366 
THE OCEAN WORLD. 
otherwise have been swept away to sea by the tide, Walton formed 
magnificent collection of mussels ; but he did not abandon his isolh® 
piles. These, being without fascines or branches, and always m b ' 
merged, arrested the spat at the moment of emission.” 
The advantages of this system of culture adopted by the Irish exd e 
were so obvious that his neighbours along the shore were not slow 
imitate his example. In a short time the whole bay was covered "h 
similar bouehots. At the present time these lines of hurdles for 03 
perfect forest in the little creek. About two hundred and thh^ 
thousand piles support a hundred and twenty-five thousand fascism 
which, according to M. Coste, “ bend all the year under a harv^ 
Fig. 150 . Isolated piles covered with the spawn of mussels. 
which a squadron of ships of the line would fail to float.” There a 1 ® 
about five hundred of these bouehots in the bay, each from two hunch 6 
to two hundred and fifty yards in length and six feet high. 
The isolated piles are without palisadoes, and are uncovered only il 
spring tides. In the months of February and March the spat collect 0 
on them scarcely equals in size a grain of linseed ; by the month 0 
May it will be about the size of a split pea ; in July, a small ham’ 0 
bean : this is the moment for its transplantation. In this mouth m® 
houchotiers, as the men occupied in this culture are called, la UIlC 
their punts and proceed to the part of the bay where these piles 
driven. They detach with a hook the agglomerated masses of y° n ° 
