OYSTERS— CESAR'S ENGLISH PEARLS 223 



enormous fortune. He posed as the Pontiff of the Palate ; his 

 was the final decision, from which lay no appeal, as to which sea or 

 which part of what river produced the best of the various fishes. 

 From the not unnatural bias of owner and founder he 

 adjudged the Lucrine oysters finest of all. Pliny's words 

 (IX. 79) that, when Grata " ennobled " the Lucrine, British 

 oysters had not yet reached Rome convey a gratifying compli- 

 ment to our insular pride, somewhat dashed by Pliny plumping 

 for the Circeian.i 



Oysters throve with travelling and a change to new waters. 2 

 The Brundisian oyster when planted in Lake Lucrinus not only 

 kept its own flavour, but took on that of its new home. 



Apicius, not our gourmet M. Gabius, but an initialless 

 successor, would have proved an admirable Quartermaster- 

 General. ^ When " Trajan was in Parthia at a distance of 

 many days' journey from the sea, he sent him oysters, which he 

 kept fresh by a clever contrivance of his own invention ; real 

 oysters not like the sham anchovies which the cook of Nico- 

 medes, king of the Bithynians, made for him," when far inland 

 and yearning for oysters. 



In a comedy by Euphron,* a chef sings his teacher's marvel- 

 lous skill : — 



" I am the pupil of Soterides 



Who when his king was distant from the sea 



Full twelve days' journey and in winter's depth 



Fed him with rich anchovies to his wish 



And made the guests to marvel. 

 B. How was that ? 



A. He took a. female turnip, shred it fine 



Into the figure of the delicate fish." 



1 See ante, p. 146. If he praise our oysters, he straightly condemns the 

 pearls from them, as being " small and discoloured ; " wherefore (IX. 57) 

 Julius Caesar, when he presented a thorax to Venus Genetrix, had it made of 

 British " pearls," a very poor requital to a goddess, who, if Suetonius is to be 

 trusted, had so often stood him in good stead, both as a distant ancestress, and 

 in other connections ! Some really line pearls have been found in Scotland 

 and W^ales : the best known of these, got at Conway in the eighteenth century, 

 was presented to Catherine of Braganza, and is still preserved in the Crown 

 jewels. Wright, op. cit., p. 220. 



2 Pliny, XXXII. 21. 



* Athen., I. 13; of. Suidas, s.v. oarpea. 



* Euphron, inceri. fab. frag, i, quoted by Athen., I. 13. 



