BUSINESS ABROAD: Pearls from Silver Lips

The northwest coast of Australia is one of the most desolate spots on earth. The nearest city of any size is Perth (pop. 376,000), some 1,450 miles to the south; mosquitoes and crocodiles infest the mangrove swamps; 12-ft. sharks cruise the lonely bays. In that unfriendly land, at remote Kuri Bay, a syndicate of Australians, Americans and Japanese called Pearls Proprietary Ltd. is turning out a product that has the world's jewelers agog. The product: fabulous pearls as big across as a 25-cent piece, of gem quality so fine that a Manhattan...

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