The Columbus journal., 1884-01-02
A Biz OySter Story.

"HOw' s that tor an lSter! SAID the
skipper of an oysterman, pointing to an
enormous shell that lay on the deck.
at amt not only a big SHE'LL" he con-
tinued. .'but it's got a powerful big
yarn that goes with it
The shell was &c tainly four feet
long, large enough to serve as a bath
tub for a small boy, and must have
weighed over two hundred and fifty
pounds, as the reporter could not move
it with one hand. 1t was u of the
largest bivalves known, the trldacna
gigas, more properly allied to the clans.
but passing as a very respectable oyster.
"Yes, SIR" continued the skipper,
who was shocking oysters, smoking,
talking and humming a tune at the
same time. that lister was fetched from
the East Indies by an Old mate of mine,
and happenin' to I'LL foul OF me he
says, says he: Bob, you're in the lister
biz and oughter have the boss lister;
kinder sample yer goods like So
what does he do but send this ere bal
last aboard. There was two of 'em:
one got washed away in a gale OF wind
off Pint Lookout, down the Chesapeake,
but the two of 'em weighed over five
hundred pounds, and ellis. he what
fetched 'em. said he eat the lister along
o. the hull port watch of the ship
about twenty, l reckon-and there was
half Of that lister left. The critter
weighed close on to forty pounds, all
solid meat. Ye wouldn't open many of
EN- in an hour.
THE yarn? Wall, as l was sayin'.
ellis was one o these speculatin'
chaps, always lookin' for the main
chance, swappin' knives, clothes, any
thin to make 4 cent, and cute as they
make 'em; SO when the ship struck the
Hoss ATTITUDES Gil was always on the
lookout for curiOsitieS, shells and such,
for to fetch home and sell. So. when
the ship struck the Straits o Sunda and
KEN to, off lie goes w til n couple O.
niggers what came aboard to git coral
and things. Wall, thev was wadin'
along. as Gil said, haulin' the canoe
after EN- and pickin' up chunks of
coral and conchs and such, and all to
once Gil see what looked like a flower,
all pink and yellow, and not KNOWN
what it was, up he goes and give it a
kick with his foot. The next minute he
felt somethin' close over his foot like a
wise, and vas gripped AZ if he'd took
root, and lookin' down he see his foot
nipped in one of these ere shells. Pull
and haul every way he would he
couldn't move, and they couldn't get at
the ~critter. as it was buried in the coral
and the tide on the food; it rises about
six feet in that country. Wall, they
thumped the critter with the oars and
hauled away for awhile, all to no
puppus, and Gurus enough, Gil had left
his knife aboard, and the only thing to
do was to 90 for it. So off one of the
! coons started for the bark, and she a
lyin' two miles away. The other chap
stood by Gil in Ease he gev out; and
there they was, the tide a risin' every
minute, but in about three-quarters of
an hour the ships cutter came along.
The boys gev Gil a cheer that kind o
Traced him up, and the skipper had sent
his grog. Overheard jumps the mate
with one o these ere spades they use in
whalin', and in about Il minute the crit
ter was ali cut up and Gil was yanked
aboard; but I'll be dogged if the water
wasn't most up to his chin. The next
day they went at low tide and got out
the critters shell; and that's the yarn,
and there's the SHE'LL said the skipper,
in conclusion.-Phladelphia Times.