The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-10-21
TILLERS OF THE SEA.
4 Day With the Long Island oyster
Farmers During Their Harvest
Season.

Long lSland coast looked more tnal
usually barren in the cold light of tn
October sun as we drove across them
Down here with the rolling Atranti
breakers on one side and the scarcel,
more tranquil Jamaica bay on TIL
other, there is hardly a tree or blad
of grass. To one accustomed to TIL
soft verdure and fertile beauty of tn,
interior the scene is especially bleak.
1t must be hard to get a living
here l said to the native by m,
side, who was guiding his bony steeC
across the sands to the little wharf.
'Mabbe it is an mebbe it isn't" sale
he with the nonchalance of the coun
tryman. i reckon it's pretty hard t
git Twin anywhere these times, bu
you can't tell by hosss color how
fast he can go, an likewise you cam
tell by the top of field how mucl
there is under it. Our crops may moi
grow as tell as some, but they satisfy
us pretty Well"
| failed to see where the crops grew
at all, but at this point our converse
ton was interrupted by our arrival al
the wharf. Two men were sitting or
string piece at the further end of the
dock. One of them was turning some
small objects from one hand to the
other and as we approached he SAID
to his companion:
I'm pretty we'll satisfied with that
Connecticut seed. l began planting il
three years ago and I've just begun
gathering the first crop. So far it's
turned out over three bushels to one
of seed.''
A crop that takes three years to ma
ture and which yields three fold is con-
sidered a good late of increase. Surely
this was peculiar country, but the
speaker appeared to be prosperous and
satisfied.
That's Jim Hall. He's the biggest
planter in these parts said my guide
indicating the satisfied one.
The men looked up and said "How
dye do in a tone that invited further
conversation. Thinking to draw the
planter out l sat down beside him on
the string piece.
How's business l inquired. as the
second step in the conversation.
Hall looked me over and then said
with smile:
We'll. young man. that reminds me
of what the Teller up here at the little
corner grocery said when I asked him
that question last summer. oh, saws
he, our business fell off like eli tarna-
ton on the Fourth of July but it
picked right up again on the fifth.
That's the way with US. Folks don't
go much on oysters in warm weather,
you know, but now it's turned cold
again we have no end of business
oysters! That explained it, That
was the crop that didn't grow very tall
DlIt satisfied tho no
Tnese men were tIllers not of the land
put of the sea. Beneath the water
that tossed beside us was the crop
whose richness exceeded that of the
waving corn of Illinois or the yellow
grain of the Dakotas.
The possibilities suggested by the
glimpse of an industry of whose pro-
portions few people have any idea
We're so interesting that when the
oyster planter suggested that I might
ENJOY trip on an oyster boat | at
once accepted.
This boat coming in here now said
Hall, lis bringing a load of seed down
70 plant in Princess bay 1 don't usu-
any plant at this time of the year. but
I've Just got hold of a new bed and 7
thought 1t might as we'll be doing
something for me-
You have never been board an
oyster boat 1 dare say. 1 never had
peen on one before and my impression
Oh lis general appearance was contain
edaln the somewhat hazy recollection of
school geography picture of oyster
ursoslnS IN Chesapeake bay But a
New York oyster boat of the rresant
DAY, pelng built for business purposes
rather than for picturesque effect is a
d1Herent article altogether. Perhans
III may be best described as a cross be-
tween an ordinary coast carving
schooner and canal boat. 1t isfcallej
schooner by courtesy, but its general
appearance, aside from masts; and sails
reminds me strongly of the other kind
of craft.
AS we clambered up the oysterman's
slde to the slippery deck we saw the
seed piled high at either end of the
boat A seed oyster is not an object
OF beauty one would never suspect it
OF developing into a morsel capable of
tickling an epicure's palate. 1t is sim
ply the edible article in less attractive
miniature, but larger in fact that a
large mans thumb. 1t will grow
Wherever there are any oyster beds. but
most Of that used by the New York
oyster planters is gathered along Long
island sound and in the BAYS and
streams that contribute to it. Most of
the seed is gathered by men and bows
IN roWooats, who collect few bushels
eacn day and sell it to the planters.
HON much of load?" asked Hall.
as soon as we had a look about.
A thousand bushels this time said
the captain, and it looks like all good
stuff"
That's good load commented tbs
planter. Just what we want. in fact"
And he sat down on a coil of rope to
make an entry in his note book. 1t
don't require large crew to man an
oyster boat. This one was above the
usual size, and carried four men alto
getner. Two were colored and two
white. They looked like docknen
rather than sailors, and none of them
wore any more clothing than the law
requires. A brief inspection was
enough to convince me that they must
have lost their soap and towels over
board. There was no distinction be-
tween officers and crew. and anarantly
the only way to tell the captain from
his men was by the fact that he wore
a cap instead of a SLOUGH hat and swore
twice as hard as anyone else on the
boat
How slow that boat travelled I am
still of the belief that it must have
moved backward part of the time dur
ing the night while was trying to- sleep
on my hard board bunk below, dream
ing that / was buried under a mountain
of oyster shells and waking every few
minutes to make sure that none of the
night providers that sometimes infest
the sleeping apartments of an oyster
boat had tried to form too intimate
an acquaintance with me. But the boat
did make progress for in the morning
we had reached the oyster beds and
when reached the deck the seed was
already being shoYeled over hoard q g fast