OSTREA. 81 



This is done with so much muscular force, as to 

 throw it four or five inches at a time. In the wa- 

 ter, an equal dexterity is evinced, by the animal, in 

 raising himself to the surface, directing his course, 

 ad libitum, and suddenly, by the shutting of his 

 valves, dropping to the bottom. 



His less active relative, the rough Oyster, in the 

 mean while, is contented to remain fixed to his 

 first station, surrounded by an innumerable pro- 

 geny, continually increasing with wonderftil fecun- 

 dity. His motions consist only in turning from one 

 side to the other, which he accomplishes more by 

 sagacity, than any natural agility or inherent 

 strength. He contrives to bolster up one side, by a 

 gradual deposition of soft mud, till he stands nearly 

 upright; then, availing himself of the flowing or 

 ebbing of the tide, he opens his shell, and is tumbled 

 over by the pressure of the water. As expedition 

 is not his object, this mode may answer well. 



