The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1894-09-27
A MUD TURTLE RANCH.
The Product Palmed Of as Terrapin
on Western Epieures.


on Western Epicures.
From the San Francisco Call.
Have you eaten any terrapin la Mary
landl May be you have, and may be you
haven't. The chances are that you have
eaten mud turtle a la Maryland. There are
undoubtedly several places in San Frau
cisco that serve terrapin, when they have
it, but most of them serve the small soft
shelled inhabitaht of the Alameda and
Marin county marshes, and even an ex-
pert cannot detect the difference-that is,
when it is cooked a la Maryland.
In fact the mud turtle industry is an
important one. when the large number of
men engaged in it is considered 1t is i'm
possible to tell the exact number, but they
are scattered all over the shores of the
bay, and even up to the San Joaquin river
as far as Stockton. And it pays well for
few months work during the summer
In the winter the turtle catcher reaps the
reward of his labor by disposing of his
catch to the San Francisco restaurants.
The mud turtle catcher commences his
work about the middle of August and
keeps at it until October. A few of the
men live in Alameda and go out every
day, bringing their catches home at
night, but the veteran in the business
goes into camp on the spot and stays there
until he has caught as many as he can
take care Of.
No expensive apparatus or tackle is
needed in the business. Nothing but a
tent, bedding, cooking utensils and
several bundles of laths and Ratchet. A
bag to put the turtles in and a constitu-
ton that will stand the damp air Of the
marsh are also requisite to put the bust
ness on paying basis.
The first thing the turtle catcher does
az tow Nf1f fiF,nr h f1 10 70 al
small pen of the laths. This is con
structed around some puddle that fills
with water at high tide, and the hunter
| then starts out.
Catching young mud turtles is not
really hard work, nor is it clean work,
but it requires considerable patience and
a faculty of wading around in a Shiny
puddle. The turtles are caught at low
| tide aud the catcher looks over a puddle
until he sees one that he wants and then
goes in after it. Sometimes he picks up
his prize without any trouble, but at
| others long chase is necessary, as the
little fellows are more lively than they
look and have knack of disappearing in
the slime.
Only young mud turtles are of any
value, and the best are not any larger
than goose egg. Two dozen a day is a
good catch AS fast as they are caught
they are dropped into a sack and al the
end of the day are carried to the camp
and placed in the pens, where they are
left until they are wanted for market.
Nothing is fed them while they are in the
pens. Those of certain size are placed
in particular pen, and the largest are
taken 10 market first. In this way the
season can be made to last all winter, and
by going to town with a basketful each
/ week the catcher can deliver them Of a
nearly uniform size
When a mud turtle is taken to market
it is about five months old, while terra
pin of the same size might be as many
years. The meat of the former, if any
thing, is much more tender than the lat
ter, and the shape of the bones of the
two is exactly alike. If the meat OF the
two was simply boiled or fried a differ
ence in favor might be detected, but 9th
erwise it is impossible. So, as long as the
mud turtle crop holds out, there will al.
ways be plenty of terrapin la Maryland
served in the restaurants.