The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1901-10-11

1
s-s"s"s-s-s-s-s-s--
ponds. This is done with such skill ant
rapidly that the cost Of raising oysters
The illustration of the oyster is taken
from the book written by Prof. Brooks
of johns Hopkins University, when he
was commissioner for the Stat. of Mary
land, and conducted Investigations into
the promotion of the oyster industry. The
Illustration shows an oyster in the right
valve of the shell, dissected so as to show
the internal organs. The anterior end OF
the body is at the top, and the dorsal
surface on the right hand; b, the mantle;
@, the muscle; d. the heart; &, the gill;
h, the lips; l. the intestine: j. the liver;
m, the mouth; s, the stomach. Mr..
Armstrong says that even the oldest of
the oyster fishermen are ignorant of
the anatomy of the oyster and IT was not
until Prof. Brooks described it that many
of the fishermen knew the oyster had a
mouth. They were also ignorant of the
oysters feeding. The food of the oyster
is a "diatom," which has to he put under
a magnifying glass to be seen at all. 1t
looks like the head of pine tree. These
IS not great and nearly all are saved
from their natural enemies.
1T would probably take from three to
five years TO establish the business in
Pearl Ifarbor. That Is, to find out the
best conditions under which they can
be raised. 1t is not n matter of much
expense, but OF careful watching and
creating the right conditions. If the
true method of protecting young oysters
Is once found out, then the business can
- rripd m n iniafinffa ton and
probably ten acres would fully supply
the city of Honolulu, and this food should
then be the cheapest fish food in the
market. In kaneohe Bay there is n vast
extent of ground that can be used for
oyster cultivation, but nothing can be
done until the preliminary experiments
in the way of protecting the oysters In
their first stages have been established.
I'm Chesapeake Bay, where the indus
try Is carried on on very large scale,
the oyster has enemies. especially the
crab but there is such a vast amount of
ground under water which contains
shoals and suitable material for carrying
the spawn of the oysters that even after
the destruction of many millions of
young oysters, there are still enough left
to supply the general demand
1t is probable that the United States
Fish Commission will in time send out
an expert to study this subject The Elk
pert will probably throw considerable
light on the matter, but after all his in
vestigations, he will come to the one con
and that Is in order to make the
cultivation successful, the oyster here
must be protected, AS in many other
places, and when that is done
there will be no difficulty in obtaining
all the oysters that are needed for home
q N mi M ne,
er the oyster beds of France had been
exhausted, caused the matter to be in
vestigated by experts who visited the
United States and England, and then es-
tablished the artificial propagation of
oysters, and in one section alone of the
Bay of Biscay, by the protection afford
ed the young oysters. the output was
raised from 100000 to 100000 In this
case they used roof thing, piled il up on
the seashOre and the spat of the oysters
floating in from the ocean. fixed itself to
'diatoms' are generated in the sea, as
well as in the fresh waters, and the oys-
ter fourishes best at the junction of tn.
sea and fresh water.
An examination of the water of Pearl
Harbor shows an abundance OF "dia-
toms of both kinds which settles the
question as to whether the oyster can OBJ
tain sufficient nourishment to live The
halrs which appear as a fringe on the
oyster in the illustration, are the instru-
nents by which the oyster feeds himself
These are constantly in motion and as
the water passes through between the
shells, the diatoms are caught on these
hairs and moved toward the mouth The
oyster cannot reach for his food but
catches 1t out OF the moving water by
these innumerable hairs. If the water
moves rapidly. he is able to increase the
amount of his food and becomes fat. If
he lays in stasnant water or in water
which moves slowly, the food Is deereas-
ed and the oyster starvss
The tiles. When they become visible to
The naked eye they are detached with
Knives and sent to the oyster cultivators.
who grow them In their parks or ponds,
20 that the French supply Is now mainly
artificial
THE large Eastern oyster that Is
so largely in San Francisco,
and which is grown In the Bay of San
francisco, is distinct from the native
California oyster. 1t Is not so fine as
he native oyster, probably owing to the
excess of fresh water in the bay Ex-
'erts claim that the native California
oyster is a better flavor than the East
I'm oyster grown in the bay. There is
ilready an export trade of the latter to
Eastern markets. Both kinds should be
Experimental with here"
aIr. Armstrong will soon depart for the
coast. and will undertake the planting
" oysters In a small inlet branching OF |
rom San Diego Harbor. He has found |
conditions there extremely favorable to
he propagation of the oyster. II was
'nly recently that the right was secured