Vashon Island news-record. [volume] (Vashon, Wash.) 1919-1954, 1920-07-15
OYSTER INDUSTRY
STARTED ON MAURY
Great Plans on Foot To De.
velope Sea-Food Industry
At Our Own Door

Lest our readers forget one Of
the two islands which has made
Puget Sound famous we call par
ticular attention this week to the
other twin-Maury. If Vashon
Island is the tall, majestic, cedar
OF the Sound, Mauly is the sweet,
unassuming, rose-bush that blooms
in silent beauty at its base. We
spent the greater part Of last Fri
day on Maury Island just saunter-
ing around slowly 1--WE drive a
Ford, you know and drinking in
some Of the endearing young
charms of the island. If Tom
Moore had visited the spots we
visited, he would have put more
jazz into his poem from which we
have just quoted. But instead Of
trying to wax poetical, we are go
ing to tell about something more
| pr0Salcal over there.
First we will mention the oyster
Industry started on Maury. Not
but what there is plenty Of poetry
in an oyster (if one could swallow
everything we hear but when the
Industry is in its infancy, and the
oysters are infants too, it were
well to write only such tales as
would readily down." Unlike
the oyster, when you swallow one
of the News Record stories, it will
stay down.
Yes, there is a real oyster in
dustry started on Maury island.
The two men who are backing it
are B. M. Stephenson and o. Offer
oakland when we remember
that one comes from Scotch an
cestry and the other from the
Norsemen-we will not doubt
anything being put over that two
such men may undertake. They
have planted a half acre to oyst-
ers, and Mr.. Otferdahl showed us
a glass can filled with specimens
he had retrieved from their salty
beds just a few minutes before we
paid the spot our first visit. They
looked good, they smelled good,
our mouth commenced to water,
but we maintained our self con-
troll, while Mr.. Otferdahl told us
all about his plans and his dreams.
In two years he and his partner
expect to have five acres in bear
ing-oysters. He says oysters
such as he can grow will sell for
$11. per sack-and we think they
are worth it, for we certainly are
oyster fans. Each acre will pro-
ducc annually, after they come in
to bearing at least 400 sacks. This
would mean an annual income of
81 400 per acre, and on five acres
would yield annually over $40, 900.
That is conservative estimate,
and experiments have plainly
proven that the oyster finds a
natural habitat lis that the cor
rect word, Mr.. Frenchman?) in
the waters of these islands.
If one half the dreams of these
two oyster men come true, think
of the untold possibilities that will
open up for our islands and island
folks. Fried chicken is all right,
but o, you Maury Island Oyster
Cocktail and then it will be only
another short step into the big
crab culture, and there is the food
for Beau Brummel Why not
remember the shrimp, too-and
shades Of Roman Epicure !
what salad our Maury Is
land shrimp would make ! And
'clams-clam chowder, fried cams,
and A la picnic clans (steam,d)
and think Of that good clam soup.
Yes, we are getting hungry, but in
20 years from now when the oyst-
ers, clans, shrimp, and crabs of
Vashon-M aury are world famed,
forget not that great oaks from
little acorns grow-and plant a
posey at the feet Of Stephenson
and Otferdahl, the two pioneers of
oyster culture on these islands.