8 FRESH-WATER TURTLES. 



a letter received June 4, 1&18, from a fish company in La Crosse, Wis., 

 which goes into the subject with unusual fullness of detail : 



We receive turtles from all of the commercial fishermen of the Mississippi, 

 no one in particular fishing for them especially, as usually they are caught in 

 such small lots that the average fisherman does not make much of an effort 

 to gather them up. Usually the price this last year has been from 3 to 4 

 cents, and, getting them in such small quantities, the fishermen figured not 

 money enough in them to bother with them. 



We also get quite a few from the Indians who are moving about up and 

 down the river. The general selling price has been (Philadelphia) from 7 

 to 12 cents, the high price being in the extreme cold weathei-, and -.sually the 

 wholesale price runs from 4i cents f. o. b. shipping stations, and the average 

 quotation from the wholesale houses in Chicago and other places is from 7 to 



9 cents. 



The following is the amount that we have handled since November. 1917, and 

 conditions were such that we have had to carry quite a lot of this stock on 

 h^nd, as we were iniable to sell it at all times or very readily : 



Pounds. 



November 13, 166 



December 2, .551 



January 1, 689 



February 90 



March 1, 496 



April 5, 206 



May 5, 411 



Total 29, 609 



The demand has been diminishing from year to year. Ten years ago we 

 used to handle them by the carloads and could always find a ready market in 

 New York, whereas at present there is very little demand in New York ; in fact, 

 practically none. 



The kind of turtle we are handling is what is known locally as the mud or 

 snapping turtle. There is some demand for the soft-shell turtles, but not 

 enough to warrant our handling them. 



At Grafton, 111., it was stated that Boston afforded the best 

 market for terrapin and Philadelphia for snappers. 



PROPORTION OF AVASl'E. 



In the consideration of any article to be used for food the item of 

 waste is an important feature, since this must be accounted for 

 somewhere between the producer, or in this case the captor, and the 

 consumer. The opinion of dealers differed somewhat as to the 

 amount of waste in the snapping turtle. It varies considerably ac- 

 cording to the manner of cleaning. One dealer thought the turtles 

 would dress off more than half, large ones dressing off less than 

 small ones. Another thought a 12-pound turtle would dress off to 6 

 pounds, and a 5-pound one to 3 pounds. A dealer at Fort Madison, 

 Iowa, said that by discarding the shell they would dress off two- 

 thirds, but that the shell could be used in making soup, serving as a 

 soup bone. One dealer added that " in making soup the liver and 

 eggs are used, so there is not so much waste." In the Washington 

 market some snappers were seen dressed for sale. The epidermis hav- 

 ing been scalded off', and the scutes or epidermal plates of the shell 

 removed, the remaining portion presented a very attractive appear- 

 ance. Along the backbone of the turtle is a considerable mass of 

 flesh known as "tenderloin," which in rapid or "shop" cleaning is 

 discarded with the shell, but in careful cleaning is saved, thus re- 

 ducing the waste. At Pekin, 111,, where turtles were cleaned rapidly, 

 discarding tenderloin, liver, and eggs, as well as shell, a 14-pound 



