Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1915-09-19

TTHE governments oyster cook book.
or one hundred ways to cook an
oyster, the latest addition to the
already famous, collection of cooh
books prepared by Uncle Sam for the
American people. has just made its
appearance. 1t undoubtedly Is the
most comprehensive gathering of reci'
pes for preparing the nutritious hi
valve that ever has been put In print
in a single volume and promises te
become as popular as the government
meat cook book, of which more thar
100000 copies have been circulated
throughout the country.
Z. The cheese cook book iVsued by the
Department Of Agriculture has had q
large circulation, and tucked away in
other government publications are
recipes for cooking vegetables. max
ing relishes and canning fruits and
vegetables These recipes compiled
into a single volume would make a
cook book par excellence. and some
day Uncle Sans public printer may
be ordered to prepare such volume
X
1nlS latest CUM pOon SoAAASS -
government presses. bearing the I'M
print of the Department of Commerce
bureau of fisheries and under the suiss
of Economic Circular, No. Is, with the
title, "Oysters: The Food That Has MOI
Gone Up; A Little of Their History
and How to Cook Them, by II. r
Moore, deputy commissioner, bureau o.
fisheries. Mr.. Moore is the govern
ment's expert on oysters, and what ne
doesn't know about them is scarcely
worth knowing. This knowledge In
cludes methods of preparing oysters
as food, and almost every known way
of utilizing them is described.
In presenting this timely volume az
the opening of the oyster season, VI
Moore points out that the oyster Is the
only animal food that has not Increase
in cost for twenty-five years, whlle
eggs, poultry and meats have increased
in cost from 25 to IS per cent In tna'
time. p,
IAN animal food which practically
has not increased in cost for twenty
five years, and the production OF whlcn
has kept pace with the growth OF pop
ulation, is present-day anomaly
worthy of public attention e eh;n ths
reach of all and it's excellence leaves
little to be desired says Mr.. Moore
This is the case of the oyster, proo-
ably the only food animal which mas
not shared in the general T.. increase asra al1
that the average quar- :
ity of oysters has improved during that
time as q result of oyster culture anu
in the face of a great increase IN the
cost of fancy oysters, listed py name inxe
on menus and consumed by the lux ..
urious few The oyster OF the multi-
tude is better than ever and about as
cheap. ,oo
In Europe the oyster Is ana ions
has been a luxury enjoyed by the rev
When the first settlers came to the
shores Of America. one of the most I'M
pressive indications of the richness o.
the new land was the great ANU. ~ =
ance large size and excellence OF inc
oysters which they found. 1naeI ehi Is,
conditions, and at time when the III
FAINT communities necessarily were ue,
pendent in a great measure on natural
products for food, this readily OBTAIN ~
able and delicious shellf1sh came mt
common use as an important elemen,
of their diet. Even before the white
men came the Indians of the coast SUP
sisted largely on Nysters, and, II !:
said, used them in friend and smoked
state, strung on twigs. as an artlci.
of barter with their lniand men sbeiis
At many places great mounds OF shells
deposited in prehistoric times ten ol
the free use which the red man maae
of oysters. and on the lama lseo. =. =.
river in Maine, where none IL nv w
found. there is a mound contaiHins
about 100000 bushels of shells.
/ -
.Ovsters now are found on the shores
of avery coastwise state from Massa-
chusetts to Texas and from Washlng-
TON TO California Planters in 19ll
spread 1900. 900 bushels of young
oysters, shells and gravel over theiI
500. 900 acres of oyster farms and the!
harvested a crop of more than 10000
600 bushels of oysters, worth approx
mately s1O,O00,OOO. The industry has
grown so that the small boats first
employed, propelled by sails or oars
have given place to fleets of motor
boats and steamers. Between plant
ing and harvest an interval of from
two to five years elapses and the oyster
culturist assumes many hazards.
The oysters food is composed prin-
cipally of small particles suspended in
the water, conspicuous among which
by. reason of their beauty under the
microscope are minute plants, called
diatoms covered with ornately sculp-
tured transparent shells of quartz
These and other food particles are car
bottom in a gentle driZZle and event
ually accommodating in considerable de-
posits Each oyster has part of its