Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-11-02
Written for the EVENING STAR
THE TALE OF THE TERRAPTN.
The Diamond-Back Discussed by One
OF the Highest American Authorities.
POPULAR IGNORANCE CONCERNING THE FAMOUS
TURTLE-wHERE AND HOW HE Is OBTAINED
VARIOUS METHODS OF PREPARING HIM AND
THE TRUE aouRMET's RECIPE.

VARIOUS METHODS OF PREPARING HIM AND
THE TRUE aouRMET's RECIPE.
This is the season of the year when mems
fancy-and women's, too, for that matter
fondly turn to thoughts Of terrapin. This is
truly the most American of all dishes, and vet
concerning both the turtle which it is prepared
from and the manner of its cooking there is
more difference of opinion and more ignorance
than attaches to any gastronomic preparation
with which am acquainted. 1t is matter in
which many men have many minds. 1 do not
profess to be infallible in the discussion of this
subject, but do claim to have given it much
serious attention, and my views have at least
the benefit of being based upon long time ex-
perience.
The terrapin is purely an American creature,
but. unlike the canvas-back duck. il is not con-
hned to the northern branch of this continent,
but Is found in enlarged form in South
America. 1t Is mostly caught, however. in the
estuares OF the Atlantic from Rhode Island to
Louisiana. being quite numerous along the
Gun OF Mexico This great stretch of water,
however, reveals many kinds, the yellow
belllcd the red-bellied and what are technically
known as the Florida and Alabama terrapln.
closely allied species which reach length of
fully 10 inches. The salt water diamond-hack
terrapin. however, is very rarely found further
Long Island sound
POPULAR MIsAPPREHENsIoN.
Right here L wish to correct a popular misap-
prehension. Ninety-nine people out of one
hundred who are terrapin eaters will tell you
with much Shaking of their lips and kindling
OF their eyes that they have just eaten ''some
real diamond-back terrapin." Exactly what
they mean by this they would find it difficult to
explain If they were catechised. Diamond-back
70 Nttn1
shores of Long Island. Delaware bay gives an
enormous yield of the same turtle. and have
had them sent to me even from Louisiana. All
the terrapin in the localities which l have
named are diamond-backs, which term means
nothing more than that the creatures have
dIamond-shaped demarcations on their shells
But the epicure, the man who has made q study
of this subject, will tell you that the diamond
back terrapln which comes from Chesapeake
bay is the noble member of a very large family,
and 1t alone, when properly prepared, furnishes
the gourmet with repast which is without
an equal. No one has been able to tell what
food there is in the waters of the Chesapeake
which gives its terrapin flavor of Its own, and
no one has eaten terrapin in its perfect condi-
ton who has not had the dish prepared from
the tortoise whose home is in the state of Mary
land.
So marked, however, is the difference be-
tween the Chesapeake diamond-back and those
from other shores that when you can readily
purchase the finest Delaware terrapin from 5l5
to $40 dozen their brethren from the Chesa-
peake command from S35 to $40. The differ
ence in taste is marked and another distin-
gushing popularity is that the bones of the
turtle from the Chesapeake are much smaller
than those OF terrdpn from any other locality.
To tell the difference, however, before plung-
ing the creature into the pot requires the eve
of very keen expert. L have so schooled my
self that can readily detect the difference. 1t
Is a secret, however, that l do not care to re-
veal. but in a general way may say that the
observant eye will notice a marked difference
between the heads of a diamond-back from the
Chesapeake and from elsewhere. SO little is
known of this distinction that L doubt if one
prominent hotel or restaurant in twenty sup
plies its customers with the expensive Chesa-
peake diamond-back. OF course those
from Long Island sound and Delaware
bay can be made into q very de-
licious dish, which can be enjoyed to
the very utmost by those who do not know
the taste OF the royal reptile in its most perfect
condition. / remember that Robert Ogden,
who was speaker of the Louisiana house of rep
resentatives, sent me from Bay st. Louis two
barrels of terrapin caught in that locality He
informed me that they were as fine any this
country had ever seen and that could obtain
them for SIS dozen instead of paying nearly
three times that sum for the creatures from
the Chesapeake. They were very fine looking,
and, after having picked outseveral of the best,
ex-Congressman Charles Mitchell of Con-
necticut and myself put them to
the test Of the palate. They
we're really very good, but their bones were
very large and their meat lacked the peculiar
delicate flavor OF the terrapin 1 had been &C
customed to. A very prominent Washington
hotel keeper was very glad to get the consign-
ment at SIS per dozen, and now many restau-
rateurs in Washington are receiving "Chesa-
peake" diamond backs from Louisiana at that
figure.
BOGUS MARYLAND TERRAPIN.
The difference in flavor and in price between
terrapin from various localities and the general
ignorance of the public upon the subject has
led to many tricks of the trade. The terrapin
dealers of Delaware bay and Long Island sound
consign portions of their catches to Maryland
and Washington and from thence they are sold
throughout the country as the true Maryland
article. l have even known Philadelphia
dealers to send Delaware terrapin down to Bal
timore and from thence have them sold back
to Philadelphia. Why, only last week Wash
ington dealer brought several barrels Of what
he claimed to be the finest Chesapeake diamond
backs to my establishment. l ordered the en-
tire lot dumped in the yard and after had ex-
amined them l told the dealer that would give
him S25 for each Maryland turtle he found in
the lot. There was not one in the entire con-
Segment This difficulty of detection need
not discourage the housewife or the club man,
for, after all, neither the Delaware bay nor Long
Island sound terrapln Is to be despised, even
by the most discriminating palate.
THE CAPTURE OF THE TERRAPIN
differs in different localities and this also to
some extent affects the flavor Of its flesh. By
far the greater number of the turtles come from
the western shore of Delaware bay, and / will
therefore speak first of that locality. Take,
for instance, the small village Of Little Greek
Landing, where there is quito a depot for
oysters, fish and terrapin. A very short dis
lance from it is Mahon's river harbor Here
every night anchor from one to two hundred
little oyster and fish schooners. Early every
morning they sail forth upon their daily
errand, but while oysters and fish are what
they regularly collect the men keep a sharp
lookout for terrapin. When they see the little
heads floating above the water they know that
a school is gathered and then the seines are
forthcoming. If the turtles are very near the
shore a short seine is used, the men walking
out in the water and surrounding the tortoises
with the net. If they are too far from land to
do this a long seine and two boats are called
into requisition. Sometimes hundreds are
caught in one haul, or the capture may
only include three or four. The fisher
men having place to keep them, take
them to Little Creek Landing and exchange
them at the general store for supplies. The
store keeper has a water pen Of immense size,
fed by a channel leading from Little creek. On
every side boards have been driven down to
prevent the captives from escaping. Into this
Enclosure the tide rises regularly, and con-
sequently it is claimed that the terrapin live in
their native element and on their native food,
tho ~ ba hov hrip IN oil thax