Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1881-09-14
THEANATOMY OFAN OYSTER.
[From the Baltimore Gazette.

From the Baltimore Gazette.
Every oyster has n mouth, a heart,
a liver, stomach, cunningly. devised
intestnes and other necessary organs,
INST as all living, moving and intelli-
gent creatures have And all these
things are covered from mans rudely.
inquisitive gaze by mantle OF pearly
gauze, 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.
1t is of oval shape, and, though not
readily seen by an Impractical eye,
its location and size can be easily
discovered by gently pushing blunt
bodkin or similar instrument along the
surface of the locality mentioned.
When the spot Is found your bodkin
can be thrust between delicate lips and
a considerable distance down toward
the stomach without causing the oys.
ter to yell with pain. From this
mouth, is, of course, sort Of canal TO
convey food to the stomach, whence it
passes into the intestines. With an
exceedingly delicate and sharp knife
you can take Off the "mantle' of the
oyster, where there will be disclosed
to you halfmoon'shaped space just
above the muscle or so.called "heart."
This space is the oysters peridium,
and 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
gils through a network of blood yes.
sells, and the other drives the blood out
through arteries. In this Important
matter the oysters differs in no respect
from the other warm or cold blooded
animals. And no one need laugh in.
credulously at the assertion that oys.
ters have blood. 1t is not ruddy, &C.
cording TO the accepted notion about
blood, but it is nevertheless blood to
all oyster intents and purposes. In
the same vicinity, and in marvellous
proper positions, will be found all the
other organs named. But il is very
proper to be incrdulous about the
mouth and organs. At first glance it
would seem that they are utterly use
less, Tor the mouth cannot snap around
for food, and the oyster has no arms
wherewith to grab its dinner or lunch.
True, apparently, but not apparently,
for each oyster has more than 1000
arms, tiny, delicate, 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 comfortable creature. The
gills are thin flaps so notably percepti.
BILE 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 to-
gether, and perpetually in motion to
and fro in the same unwearied direc.
tion. They catch food from the water,
strain it carefully Of improper sub.
stances, and wait it upward over the
mantle's smooth surface to the gaping
mouth, which placidly gobbles it up
until hunger IS appeased and then
the body goes to sleep without turning
over. Any one who can observe this
singular process of feeding by placing
minute quantity of some harmless
coloriDg matter on the gills. If will
not offend the oysters delicate palate
the coloring will be seen at once pro-
PEELED by invisible hands toward the
mouth, and thence slowly down into
the stomach. And this is all know
about oyster anatomy, except the liver
almost entirely surrounds the stomach
and is of dark green color. 1t may
be new, however, to many to know
that oysters are born precisely the
same way theshadand other fish come
into the world. A wel.educated lady
oyster will lay about l25, 100000 eggs
so it is said | have not counted
enough of them to strike such q large
average-and every one of these eggs
ultimately become fit for stew or Try
if they escape the multitude OF perils
that do environ the infant oyster.