SNAILS AND SLUGS 
177 
used for the purpose of giving a glaze to pastry, 
and as a thickening to soup. 
The industry of rearing snails is one of 
considerable magnitude on the Continent, and 
it is reported that as many as eighty thousand 
of these dainties are fattened for the table at 
a single “ farm ” in Switzerland. During the 
season of Lent, the Parisians are stated to 
consume fifty tons of snails daily, largely owing 
to the fact that they are not regarded as 4 4 flesh 
or fowl ” by the Roman Catholic Church. That 
such a rate of consumption has resulted in a 
shortage of snails is not to be wondered at, and 
we read that the local authorities of the Cote 
d’Or have proclaimed a close season between 
April 15 and July 15 every year, during which 
period it is illegal to capture the creatures that 
are under their jurisdiction. 
The edible snail passes the winter under¬ 
ground, and, as previously stated, seals up the 
opening of its shell with a calcareous matter 
that serves to keep out the cold and damp. 
But unlike that of the majority of snails, this 
covering is not pierced with small breathing 
holes, although it is believed to be sufficiently 
porous to admit air. The eggs of the female, 
which are laid in June within the shelter of 
holes made in the earth, are about the size of 
a pea, of a jelly-like consistency, and greyish 
