Marquette (AKA 95) - Naval Cruise Book

 - Class of 1946

Page 50 of 90

 

Marquette (AKA 95) - Naval Cruise Book online collection, 1946 Edition, Page 50 of 90
Page 50 of 90



Marquette (AKA 95) - Naval Cruise Book online collection, 1946 Edition, Page 49
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Page 50 text:

THE INTERNATIONAL GEM RACKET What IS there about the bloody sparkle of a ruby or the icy stare of a sapphire that w1ll fire a man's mind? Though philosophers were not present on this ship to answer the question, the blaze was present and we always seemed to find plenty of willing stokers to feed the fires at our various ports of call. While cafvcat emptor should have been the watchword, it seemed as though Barnum had educated everybody in the world but his fellow Americans. Despite numerous disappointments and slight over-evaluations of our purchases, we seemed always willing to use our experience, not as a reason to stop, but always as a new springboard for a deeper plunge. We received a m'nor initiation into the jewel-buying fraternity in Australia, home of the -opal, a fiery, semi-precious stone. The Aussies were not the type of salesmen we would meet later on - they cared little whether we bought or not. In fact, if We didn't know better, we'd swear the boys up in Singapore and Trinco put Australia on the map solely as bait to warm us up. It probably was amusing to the salesman to display his wares to experts of our caliber, whose experience came from dictionary and encyclopedia. The only reason we came away from Br'sbane unstung is that they prevented us from buying much there, but you can bet we tried to hang ourselves in spite of it. In Samar the sucker trade picked up, and would have been even better if the salesmen had spoken English. The local gentry had a snappy little stone to offer, called the Aristocrat, set in aullzentif, hand-carved Spanish silver. Evidently we had been on a particularly acid diet at that time, for the silver in the rings couldnlt take it and turned black. Samar also helped introduce us to the street vendor, who, wishing to save you the trouble of looking for him, comes to you. By the time we reached Singapore our appetites were thoroughly whetted. The visit was made without proper theoretical mineralogical preparation, but our practical educa- tion soon began in earnest. Evidently they knew we were coming, for the jewelers were right on the dock to meet us. After Samar there were a few skeptics, but memories are short lived, especially when blinded by the sparkling fire of a well-cut Bromo Seltzer bottle. Then, too, there were new tricks of the trade we had not yet encountered, the temptation of an undercover sale, the very scientific- looking balances for weighing gems, and the special charts for evaluating the chosen stone. Of course, the best way to catch a fish is to let him take the bait and hook himself. If what we wanted was not in Singa- pore, why not take a letter of introduction to a merchant at your next port of call? He is famous for his collection of exactly the stones you want . In the midst of all this splendor, it is only fair to add that if you went to a respectable merchant, you could always get your money's worth - but no more. But the cold revelation of what your ten bucks would buy in the way of - say - sapphires, was too much to take. Why take a good pair of roller skates when one can buy a broken down car? Our visit to Singapore was too short to take advantage of all the bargains offered us. However, we left well-primed for Ceylon. Now, well armed with our letters of introduction and worlds of experience, Ceylon was the obvious place to make a killing. With the true wariness of the Well-trained gem con- C379

Page 49 text:

