Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-11-23
AN ACE OF TERRAP|N
The Succulent Reptile Weighs Down
the Tables of the Epicures
of the Capital City.
A CROP WORTH TWO MILLIONS.
Once q Cart Load Could be Bought for
q Dollar, but Now They Come at
Sixty Dollars Dozen.
STATESMEN ARE ALL GOOD LIVERS.
Senators Average 175 Pounds and Every New Man
Proceeds to Get Fat Promptly.
CORRESPONDENCE OF THE DISPATCH

rapin season has just opened, and some OF
the finest diamond backs ever known are
now for sale in Washington. They bring
higher prices than ever, and . number OF
the sales made for the Thanksgiving dinner
OF this week range from $50 to $50 per
dozen. Almost any kind of genuine ter
rapin is worth 81 so, and the average price
paid here is about S36 per dozen.
The markets OF Washington and Baltl-
more consume more terrapin than those OF
any two other cities of the country, and the
demand is always greater than the supply.
This year there promises to be a scarcity In
the market, and the output of the Chesa-
peake Bay and its tributaries will not he
over $780, 900. This number, however, at So
apiece, figures up a total OF q :OOO,
which is a large amount to pay for turtles.
There are to-day something like 1000 men
fishing Tor terrapins along the Chesapeake
Bay.
CATCHING THE BEAUTIES.
The turtles roost in the coves and along
the shores. They are caught in nets and it
is by no means an easy thing to make good
haul. The terrapin are noted for their curl
os1ty. The hunters anchor their boats near
where they suppose them to be lying and
then bv tapping on the sides of the boat
make a noise which causes them to rise to
the surface. As soon as they appear they
are caught in a hand net and Jerked into
the boat The animals live in the mud ana
the hunters poke about in the slime with
three-pronged forks until they move them
into drag nets, which they have spread over
the places where they suppose them to be.
hn Pafrh
they are dredging for oysters and they are
shipped here in barrels.
They are sold alive and they are fed regu-
larly after they are captured until they take
their places on the tables of the statesmen.
Terrapin are found in North and South Car
olina and elsewhere, but the very best terra
pin in the world comes from the mouth of
the Potomac and along the shores of the
Chesapeake, where the Patuxent river emp
ties into it.
WHAT DIAMOND BACKS EAT.
They live on water celery, water cress and
other grasses, and do not object to good
bite OF fish when they can get it. Many OF
the animals are shipped from here to New
York and Philadelphia and crates of them are
sent to London every year. When Reverdy
johnson was sent as minister to England on
q very important mission he took lot of
terrapin along with him to use at the big
dinners which he proposed to give. He
also took the famous negro cook, Wormley,
the man who established one of the biggest
hotels in Washington, and who lett about
500, 000 all made out of tickling other
mems stomachs, with him.
Wormley was famous terrapin cook, and
he dished up the turtles to the Queens
taste. Every one in London talked about
the American Minister'S dinners, and his
diplomatic mission was successful. Since
that time, however, there has been regular
demand for terrapin in the London market,
and a number of our diplomats are having
the toothsome reptiles shipped to them. 1
saw an order yesterday from the consul at
Dresden for dozen, and 1 understand that
they frequently appear on Minister Reid's
table.
FIT SENATORIAL SToMACHs.
There is hardly Senator of the United
States who is net fond of terrapin. Bayard
has gained more notoriety TOR his terrapin
cooking than even for his craftsmanship,
and 1 understand that Senator Evarts knows
lust how to dress and cook terrapin SO as
10 make it equal to the very best product of
John Chamberlin. Congressman Gibson,
of Maryland, has a recipe for cooking terra
pin which he says surpasses those of either
Bayard's or Evarts', and this is the way 1t
reads:
The first thing is to cut off the terrapin's
head. AS the reptile lies dormant in the water
you may at first glance see no head to cut OH,
and you will need to touch its back with a red
hot iron. AS the flesh begins to sizzle the head
will protrude. and you will then seize it with
two-tined fork behind the jaws and cut it off
Just behind the fork. You will then set the
terrapin upon end so as to allow the blood
to drain out. 1t will not bleed much. Next
drop it into pot of boiling water, leave it there
an hour, and then turn it on its back ana re-
move the bottom shell. If this is easy to do,
the terrapin is thoroughly cooked. and you
have now only to take out the gall duct. This
is in the center of the liver and after it is out
all the rest of the meat is eatable. After taking
the meat from the larger bones, you put it and
teacupful of warm water. AS it SINNERS you
add half pint of butter and little pepper and
salt, and the dish is ft for the king. Some
people like to add little sherry wine but this
should never be put in while the meat is in the
chafing dish.
FAMOUS TERRAPIN FARMS.
Of late years number of terrapin farms
have been started along the Chesapeake,
and Senator Bayard is said to be the pro-
prietor of one oil them. The biggest farm il
on the Patuxent river, and it consists of a
large salt water lake, which could accom-
modate thousands of terrapin if they would
breed as rapidly as was desired. The farmer
has surrounded this lake with board fences
to keep out the muskrats and foxes, which
are the terrapin's enemies. He has made
hatcheries OF boxes partly filled with sand,
and so arranged that when the females enter
them they cannot get out until they are
taken out
He has nurseries for young terrapin, and
| he keeps the little ones in here until they
are 10 months old, in order to preserve them
al
as fond of good living as Justice of the
United States Supreme Court. They are
cannibals, and they sometimes eat their own
children when they are young and juicy.
After the young are 10 months old they are
able to take care OF themselves, and there is
no danger of their being destroyed. With
the increase in the price of terrapin, terrapi1
farming ought to become profitable. Years
ago they were a drug on the market. Sen
! ator John M. Clayton, of Delaware, once
bought a cart load for 81.
OFFICIAL LIFE AS FAT PRODUCER.
The demand for such an expensive article
as terrapin in Washington, calls attention
| TO the fact that the most of our public mer
are epicures. There is hardly man in the
| United States Senate who has not tattene6
up since he came to Washington. Senator
Spooner weighed 125 pounds when he wal
elected. Small as heis, he now weighs 160
and he still is not circumstance to his col
league, Philetus Sawyer, who is as broad az
he is long, and whose ''fat round belly
shakes like bowl of jelly" whenever hi
laughs.
Sawyer began life working at less than s.
day, and he can now get away with din
ner at $40 plate, with as much satisfaction
as Senator Eustis; who was born with a
silver spoon in his mouth, and who ha
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