OSTREAD^l. — OYSTER. 133 



cultivation on the Northumbrian coast. They were 

 imported and established there, and in the year 1865 

 the fisheries were allowed to commence, when they 

 were found to have succeeded admirably, but since 

 then the sand has destroyed the oysters. Messrs, 

 Forbes and Hanley state that since the introduction of 

 steamboats and railroads, considerable quantities of 

 sea-oysters are brought from Falmouth and Helford, 

 in Cornwall, also from Scotland and Ireland ; the 

 Irish oysters coming mostly from Carlingford, Mala- 

 hide, Lissadell, Burran, Arklow, and Wexford ; but 

 the ( Report of the Irish Fishery Commissioners/ in 

 1874, gave a most unsatisfactory account of many of 

 these fisheries; and it is said that the Carlingford beds, 

 once so productive, are nearly dredged out, and in 

 1876 the take did not exceed a few thousands. The 

 Wexford and Tralee beds were in the same condition, 

 from over dredging and a succession of bad spatting 

 years. It is not lawful to sell oysters in Ireland in 

 the months of May, June, and July. The Wexford 

 men dredged for them, of course, in the other months, 

 but one reason of the beds being badly stocked 

 was, that in the closed months they were regularly 

 dredged by Beaumaris boats, which replenished their 

 own exhausted beds with them ; and in 1863 a French 

 lugger visited Wexford seven times, carrying off on 

 each occasion a large quantity of oysters for "laying 

 down " on the French coast.* 



The amount of oysters taken on the principal 

 natural oyster-beds in 1876, off Arklow, was 7520 

 barrels of 450 each, large and small, at prices from 

 18s. to 24s. Qd. per barrel. In 1875, 13,640 barrels 



* « Morning Post,' Aug. 29th, 1864. 



