710 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FIRH AND FISHERIES. [38] 



request, and lie avoids tLe great inconveiiieuce of draining several 

 ponds at times when it wonld be impossible to refill them. M. de Fara- 

 mond has comi)leted his packing establishments by an assorting ma- 

 chine, so ingeniously constructed as to permit two women to assort 

 30,000 or 40,000 oysters in a day. 



In conclusion I present the following statistics: 



In 1873, according to the register of maritime fisheries, the number of 

 shell-fish establishments was 2,5G4; in two years it has risen to 13,520. 



The claires occupy upon each side of the Seudre a strip 20 kilometers 

 long and 1 kilometer broad. The area exjdoited, therefore, is 4,000 

 liectares. 



The number of oysters estimated to be contained in these concessions 

 is 80,000,000. 



In fine, we may say that oyster-culture makes the fortune of the major- 

 ity of the inhabitants of this region. Almost all the families are pro- 

 prietors or renters of a pare, a vivier, or a claire, which they cultivate 

 themselves. Those of the w^orking class who are not tenants or pro- 

 prietors find occupation in the large establishments, and gain from two 

 to four francs for two hours of work during the high tides. We may 

 also add that the administration of the marine has addressed itself to 

 the question of dividing in a more equitable manner those lands which 

 are under its control. 



La Tremblade. — La Tremblade, situated upon the left bank of the 

 Seudre, as regards the methods of production, cultivation, and green- 

 ing pursued there, tnay be classed with Marennes. It has the same soil, 

 the same processes, and the same systems of culture, with scarcely a 

 shade of difference. 



I would abstain from making any special mention of the oyster in- 

 dustry at this station if I had not collected some supplementary observa- 

 tions to those made at Marennes, which I will briefly sum up. 



There are, as at Marennes, viviers and claires. The viviers are at 

 the mouth of the river, and are exposed only at the season of high tides. 

 In these the cultch is placed in order to grow. 



The claires, situated at a higher level, in the case of a large number 

 of the cultivators, who do not possess viviers, serve at the same time for 

 the growth, the fattening, and the greening of the oyster. 



La Tremblade grows largely the spawn of Bretagne, which, placed in 

 the pares about the month of March or April, when they measure from 

 2 to 3 centimeters in diameter, soon become edible oysters. 



The greening occurs in a very short time. When a claire is " in 

 liumor," tw^o weeks are suflicient ; but it is necessary to guard with great 

 care against emi)tying the claire, for it would be necessary then to wait 

 an equally long time before it wonld recover its green color. 



Northwest winds retard the greening, whilst those from the south- 

 west favor it. These last being warmer and more humid, the oyster 

 opens more frequently. 



