IV OYSTERS IN AMERICA 



109 



the sea, except at very high tides. The oysters are shifted from 

 one ' claire ' to another, in order to perfect the ' greening ' process. 

 About fifty million of these ' huitres de Marennes ' are produced 

 annually, yielding a revenue of 2,500,000 francs. 



It appears, from the experience of one of the most enthusi- 

 astic of French oyster-growers (Dr. Kemmerer), that oysters 

 grow best in muddy water, and breed best in clear water. Thus 

 the open sea is the place where the spat should fall and be 

 secured, and, as soon as it is of a suitable size, it should be 

 transferred to the closed tank or reservoir, where it will find the 

 quiet and the food (confervae, infusoria, minute algae) w^iich 

 are so requisite for its proper growth. In muddy ground the 

 animal and phosphorous matter increases, and the flesh becomes 

 fatter and more oily. A sudden change from the clear sea- 

 water to the muddy tank is inadvisable, and thus a series of 

 shiftings through tanks with water of graduated degrees of 

 nourishment is the secret of proper oyster cultivation. 



The American oyster trade is larger even than the French. 

 The Baltimore oyster beds in the Chesapeake River and its 

 tributaries cover 3000 acres, and produce an annual crop of 25 

 million bushels, as many as 100,000 bushels being sometimes 

 taken from Chesapeake Bay in a single day. Baltimore is the 

 centre of the tinned oyster trade, while that in raw oysters 

 centres in New York. Most of the beds whose produce is 

 carried to New York are situated in New Jersey, Connecticut, 

 Delaware, or Virginia. The laws of these states do not allow 

 the beds to be owned b}^ any but resident owners, and the New 

 York dealers have consequently to form fictitious partnerships 

 with residents near the various oyster beds, supply them with 

 money to buy the beds and plant the oysters, and then give 

 them a share in the profits. It has been estimated that from 

 the Virginia beds 4,000,000 bushels of oysters are carried every 

 year to Fair Haven in New England, 4,000,000 to New York, 

 3,000,000 to Providence, and 2,000,000 each to Boston, Phila- 

 delphia, and Baltimore. The American ' native ' (0. virginica) 

 is a distinct species from our own, being much larger and longer 

 in proportion to its breadth ; it is said to be also much more 

 prolific. 



According to Milne-Edwards,^ in the great oyster parks on 

 1 See G. H. Lewes, Sea-side Studies, p. 339. 



