[37] THE OYSTER AND OYSTER-CULTURE. 719 
During the next three or four years this bed was fished so persever- 
ingly and disastrously that since then it has not produced enough 
oysters to be worth recording. Between the years 1840 and 1850 there 
were in the harbor of Emsworth so many oysters that one man in a 
single tide (five hours) could take from 15 to 20 casks, each containing 
1,600 oysters. Later, 70 to 100 sailing vessels from Colchester came into 
the harbor and fished up so many young and old oysters during the two’ 
or three weeks they were there that, in the year 1858, scarcely ten ves- 
sels could load there, and in 1868 the beds were so impoverished by this 
fishing that a dredger in five hours could not gather more than 20 oys- 
ters. These figures are taken from the statement of Mr. Messum, oyster- 
dealer, and secretary of an oyster company at Emsworth, made before 
the commission for the investigation of the British oyster-fisheries, on 
the Ist of May, 1876. From the beds of the districts of Rochefort, Mar- 
ennes, and the island of Oléron, on the west coast of France, there were 
taken, in the years 1853-54, ten millions of oysters, and in 135455 fif- 
teen millions. By means of long-continued and exhaustive fishing they 
were rendered so poor that in 1863~64 only 400,000 oysters were furn- 
ished for market. 
The very celebrated rich oyster-beds of the Bay of Cancale, on the 
coast of Normandy, have produced, according to official reports, the fol- 
lowing numbers of oysters : 
Number of 3 Number of 
Year. oysters. | Year. oysters. 
1, 200, 000 43, 000, 000 
1, 500, 000 || 1: 40, 000, 000 
1, 300, 000 || 36, 000, 000 
BOOAOOO| | TEBBUAe fate ae hate oc Mes eee 44, 000, 000 
AAOOSO00'y| S89 eas noe toe ee ce cece eens eee 42, 000, 000 
SOOROOO |) 1840 aeons ees naan see oee 52, 000, 000 
HOOKCOO || USA Meck set seem anes mnieacee cs 56, 000, 000 
TOSOKOO0)| TSO Meee Se saS cceoece cence 63, 000, 000 
UPSOONOOONN T8488 vo 52k cesaleo ce saeceseeeene some 70, 000, 000 
1-200: OOO) MT Saat. eee ee eee aoe somes cece 68, 000, 000 
MOOHO00!)|| 1845. sae saccssesac oe coemcwenem ese 67, 000, 000 
T, TSOROOO! | USACE Ee cee see eS sae ee eee | 65, 000, 000 
AP 1O0S OOOR GV S4 75ers see centers fecmemseee eee 71, 000, 000 
G00).000% | (tS4 Se “ees ace ( toe secaoe fas our tae 60, 000, 000 
400s000NI|MS40 yee ek See Ne TS eee 52, 000, 000 
8005, 000" 1850.65 eee ae ERS eee ce 50, 000, 000 
2400000) | kl Gale ee eae ee eee ee eee eee ene 47, 000, 000 
BE GOONOOON IMISSD caus a seme eran soe oan ee 20, 000, 000 
51800) 0004| Shia. mene «couse cone oe ee cee 49, 000, 000 
CORSO NOOO) | astes Ue ue Ne hs Cee lo te ep aacoesee 20, 000, 000 
CRCCOR OT MUS itay yee oe mene ae oe es 20, 000, 000 
600050008 | t856r ea oa eee EE ees eee 18, 000, 000 
T1800) OO0ul | Meo Tetes cose tee ke che ccleee steer ck 19, 000, 000 
87000 000M SHSM eweae ee kee ee SR ST tye | | 24, 000, 000 
20, 000, 000 | | 16, 000, 000 
20, 000, 000 | 8, 000, 000 
25, 000, 000 9, 000, 000 
28, 000, 000 | 3, 000, 000 
33, 000, 000 2, 090, 000 
31, 000, 000 2, 200, 000 
36, 000, 000 1, 100, 000 
42, 000, 000 1, 960, 000 
38, 000, 000 | a 
41, 000, 000 | 1, 079, 000 
46, 000, 000 
The records of inspections of the Schleswig-Holstein oyster-beds have 
furnished the means by which such an impoverishment of these rich 
