Wash and put them in a pot, with just water enough to prevent the shells
burning at the bottom of the pot. Heat them till the shells open--take
the clams out of them, and warm them with a little of the clam liquor, a
little salt, butter, and pepper. Toast a slice or two of bread, soak it
in the clam liquor, lay it in a deep dish, and turn the clams on to it.
For clam pancakes, mix flour and milk together to form a thick
batter--some cooks use the clam liquor, but it does not make the
pancakes as light as the milk. To each pint of the milk, put a couple of
eggs, and a few clams--they are good taken out of the shells without
stewing, and chopped fine, or stewed, and put into the cakes whole. Very
large long clams are good taken out of the shells without stewing, and
broiled.