THE MINISINK EPIDEMIC. 23 



Bay was badly polluted, and, in fact, as will be subsequently shown, 

 many samples of oysters and water had been taken from Jamaica 

 Bay at the very time the oysters were taken from this place for 

 shipment to Goshen. These examinations led to a series of seizures 

 and condemnations of oysters from this bay, the first of which was 

 made on October 12^ 1911.^ 



The first intimation that '^R-ockaway" or Jamaica Bay oysters 

 played any part in the problem under solution was on November 29, 

 1911, the day before Thanksgiving, after searching the records at the 

 Wells, Fargo & Co. general offices in New York City. It was then 

 too late in the day to obtain information from dealer B, and it was 

 not until December 15 that positive information was obtained as to 

 the source of the "Rockaway'' oysters. 



Soon after obtaining information relative to the shipment of 

 oysters to Goshen by dealer B on October 3 from Fulton Market, 

 New York City, a visit was made to this firm's establishment. Here 

 it was ascertained that the oysters in question were '^Rockaways'' 

 which came from dealer A, located at Indian Creek, near Canarsie, 

 Long Island. The complete system of bookkeeping followed by 

 dealer B made it possible to establish this fact beyond any doubt. 

 The source of the oysters under dispute then lay between the Great 

 Kills oysters and the Rockaways taken from Jamaica Bay. Having 

 shown that either the Great Kills oysters or the Rockaways were the 

 infected oysters, a further study of the physical characteristics of 

 these two varieties was made. 



During the early part of the investigation inquiries were made at 

 Goshen regarding the color of the oysters served at the Minisink 

 banquet. The testimony showed that few, if any, '^green" oysters 

 were observed on that occasion. This fact would tend to substantiate 

 the belief that the oysters were of the Rockaway variety, as it is 

 commonly known that many of the Great Kills oysters have a decid- 

 edly green color at certain seasons of the year. Since many people 

 object to this color these oysters are not so generally sold to be eaten 

 raw on the half shell. They are more largely used for stews and par- 

 ticularly for fried oysters in which the color would be concealed. On 

 the other hand "Rockaway'' oysters are sold largely for half -shell 

 purposes, and would generally be ordered for banquets in preference 

 to the Great Kills oysters. 



A close study of Rockaway and Great Kills oyster shells shows 

 considerable difference in their physical appearance. The Jamaica 

 Bay or Rockaway shells grow very rapidly, owing to the great food 

 value of those waters. This fact is recognized by practical oyster- 

 men and these grounds have been eagerly sought for the rapid 

 maturing of shell stock. This quick growth causes very long, thin 



1 U. S. Dept. Agr., Office of the Secretary, Notice of Judgment 1380. 



