Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1882-03-29
Saltwater Terrapin.

water marshes along the coast from the
east end of Long Island TO Texas. Ii is
easily distinguished from the other varieties
Of the family emydoidG. Its upper shell
is oval, and is covered with many plates,
which are deeply impressed with numerous
lines, giving rough and uneven appear
snce. They are Of q dull ash brown color.
sometimes approaching black, unequal In
size and varying In shape, some being six
sided. few oblong. while others are tri-
angular; thus the local name of Diamond
back mas been given to the saltwater
terrspin III the vicinity of Baltimore. The
under shell is smooth, and varies in color
from reddish orange to pale yellow. Its
neck is short and thick, and the head and
limbs are of dark brownish color, covered
with black spots. This brief description
will suffice for the terrapin found on the
range from Montauk Point to the Florida
KEYS, but on rounding the coast the Gulf
terrapin is found TO be much coarser in
shell and meat, possessing somewhat
larger head, those of Texas being particu-
larly gross. The dealers have divided
this terrapin INTO three classes. based on
the difference in their size. The largest
are the female, and are called the ''cows,"
and il is these that are priced so much by
eplcures. Tney only contain the eggs
They must measure six inches in length
vu the under shell, and little notched
stick decides whether they are to pass
inspection or not; il SO, they are known as
'.full counts" The second class are but
about five inches in lergth, and are called
'.heifers," while the smallest Of all are the
males or ''bulls," and are distinguished
from yoCng terrapin by slight groove,
which extends lengthwise on the under
shell. These are only edible when used
in soup.
The terrapin which reach our markets
are either freshly caugh. or are from the
pens where they have beeR retained until
the season opens. The former are by
long odds the most delicious. They are
found by the terrapin-hunters alternating
in the mud. and are extremely fat and
juicy. Along our coast, and especially
where they are plentiful, persons make
living by collecting terTapIn. At every
low tide the hunters sally forth, armed
with their short, spear-shsped stick, to
probe the marshes and bag their prey. The
terrapin at the approach of cold weather
leave the deep channels of the creeks and
Chamber I'D the sloplng banks, where they
bury themselves some six or eight inches
in the mud. A favorite place is on a
shelving point at the intersection of mar
row drain with some wide thoroughfare.
Although hid from the eye and apparent
ly housed for their long winters nap, they
leave signs behind which lead to their de-
lection. Either an lndentation on the
surface of the mud or tiny air-hole gives
the hunter his clew, and the stick soon
glances off the shell of the reel lse 1t Is
quickly pried up and dropped In the bag.
The labor of terrapin-hIinting is severe in
the extreme, the mud being very soft, and
the hunter often sinking to his waist
Seldom more than three or four full
counts" can be caught on the low tide
indeed 1t is lucky man who can average
even two. At this season of the year the
terrapin does not attempt to bite, although
he is lively and restless when cooped up
in box or barrel. Not so, however, Is
the terrapIn when caught in the summer
months, they are then vicious, and bite
with gusto, as If to get even with the
world before making their exit. Penned
terrapIns are not so delicate as fresh
ly-caught ones, nor do they possess the
same flavor. Being melted In large seines
and peuned during the hot months of the
years, The Confinement deprives them OF
the food on which they would naturally
subsist Although the pens are so con
strucled by the edge OF the water that
every incoming tide flows over the |
entire enclosure, yet there is to the cap
tive feeling OF incJmpleteness.
That teTrapin breed while thus penned |
Is well known. and they even go so far as
to lay their eggs, and the young hatch out. |
but, save a few that have been caught and |
placed in aqusriums, the majority Of the |
youngers have made their happy go-lucky
through the interstices of the pen. That
they can be cultivated there is not a shad- |
ow of a doubt, but, save at some remote |
LOCALITY in the South of which little is |
known, nothing has yet been done. The
feed Of the peuned terrspin has heretofore
been refuse fish, such as are thrown aside
upon the liftIng Of pound nets. On this
offal they grow fat, but last summer, il
was discovered that they were frst-class
vegeiarians, eating cabbage, lettuce and
watermelon Tiud with a relish, and ex-
pertinent proved that the terrspins thus
led were much superior TO tlose fed Oh q
fisn d.el. Siiil they are much inferior 10
freshly caught, ana in consequence do not
bring haii US much per dozen in The mar
kets.
Ihe annual catch of terrapin Is not
large, hence The exlravagant prices paid.
the further north they are taken the great
-.E.. Ill IL z,fl
Long Island are consldered the best, and
those from New Jersey come second. But
as there is but limited quantity taken on |
Long Island, certainly not more than |
fifty dozen per annum, our markets de- |
pend upon the Southern waters for q |
supply 1t is from the Chesapeake that
the largest supply Of choice terrapns |
comes, and during the season the bon
rirantS of the four Ierrapin-eatIng cities |
New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore and
Washington level in them. As yet the |
inhabitants of Boston have not awakened |
to the excellence of the dish, and it is said
hat not ten dozen are sold In that city
during the year.
The teuapln was first introduced here
at the club-houses, and then The irst-class
restaurants prepared to serve 1t, but, al
though the consumption has increased i'm
mensely during the last ten yeaiA there
are moi half dozen places IN The city
where il is properly cooked. Now one
thousand dozen terrapin are sold yearly In
New York, and the carefully prepared
statistics of the Fishmongers' Association
show that out of that number five hundred
and sixty dozen of full counts were dis
posed OF last year in the New York mar
keis- From these figures 1t is estimated
that the consumption is mnch greater in
New York than in Philadelphia and Wash
ington and even in Baltimore, though the
dlsh is peculiar to that city.
Proposals.