8o 



hygienic conditions under which the oysters grow and to 

 the lack of any organized distributing agency. Looking 

 to the woeful history of the beds in Sind we should be 

 thankful for this lack of demand as it has prevented the 

 extinction of the beds and thus furnishes the opportunity 

 to build up some useful culture system without being 

 beset by the difficulties that would be present if depletion 

 had taken place. To show the extreme hazard of 

 postponing the enforcement of regulations for the pro- 

 tection of natural beds against uncontrolled exploitation 

 till diminished production becomes clamant for assist- 

 ance, we have already dealt with the history of the 

 Arcachon beds during the first half of last century at 

 some length. India shows a virtual parallel in the case 

 of the Sind beds which a few years ago were exceedingly 

 prolific and made Karachi famous for the excellence of 

 its oysters throughout Northern India ; to-day the supply 

 is not sufficient to meet local demand and the beds are 

 practically wrecked. To point the necessity for the early 

 assumption by the Government of effectual control over 

 the principal oyster beds in the Madras Presidency, it 

 may be very useful to tell the story briefly of these 

 particular oyster beds on the coast of Sind. 



The oysters of that district have been held in high 

 estimation by Europeans ever since the British occupa- 

 tion in 1843, but the reputation was largely local till the 

 time when Karachi became connected with the Railway 

 system of the Punjab and the North-Western Provinces. 

 Ice was available at the same time and as a consequence 

 of these two factors and of the excellence of the mollusc, 

 a brisk and rapidly expanding trade sprang up in the 

 supply of oysters to regimental messes, clubs, hotels and 

 private individuals. To save freight and ensure proper 

 icing the oysters were shucked before despatch, the 

 sendings beino- made in sealed tin canisters embedded in 

 broken ice. Low prices and good quality encouraged 

 consumption, and many thousands of dozens were de- 

 spatched by train annually in the hey-day of the trade. 

 Towards the end of this period the price paid by oyster 



