OYSTER CULTURE IN FRANCE. 541 



The average yearly growth of the oyster varies between 

 three and four-and-a-half centimetres ; with the adult oyster 

 it is rather less, but attains from two-and-a-half centimetres 

 to three-and-a-half centimetres. This depends greatly upon 

 where the oysters come from, and the pares in which they 

 are placed ; the oysters from Quimper grow the most 

 rapidly. As to the dredged oysters found at Auray, many 

 of them become sluggish, and make no progress during 

 one season, but they make up for lost time in the following 

 season. 



The oysters in the cases are left untouched during the 

 fine weather ; too frequent interference with them would 

 probably lead to breakage of the recent formation. Before 

 placing them in winter quarters, they are passed through a 

 sieve, in order to classify them according to their size. 

 The spat and the little dredged oysters undergo this sorting, 

 in order that the oysters in the same case may all be of the 

 same size. 



The oysters ready to be sent to the market are laid flat 

 on the ground, and are frequently shifted about and cleaned. 

 The workmen employed in this branch take the opportunity 

 to fill up with sand the inequalities caused either by the flow 

 or reflow of the waves, or by crabs, and in this way the 

 oysters lie only on perfectly even ground. 



MM. de Mauduit and de Solminihac have observed 

 some interesting phenomena in their pares, which deserve 

 notice in this Report. With regard to the adult oyster, the 

 fattening of which is desired, they have remarked that the 

 oftener it is shifted the more it increases in size. They 

 have also perceived that the oysters in cases develop 

 mainly in size ; in the pares, on the contrary, they develop 



