240 THE WEALTH OF THE SEA 



pleased with "Yankee oyster pie" ; Baltimoreans are 

 sure to want "Maryland stew" ; and Southerners will 

 cook their "oysters a la Creole." 



Practically all the world's production of canned 

 oysters is prepared in the United States. About 

 seventy-five oyster canneries operating in nine dif- 

 ferent States produce a total of a half million cases 

 of oysters each year. 



Since the shucking of live oysters requires con- 

 siderable strength and great skill, the canners steam 

 the oysters before removing the meats. This is 

 accomplished by pushing latticed iron cars loaded 

 with the live oysters into a large steaming room, in 

 which the oysters are steamed for about five minutes. 

 When the oysters die, their shells open, and it is 

 then an easy matter to remove the meats with a knife. 

 The oysters are then washed and packed into cans. 

 The tops are loosely attached to the packed cans by 

 an automatic machine. After the air has been driven 

 out by steam, the cans are run through a sealing 

 machine, which crimps the tops on so as to make a 

 tight seal. The sealed cans are sterilized by heating 

 in an autoclave under pressure, and, after cooling, 

 are labeled for packing. The canning of oysters re- 

 quires considerable care, as it is difficult to retain the 

 firmness of the raw oyster. Modern scientific methods 

 have greatly aided the canner. 



Inasmuch as the whole oyster is eaten except for 

 his shell, the only by-products are the many shell 

 products. Perhaps the most important use for the 

 shells is as cultch to catch the young oysters at the 

 time they change from free-swimming larvae to the 



