl fisherman is simple. If he wades, he commonly wears long boots with tops reaching to his breast. Provided with a pole five or six feet long having a cleft at the lower end, and with a tube several inches in diameter with the lower end closed by a glass, he invades the home of the pearl-mussel. Thrusting the tube or water glass beneath the surface, he scans the bed of the stream, and when a mussel is sighted, the cleft pole is brought into use and it is picked up by means of these primitive tongs. Owing to the close resemblance which the pearl-mussel bears to the stones in the riverbed, good eyesight is required to avoid overlooking it. A bag by the fisher’s side receives the catch; and when this is well filled, he goes to the bank of the stream and opens his lottery, in the great majority of cases to find that he has drawn a blank.

A boat is seldom used, simply because it is not available, but in the tidal waters it is indispensable. The “box” is a risky device for fishing in the deeper waters. It is a small contrivance, somewhat like the ancient British coracle, in which the fisherman sits or lies over on his chest; venturing out in the deeper parts which can not be waded, he carefully peers through the tube and draws up his find with the long cleft stick. This is a tiresome method, but some places can not be readily fished in any other manner.

In Aberdeenshire, Perthshire, etc., there are a few men who regularly spend the season “at the pearls.” The knowing ones dispose of their best finds to wealthy residents or to strangers and tourists who frequent the vicinity. In addition to these experienced fishermen, many of the idlers and unemployed about the riverside towns, and also the farm servants in the country, search the waters in their neighborhood in the hope of picking up some gems. But very often it is severe and disappointing labor, for the pearl-seeker may travel far and endure privation and hardships for days, and yet, after destroying hundreds and even thousands of mussels, he may be rewarded with only a little almost worthless dross; but again and again he returns to the elusive game, inspired by the “hope which springs eternal in the human breast.”

The British pearls are in great variety of colors, but most of them are practically valueless on account of the absence of orient or luster; for one possessing the white pearly luster, fifty may be found of a dull color and devoid of value. Many of these opaque pearls are dark, lusterless brown, and handfuls of them sell for only a few shillings. A large percentage are of a grayish or milky color, or of a bluish white tinge; these seldom attain much value unless aided by excellence of shape and purity of skin. A few are of a dark, fiery tint and of great luster. Sometimes the pearl is of a beautiful pink tint, sometimes of a light violet, or other exquisite shade. The fine pink ones are very rare and are highly prized. The best are those having the sweet, pure white light which constitutes the inimitable loveliness of a pearl; but few of them are found even in the most favorable seasons, and usually these are from the streams in the northeastern counties and some of the streams in the southwest. Very few combine the qualities of perfection in shape and luster; and the product of many seasons might be examined in vain to furnish enough pearls to make a well-matched necklace of gems weighing from five to ten grains each. But occasionally beautiful specimens are discovered, weighing fifteen or twenty grains or more. One found in Aberdeenshire a few years ago, perfect in shape and luster, weighed twenty-five grains, and sold at first hand for £50. Another one, found at the confluence of the Almond and the Tay in 1865, weighed thirty grains.

While most of these pearls are sold to jewelers in Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Inverness, Perth, and other towns, many of the finest specimens have gone into the possession of prominent Scotch and English families, who have a fancy for collecting them. Queen Victoria possessed a fine collection of Scotch pearls, choice specimens of many years’ search, obtained almost exclusively from the Aberdeenshire waters which murmur round her beautiful Highland home. In 1907, a Scotch pearl was sold in Perth for the sum of £80; this was of a good luster with a bluish tint, it was spherical, measured seven sixteenths of an inch in diameter, and weighed twenty-one grains.

The falling off in the yield of pearls in some streams is credited to a certain extent to the building of bridges and the consequent abandonment of fords. This is based on the theory that injury to the mollusk has something to do with the production of pearls, and that they are to be found more plentiful about fords and places where cattle drink. The theory is beautifully stated by the lamented Hugh Miller: “I found occasion to conclude that the Unio of our river-fords secretes pearls so much more frequently than the Unionidae and Anadonta of our still pools and lakes, not from any specific peculiarity in the constitution of the creature, but from the effects of the habitat which it chooses. It receives in the fords and shallows of a rapid river many a rough blow from the sticks and pebbles carried down in time of flood, and occasionally from the feet of men and animals that cross the stream during droughts, and the blows induce the morbid secretions, of which pearls are the result. There seems to exist no inherent cause why Anadon cygnea, with its beautiful silvery nacre—as bright often, and always more delicate, than that of Unio margaritiferus—should not be equally productive of pearls; but secure from violence in its still pools and lakes, and unexposed to the circumstances that provoke abnormal secretions, it does not produce a single pearl for every hundred that are ripened into value and beauty by the exposed, current-tossed Unionidae of our rapid mountain rivers. Would that hardship and suffering bore always in a creature of a greatly higher family similar results, and that the hard buffets dealt him by fortune in the rough stream of life could be transmitted, by some blessed internal pre-disposition of his nature, into pearls of great price.”^[201]

The small blue mussel (Mytilus edulis) of the British seas yields opaque pearls of a deep blue color, but most of them are more or less white in some part. Sometimes a shell is found in which a blue pearl will be adhering to the blue lip of the shell while a dull white one adheres to the white portion of the shell. These pearls are commonly flattened on one side, doubtless where they have been adjacent to the shell. None of them is of more than very slight value.

