• CLAM GATHERING. 1 57 



same general features of form and structure, and all 

 carrying out their part in the great plan of creation. 



When I was returning from the reef, I saw a man 

 gathering clams. He had a hoe and a basket, and as 

 he walked along the gravelly sands, every now and 

 then he would be attracted by a jet of water which 

 came shooting up from a little hole in the sand. A 

 little digging at such a place would usually bring up 

 a small, hard-shelled clam, such as are sold so freely 

 in the San Francisco markets. 



Later on in the day I found a good many other 

 shells of similar species, and traced several of these 

 mollusks to their homes in the different kinds of sand, 

 mud, and clay; and when night sent me to the hotel, 

 my genial hostess prepared me a most delicious chow- 

 der from the largest of all of the various clams. I 

 will speak of each of these species in their proper 

 order, but to illustrate the "subject, we will study a 

 fine, large shell which naturally belongs a little 

 farther on, among the Carpet shells. 



Fig. 136 represents the inside of one of the shells 

 of this mollusk, whose true name is Tapes tenerrima, 

 Cpr., Ta'-pes te-ner'-ri-ma. I say one of the shells, 

 for all mollusks of this class are protected by two shells, 

 a right and left, which are joined together on the 

 back by a hinge. Sometimes this hinge consists of 

 little more than a straight line where the two valves or 

 parts of the shell touch, and are bound together by 

 a strong ligament, but usually there are several hinge- 

 teeth on each valve, which fit into one another, and 

 allow the shells to move in only one direction. 



The teeth, which are grouped near the starting 

 point of the shell are called cardinal teeth. You 

 will notice three of them in the engraving, forming 



