12 THE OYSTER. 



microscope is an unfailing delight to the naturalist, 

 but at first sight it seems to have no particular bearing 

 on human life. The ability to turn inorganic mineral 

 matter into food for animals and for man does not 

 depend on size, and in this work the microscopic flora 

 of the bay is as efficient as corn or potatoes, but infi- 

 nitely more active and energetic. 



In the oyster we have an animal, most nutritious 

 and palatable, especially adapted for living in the 

 soft mud of bays and estuaries, and for gathering up 

 the microscopic inhabitants and turning them into 

 food for man. 



The fitness of the oyster for this peculiar work — for 

 bringing back to us the mineral wealth which the 

 rivers steal from our hillsides and meadows — is so 

 complete and admirable, so marvellous and instruc- 

 tive, that it cannot be comprehended in its complete 

 significance, without a thorough knowledge of the 

 anatomy and embryology of the oyster. 



This book is not a scientific treatise ; its purpose is 

 practical, and it will aim at the treatment of its sub- 

 ject in its relations to practical ends ; but we cannot 

 fully appreciate the great possibilities of our bay 

 without something more than the vague and erro- 

 neous notions regarding the nature of the oyster 

 which are generally current. 



The inestimable value of our inheritance in the 

 black mud of the bay has been pointed out, and it 

 now remains to show that the oyster is an animal 

 which has been especially evolved for life in this mud, 

 and that through its aid we may make our inheritance 

 available. A thorough knowledge of the oyster will 



