The times., 1898-02-27
TO RAISE MORE TERRApIS.
Plans for Increasing Supply OF the
Cherished Diamond-Back Turtle

(From the New York Tribune.)
CrisfieId. Md, Feb. 19.-This little town,
built on oyster shells. is the seat of the
| terrapin trade OF the Chesapeake and
! the home of State Fish Commissioner
| James c. Tawes, who is preparing to put
in operation plan for restoring the sup
| ply of the toothsome diamond back. He
| is confident that the terrapin can be
| propagated with ease and surprising
| cheapness, and that with the aid of the
| State The supply may be easily main
! tained. The cause of the rapid decline
| In the quantity of terrapin is considered
| by the natives to be due to the destruc-
| ton of the terrapin eggs. These are laid
| in high, sandy places and scores of peo-
| pie patrol the sandy beaches daily in
| search of them. They carry them off to
| be eaten as table luxuries, just as hens
1 eggs are. They are very rich and delic-
| ious. Capt. Tawes proposes, if he re-
/ ceives a sufficient appropriation to justify
| 1t, to inclose a number of females in a
| State pound or pounds, and to hatch out
| young ones from the eggs. Terrapin be-
gin laying about the middle of May, and
| female terrapin scratches a hole in the
sand, deposits her eggs. from thirteen to
nineteen. in it, and then covers them up
and allows the heat of the sun on the
sand 10 hatch them
They are not much bigger when hatch
ed than a mans thumbnail, and are as
soft as dough They crawl around in a
lively way and begin to hunt for their
food, which consists of small fish, crabs,
etc. In the first summer they are quite
small, and about November they go into
their winter quarters. These consist of
soft mudholes in the marsh or on the
bottom of some stream. Here they sleep
until about the middle OF April or later
and when they come out they are about
four inches in breadth. The next year
they have increased TO six inches. and the
third to seven inches. Mr. Tawes' thinks
that there are several varieties on the
coast, but that in some OF the Southern
States they have precisely the same yari-
ETY. as in Maryland. the only difference
being that in this State the period OF
alternating Is longer than 1t is further
South.
1t is undoubtedly while the terrapin
siumbers in the mud that he acquires
the peculiar qualities for which he IS
loved BY the epicure. The terrapIn sleeps
night and day for six 10 seven months OF
the year. and takes his night maps reg
ularly during the rest Of the time.
Commissioner Tawes is of the opinion
that he could make a decided impression
upon the terrapin supply in a short time
He would do this. not because the terra
pin Is a luxury. but because IL used TO be
and can again become source of great
profit to those who catch II uDOn the.
great marshes of the Chesapeake Bay
and its tributaries.
A. 7. LavaIlette. of this place. has an
immense terrapin pound. which Is .e-
cUreiy fenced in. so as to prevent the es-
cape OF the high-pFieed inmates He has
at present about ten thousand terrapin
most of which, however. are now in the
winters sleep, not in the pound. bur in a
big cellar This is kept dark and above
the freezing point, but not too warm
The dealers here have an immense trade
in Washington, Baltimore. Philadelphia
and New York. They received one order
for S. 900 worth Of teTrapin on the oc-
casion of the visit of Ii Hung Chang to
New York. and they supplied the terra
pin for the Bradley-Martin ball They
also make large shipments to the West
The terrapin shippers are opposed To
the bill now pending in the legislature
BY its provisions the ctaching of dia-
mond-back terrapin between April i and
November l is prohibited. under a penalty
of $40 for every terrapin caught, trapped
or killed At no time shall the terrapin
caught measure less than five inches on
the under she'll No person shall have in
his possession. expose for sale or buy any
of the aforesaid fish during the closed
season.
George Riggin. another large dealer
who has a pound containing between
eight thousand and ten thousand terra
pin, says:
THE bill viii have the tendency to
destroy our business and throw the trade
of Maryland dealers into the hands of
Virginians. while at the same time Il
Will retard instead of promoting the
propagation of terrapin. The terraDin
Will be caught just the same, and instead
of being sold to legitimate dealers. who
would place them in pounds where they
might grow and fatten, they will be kept
in barrels and boxes until the season
opens. when they will be placed upon the
market in bad condition. If the catch
ers do not desire to hold them for the
winter they have only to cross the line
into Virginia. where there are two deal
ers on Deep Creek, Accomac county
ready to purchase all the terrapin they
can get 1t would be necessary to have
the same law passed by the legislatures
of Virginia and North Carolina. in order
to do justice TO the dealers IN Maryland. {
There is a great Misrepresentation
among the majority Of people as to the
actual age of a terrapin which meas
ures eight inches on the under shell.
Our firm was greatly mistaken in the
same fact when we started to raise ter
rapips from eggs. We have reached the
conclusion. from actual experience. that
an eight-inch terrapin must be about fif-
ty years old IL terrapin would grow
about an inch every year, there would be
a fortune in raising them. Their growth
for the first three or four years is rapid,
but after that il is almost imperceptibIe
from year to year. We have been at a
great deal of expense in fitting up our
pound, and have endeavored to develop
the terrapin industry. The law also pro-
vides that the destruction of diamond
back terrapin eggs is absolutely prohib-
tied. the penalty for violating this pro-
vision being not less than SO. nor more
than S190 for each offense- II seems TO
us that the best way to prohibit the de-
struction of terrapin eggs is for the
State to offer good price for them, and
let them be Matched out in the hatcheries
of the State. After the young terrapin
have reached a certain age they can be
liberated without danger of their being
destroyed. There would be no induce
ment to catchers to use the eggs for food
if they Were assured of good price from
the Fish Commissioners.
He Took Long Smoke