938 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. [8] 
This oyster, when young, differs in taste from the French oyster, thatis 
to say, from the oysters of the basins of Cancale, Saint-Brieuc, and Arca- 
chon; but it is nevertheless highly esteemed and much sought after in 
the interior of France, and in many districts in which the culturists 
have sold and are still selling considerable quantities. We might cite, 
for instance, a culturist of Arcachon, who, a few years ago, had 
buyers at Lyons, Limoges, Marseilles, Grenoble, and at all the great 
centers, whose purchases amounted to 27,000 franes ($5,200) during the 
oyster season, that is, during a period of six months. The Arcachon 
oyster has a finer and perhaps richer flavor, but the Portuguese, accord- 
ing to the testimony of physicians, contains more compounds of iodine 
and operates upon delicate and diseased chests more speedily and more 
beneficially, especially in the case of the various physical affections. 
It may, according to epicures, be seasoned and cooked in various excel- 
lent ways. 
In oysterculture this oyster offers to breeders great advantages over 
the French oyster, as it speedily attains the adult size, and is thus 
sooner fitted for the market. In short, while the French oyster cannot 
be sold to consumers until it has reached its third year, the Portuguese 
oyster in two years attains the size and quality most favorable for its 
sale, for at that age it is always above the prescribed size of five centi- 
meters (2 inches), and having become adult its flesh then is fine and 
delicate. In addition, it results from this rapid growth that at the age 
when the French oyster has still everything to fear from its natural 
enemies, such as the crab, cormaitho, shrimp, &c., the Portuguese oyster 
has a shell of sufficient strength to protect it from the attacks of these 
animals, and there is no need of resorting to artificial means of protec- 
tion, which are always so costly. For these reasons, the Portuguese 
oyster offers to breeders at least double the advantages of the French 
oyster. ee 
Finally, allow me to pay it a tribute of gratitude in this little book. 
All oysterculturists know that during a period disastrous to our indus- 
try, the bays of Arcachon and Brittany were, from various causes, de- 
populated, oysters became scarce, and could hardly be obtained at all. 
Then France had recourse to the coasts of Portugal; we went there 
and obtained the precious mollusk in large cargoes, in order to restock 
our depleted oyster-beds. If, therefore, our parks are now so richly 
stocked, we owe it in a great measure to the Portuguese oyster, which, 
coming to the aid of the French oyster during the oystercultural season 
of that time, rendered it possible to restock our oyster-beds. 
No one is ignorant of the fact that the shell of the Portuguese oyster 
is very useful for manufacturing purposes; it furnishes mother-of-pearl 
in abundance, from which beautiful fancy articles are made; it is also 
very serviceable to agriculture as a superior fertilizer, inasmuch as it 
contains a large quantity of phosphate of lime. 