Probably the principal fishery for the salt-water mussel pearls is that in the estuary of the Conway in Wales. These are mostly quite small and well answer the designation of seed-pearls, although a few are of fair size. In color most of them range from dirty white to the dusky or brownish tint noted by Tacitus eighteen centuries ago, but a few are of a pure silvery tint. In some seasons London dealers have agents at Conway for purchasing these pearls. The price is usually from eight to thirty shillings per ounce.

THE CONTINENT OF EUROPE

Après l’esprit de discernement, ce qu’il y a au monde de plus rare, ce sont les diamants et les perles.

Pearls occur in species of mussels found in the streams and lakes of Europe, in some of which the fisheries have been of considerable local interest. It appears that these resources were exploited by the Romans, then by the Goths and the Lombards, and later the natives continued to draw forth the treasures which lay hidden about their homes. These pearls have attracted attention up to the present time; and while they do not compare with those of the seas, either in quality or in aggregate value, yet they are prized on account of their intrinsic worth as well as because they are a product of the fatherland. In the densely populated valleys, the rivers are so polluted by refuse and sewage that the mollusks have been greatly depleted; but in the streams of clear, cool water, draining the mountain regions of France, Germany, Austria, and also in the rivers of Norway, Sweden, Russia, etc., the fisheries are not unimportant.

The most celebrated of the pearl fisheries in France are those of the Vologne, a small river in the extreme eastern part of the country, in the department of Vosges. Its sources are in Lake Longmere in the Vosges mountains on the Alsace frontier, and it flows into the Moselle at Jarmenil, between Remiremont and Épinal. While the pearl-mussel occurs to some extent in nearly the whole length of this river, and, indeed, is to be met with in the wild brooks and forest streams of nearly all the mountainous parts of France, it is most abundant in the vicinity of Bruyères, where the Vologne receives the waters of the Neuré. These resources were described in 1845 by Ernest Puton,^[202] and in 1869 by D. A. Godron;^[203] to whom—and especially to Godron—we are indebted for much of our information.

The fisheries of the Vologne have been celebrated for nearly four centuries. Writing in 1530, Volcyr stated: “In the river Vologne between Arche and Bruyères, near the ancient castle of Perle, beautiful pearls are found. In the opinion of jewelers and artists they closely resemble the oriental.”^[204] A few years later Francis Reues wrote: “There is near the Vosges mountains in Lorraine a river fertile in pearls, yet they are not very brilliant. The strange thing is that the quality which they lack by nature is supplied by the aid of pigeons, which swallow them and restore them purer than before.”^[205] In a publication of 1609, this little river is represented in the frontispiece by the figure of a nymph bearing many pearls, while beneath is the emblem: Vologna margaritifera suas margaritas ostentat.^[206]

In his paper above noted, Godron recites several orders issued from 1616 to 1619 by the Duke of Lorraine, who then had jurisdiction over the present department of Vosges, showing that a high value was attached to these pearls and that the resources were well looked after. Writing in 1699, Dr. Martin Lister alluded to the many pearls taken from the rivers about Lorraine and Sedan. A Paris merchant showed him a fresh-water pearl of 23 grains, valued at £400, and assured him that he had seen some weighing 60 grains each.^[207]

In 1779 Durival gave an extensive account^[208] of the Vologne fishery. He records that for sixty years pearls had been abundant, but at the time he wrote they were very scarce.

Puton states that, in 1806, when taking the baths at Plombières in the Vosges, Empress Josephine formed a great liking for the Vologne pearls, and at her request some of the mussels were sent to stock the ponds at Malmaison. It does not appear that any favorable result followed this transplanting.

Owing to the extensive fisheries, the mussels became so scarce that in 1826, when the Duchesse d’Angoulême was visiting in the Vosges, it was impossible to secure enough pearls to form a bracelet for her. This scarcity has continued up to the present time; and yet in the aggregate many pearls have been secured, so that there are few prominent families in the neighborhood who do not possess some of them. They are especially prized as bridal presents to Vosges maidens.

