82 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



leads from Bay Pompadour to Oyprien Bay, but in Cyprien Bay itself, 

 and in Schofield Bay and Skipjack Bay, which open into it from the 

 south and southwest, there are a number of planted beds on which are 

 raised oysters of excellent quality. There are apparently no planted 

 beds in Chi Charas Bay, but in Bayou Coquette, Bay Coquette, and 

 Bay Jaque the industry is of some importance, although of but com- 

 paratively recent growth. 



Both young oysters and shells are planted, the former being at jjres- 

 ent the more important branch of the work. Most of the seed oysters 

 now on the beds were obtained in the vicinity of Quarantine Bay 

 during the period when the open canals after the crevasse of 1897 

 permitted direct communication with the river. It is probable that 

 hereafter the planters will use shells more extensively, rather than 

 make the long journey to Timbalier or Terrebonne for seed, these being 

 now the nearest natural beds having direct communication by water. 



It is estimated that about 300 bank barrels (900 bushels) of seed 

 oysters are planted per acre of bottom, and under good conditions these 

 are said to increase about 100 per cent in 1^ to 2 years. I was informed 

 that in one instance, where 475 barrels liad been planted on a certain 

 piece of bottom, 480 barrels were taken up in the following year, and it 

 was estimated that an equal quantity still remained. 



The quantity of shells planted per acre could not be ascertained, 

 owing to the practice of spreading them along the shores in the shoal 

 water, as has been described in connection with the subject of planting 

 at Port Eads. The bottom suitable for planting occurs in patches here 

 and there, and there is apparently no large area of hard bottom not 

 interspersed with soft mud. 



The principal enemy of the oyster here is the drumfish, and the 

 bedding-grounds are inclosed by rude rail fences to prevent its inroads. 



In the markets of JS^ew Orleans the oysters from Bayou Cook have 

 the best reputation of any grown in the State, and a large number of 

 oysters grown elsewhere, many of them equal to the genuine, are put 

 upon the markets and sold as Bayou Cooks. 



Bayou Cook itself connects Bay Adam with Bastian Bay, and is about 

 3 miles long, broad at the two ends, but narrowing in the middle third 

 of its length. The currents flowing through the bayou are moderately 

 strong, it being the main channel for the ebb and flow of the tides 

 affecting Bay Adam. It covers a bottom of considerable area, only a 

 small portion of which is utilized in the methods of oyster-culture in 

 vogue, although the oystermen state that all bottom naturally suited 

 to the purpose is now in use. The bottom on the planting-grounds is 

 usually, if not invariably, a hard mud, soft mud being avoided because 

 the oysters sink in it and are lost, and the sand in tlie bayou being of 

 a shifting character and liable to bury the beds during storms. 



It is stated that in 1893 many hundreds of barrels of oysters were 

 destroyed in this way, some of the oystermen prior to that time not 

 appreciating the unstable character of the bottom. The hard mud, as 



