514 OYSTERS, AND ALL ABOUT THEM. 



metres in depth. The sides, which are shelving, form with 

 the bottom an angle of 40 to 45, and are covered by a 

 layer of gravel from two to four centimetres in thickness. 



In the middle of August the oysters of Saint Vaast-de- 

 la-Hougue commence to be brought to Courseulles, as they 

 are wanted, by boats specially kept for the purpose. Those 

 oysters only are brought which comply with the regulation 

 size, for the already advanced state of the season and the 

 nature of the ground render it improbable that they will 

 grow much in their new abode. On their leaving La 

 Hougue, and on arriving at Courseulles, they are washed, 

 sorted, and carefully freed from the mud and vegetation 

 which may adhere to them, and from all parasitic bodies 

 which alter the beauty and regularity of the shell and depre- 

 ciate their value. 



The method of training is very simple. In the first 

 place the oysters are left to recover from the effects of 

 their journey. Then, by means of a rake or even by hand, 

 those meant for sending away earliest are spread on the 

 slopes of the reservoirs ; the others are thrown back to the 

 bottom, upon the clay, until their turn comes for replacing 

 the first. 



The object is to accustom the mollusc to dispense 

 with a fresh supply of water, and to retain as long as pos- 

 sible the quantity which it keeps in its shells. For this 

 purpose it is allowed to stay in basins, morning and even- 

 ing, for only half an hour or an hour during the first days. 

 After some time, and by gradually increasing the time for 

 keeping it out of water, it can at last be kept out all night. 



Arrived at this stage, the oyster has actually learnt 

 to keep its shells closed, and can be carried long distances 

 without opening or losing its freshness. As regards fatten- 

 ing, no particular care is taken ; that process takes place 



