The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1885-10-24
FACTS ABOUT OYSTERS.

'J ~tN-'~ - eA~ NANHN @NAS"oAN I
Bently, who, history says, could |
never pass an oyster shop without |
going in an ordering q mess"
Old DIR. Bertram, an equally ap |
preeiative gourmand, maintains
that "the oyster can be cooked in
many ways, but the pure animal is
best of all, aud gulping him up in
his own juice is the best way to
eat him.r The same discrlmina.
ting authority holds it true that
"the man who ends the day with
an oyster IN his mouth rises with
a clean tongue in the morning aud
a clear head as well.n
But history is hardened with
praises Of the oyster.
1t is recorded that Thomson, the
poet. died from a surfeit of oys-
ters. Peter the Great always had
oysters for dinner and called oys.
termen his"life.preservers." Pope,
before accepting Lord Boiling
broke's invitation TO dinner. ex.
acted the promise from his host
that he would DO served with an
oyster stew.
Cicero nourished his eloquence
with the dainty. and Caligula, the
Roman tyrant, was at the will Of
all designing courtiers who knew
of his weakness for oysters. II is
said that Cervantes used to eat
five hundred oysters every day,
and the wonderful originality and
piquant style of his narrative he
attributed to the mental exhilara.
tion gained by eating oysters.
II was Alexander Hamilton's
practice, before applying himself
to complicated problems Of gov
ernmrnt, to first sharpen his wits
by reading Euclid; but the great
Napoleon gained all the mcnta,
cIcarness he required by dining
on oysters. The "lttle corporal y
Oh the eve Of his battles, used
always to parIake Of oysters. The
Scottish philosophers of the last
centnry-Hume, Dugald, Stewart,
aud the others-were passionatcly
fond Of oysters, and Louis lX., to
check the decline Of scholarship
in France, sought to create inter.
est in letters by feasting the learn.
cd doctors Of the Sorbonne once
a year on oysters.
They produce a peculiar churm,'
declared au old Latin writer, IAN
inexplicable pleasure. After eat.
ing oysters we feel joyous, light
aud asreeablc-yes, ono might say
fabulously well.n
But u modern authority insist,
that the oyster, to DO enjoyed
properly, must be eaten as sooI
as its shell is opened.
Lift 1t quickly to your lips,
, says this cultured gourmand, "an'
eat II before its delicate aroma ha
been dissipated iuto the atmos
phere." The difference bctwee
; oysters thus treated and the otl
or way is something like chan
: pagne gushing out of silver.necI
ed bottles and the stuff allowe
! to stand III the sun for half
day.n
If that be true. what an immcDs
gainin enjoyment does the meder
oyster.cater have over his brotbe
of the past. Nowadays the fou
layers Of hard shell inclosing tb
| oyster oppose but faint resistanc
: to the demands Of the epicure. ]
is child's play to open an oyste
now to what il used to he. Form
: erly the incessant tinkering rC
qmred "dissipated tho delicat
! aroma into the atmosphere" bu
modern ingenuity has provided
the means of imprisoning tn
sweets of the oyster Within its ow
! bulk. This is done by freeing th
: oyster promptly of.its shell.
Special skill IN this direction |
: well paid.
!. "I can open ten shells a minut
and keep 1t up for ten hours" sal
| an expert yesterday.
"Yes,r said his employer. &
have brought this man from Ne'
I York, purely for the reason tina
he is quick as lightning at his worl
: He can open an oyster almost a
! quick as he picks 1t up"
Then, asked to display his skill
: the New York man with qnic
2 motion of his left hand picked u
an oyster, while with the righ
hand he used knife, gouging ou
the eyes of the oyster and in
twinkling separating the shell'
The knife used was something Ink
: a cobbler's knife; the blade wa
L somewhat more slender and poi
} sibly an inch longer. Once tn
Y shell was opened by the operate
u and with a quick motion of bi
u wrist forced ajar both shells, an
Q with forward motion of the wris