994 OYSTERS, AND ALL ABOUT THEM. 



men, and, by so doing, destroy these public grounds and 

 the living of hundreds, is neither politic nor just. 



If there were simply a prohibition of the removal of 

 any oyster from public oyster-beds of a less size than two 

 inches in diameter, the destruction of the grounds yet 

 remaining would be prevented, although it would not 

 repair past damage, nor redress the injury done to our 

 local fishermen. 



The three harbours named were once noted for a 

 breed of oysters, second in quality only to Whitstable 

 natives, and were at one time so plentiful that they sold 

 for 2/6 the tub of 18 gallons, and, at this low price, a man 

 would earn from 5/- to io/- daily. At the present date, 

 the price is more than ten-fold that amount, and a 

 dredger-man often sells his day's work for a shilling, or 

 less. 



From this cause only a very few men, and those only 

 at a hard pinch, attempt dredging, and the result is the 

 rapid accumulation of mud, weed, and silt ; which is ever 

 the case where grounds are not kept constantly worked 

 over by dredging. Thus the nurseries have been des- 

 troyed, and without the outlay of large sums, and the 

 employment of many hands, the local oyster trade can 

 never be re-established. The ground is unfit for the 

 reception of spat, should any float in from the sea, and 

 there are no oysters remaining to replenish it. 



It is a fallacy to conceive that a few oysters, lying at 

 great distances, will be sufficient to supply a large area 

 with spat, as the aggregation of oysters is not merely a 

 result of their habit of attaching themselves to surrounding 

 substances, but is also a wise provision of nature to ensure 

 the fertilisation of the ova by a mutual diffusion of milt 



