The Norfolk Virginian. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 186?-189?, 1896-04-01
How the BIYaIye May Be Transported Long
Distances In These Days.
THEIR LIPS ARE RIvETED TOGETHER.
And When Ready to BE Eaten tho Oys.
ter Smoker smashes the Shell in
tho Ord nary Way-A Company Or.
ganized at Cape Charles to Close
Their Mouths for shipment

piled au naturel to districts far removed
from thel regions Of production. The citi-
zerS of the interior States have hitherto
mad little opportunity of gratifying their
TASTE for oysters owing to the difficulties
which shippers have met in handling
oysters In shell. The problem appears
at last to have been solved, and oyster
growers may confidently look forward
TO greatly increased demand as the
result OF method which has recently
beers perfected, by means Of which
shell oysters may be kept in perfect
condition for weeks without the use of
Ice or chemical personalities.
"a corporation controlled by Philadel-
phla capitalists has established head
quarters at Cape Charles. where they
nave secured extensive wharfage, ware
house and railroad facilities and q COM
plete plant for the preparation of oys-
tiers under recent United States letters
patent. The process, which is so simple
that 1t is surprising that 1t has not been
put into operation long before this, con-
| sists in drilling the shell near the edge
and by means of a soft. non corrodlble
rivet locking the two valves of the shells
SO firmly together as To prevent all pos
sibHlty of any leakage of the contained
juiceh. The oyster like most inverte-
brates. Is capable of sustaining life with
out food for considerab BILE length of time.
Professor A. Il. VerrilL of Yale Col
Fish Commission for 1895. called atten-
ton TO this, citing as an illustration an
experiment in which he had kept oysters
alive for over ten weeks hanging up in
n dry room. This being the case, 1t
seems, at first thought. curious that
there should be any difficulty in ship
ping oysters. ana little excuse for de-
priving the people of the great West of
their half dozen salts ON the she'll"
Practical experience. however, proves
that. while the oyster will remain alive
and fresh almost indefinitely If kept
with the front edge downward in mod
erately cool and moist atmosphere, 1t
will not remain closed for any length
of time If subjected to the constant
jarring of Il moving train or boat. The
nervous control over the adductor mus
cles which close the shell seems to be
lost as the result of shock or jarring.
If the shell opens but for an instant
the animal within is doomed, as the
loss of the salty liquor means rapid
asphyXiation and death. AS a conse
quence the loss to the dealer who at
tempts to ship unlocked shell oysters
from the Chesapeake to Chicago, for
example. is very great, so great, in
deed. as to be practically prohibitory
to the consumption of oysters on the
half shell by any but the wealthy class
es Under the best circumstances, of
fast express trains and abundance of
ice. the loss is such as to increase the
price to startling degree. The inhab-
itants of the great Mississippi Valley
must perforce accustom their palates to
the "shucketf' or bulk" variety of
dead mollusks. which are kept from alb
solute putrefaction by the use of pre-
servalinc" and other noXious COM
pounds, the employment of which in
Europe would meet with the prompt
punishment 1t deserves. Germany.
France austria, Holland. Italy and even
Spain. long ago prohibited the use of
salicylic acid. boric acid and other anti
septics in food, but the American public
| is dosed on every side--in milk, soft
drinks. cidar. etc. hut worst of all In
the oyster of which it is SO justly proud.
The incredulous reader has hut to visit
any shuckng house on the shores OF
Maryland or Virginia to see the patent
\ nostrums like "preservaline," in use
by the barrel. Alr Hehner. the Presi-
dent of the Society of Public Analysts
of England. read some time ago paper
on Food Personalities" in which he
| corcbly sums I'M the question in the
following paragraph: I'VE should work
for the entire prohibition of all kinds
OF personalities. 1T is time that we
went back to natural food. 1 object To
being physicked. indiscriminately by
persons not qualified to administer the
medicine whilst ! am in health. / OBJ
jcct still more when I am i'll. / object
still more strongly to have my children
| physickcd in their milk or their bread
! and butter. 1t is no conSolat ton to me to
know that the physic is not Immediate
| ly fatal or not even violently injurious.
| The practice is utterly unjustifiable
| except from the poirt of view of q dealer
| who wants to make an extra profit or
who wants 10 palm off n stale or Ill
| prepared article upon the public" Every
| thoughtful reader must coincide with
| this opinion and welcome a process by
| wh.ca al least one great food product
| can be delivered fresh and natural to
| the consumer. The locking of the shell
| of the oyster il by no means n new idea
| But the correa. method OF doing 1t is
the result of long experiment by practi-
| cal men and biological experts Clamps
| and wires have good results but were
| frowned on by the openers. who found
| difficulty in removing the fasteninss;
but a. last, by simple and inexpensive
| device. the shell is drilled and riveted,
the small rivet Offering no ANNOYANCE TO
| the opener, who knocks il off with the
same blow by which he makes an opening
for the insertion of the blade of the oys-
ter knife. Cons!gnments shipped to va
Eous parts OF the United States and Eu-
rope have reached their destination
without deterioration or material loss,
ana the method bids fair to supersede
all others hitherto in use. This process
Will be welcomed by railroad men. as
well as distant dealers and consumers
when VI Is understood what an increase
III treight receipts will be attendant upon