﻿22 
  MUSSEL 
  RESOURCES 
  OF 
  THE 
  ILLINOIS 
  RIVER. 
  

  

  Only 
  one 
  each 
  of 
  elephant-ear 
  and 
  squaw-foot 
  were 
  found; 
  the 
  

   lady-fingers 
  were 
  smaller 
  and 
  much 
  less 
  abundant 
  than 
  at 
  Meredosia 
  

   and 
  Valley 
  City. 
  This 
  bed 
  will 
  }deld 
  200 
  to 
  300 
  pounds 
  per 
  day 
  per 
  

   man. 
  

  

  There 
  are 
  good 
  bods 
  on 
  both 
  sides 
  of 
  the 
  river 
  practically 
  all 
  the 
  

   way 
  from 
  Florence 
  to 
  Montezuma. 
  At 
  the 
  latter 
  place, 
  12 
  tons 
  of 
  

   shells 
  had 
  been 
  sliipped 
  this 
  year, 
  and 
  5 
  tons 
  remained 
  on 
  shore. 
  

   There 
  were 
  two 
  to 
  four 
  men 
  working 
  on 
  the 
  mussel 
  beds, 
  getting 
  200 
  

   to 
  300 
  pounds 
  per 
  day. 
  It 
  was 
  stated 
  that 
  two 
  years 
  ago 
  there 
  were 
  

   30 
  to 
  40 
  boats 
  in 
  operation, 
  and 
  200 
  tons 
  were 
  shipped. 
  The 
  per- 
  

   centages 
  of 
  the 
  shells 
  are 
  about 
  as 
  at 
  Florence. 
  

  

  From 
  Bedford 
  15 
  to 
  20 
  tons 
  had 
  been 
  shipped 
  by 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  

   July 
  and 
  8 
  tons 
  were 
  on 
  shore. 
  There 
  were 
  10 
  boats 
  at 
  work, 
  the 
  

   yield 
  being 
  300 
  to 
  400 
  pounds. 
  The 
  shells 
  are 
  the 
  usual 
  run, 
  how- 
  

   ever, 
  some 
  beds 
  have 
  as 
  much 
  as 
  5 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  muckets, 
  while 
  on 
  

   others 
  the 
  lady-fingers 
  appear 
  to 
  be 
  associated 
  with 
  the 
  washboards, 
  

  

  A 
  few 
  years 
  ago 
  Pearl, 
  like 
  Bath, 
  was 
  a 
  great 
  mussel 
  center. 
  

   Then 
  there 
  were 
  300 
  to 
  400 
  men 
  working 
  on 
  the 
  bed, 
  beginnmg 
  

   near 
  Bedford 
  and 
  extending 
  in 
  zigzag 
  lines 
  for 
  15 
  miles 
  down 
  the 
  

   channel 
  of 
  the 
  river. 
  At 
  the 
  present 
  time 
  (1912) 
  there 
  are 
  30 
  men 
  

   engaged 
  in 
  the 
  mussel 
  fishery, 
  and 
  they 
  have 
  gathered 
  10 
  to 
  12 
  

   carloads 
  of 
  good 
  commercial 
  shells; 
  but 
  the 
  conditions 
  have 
  so 
  

   changed 
  and 
  the 
  outlook 
  is 
  so 
  unfavorable 
  that 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  local 
  

   button 
  factories 
  are 
  anxious 
  for 
  new 
  territory. 
  

  

  Near 
  shore, 
  in 
  the 
  left 
  chute 
  at 
  the 
  foot 
  of 
  Spar 
  Island, 
  3 
  miles 
  

   below 
  Pearl, 
  there 
  is 
  a 
  good 
  productive 
  bed 
  yielding 
  mostly 
  rather 
  

   large 
  washboards, 
  a 
  fair 
  percentage 
  of 
  blue 
  points, 
  and 
  a 
  few 
  muck- 
  

   ets. 
  This 
  bed 
  has 
  a 
  mud 
  bottom 
  somewhat 
  covered 
  with 
  trash, 
  

   and 
  is 
  best 
  worked 
  by 
  wading 
  and 
  diving. 
  Near 
  the 
  shore 
  line 
  

   fully 
  75 
  per 
  cent 
  of 
  the 
  shells 
  were 
  slough 
  sand 
  shells, 
  burrowed 
  in 
  

   the 
  mud 
  and 
  standing 
  on 
  end. 
  

  

  The 
  camps 
  at 
  Gravel 
  Point, 
  Webbs 
  Landing, 
  and 
  Woods 
  Creek 
  

   Landing 
  had 
  15 
  boats 
  in 
  operation, 
  with 
  an 
  output 
  of 
  30 
  tons. 
  The 
  

   shells 
  in 
  this 
  stretch 
  are 
  of 
  the 
  usual 
  nm, 
  though 
  there 
  is 
  a 
  smaller 
  

   percentage 
  of 
  culls, 
  such 
  as 
  lady-fingers 
  and 
  paper 
  shells. 
  The 
  

   washboards 
  are 
  exceptionally 
  good. 
  

  

  