Alexandria gazette & daily advertiser. [volume] (Alexandria [Va.]) 1817-1822, 1818-12-23
10 the Citizens Of Washington. Frets.

~ "C St'~' no " - """t"S ''H' F'tCS-
rick, and Montgomery counties.
A S the General Assembly Of Ma.
N ryland will sit in the course of
a few weeks, | take the Liberty Of call.
ing the attention of the people of the
upper counties TO the subject of Gill
Nets that all those wbo may agree
with me in sp;a:on. my Unite in PC
titions to The Legislature to pass >nch
laws as may c!frcruaiIy prevent the
use 0r them hereafter III the Potomac.
Since the intro iGrtion at these Nets
into our waters. the people OF the up.
percountics have experienced The most
pernirious effects OF this practice. Il
is a fact well known, that many per.
sons at tie last season. after leaving
their homes, with their teams. at the
mast busy season of the year, and ira.
Yelling. perhaps, from so to l0c miles
to reach the nearest landings. and az
ter being detained there considcra-
bic time, exposed to the inclcmencies
of the weather, and often without any
shelter but what was afforded to them
by the coverings Of their Wagons.
while their crops too were suffering
greatly at home, were obliged at last
to return without any fish. Some pro-
cured their Hcrrings, but not one in
ten could get the chad they wanted
for their families. These Gill Nets,
it is said, arc fished almost exclusive
" BY persons from the Eastward-a
covctnus people they must be they
would take the bread from our mouths
il they could do it-and they certainly
will the fish il left to themselves. 1t
is stated they had 500 vessels engaged
in this business during the last season;
such a humber of Nets will form such
an obstruction in the river as to .eep
bark the Shad altogether, and by
breaking the schools Of Herrings will
render even the catching of them un-
certain. And what adds to our griey-
ancc, the fish that arc caught in this
manner are not disposed Of to our CT
tizcns, but are cured on board the
vessels that take them, and carried as
am article of traffic to some other pOr-
tons of the Union, or, perhaps, to TO-
reign parts.
The people OF the upper counties
are peculiarly situated; living remote
from airy of tie Rivers, with which
nature has so beautifully watered our
state, they have only an opportunity
affordeded to them once year OF pro-
curing fish of any kind for their iami-
lies and it rests with the Legislature
to determine whether they shall be de-
prived of this right, attended as it Is
too, with great sacrifice, expense and
trouble; and it must be known too to
the members that may compose that
body, that fish, from long use and Gus
tom, have become indispcnsably neces-
sary to our families.
Ii any doubt should csIst as to the
facts herein stated. have only to OBJ
serve that they will be entirely re-
moved by referring to any one from
either of the upper counties, who at
tended at the landings either of the
two last seasons, particularly the last.
Having said much more than in.
tended, | have only TO call upon all
those who feel an interest in this bu-
sincss, to lnsc no time in getting sig
natures to such a petition as | have
rccommended,-and Also to see and
converse upon the subject with such
persons as they may think proper to
send as delegates to the next General
Assembly and l have also to request
the favor of the editors of the Frede-
ricktown papers, to give these re-
marks a place in their respective pa
pers, that the subject may be fully
brought before the people Of the upper
counties.
ONE OF THE PEOPLE.