﻿[17] 
  PEAELS 
  AT 
  TAHITI 
  AND 
  TUAMOTU. 
  369 
  

  

  bottom 
  of 
  the 
  sea 
  in 
  tins 
  archipelago 
  % 
  How 
  could 
  they 
  be 
  taken 
  care 
  

   of? 
  An 
  army 
  of 
  divers 
  would 
  not 
  suffice 
  to 
  take 
  care 
  of 
  one 
  pare; 
  

   moreover 
  the 
  tide 
  at 
  Tahiti 
  is 
  too 
  weak 
  to 
  leave 
  dry 
  any 
  places 
  capable 
  

   of 
  being 
  converted 
  into 
  oyster-pares. 
  I 
  therefore 
  at 
  once 
  abandoned 
  

   the 
  idea 
  of 
  raising 
  oysters 
  in 
  pares, 
  and 
  I 
  would 
  advise 
  those 
  who 
  in- 
  

   tend 
  to 
  engage 
  in 
  oyster 
  culture 
  in 
  Tahiti 
  to 
  do 
  the 
  same 
  if 
  they 
  wish 
  

   to 
  be 
  spared 
  many 
  disappointments. 
  Some 
  years 
  ago 
  there 
  were 
  seized 
  

   on 
  the 
  island 
  of 
  Anaa 
  a 
  certain 
  number 
  of 
  small 
  oysters. 
  Under 
  the 
  

   pretext 
  of 
  planting 
  them 
  again, 
  orders 
  were 
  given 
  to 
  scatter 
  them 
  at 
  

   a 
  place 
  in 
  the 
  lagoon 
  where 
  the 
  bottom 
  was 
  exclusively 
  composed 
  of 
  

   sand. 
  Not 
  a 
  single 
  one 
  of 
  these 
  oysters 
  was 
  again 
  found 
  alive, 
  all 
  hav- 
  

   ing 
  been 
  buried 
  under 
  the 
  sediment 
  and 
  thus 
  perished. 
  Similar 
  experi- 
  

   ments 
  made 
  in 
  other 
  islands 
  met 
  with 
  the 
  same 
  result. 
  

  

  The 
  system 
  of 
  raising 
  oysters 
  in 
  boxes, 
  which 
  has 
  proved 
  successful 
  

   at 
  several 
  stations 
  in 
  the 
  ocean, 
  and 
  even 
  in 
  the 
  Mediterranean, 
  seemed 
  

   to 
  me 
  to 
  be 
  the 
  most 
  appropriate 
  under 
  the 
  circumstance. 
  

  

  Oyster-boxes, 
  containing 
  a 
  certain 
  number 
  of 
  oysters, 
  were 
  submerged 
  

   in 
  various 
  localities 
  at 
  Tahiti 
  at 
  various 
  depths, 
  varying 
  from 
  3 
  to 
  25 
  

   feet. 
  After 
  a 
  month 
  or 
  five 
  weeks 
  the 
  oysters 
  had 
  increased 
  in 
  size, 
  

   those 
  measuring 
  about 
  7 
  inches 
  by 
  about 
  half 
  an 
  inch, 
  and 
  the 
  small 
  

   ones 
  by 
  almost 
  § 
  of 
  an 
  inch. 
  Only 
  one 
  had 
  died, 
  but 
  then 
  it 
  should 
  be 
  

   stated 
  that 
  it 
  had 
  been 
  hurt 
  in 
  a 
  particular 
  experiment. 
  

  

  I 
  renewed 
  these 
  operations 
  in 
  the 
  port 
  of 
  Papetoai, 
  in 
  the 
  island 
  of 
  

   Moorea, 
  and 
  under 
  entirely 
  unfavorable 
  conditions. 
  The 
  oysters, 
  be- 
  

   fore 
  being 
  placed 
  in 
  the 
  box, 
  had 
  been 
  deprived 
  of 
  the 
  horny 
  part 
  round 
  

   the 
  edge 
  of 
  the 
  valves 
  by 
  means 
  of 
  sharp 
  pinchers 
  and 
  a 
  scraper. 
  Each 
  

   oyster 
  was 
  numbered, 
  and 
  the 
  outline 
  of 
  the 
  shell 
  traced 
  on 
  a 
  sheet 
  of 
  

   paper. 
  In 
  some 
  of 
  them 
  I 
  had 
  bored 
  holes 
  in 
  several 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  shell, 
  

   to 
  favor 
  the 
  formation 
  of 
  mother-of-pearl 
  protuberances. 
  After 
  a 
  month 
  

   or 
  five 
  weeks 
  the 
  mutilated 
  oysters 
  had 
  recovered, 
  the 
  edge 
  of 
  their 
  

   shell 
  had 
  reformed, 
  and 
  all 
  had 
  increased 
  in 
  size 
  about 
  half 
  an 
  inch. 
  

   With 
  a 
  few 
  exceptions 
  they 
  had 
  attached 
  themselves 
  to 
  stones 
  or 
  pieces 
  

   of 
  coral 
  placed 
  in 
  the 
  box, 
  or 
  to 
  the 
  sides 
  of 
  the 
  box. 
  Those 
  whose 
  bys- 
  

   sus 
  had 
  not 
  found 
  any 
  object 
  to 
  which 
  to 
  adhere, 
  had 
  not 
  increased 
  in 
  

   size. 
  The 
  fixing 
  of 
  oysters, 
  taken 
  from 
  their 
  natural 
  collector, 
  to 
  resist- 
  

   ing 
  bodies, 
  was 
  therefore 
  an 
  accomplished 
  fact. 
  It 
  had 
  been 
  asserted 
  

   that 
  once 
  torn 
  from 
  their 
  original 
  collector, 
  they 
  would 
  not 
  adhere 
  to 
  

   another, 
  and 
  would 
  soon 
  perish. 
  Later 
  I 
  observed 
  that 
  a 
  single 
  thread 
  

   of 
  the 
  byssus 
  was 
  sufficient 
  to 
  insure 
  fixation. 
  The 
  new 
  fixation 
  took 
  

   place 
  in 
  from 
  one 
  to 
  three 
  days 
  after 
  the 
  oysters 
  had 
  been 
  placed 
  in 
  the 
  

   box. 
  

  

  The 
  first 
  oyster- 
  boxes 
  of 
  a 
  model 
  resembling 
  those 
  used 
  in 
  French 
  

   oyster- 
  cultural 
  establishments, 
  did 
  not 
  altogether 
  suit 
  the 
  pearl-oyster. 
  

   Accordingly, 
  other 
  boxes 
  were 
  made, 
  which 
  were 
  better 
  adapted 
  to 
  the 
  

   purpose. 
  These 
  new 
  boxes 
  measured 
  from 
  4 
  to 
  5 
  feet 
  in 
  length, 
  27 
  to 
  31 
  

   inches 
  in 
  breadth, 
  and 
  10 
  to 
  12 
  inches 
  in 
  depth. 
  They 
  rested 
  on 
  four 
  

   S. 
  Mis. 
  70 
  21 
  

  

  