CHAPTER XXX. 



OYSTER CULTURE IN HOLLAND. 



OYSTERS ONCE PLENTIFUL OVERFISHING ZEELAND THE SCHELDE 

 THE YERSEKE OYSTER-BEDS THE DUTCH ZOOLOGICAL STATION 

 LEASING OF PLOTS IMPORTANT DISCOVERIES RELATIVE TO 

 SPAT HOPEFUL EXPERIMENTS ARTIFICIAL FECUNDATION. 



AT the International Fisheries Exhibition Conference 

 (London) on June zgth, 1883, Professor Hubrecht spoke 

 as follows : 



About six weeks ago I had the advantage of being 

 present at a lecture " On Oysters and the Oyster Question," 

 which was given at the Royal Institution by one of your 

 most eminent biologists, Professor Huxley. 



It would be very presumptuous on my part to go over 

 the same ground once more, after that very able discourse 

 has come under the notice of you all, and I wish to limit 

 myself to a few statements concerning the oyster fisheries 

 and oyster-culture in the Netherlands. 



Time was when oysters from natural oyster-beds were 

 very plentiful with us. These beds were situated, partly in 

 our Southern province of Zeeland, partly towards the North 

 in the inland sea which we call the Zuyderzee, at the spots 

 indicated on the map. The oysters were brought to market 



