17 



merable cilia which cover the lattsr and the palps. The 

 oviducts open directly into the upper gill cavity, from 

 whence the eggs or sperm which have, been discharged 

 thereinto are at once carried out into the water immedi- 

 ately surrounding the animal in the open sea. From 

 the fact that the eggs are heavier than water, although 

 each female oyster matures many millions, it is easy to 

 understand why it is that but comparatively few, prob- 

 ably only a fraction of one per centum of all that are 

 laid, ever develope or fix themselves even under favor- 

 able circumstances, since much the largest portion of 

 them are never impregnated, while of those which are, 

 but few ever find positions favorable to their growth 

 under natural conditions. 



HOW AN OYSTER TAKES ON FLESH. 



Amongst oystermen the business of "fattening'' or 

 feeding the oyster is one of the most important from the 

 fact that upon the condition of the marketable product 

 largely depends its value. Fatness in the oyster is a 

 condition wholly different in nature from the state known 

 under that name in stall-fed domestic animals; nor has 

 it anything to do with the condition of the reproductive 

 organ, as Prof. Brooks^' seems to suppose, for oysters are 

 mainly taken from their beds at a season when that 

 organ is in an inactive condition and appears shrunken 

 and wasted away, as it truly is. The word "faf as 

 applied to indicate the condition of the oyster when in 

 flesh, is a misnomer, since it is not fat at all which is the 

 immediate cause of the condition of plumpness, which 

 betokens a fltness for market, but a very extensive de- 

 posit of protoplasmic material which has been mainly 

 laid down in the substance of the mantle. It is not de- 

 nied that there are oil globules to be found in this de- 

 posit, but it is denied that the term "fat" applies as 



*Development of the American Oyster, p. lo. 



N. B. M«', bias seems to have clearly apprehended the true nature of the so-called fattening 

 process. 



