The Prince George's enquirer and southern Maryland advertiser. (Upper Marlborough, Md.) 1882-1925, 1909-08-27
&mal ano 4ersunal.
Food Value of Oysters.

Gen. ". A Jones, of Fowlng Point,
Nassawdox, Va, well known as an
oyster planter, has been making study
of the food value of oysters and dis
cussed the subject While in Baltimore
recently. He said:
1.-THE value of oysters as food is not
so much question of their chemical
constitution in relation to the quantity
of latent energy in them as that of the
proportion of that energy which is
prcfitably assimilated by the human
body in the ordinary processes of di
gestion. An equally important factor
is the pleasure and comfort arising
from eating the product. If we mea-
sure food value solely by the chemical
standard, we find fat pork to be the
most valuable of the foods. There is a
definite and widespread impressie that
oysters are. more expensive than the
ordinary flesh and fish articles of food
on the marx et--so much so as to place
them high up up in the class of table
Injuries. There is fundamental error
in this conception. One gallon of shucke
oysters or clans weighs about 10
pounds, every bit of which is available
as food. There is absolutely no refuse
in what the consumer buys-no bones,
no feathers, no fms nor scales nor
waste of any kind. So if we are doing
to compare the costs of shueked oYs-
tiers and clans with that of beef NUT
ton, chicken and fish, we want to place
the cost of one pound alongside that of
one pound meat, poultry and fish after
the refuse has been taken from them.
THE following facts and figures
have been determined with consider
able precision by the experts of the
Agricultural Department and publish
ed in the Farmers Bulletins:
The average quantity of refuse in
beef, mutton and veal is 20 per cent
II we assume the average cost to the
consumer as "a cents pound, then the
cost without the refuse is 80 cents q
pound. In the case of chichens the
refuse cost without the refuse is 26 6 10
per cent. If we assume the average
cost to the consumes as 2J cents a
pound. then the cost without the re-
fuse is sc 6-10O cents pound. In the
case of fish the quantity of refuse is
so per cent, which makes the consumer
pay 80 cents a pound without refuse
when the average price pound is Is
cents. The average cost of eggs to the
consumer IN the great cities of the |
East is about "a cents a dozen, and
dozen weighs about one pound. The
refuse is 10 per cent. So the consumer
is paying for eggs about 30 cents a
pound. One gallon of oysters weighs
about 10 pounds and can be sold to the
consumer in the great cities of the East
and as far west as Chicago at 81 30, or
10 cents pound. So here is the rela
tive cost per pound to the consumer
for what he really consumes; Chickens
35 go cents; eggs 81 cents: beef, yea
and mutton, 80 cents; fresh fish, 80
cents; Smoked oysters and CLANS IL
cents. In the case of extra large sizes
of oysters, graded as counts and selects
the cost 16 cents pound.
Here is another aspect Of the sub
ject At the restaurants and public
places the average cost of an oysters
stew of a doubtful dozen is about 80
cents. Now, one quart of oysters has
from so to 80 oysters in it so the house
holder can buy one dozen oysters fol-
less than cents"