OYSTER. 



laooondenblc proi>ortionof the oyster* in 

 !. ! -!i-..;. i i '. t!. . ..::.. v i tin- loin li- in n 

 prolific that the beds are said to be fullv restored in a 

 year or two. The movement of the tides is an advan- 

 tage to these beds, in keepinir them clean, and in 

 bringing a full supply nt' the minute animal* and 

 phots which form the food of the ..\ >i.-r. 



Of late rears the 'tu.lv of the riuhryolofry of the 

 oyster has been diligently prosecuted under the aus- 

 pices of the United States Fifth Commission, with the 

 ulterior purpose of successful artificial propagation. 

 The experiments have been attended with promising 

 indications, though no practical application of the 

 results has been made. It is found that artificial fer- 

 tilization of the eggs can be easily performed, and that 

 the young can be kept alive until ready to attach 

 themselves. This, however, is of minor importance, 

 s natural fertilisation can be easily employed under 

 favorable conditions. The important purpose to be 

 attained is that of the protection of the fry until 

 ready to attach it.self, the preparation of abundant and 

 properly distributed cultch for attachment, and ar- 

 rangements for readily transplanting the young without 

 injury. 



Several scientists of the Commission have given at- 

 tention to this subject, among them Profs. Brooks 

 and Winslow, and more recently Prof. John A. Ryder, 

 who has devoted several^ years to the study. He 

 advises the use of spawning ponds with systems of 

 canals, into which the tides can ebb and flow daily, 

 while by the aid of a filtering apparatus the enemies 

 of the oyster can be in great measure excluded. The 

 canals are to be so arranged as to contain within a 

 limited space a very considerable number of movable 

 collectors, consisting of frame-work filled with tiles, 

 slates, shells, etc. The water is made to flow through 

 the full length of these collectors, and as the fry is 

 swept by the tide backward and forward it attaches 

 itself to the cultch in the frames. The collectors being 

 movable can _be rocked on their supports, and the sedi- 

 ment which is so fatal to the young oyster washed out. 

 When the seed-oysters are sufficiently grown they 

 can be easily removed by lifting out the framework, 

 and iiinveyinir the cultch in boats to the beds in 

 which it is desired to plant the > uumr oyster as seed. 



Prof. W. K. Brooks proposes the use of floating 

 collectors, saying that the embryo has a tendency to 

 swim to the surface, and that cultch in floating cages 

 would be free from danger of sediment, that fatal 



,n. -my of the larval oy.-ter. In an experiment winch 

 he tned he obtained a good "set," and the young 

 , .\-i.r v'rew with remarkable rapidity, signifying an 

 abundant supply of food and other I'avoralile condi- 

 tions. 



It is obvious that in the modes here indicated it is 

 possible to obtain an abundant supply of healthy seed- 

 oyMers. particularly in that proposed by Prof. Ryder, 

 which is the outcome of long study and experiment, 

 and in which the unfavorable conditions are in great 

 measure eliminated. Similar care of tin- subsequent 

 growth of the oyster is necessary. As planted in open 

 beds it has two destructive enemies, the star-fish and 

 the inconsiderate dredger, who often destroys more 

 oysters than he collects. At the Island of Ri, on the 

 coast of France, vast numbers of oy.-ters are raised in 

 small "parks," separated by walls, and planted with 

 seed-oysters. As a consequence this small island, of 

 about twelve miles circumference, now yields annually 

 400,000,000 oysters on what were originally its shores 

 of deep and useless mud. Prof. Ryder believes that 

 the salt marshes of many localities on our Atlantic 

 coast could be similarly utilized, oyster ponds of three 

 or four feet in depth being dugj and connected with 

 tide water by canals, while the inflowing water could 

 be filtered of its dangerous ingredients. Abundant 

 oyster-food would grow in such ponds. In this way, 

 he thinks, the harvest of the American oyster could be 

 enormously increased. As yet, however, the natural 

 and planted beds yield a good supply, and the exten- 

 sion of the area of cultivation will probably be left for 

 the future. 



The fattening of the oyster is a subject of some 

 interest. What we call fat in the oyster is really not 

 fat at all, but a deposit of the purest and most nutri- 

 tious protoplasm, which forms a highly digestible 

 food. It is laid down in the mantle of the animal 

 ] during the winter season, and exhausted during the re- 

 I productive period, when the oyster becomes very poor 

 and non-nutritious. The so-called fattening by remov- 

 ing the oysters for a few days to water fresher than 

 that in which they grew is a dealer's fraud. The 

 oyster is plumped out by absorbing the fresh water, 

 and the only real effect is that it loses part of its salt- 

 ness. Some dealers even use steam to warm the 

 water, so as to induce the oysters to take in more. 



We give, from the 1880 Census Report, the most 

 recent general statement of the American oyster 

 industry. 



Oyster Industry of the United States, according to Censtu Report of 1880. 



The total value of sales include* for Maine $37,500, and for Pennsylvania $187,500, Philadelphia being an important 

 Mat of the oyster trad*. 



