Lower coast gazette., 1909-04-03

waters where the salinity is from II to 20 parts in 1000. They
thrive 50 we'll that they build on each other and CROWD eacn o'nvl
to the injury of all so far as size and flavor are concerned" W.
have however. immense water bottoms in Plaquemlnes parish
where the salnity falls to 10 to II parts in 1000 and mere tne
oysters do not breed we'll, but those t%ranspanted to these Tess
saline waters fatten up and make our famous Bayou LOOK a"o
other favorite oysters.
OYSTER have been a favorite crop in Louisiana for a century
but it has been only during recent years that the immensely o.
Of our oyster resources has become known. Some years ago We
SUGGESTED to Major ]. G. Lee, our then Commissioner OF Agrlcu.
ture. that he should have a map made of oyster fields. ne askea
DR.. Stutbs to undertake the work and it was then toono 1na' W.
had excellent oyster bottoms available at a ~ foot depth ana less
and greater in quantity than all the rest Of the country together'
We then inaueurated oyster legislation reserving these oyster bot
toms forever to the state and providing for their leasing on proper
terms and SINCE then the business has tripped or quadruped ana
Louisiana oysters are known from Chicago to Seattle and the de"
mand for them is constantly increasing.
A few years back Plaquemines parish was the largest rice
producing parish in the state. It has the available land and may
again become the leader in that great staple. Plaquemines parish
was a noted indigo producer a century and quarter ago. 1t mas
been a noted sugar producer for a century and IS now te oanner
parish in this state for oranges. But greater than all these IS tne
oyster. The oyster crop Of Plaquemines parish can readily be
made the largest crop of the parish in gross receipts and in net
gain. ,
Clustering involves a lot Of hard work and the use OF good
Judgment. Where these are applied success has always come so
far as we have learned. An oyster bed is not exactly a gold mine,
but the gold will come to the oyster fisherman as everybody wants
oysters to eat and they are always saleabe at good prices for good
oysters.
That Plaquemines parish should look to oysters as one OF her
leading crops, if not her dominant crop seems reasonable to US.
And this all the more because the experts who have looked into
our resources tell us that we are doubly favored here in our Louisi
ana fields as compared with those of other states in the Union be-
cause of the extraordinary effectiveness of our breeding or spawn
grounds and of our feeding grounds after the transplantlng
Thew hold that taking all Louisiana her oyster fields can be made
to yield larger money crops than can the present sugar. cotton o.
rice crops. Our sugar crop brings in about $30,0O,00o, and ou
cotton crop about $780, 600, and our rice crop about SIC, 100000
and yet these experts tell us we should get more than the $l u y,
nm r;ce crop out of our oyster fields, more than our $0,00,00
cotton crop and even more than our $50, 600! 600 sugar crop. Sha]
we 20 off and die and let more e%nterprising people come in an
harvest these riches or shall we pull off our coats and go to wor
and realize part Of this wealth ourselves. Let US secure some 0
it anyway.