While the Vologne pearls are of good form and of much beauty, they do not equal oriental pearls in luster. The color is commonly milky white, but some of them have a pink, yellow, red, or greenish tint. In size they rarely exceed 4 grains. The Nancy museum of natural history possesses one which weighs 5¼ grains and measures 6½ mm. in diameter.

In western France, according to Bonnemere,^[209] the pearl-mussel is widely diffused, and in the aggregate many pearls are secured therefrom. They are somewhat numerous in the river Ille near its union with the Vilaine at Rennes; though small, these are commonly of good color and luster. In the department of Morbihan and that of Finistère, many pearls have been secured, especially in the Steir, the Odet, and in the Stang-Alla near Quimper. Small pearls, frequently of some value, are found in the Menech near the town of Lesneven, a few miles northeast of Brest, the great naval port of France.

The Unio sinuatus (pictorum), the mulette of the artists, which has a shorter and smaller shell than the pearl-mussel, has also yielded many small pearls of good quality, as well as shells for manufacturing purposes. This species has been regularly exploited in the Adour, in the Charente, in the Gironde and its tributaries—the Garonne and the Dordogne and their affluents, and in some other streams in western France.

There is a pearl fishery in the Charente River near the western coast of France, and likewise in the Seugne, a small tributary entering it from the south. The mussel is known locally under the name of palourde. In an account of this fishery,^[210] Daniel Bellet states that in the Seugne, where the water is shallow and clear, the mussel is secured by entering the pointed end of a wooden staff or stick between the valves of the open shell as the mollusk lies feeding on the bottom; as the shell is immediately closed tightly upon the intruding stick, it is easily removed from the water.

In the deeper waters of the Charente, the fishery is prosecuted on a larger scale. Until recently, the palourdes were caught by means of a dredge towed by a small boat, which was raised from time to time and the catch removed. Ten or fifteen years ago the scaphander or diving apparatus was introduced, requiring seven men for its operation, and by its use large catches have been made. The mussels are taken to the bank and there boiled for a time to cause the shells to open, so that the contents may be easily removed.

The shells are examined one by one to find any pearls that may adhere thereto, and then the flesh of the mollusk is crushed between the fingers to locate pearls contained in the mass; this is done largely by children, working under competent supervision. Many pearls of fairly good size and luster are obtained. The flesh of this mollusk is edible and well-liked in southwestern France; and the shells are also of value in the manufacture of buttons and similar objects.

In Germany the pearl fisheries are most important in streams of the southern districts, in Bavaria, Saxony, and Silesia. The pearl-mussel in these waters is not so abundant as formerly; yet, owing to the care which has been given to these resources, it is probably as numerous here as in any other part of the continent. The mussel rarely occurs singly, generally in small beds or banks contiguous to each other, and in some favorable regions these are extensive.

The pearl fisheries of Bavaria have been prominent since the sixteenth century. They exist principally in the districts of Upper Franconia (Oberfranken) and Upper Palatinate (Oberpfalz), the several tributaries of the Danube between Ratisbon and Passau, and in those tributaries of the Main and the Saale which rise in the Bavarian mountains, such as the Oelsnitz, the Lamnitz, Schwesnitz, Grünebach, Vils, and the Perlbach; also in the district of Lower Bavaria, where in nine districts alone there are one hundred pearl-bearing streams and lakes, of which the most important are the Regen, the Isar, and the Ilz.^[211]

Early in the sixteenth century, the river Ilz had the reputation of yielding the choicest pearls in Lower Bavaria. The right to them was reserved to the bishop of Passau, and a decree was made in 1579 that persons convicted of poaching on these reserves should be hanged.^[212] Since that time there have been few decades in which the gems have not been found in the woodland brooks and mountain streams that flow through the ravines and past quaint, interesting castles of the wonderful Bavarian highlands. Most of the prominent families in this beautiful region have collections of native pearls, and there is still some trade in them in picturesque Passau, at the junction of the Danube, the Ilz and the Inn.

Tavernier wrote about 1670: “As for the pearls of Scotland, and those which are found in the rivers of Bavaria, although necklaces are made of them which are worth up to 1000 écus (£225) and beyond, they cannot enter into comparison with those of the East and West Indies.”^[213]

The official returns for the Bavarian fisheries, dating from the latter part of the sixteenth century, were examined by Von Hessling in 1858. He noted many gaps in the statements of the yearly returns, partly on account of the loss of the records and partly because the pearls were delivered directly into the hands of the princes. The results of the first fisheries are recorded in the district of Hals for the years 1581–99, in Viechtach for 1581–83 and 1590–93, and in Weissenstadt and Zwiesel for 1583. The range of the fisheries was enlarged through the discovery of new areas during the first half of the seventeenth century; but this was offset by the bad seasons and by disturbed conditions during the Thirty Years’ War. From 1650 to 1783 the pearls in the forest lands of the Palatinate were exploited regularly and uninterruptedly, with the exception of the district of Wetterfeld and that of Neunburg vor dem Wald, where they were prosecuted for a few years only. From 1783 to 1814, they were almost entirely neglected, and the take was confined to a few streams in Upper Palatinate and in the Bavarian forests. In the former episcopal principality of Passau, where, according to general accounts, the waters were rich in pearls, the records were scanty previous to 1786; this was probably owing to the fact that the head gamekeeper was obliged to transmit the catch of pearls directly to the prince-bishop. The records for the fisheries in the districts of Rehau and Kulmbach began with the year 1733.

