Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-08-30
SOMETHING SCARCE.
That's What the Oyster is Said to be
This Year.
PROSPECTS FORETOLD HERE,
Interview With Washingsen Oyster.
nen-They Tell Many Interesting
Thinss About the Bivalvs-why He
Will Not be Abundant.

| n HAT Is an oyster? ID question that
| AVA, admits Of at least two answers, both
| ~ NN Of which may be correct; it's all mat
| &2 ter Of taste and opinion. The query
| W2S was put to a scientist who 10 supposed
to know more about everything than any other
man outside Of the House Of Representatives.
| Very gravely did he turn to a dictionary but
| little less animate than himself, and quoted:
| IAN oyster is a mollusk Of the genus ostrea,
having a bivalve shell, usually found on
gravel or sand, or adhering to rocks or other
fixed substances in salt water which 10 shallow,
| or in the mouths Of rivers"
To the same question a ragged little urchin
| replied: "Wy oysters somethin'-tain't fish
ner crab-that's good to eat"
The next question is, Will the supply Of
| oysters DO equal to the expected demand Of the
| coming season; the season which will be
| opened on Monday with An oyster knife? An
answer to this is just about satisfactory as
| the replies vouchsafed, by those who are sup
posed to know. to queries as to how prices will
| be this fall and winter. Among the experts
| there is q decided difference Of opinion,
| and SO marked are the variations of
| statement that it is not difficult
| to imagine that a close relationship exists be-
tween the oyster men and the peach growers
1t is only of late years that the captains Of
oyster boats have caught on to the financial
| advantage which comes of a premonitory
ruulor that the oyster crop is going to be q
failure, but now that they see the value Of
| gossip they are working it for all IL is worth
| As many Of the local dealers have to depend
upon these saline shippers for their informa-
| ton 1t is not difficult to figure out the
| origin 81 misunderstanding which may cost
the dear public several cents a quart until the
error Is discovered and the truth spread abroad.
But SO general is the cry of "oysters will be
| scarce" that it is almost certain the advance In
prices will come. Men have to mako their
words good and this must be done, for a time
| at least. even if oysters be as plentiful as I'm
counted negro votes in Mississippi.
Now for the testimony; and when the reader
gets through with it he or she can make up his
or her respective mind as to how the situation
really 10.
POOR CROP.
Mr.. J. J. Hogan handles enough Of the BIZ
valves to have an intimate acquaintance with
the situation and he told STAR reporter the
other evening that the crop was poor one.
"Oysters," said he, will be scarcer than / ever
knew them to be before and, of course, prices
will be higher. At prices We are COM
PEELED to charge twenty-five cents a gallon
more than we did this time last year. II the
river should freeze over the figures would go
skyward and would stay there for some time.
Why are they scarce? The demand exceeds
the supply and the demand keeps on growing
while the oysters become fewer. In four or
five years from now look for oysters to be
twice as high as now. The Potomac is practi-
cally without oysters; it has been cleaned out
SO far as everything but the young growth is
concerned. Amt that so?" The query was
addressed to a couple of oyster captains who
were standing near and they both fastened to
give vigorous assent.
Unless there's some oyster planting DONE"
Mr.. Hogan went on, ''the Potomac oyster is
done for, and We 60 further from home to
get our supplies we have to pay more for
them"
How is the Norfolk supply2" asked the re-
porter.
short" was the response, ''but good in
quality. Last winter was an open one, yet half
the oyster houses in Norfolk had to shut up be-
| cause they couldn't get enough of the crop to
keep them going. Last winters prices were
higher, in spite Of the mild weather, than
ever knew them to he, and the price will be
even more exalted this season."
Mr.. j. H. Hogan assented in general terms
to his brothers statements, but thought it
little risky to make any stiff-backed predic-
tions as yet. when the demand comes" said
he, 1.-The strength of the supply will be tested;
then We shall know for ourselves; but up to
that time We shall have to take the shippers
words. They seem to be unanimous that
scarcity and high prices will prevail through
out the coming season."
NOT OPTIMISTIC.
Mr.. Weser has been supplying large slice of
the city's population with oysters for several
seasons and his impressions on the oyster out
look are not at all optimistic.
"Oysters will undoubtedly be scarce" he
said, land of course the price will go up. The
scarcity Will be especially noticeable as to
Chesapeake bay oysters-a variety which will
be half as high again as they were last season.
be entirely gone. 1t would be a good
thing if we had law like
that Of Maryland. which prohibits the sale
of oysters of smaller size than two and half
inches. That enforced here, would assist in
the growth OF the young oysters and would
protect us. As things now are we sometimes
pay much for shells and mud as we do for
oysters. We get most of our oysters from
Philadelphia and New York; if we did not have
SO many sources of supply we could not do any
business, especially in hard weather.
II have been handling oysters all my life,"
said hotel proprietor, "and / therefore feel
as though l know what / am talking about
when say that this fuss about oysters being
scarce is unnecessary. They are not scarce;
they are plentiful and the supply this season
will be fully equ;.i :" the most extravagant de.
mand. So long ere are people to eat them
there win be a ne necessary oysters and they
will not be more expensive than they now are.
suppose there is q reason tor these rumors
about the growing scarcity, but nobody seems
to know where the statement has its founda-
| ton. Why, Tangier Sound is one immense
oyster bed, improving every year. Where. ten
years ago, there were beds of a few acres
j can show you beds twenty miles in extent.
People are planting very extensively. 1t is
true that there never such a demand as
now, and it is also true that there never such
a supply. The first work ever did was some
oyster planting for the use of our own family,
and from that time up to the present have been
handling and dealing in oysters. No man who
| really knows the subject can truthfuly say that
oysters are becoming scarce.
Where do we get our best oysters? That
depends on the season. The finest September
oysters come from the Chuckatuck river, down
in Hampton roads, and these are more numer-
| Gus than ever. Shallow water oysters from
the roads are the best in the world at this
time; later in the season. when the weather is
cold. the deep water oysters will take their
place. The best all-round oyster is the Lynn
Haven, but that variety doesn't mature until
November. We handle New York oysters, but
not SO early in the season. We cannot be sure
! OF their freshness, and an oyster will not stay
| fresh very long in this kind Of weather."
lis there any great demand for oysters dur
| ing the summer months?" asked the reporter
mot very heavy" replied Mr.. johnson.
| "Up north along the coast the people eat oys-
| tiers all through summer time, but the bivalves
| are nothing like as good as they are during the
| natural season. Northern oysters are inferior
| to the Chesapeake bay article at any time OF
| the year. Our southern oysters are mild; the
| northern varieties have q copperish taste and
can never be really popular with those who are
| accustomed to the oyster of the Chesapeake.
lis the quality Of the oyster deteriorating?"
mo, on the contrary it is steadily improving.