The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1890-09-01
THE TOOTHSOME BIVALVE
GOOD PROSPECTS FOR FINE oYs-
TIERS AND PLENTY OF THEM

Where Savannah Gets It's Supply and
Where the Oysters Are Marketed.
The Annual Shipment OF Open Oys-
ters Estimated at 10000 Gallons.
Large Shipments of Shell Oysters
go by Steamer to New York-Oyster
Leases Granted Under the New Law,
With l,4Oo Acres to be Planted in
March.
To-day is generally considered the begin
ming of the oyster season, on account OF the
''r" in September, but oyster men laugh at
it as popular fallscy. and say that the
toothsome bivalvs has been drawn upon for
month past. The restaurants have had
oysters for the last four OF five weeks.
WHERE WE GET OUR OYSTERS.
The Savannah market draws its oyster
supply from Herb, Vernon and Thunderbolt
rivers, and the estuaries and tributaries
along the Georgia and Carolina coast. The
best single open oyster is said to come from
Cedar Hammock, being more solid than the
Daufuskie oyster, which is not at its best
until winter The oysters from the Thun-
derbolt river are very hne.
Savannah furnishes open oysters 10 the
interior Of Georgia, South Carolina, Ala
bama, and other southern states, and ship
nents are made TO Boston and New York,
and, strange as it may appear, Goals have
been carried 10 Newcastle by shipments to
Baltimore
1t is estimated that there are consumed
in this city and shipped outside not less
than 150, 900 gallons of open oysters an
nually, and she'll oysters are quite extern
sively shipped from Savannah, going by
New York steamers.
THE COLLECTING SEASON.
Approximately between 400 and 500 per-
sons during the season, principally colored,
are engaged on the Georgia coast collecting
and opening oysters for this market. and
large feet of sloops are engaged in trans
porting the oysters to Savannah and Thun-
| derbolt. The open oysters for the interior
| are shipped by express from Savannah IN
tin cans containing from one to ten gallons,
but five-gallon cans are principally used.
Large orders are shipped in small barrels.
| Shipments by steamer go by freight,
M. M. Sullivan returned to the city yes
terday from an inspection of the oyster beds
down the Thunderbolt river and along the
| coast. and he says the prospect is remark
| ably good, both in quantity and quality.
There was Just about rain enough ne
added, ito benefit the oyster. l believe
reasonable amount Of rain affects the oys-
ter as it does the crops. drought
is death on crops aud also on the
oyster. Rains stir up the sediment in the
water, which contains the nutriment SO
necessary 70 fatten the oyster. Yes, the
state of the water has all to do with the
oyster growth of this country"
PRICES HIGHER THAN LAST YEAR.
Oystermen differ as to whether prices
| will rule lower or higher this year. It is said
that an advance of cents per gallon over
| last year has already been made The fact
| that more white men are engaging In the
| cultivation of oyster beds is assigned as
reason why prices will rule higher, as white
men will not collect and open oysters as
cheaply as the colored oystermen. Oysters
are served at the restaurants at 40
cents per dozen. but they are
| opened at many of the cheaper
| lunch houses and saloons and served at 30
cents per dozen with an extra oyster thrown
| in. The retail trade is supplied by local
dealers, and colored women from Thunder
bolt and this city peddle open oysters all
| about town in the oyster season, as they do
crabs and shrimp in their season.
FOSTERING THE INDUSTRY.
The present season is the first under the
operation of the new oyster law. The bill
was approved Sept 10, 1899, aud went into
effect Jan. /, 1890. 1t is unlawful to catch
oysters from May l to Aug. l; also to
Trough catch without culling over the
beds, or to take oysters by a scoop rake,
drag or dredge, except under certain condi-
tions. (See acts 1889, folios 143-14S.)
Capt. j. r. Dillon, clerk of the county
c,mmissioners, says that up to the present
time there have been eighty-fve applica-
tions granted by the county commissioners,
each for five-acre tracts, and two petitions
| for 200 acres ana 500 acres respectively are
on file, but not finally acted upon. More
recently there have been presented forty six
additional applications for five acres each,
making in all, so far, about l, 400 acres to
be planted next March. The costs are 81
per acre for a twenty-year lease, with
privilege of renewal tor thirty years more
at the same rate. the rent money going to
the board of education.