From these fragmentary returns—making no estimate for the years for which there were no figures available—Von Hessling found that from 1600 to 1857 there were taken 15,326 pearls of the first class, which were clear white in color and of good luster; 27,662 pearls of the second class, which were somewhat deficient in luster, and 251,778 pearls of the third or poorest class, or “Sandperlen,” which, though of poor quality, had sufficient whiteness and luster to be used as ornaments. Had the records been complete, these figures would probably have been at least fifty per cent. greater, or a total of about 445,000 pearls in the 257 years. In the last forty-three years of this period, for which the records are fairly complete, the annual average was 208 pearls of the first, 395 of the second, and 3091 of the third class, a total each year of 3694 pearls of all grades. This was divided among the districts as follows:

Probably the most interesting of the pearl fisheries in Germany are those prosecuted in the extreme southwestern part of the kingdom of Saxony, in the picturesque region known as Vogtland. This is not on account of their extent, for the output rarely exceeds $2000 in value in any season; but because for nearly three hundred years they have been conducted with the utmost care and regard for the preservation of the resources. Indeed, a record exists of practically every pearl obtained for nearly two centuries.

The waters in which the Saxon Vogtland fisheries are prosecuted are the Elster River, from the health resort of that name to a short distance below Elsterberg; its tributaries, the Mülhaüser, Freiberger, and Marieneyer brooks; the Hartmannsgrüner and the Triebel brooks, the Trieb, the Meschelsgrüner, the Teil, and Loch brooks, and twenty-five or more small ponds.

For most of the data relative to these fisheries, we are indebted to J. G. Jahn’s “Die Perlenfischerei im Voigtlande,” Oelsnitz, 1854; to Hinrich Nitsche’s “Süsswasserperlen, Internationale Fischerei-Ausstellung zu Berlin,” 1880, and to O. Wohlberedt’s “Nachtrag zur Molluskenfauna des Königreiches Sachsen,” “Nachrichtsblatt der deutschen Malakozoologischen Gesellschaft,” Frankfurt-am-Main, 1899, pp. 97–104.

In the year 1621, the electoral prince, Johann Georg I, reserved the pearl fishery of the Vogtland in Saxony as a royal privilege, and appointed Moritz Schmerler as superintendent and fisherman. From that time until the present, this fishery has remained a royal prerogative; and, remarkable to state, except at the close of the seventeenth century when the father-in-law of a Schmerler enjoyed the privilege, all the superintendents of the fishery—twenty-four persons in number—have been direct descendants of the second pearler, Abraham Schmerler, who, in 1643, succeeded his brother Moritz. The present superintendent Julius Schmerler has been in charge since 1889.

This fishery is conducted in accordance with regulations of the chief inspector of forests for the district of Auerbach. The present regulations date from June 15, 1827. In compliance therewith an inspection is made of the waters each spring to remove all obstructions and debris that would injure the resources; and, if necessary, entire beds of mussels are removed from one locality to another which appears more favorable. No mussels are opened at that time, for the real search for pearls does not begin until the season is far advanced and the fishermen can wade up to the waist in the water without discomfort.

Dr. Nitsche states that the whole pearling district is not searched over every year, but is divided into 313 sections, each one constituting a day’s work for three fishermen, and rarely are more than twenty or thirty of these fished in any one year. Thus each section or district is permitted to rest and recuperate for ten or fifteen years before it is again invaded. Every mussel is opened carefully by hand, with the aid of a peculiarly constructed iron instrument. By inserting the edge of this between the nibs of the shell and turning it at right angles, the valves are opened sufficiently to determine whether a pearl is contained therein. If none is observed, the instrument is released and the mussel returned uninjured to the water; but if a pearl is found within, the shell is forced open and the find removed. In case small pearls are observed which give promise of growing larger in time, they are not removed, but the year is marked upon the shell with the opening implement and the mussel returned to the water. It often happens that good pearls are later removed from shells marked in this manner.

Complete records exist of the yield of this fishery during each year since 1719, when the Vogtland passed to the electorate of Saxony. The following is a summary of these records arranged in series of twenty years each.