The Columbus journal., 1886-11-24
A Big Oyster Story.

allows that for an ister?' said the
skipper Of an Oysterman. pointing to an
enormous shell that lay on the deck.
ut amt no only n big SHE'LL" he con-
tinued, .'but it's got a powerful big
yarn that goes with it,
The shell WAS certainly four feet
long. large enough to serve as u 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 one Of the
largest bivalvcs known. the trldscna
gigas. more properly allied to the clans.
but passing rs a very respectable oyster.
'.ieS, SIR" continued the skipper.
who Was shucking oysters. smoking.
talking and humming n tune at the
same time. that lister wes fetched from
the East Indies BY an old mate of mine,
and %happenin' to run foul of me he
says. says he: Bob. you're in the ister
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
of 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
'em in an hour.
The yarn? Wall. IS l was ssyin'.
ellis was one o these specuiatin'
chaps, always lookin' for the main
| chance, swappin' knives, clothes, any
make 'em; SO when the ship struck the
HOss attitudes Gil wa 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 he goes with a couple o
| niggers what came aboard to git coral
and things. Wall, they was wadin'
along. as Gil said. haulin' the canoe
after 'cm and pickin' up chunks Of
coral and conchs and such, and all to
once Gil soc what looked like q flower.
all pink and yellow, and no KNOWN
what it was. up he goes and give it q
kick with his foot. The next minute he
felt sOmethin' close over his foot like =
wise. and was gripped rs 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 %criller, As il was buried in the coral
and the tide OH the food; il rise, about
six feet in that country. Wall. they
thumped the crittsr with the Oars aud
hauled away for awhile. all TO no
| puppus, and Gurus enough. Gil had LETT
his knife aboard, and the only thing to
do was to 60 for it. So of one Of the
cOons started for the bark. and she a
lyin' two miles away. The other chap
stood by Gil in caSe he gev out; and
there they was, the tide . risin' every
minute. but in about three-quarters of
an hour the ships cutter came along.
The boys gev Gil y cheer that kind O
braced 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 y minute the crit
ter was all cut up and Gil WAS yanked
aboard; but LII be logged if the water
wasn't most up to his chin. The next
| day they vent at low tide and got out
the critters shell; and that's the yarn.
and there's the shell, said ths skipper,
in conclusion. -PaHade!phia Times.