Cooper's Clarksburg register. [volume] (Clarksburg, Va. [W. Va.]) 1851-1861, 1858-01-01

alton which have never been exerted. /
mean by f
g. Policies of State Insurance. r
The State has. at the lowest estimate
1000 square miles of bottoms and beds of
sea coast. and bay. aud rivers aud creeks
and harbors, covered with the rock and
matrix of these shell fish. In other words,
we have 1 .78o. 600 acres. thus covered /;
snd allowing one eighth of bushel to
every square yard, there are atleast 784.- :
600, 900 bushels of oysters in the natural
beds of Virginia. This is jas puLlicun
which the circuit and the supreme courts
of the United States have again and again
decided to belong to the State. She can.
not control the trade and navigation in
these oysters, but she may regulate and
control and make a revenue out of the
catching and taking OF them. About &C.,
600 tons. in all sorts of vessels. boats and
canoes and skiffs are employed in taking
and carrying them away from their natu>
raj beds Allowing on an-ayerage only Is
bushels to the ton, and ten trips year.
each trip will take and carry away 150
bushels per annum-making in the whole
ID 400 900 bushels taken and carried
away per annum. am confident that the
real number of bushels is nearer SO, ,000,-
600, but take the smallest amount, and
they are worth at the oyster rocks 334
cents per bushel. or $4. 800. 900. About
one.fifth are taken by our own citizens,
say 100000 and 1900. 900 by citizens
of other States against our laws.
This immense amount is annually taken
by citizens of other States, because there
are no means whereby to enforce our
as to the time when they may be taken.
or as to the mode of taking them. All
these regulations are now imperative. and
they are all important, in order to prevent
the destruction of this great source of
wealth. The oyster is immensely pro-
life. 1t is supposed that the mother oys-
ter spawns about 100000 every year,
in the month of May generally in our
climate. Allowing ye.sixths of the
spawn to be swept away by tides and to
be deyoured by fish, every mother de-
posts around or near her about hall
million per annum. The taking of oysters
at the time Of spawning destroys far more
than are taken but if the taking of them
is properly guarded. they are indestruc-
tible and will be prpetual source OF
wealth owing to their prolific productive
ness. 1t takes about three years from
the spawn, for them, in favorable beds,
to be fit for market.
The means of deriving revenue from
oysters are simple and certain.
First. prohibit any except our own Cit
zens from taking them in our waters al
all. and require all persons not citizens at
the passage Of the law TO reside in the
state reasonable period Of time, say two
years or more, before they can have Ii
cense to take them.
Secondly-S:rictly regulate the time
and mode Of taking them. as under exist
ing laws by our own citizens.
Thirdly-Require every citizen who
desires to take oysters, TO obtain license
from the clerks of the county courts OF
from proper revenue officers in cutter
service, upon paying SO much per ton pei
annum for as many tons as the person
may chose to employ in the trade. from
the 3lst of August to the first of May il
each year discriminating between the
tonnage Of large and small vessels. as the
former cannot make SO many tli ps as the
latter, and between vessels large enough
to run to tue markets, and boats, canoes
and skiffs and all small drafts which are
obliged from their size to sell upon the
place where the boats are employed. The
oysters must be taken by means of ton.
mage in one form or another, and ta1
on tonnage, may be made to reach every
conceivable case. Paying the license or
tonnage will authorize the person to take
as many as can be taken by the amour
of tonnage licensed without cost or trou
BILE Of any measurement or count whatev
er. and the rate per ton licensed only viii
have to be collected. and an inspection
only by cutters will be required to se'
that none take oysters who have no Ii
cense.
i Fourthly-Organize revenue service
Of four steamers, we'll manned aud armed
to regularly visit the oyster beds. and SCI
that those who take have license, ant
that those who are not citizens do no
take and if they purchase and carr,
away, that they have bills of ladiug from
citizens from whom they purchased, anC
who were licensed to take them. Thi
force will be sufficient. The kind Of steam
ers required will cost each about ffteer
Thousand dollars. and the cost drumming
repairs and insurance. of each per annu1
will be about three thousand dollars. Al
ter the first cost Of sixty thousand dollars
; the annual expense will be at the maxi
mum, not more than 10000 dollars.
reasonable tax would be fee for licens
equivalent of from to cents per bush
eli. On the calculation that each ton woul
, take Is bushels trip, and make 10 trip
) year, or take and carry away $50 bush