Clam and Oyster Soup

Clean and pick over oysters, using one-third cup cold water; reserve liquor, and add oysters slightly chopped. 132Clean and pick over clams, reserve liquor, and add to hard part of clams, finely chopped; put aside soft part of clams. Heat slowly to boiling-point clams and oysters with liquor from both, let simmer twenty minutes and strain through cheese-cloth. Scald milk with onion, mace, parsley, and bay leaf; remove seasonings, and add milk to stock. Thicken with butter and flour cooked together, add soft part of clams, and cook two minutes. Season with salt and pepper.