Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1888-05-19


Without wishing to alarm the Ameri
can people, or create u panic, writes
Bill Nye, in the New York Vorld, / de
sire briefly aid rieuslv to discuss the
great question, "W hither are re drift
ing" and what is to be the condition oil
the coming man? We cannot shut our
ewes to the fact that mankind is passing
through great era of change; even
vomafkind ia not built as she was
few brief years ago. Ard is it not time,
fbll91- citi7 ems; that we paused to con
slider what is 10 be the future Of the
American
Food itself has been the subject OF
change both in tie matter of material
and preparation. This must acct the
consumer in such a way as to some
day Bring abSut great changes. Take,
tor instance; the oyster, one OF our
comparatively modern food and game
fishes, and watch the effects Of scietcf
upon him. At enc time the oyster
browsed around and die what he
could find in Neptune's cktard
and we had to take him as we found
him. Now we take herd of oysters
of the trail, all run down, and feed
them artifci3l13 till they swell mp to
fancy size and bring d fan y price.
Now, where will all this lead at last? J
ask as d careful scientist. Instead o.
eating apples as Adam did. we work
the fruit up into applejatk cna pie,
| while even the simple oyster Is per
verted, and instead of allowing him to
fatten up in the fall on acorns and an
cient mariners, flesh is artiticially put
on his bones by the artificial osmose anc
dial9sis of our advanced civilization.
How can you make an oyster stout
| or train him down by making hin
| Jerk health lift so many hours every
day. or cultivate his body at the
expense Of his mind without ultimately
not only impairing the future usefulness
Of the oyster himself, but at the SAME
time affecting tbs future of the human
| race?
only use the oyster as an illustra'
ton, and do not wish to cause alarm.
but [ say that if we stimulate the
| oyster aftticiallv and swell him up by
scientific means, we hot only do so al
the expense of his better nature and
keep HIM away from his family, but we
are making our mark on the future
H..
of course, III its infancy Only few
years ago an effort was made to fatten
| cove oysters at st. Louis while IN the
can, but the system was not well under.
stood, and those who had it in charge
only succeeded in making the can it.
self more plump. Eut now oysters are
kept on ground feed and given nothing
| to do for a few weeks, and even the
| older and overworked, swaybacked,
and rickety oysters of the dim and
murky past are made to fill out. and
many of them have to put gore in
the waistband OF their shells. L speak
only OF the oyster incidentally as one
of the objects toward which science
has turncd its attention, and | assert
with the utmost confidence that the
time will come, unless science should
| get setback, when the pres
ent hunting-case oyster will give
place to the open-faced oyster,
grated on the octopus and
big enough to feed hotel. Further
than that the oyster of the future will
carry in a hip-pocket q flask of vine
gar, half dozen lemons, and two little
Japanese bottles. one of which will
contain salt and the other pepper, and
there will be some way provided by
which you can tell which is which. But
are we improving the oyster now
That is Il que tion we may well ask
ourselves. Is this II healthy fat which
we are putting on him, or is it bloat ?
And what will be the result in the
home life of the oyster? We take him
from all home iniluen ,cs, whatever, in
order to make swell of him by our
modern methods, but do we improve
his condition morally, and what is 10
be the great final result on man?
The reader will see by the questions
| ask that / am a true scientist Gil e
me an overcoat pocket full of lower
case Interrogation marks and medical
report to run to, and | can speak on
the matter Of science and advancement
till Reason totters on her throne.
But food and oysters do not alone
affect the great, pregnant future.