New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1871-08-03
THE OYSTER TRADE.

both in meat and she'll" He further Observes Oysters
are oil the better for travelling and being removed to
new waters thus. for example, the oysters Of Brun-
disium, IL Is thought, when fed In tho
waters OF Ayernus, both retain their own native
Juices and acquire the flavor OF those Lucrnus
The classical old fellow was right The Tangier Sound
and York River oysters when ranspaned TO the waters
OF New-York become pumper and OF richer and
flavor And we know that Sergius Orata the first Ro-
man who ever cultivated artihciay these marine mol
lusks acquired great reputation, and made great
deal OF money out OF his Lucrne oysters ana the art
ca beds which he planted in the Bay OF Bag that bay
below Naples about which Horace raves and with
reason for to us the most beautiful little bay In
the world. Passing by what Juvenal and Horace are
inspired to sing by these delicious biyalve permit one
more classical quotation from Mucianus:
"The oysters Of Cyzicus are larger
Than those of Lake Lucrinus fresher
Than those OF The British Coasts, 5weotef
Than those Of Medule. more tasteful
Than those of Ephesus, more plump
Than those of Lucus, less Shiny
Than those OF Coryphas, more delicate
Than those OF Ltra3 and whittier
Than those Of Circeii."
This Cyzlcus was on the coast Of Asia MaOr 100 miles
northeast OF ancient Troy, and the distance south
west OF modern Constantlnople It's oysters un-
doubtedly good but those OF Lake Lucrne, south Of
Naples, and Of Crce south of Ciyita Vecchia suDse-
quently became more famous.
Westward the course the oyster takes It's way From
the oldest Of five grand divisions of tho earth to the
newest-from Asia Minor to Greece (Coryphas), from
Greece to the Roman Peninsula, thence to France
Iedul@ or Medoc, to Spain ucus, to the British and
Irish coasts and thence TO Amerlcahe blessed army Of
oysters seem to have come Now, single American bay
yields than the whole of tho Mediterranean Sea-
1t is satisfaction TO all who are unwilling to exat
everything foreign and ancient everything domestic
and modern know that neither Mrcenas nor Lucuus
neither Virgil nor Ovid neither the Roman Emperors nor
In Tho Gpo 9hakp
Bacon, Burke, or Canning had before them an
oyster TO be compared in prodigous size aud delicious
flavor with the American oysters Of Chesapeake Bay To
adapt and adopt the language Of another, doubtless God
could have made better blvaye, but doubtless God
never did.
First to the leading varieties. The deservedy ia
nous Cherry-stone Inlet oyster must be ranked first
among all the oysters of the world 1t is large, fat
white oyster OF exquisite salty, oyster favor 1t Ia
thick aud OF firm, solid substance, that 1t may be
sliced when steamed like veal outlet or breast OF
turkey Fifteen years ago the Cherry were abun-
dant Now, the genuine CherrystOne oyster Is almost
as extinct the DOdo. Less than hundred bushels
were caught" aud sent to the market last year. The
next delicate oysters those from Lynn Haven
Bay They are plentiful than the Cherry stones,
but the present supply ia small Only thousand bush
els of natural Lynn Ravens caught" last season.
Twelve years ago the supply abundant. Perpetual
dredging has destroyed the oysters and exhausted
single oyster will the bottom OF ordinary sized
soup plate The largest cannot be Swallowed without
being divided into three or four bites Next to these
must be ranked the Hampton Bay oyster. These are
large, sound, single, muddyshellcd, firm, salty, and
solid As the Eastern shoremen say they as big as
your foot" and in the shell have been known to
sixteen inches length and three in thickness The
supply Is very abundant at present, and seems mex
haustible This is chiefly because dredging Is al
lowed the beds by reason Of the shaownes Of the
water.
The oyster laws prohibit dredging In water of less
than two fathOms twelve feet Thousands of bushels
are taken each season with the oyster tongs Next in
size and flavor the York River oysters Those pro-
duced from natural beds have become scarce, but the
product of the artificial beds very large Both kinds
rated high IN the market The boundaries OF the
Vulnerable planted beds marked by sapngs poles.
which give the mouth Of the river and the bay miles
around the appearance of orchard Lastly, the
Tanger Sound oysters the most numerous, but
smaller and inferior in quality TO all those we have
named They have deteriorated In quality during the
last ten years owing doubtless to the constant dragging
the dredges the beds This Sound produces
oysters than all OF Chesapeake Bay beside, and more
than any waters OF like the world. The larger
proportion OF the oysters used in all except the extreme
eastern cities OF the United States the Tangier
Sounds.
The best oysters go to the Baltimore and washngto
markets. few find their way to New.York, for these
The best and argestare caught in small guam
titles with the tongs. These tong fishermen. being
chiefly poor Maryanders and Vrginians personally
known to the Baltimore and Washington dealers, who
contract for their oysters before they Caught and
these fishers small scale are more disposed to sell to
their neighbors, whom they know and from whom they
get goods and supplies than to strangers And aiso
the local owners OF small vessels inclined to
take their cargoes cities where the merchants from
whom they expect to purchase return known
fO tn IN ixa Ne nd
where they have to deal with entire strangers The
Yankee oystermen," as those who come from the
North to fish called not knowing well the waters
the location OF the best BEDS fish wherever they
catch anything, and so get miscellaneous cargo.
There In existence co species Of oysters, and
200 fossferous species have been found 1t Is believed
by the best informed that the delicious oysters of Chesa
peake Bay will ia time become extinct, and its almost
innumorabe beds exhausted unless something is done
for their protection from wholesale destruction The
supply from the bay Is the decrease, although the
general annual consumption is manfestly on the in
II Is thought that in forty fy years. If the
uninterrupted dredging OF the oyster beds continued,
they will be practically exhausted. When bed is
found 1t is the habit drag the heavy dredges through
year after year. until there oysters left to breed
The machine brushes the young oysters imbeds them In
the mud scaers them beyond the reach OF nourish
ment, and into water too deep for them to thrive in
The remedy Is, to amend the oyster laws
as to allow dredging in each particular
sound, inlet haven only on alternate years
That u.s. make it unlawful to fish the same beds every
year. with dredge and require that they shall be I'M
disturbed every other or at least every third
season. Oysters require from four to six years to
reach maturity from the spawn or spa or from three to
five years after being planted They should be disturbed
as little as possible not only during the period OF breed
ing which through the months OF May, june July,
and August, but during the entire period of growth
They flourish best In the temperate zones in water from
TO IA feet deep but found in water from to 80 feet
In depth. The fecundy Of the oyster Is reinarkaOIe;
one is believed to breed million. The spat or spawn
floats in the water and il soon protected by eacare0us