The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1860-08-29

Mr. b. ALLEN WEIGH, a member Of the House
of Delegates has addressed letter TO his "fellow
"citizens of Anne Arundel county, interested in
''the taking of OYSTERS" in explanation of his
vote upon the law passed last winter, which has
caused such a commotion among the people of the
Underwater counties As those who are interested
in the eating as well in the "taking OF oysters,
would be affected by any successful attempt to
monopolize the oyster beds of the Chesapeake and
its tributary streams, readers will, doubtless,
be delighted to hear that they have really nothing
TO fear from the late movement the part of certain
astute citizens Of st. Mary's county Mr.. WEIGH
has carefully examined the law, and has satisfied
himself that the State has no power to grant to
individuals the exclusive ownership of the bed
of any navigable river within its borders. He
has cited the decisions of the Court of Appeals,
and the late Chancellor Johnson, in support Of
his position, which they unquestionably sustain.
The former tribunal has declared over and over
again, that the State cannot abridge or restrain
the "public right of fishery and navigation and
that when patent has been taken out for land
covered by navigable water, these 'public rights of
''fshery and navigation remain unimpared, and
Gas perfect after the grant as they were before
And Chancellor JOHNSON said that if any
man interfered with the public right of fish
cry, 'his patent would afford him no protec-
f'tion," and that, in fact, the ''grant would
''be barren of fruits so long as the waters con-
tinued to flow over the land for which the patent
had been taken out. 1t will be seen, therefore,
that neither the oyster-eaers nor the oyster-akers
are likely to be affected by the application of Mr..
Nd cnr nd
which they hoped 10 become sole proprie-
tors of the bottoms of our hays, and rivers The
only parties likely to be injured mould be those
who own farms, from which the waters are grad
ually reCedipg and who are therefore daily
gaining something from Fan accretion by allu-
Hvin~.'' ii the boundaries Of such lanls were de-
6nedby survey, and limited to the presentlo low water
mark, the owners might find themselves, within a
very few years. cut off altogether from the water.
But, although the results of obtaining patents for
the beds Of nav gable rivers, are likely 10 be
less advantageous TO the gentlemen who made the
application than the latter must have supposed their
proceedings are not the less to be condemned
The attempt to seize upon what had long been
considered as common public property, and to
deprive riparian proprietors of what they regarded
as among the most valuable appurtenances Of their
estates, any thing but credtable. And when tits
remembered that TO facilitate the scheme, a modi-
cation of the existing law was quietly obtained by
two OF the partners, who were at the same time
members of the Legislature, cannot be sur
prised that The whole transaction has been pro-
nounced by public to have been crafty than
conscientious. Mr.. WEIGH clearly exonerates the
great body fthe Legislature from any completely
with Mr. MILES and his associates. The Delegates
did not know, and could not have known, that
any such movement was contemplated. The
changes made in the law were very Slight and
they were adopted without debate. They were,
so far as any one could judge, proposed for some
general object. Even as it now stands, the law
would not be particularly Objectionable had it not
been that the alterations were made with a view to
forward The private ends of those who introduced
them. We cannot see, therefore, that any one is
to blame in the business except the individuals
who have endeavored to procure the extraor-
binary patent in question, and they certainly
amenablc to the severest auimadversions of those
whose rights they would have so wantonly nva-