418 ANIMAL FOOD RESOURCES OP DIFFERENT NATIONS. 



The " green " oyster, so much prized in France, will 

 hot sell in the American markets. The " greening " of 

 oysters is extensively carried on at Mareiines, on the 

 banks of the river Seudre ; and this particular branch of 

 oyster industry extends for leagues along the river, and 

 is also sanctioned by free grants from the State. The 

 peculiar colour and taste are believed by the French to 

 be imparted by the vegetable substances which grow in 

 the beds where the oysters are cultivated. 



A resident of London claims that that city spends over 

 £5,000,000 sterling a year in oysters, and that more than 

 twice the number of these bivalves would be used if they 

 could be obtained at as reasonable prices as in America. 

 The genuine Whitstable oyster fetches about 3s. a 

 dozen. Oyster culture in England is yet in its infancy. 

 The most popular size for eating are those with a shell 

 about as large as a crown piece. They are packed in 

 barrels very closely and kept right side up during the 

 voyage. Quite a trade is now springing up in carrying 

 " seed" oysters from America to Europe. 



Car loads of oysters are shipped to California from 

 New York every few days. The "native" oyster of 

 the western coast is obtained in the Gulf of California, 

 and is small and of coppery taste. A moderate supply 

 is being obtained on the Oregon or Washington territory 

 coast. These are better than the more southern. 



About 40,000 barrels were shipped from the Columbia 

 river in 1882, valued at 3 dollars per barrel. 



' The seaboards of Georgia, South Carolina, and Texas 

 abound in oysters. In some places they have grown up 

 into reefs extending for twenty miles along the coast. 

 Much of this oyster wealth may yet become available 

 for Northern markets. Various river mouths and 

 estuaries along the Connecticut and New York shores 

 would be most excellent oyster grounds, if some means • 

 could be provided to keep the deposits of mud from 

 covering and smothering the young oysters. The time 

 may be near when enterprising men will seek to clear 

 off these ruinous deposits as they now drain marshes and 



