The Russellville Democrat., 1881-06-09
OYSTERS.
Facts About the Favorire Bivalve Not Gen. erally Known.
 paItIrnora n zaffa

 Facts About the Favorite Bivaive Not Gen.
 erally Known.
 Baltimore Gazette.
 Every oyster has mouth, heart, a liver, stomach, cunningly devised in- testines, and other necessary organs, just as all living. moving, and intelligent creatures have. And all these things are covered from mans rudely inquisi- tive gaze by mantle of pearly gauge, whose wool and warp put to shame the frost-lace on your windows in winter. The mouth is at the smaller end of the oyster, adjoining the hinge. It is ofoval shape, and, though not readily seen by an unpracticed eye. its location and size can be easily discovered by gently push- ing blunt bodkln or similar instrument toned. When the spot is found your bodkin can be thrust between the deli cate lips and considerable distance down toward the stomach without caus- ing the oyster to yell with pain. From to convey food to the stomach, whence it passes into the intestines. With an exceeding delicate and sharp knife you can take of the mantle" of the oyster, when there will be disclosed to you half-moon-shaped space just above the muscle, or so- called "heart." This space is the oy ster's pericardium, anu within it is the real heart. the pulsations of which are readily seen. This heart is made up of two parts, just as the human heart is, one of which receives the blood from the gills through a network of blood vessels. and the other drives the blood out through arteries. In this im- portant matter the oyster differs in no respect from other warm or cold blooded animals. And no one need laugh in. credulously at the assertion that oysters have blood. It is not ruddy, according to the accepted notion about blood, but it is nevertheless blood to all oyster in- tents and purposes. In the same vicin- ity, and in marvelously proper positions, will be found all the other organs named. But it is very proper to be incredulous about that mouth and or gans. At first glance it would seem that they are utterly useless, for the mouth can not snap around for food, and the oyster has no arms wherewith to grab it's dinner or lunch. True, apparently, but only apparently, for each oyster has more than thousand arms, tiny, deli cate, almost invisible. And each one of them is necessarily at work gathering up food and gently pushing it into the lazy mouth of the indolently comfort able creature. The gills are the thin flaps so notably perceptible around the front-face part of the undressed oyster, below the muscle. Each of these gills is covered with minute hair-like arms very close together, and perpetually in motion to and fro in the same unwearied direction. They catch food from the water, strain it carefully of improper substances, and wait it upward over the mantle's smooth surface to the gaping mouth, which placidly gebbes it up until hunger IS appeased, and then the body goes to sleep without turning over. Anyone can observe this singular pro- cess of feeding by placing minute quantity of some harmless coloring mat ter on the gills. If it will not offend tho oysters delicate palate, the coloring matter will be seen at once propelled by invisible hands toward the mouth, and thence slowly down into the stomach, And this is all I know about oyster anatomy, except that the liver almost entirely surrounds the stomach, and is of dark green color. It may be new, however, to many, to know that oysters are born precisely the same way that shad and other fish come into the world. A we'll educated lady oyster will lay about 125,000,000 eggs-so it is said; have not counted enough of them to strike such a large average-and every one of those eggs will ultimately become fit for stew or fry If they escape the multitude of perils that do environ the infant oyster.