for wear. The old man ask d . A e Us to Stay, then Spread three little baskets containing coiled snakes on the round b f ' . g e Ore him- Out came the horn again, and while he beat -it out Clndian fashionl, the cobra gradually lifted up its vicious-looking head. Laying the horn Hslfle, Allah P0li9d his fiStS at the snake's head as he mumbled words to it. As the cobra's k b d ' - - . nec egan to istend as though poised for a strike, Allah once again produced his hgfn d d h' - .2 . an Commence 15 1aUC0US hl0Wrng. The cobra seemed hypnotized by the music, for he froze In his uprlght position' Old Allah had done it again - now the poisonous cobra . h. u .. , was In 15 POWU Taklllg Z1 last look at Allah, the Snakes, and the remains of Charlie, We resumed our walk down the street, fascinated by what we had Sgen our HCXI SYOP Was 3 Hindu Temple, just beyond the college. There were several Hindus sitting leisurely about Outside the colorfully decorated building, which was as clean as any seen in our travels. Such cleanliness was remarkable and made a sharp contrast with the surroundings. We were told we might enter, but only if we took our shoes off. This we did, and on entering found it as immaculate inside as out. On our right, beyond the door was an alcove, raised above the ground Hoor, separated from the main room by a curtain. 'Containing a Single stone table, it was dark and mysterious, but not very enlightening. In the center of the temple was an idol, built on a rectangular stonework base, approximately the Size of a tomb. The idol was a grotesque figure, hardly made to resemble man Or beast. Hibiscus Howers were laid upon the several idols in the temple, this, we were told, was a sign of faith. Several other figures and icons were placed about the temple in small niches. On leaving the temple, we noted that the Hindus had a colored circle tatooed or painted in the center of their foreheads. The circle, we were informed, indicated that the wearer was a Hindu worshipper, the color distinguishing his rank in his religion. Having put on our shoes, we started in the direction of the Canteen, where we were to meet our comrades-in-arms. It was a little past five when we arrived and, as we expected, it looked like a fraternity meeting. All hands were present, trading Stories of their experiences during the day, discussing prices paid for souvenirs purchased, and generally having a boisterously good time. At five-thirty, the beer line was opened and there was a mad dash for position. The party was going strong when we realized we had to get back to the landing to make the last VP. We bid farewell to the Englishmen also submerged in the celebration and struck Off for the jetty. p The, general feeling in the boat going back to the ship was the usual We've been here, we've seen it, we've had a good time, and now we're ready to get under way . At 0800 the next morning, the Sth of March, it was So long, Ceylonn. FAMOUS LAST WORDS 0600: - Reveille, Reveille 2145:-TAPS! LIGHTS OUT! TURN INTO YOUR BUNKSI THE SMOKING LAMP IS OUT! KEEP SILENCE ABOUT THE DECKS! TAPS! C 36 J



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noiseur, we obtained the names of reputable dealers in advance. On arrival at Trinco, we searched out one of the jewelers recommended to us and entered his store. We casually inquired about the purchase of sapphires and were quickly ushered into a dingy back room. This appeared more nearly legitimate than anything we had yet encountered, but how could we be sure? We must stalk the prey warily. Our little Indian friend opened an old safe and took out a number of miniature straw baskets. From these he extracted some knotted cloths which contained sapphires of truly amazing proport'ons. These he nonchalantly spilled on to a piece of white paper placed on the table. He had previously weighted the corners of the paper with four large silver coins. We were permitted to examine these stones at our leisure. After a while we men- tioned that today was not the day we were interested in 3000 Rupee stones, possibly, he had something a little smaller - perhaps 100 Rupees. We examined and chose a few stones of the size we wished and proudly presented them as an expert's choice. With a smile that might have been either sly or understanding, he asked us to look at one or two other sapphires he produced from another drawer. The-e-ese, Sir, are goo-udly stones, he said. Yes, but why did you wait till now to show them, we cleverly responded. QBy now we were dealers of no little acumen, having bought glass the world aroundj. I would not want you to leave here with anything but a good stone. After all, my reputa'ion depends on it. That we knew, but what kind of a reputation was he interested in establishing? What about these flaws? we countered . These are not flaws , we were assured in a patronizing manner, they are the birth- marks of the stone. No sapphire would be genuine without them. This was an interesting twist, and the newest line we had heard in a long time. It sounded so real we purchased our little chip, birthmarks and all, and were happy with it. After such a big purchase, we felt we could be confidential with our gem merchant. We inquired as to how he could leave these thousands of dollars worth of stones lying about, seemingly unprotected. The only response we got to that query was another grin which could easily have been taken for a leer. So we decided to leave with our treasure, especially since it was getting dark. As usual after the deed was done, we began to ponder about our decision, looking about for confirmation of our action. We went to other merchants of reputation and allowed them to look at our prize gem. They would gaze sympathetically and quietly tell us we had been taken miserably. If however, in our grief we mentioned the name of the seller, a quick reappraisal was given, with an amazingly exact naming of the purchase price. These gents were ethical anyway - they took you at prescribed rates. Once at sea, we would break out our treasure chest and, as we happily ran our Jewels through out fingers mutter, 'This is supposed to be a sapphire this is supposed to be an opal and so on into the night When we came back to the States, the only attention We got was from the Customs - a resounding horse-laugh By the Way friend, if you ever get to Ceyl C 38 K . . . . . 9 9 xv ' ' ' , . tc ' ' on . D n

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