Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1860-05-17
COMMUNICATED.

COMMUNICATED
Mr.. EDITOR AS it does really seem to be
fashionable to appear in your columns, you will
please allow me small space for few stric-
lures upon the late gling act of the Legislature,
and also upon the communication of "One of
the late Delegates" in your last ISSUE ''To the
law and to the testimony in fact. rhe LIST
section prescribes the time of the fishing season
to begin upon the first day of March and end
the first day of June. The second section vir-
tually declares that nobody, 'not even your
Bryantown man." shall fish with gill net in
the Potomac river. unless with hat off and with
profound obesance he asks and obtains the con-
sent of some woud-bc Lord of the Potomac
The Sd section says that, all owners and occupi-
ers of ''reguarly hauled fishing Shores are au-
thorized to render assistance to the Sheriff or
other officer to seize all boats, seines and fixtures
of all OILERS, bona file or not Hence, the
"Cathcart," with her loaded cannon and hire
ling crew, to brighten the ignorant giller out CT
his just rights. Section 4th, as if ':to make as
surance doubly sure" reiteratcs almost literally
what has been said, both by section 1st and
section ID, but the author of this famous 4th
section showed himself sensible to the last, !"
for herein is the proviso from which we poor
fdespsed outcasts of society draw all our comfort
peculiar way. As it is the only part of the law
that gives us any privilege in the river at ALL
we will copy the substance of it, 1t says. that
''no person shall fish in the Potomac river dur
ing the months of March, April, May and June
with gill nets or other seines except such as are
laid out .1i'om and hauled to the Shore" &c.
giving the seine fishermen four months instead
of three, as the 1st section ndicates,-then comes
the famous proviso, saying, Prorided, ''That
nothing in this section shall be construed so as
to prevent bona fde citizens of the counties
bordering on the aforesaid waters, from fishing
the shores they own or occupy as they have
hitherto been in the habit of doing" Now will
any man say that this law is not oppressive and
one sided and, properly, aristocratic? While my
neighbor with his long seine sweeps down before
my shore and therefore claims my birth as his
have no place appointed for me to fish unless
go within his "bounds or BIRTH" or, unless
fall back upon the proviso Of this act and say
that, as + have been in the habit of fishing when
and where please, therefore am not restricted
neither as to bounds, Births; nor time, nor
place, for are other-the seine haulers as we'll
have not regarded the act of 1854, when it stood
in Our way. We would most respectfully ask
"One of the late Delegates" what are our priyi-
leges under this proviso? Are we entitled to
four months of fishing season as well as the seine
haulers, or only three, as indicated by section
LIST? Section4th most unquestionably gives the
seine hauers four months. Does the terms
'bounds and births" apply to OILERS of the cour-
ty? If they do-and that they do according to
the literal construction of the law-shall we not
complain? think we shall There is no place
in the river worth fishing that is not either with
in the so called "bounds and births or "oppo-
site to some part Of the shore thereof" Where
then is the fairness of this law when it takes
away from the many and gives to the few al
most the entire privilege of fishing in the Poto-
mac. There is now about forty landings upon
the river, and to these forty shores is the entire
privilege of fishing given by the Democratic
Legislature of Maryland. for such is the fact Of
the case, that, as above stated, there is no spot
worth fishing that is not within the ''bounds and
births" or "opposite to some part Of the shore
thereof" Tt will be a difficult task for Zone
of the late Delegates" to throw the odium of
this act from the shoulders Of the late legislators
either of the State at large or of this county
particularly as one of the Delegates was written
to upon the subject by gentleman of this coun=
ty, asking for copy of Mr.. Bryan's bill, and
stating his fears that the bill would not suit the
people Of ChayIes-of which the honorable
member took no notice. Will Zone of the late
Delegates" apologize to the people for this, for
it was done after advising with respectable gen
temen Of the county. AS to the sentence "bona
7ide citizens of the county," how will that stand
with the decision of the Court of Appeals in the
case of Chapman and Hoffman staring it in the
face. If Hoffman, who was from Hartford
county could fish, why cannot any other man
from any other county? In view of the above
decision, why the sentence of bona 7fde citizen
Of this county instead of bona tide citizen of the
State? Was it that the sentinels upon the
watch tower of our liberties fell asleep and suf-
fered the Vanda hand of the fishermen again
to rise to give us more trouble in getting anoth-
er decision from the Court of Appeals? Can
we not go to Prince Georges county or st.
Mary's to fish, or one Of them come here with
out being subject to fine Of from FIFTY to five
hundred dollars ?" Is there nothing unfair in
this, since to haul the seine man may come
from anywhere-from the Devil if he likes p
Although out of place, we would like to look a
little further into this term "bona ide citizen"
particularly as some persons seem to desire to
push it to a ridiculous length, -basing their
actions upon their own Interpretation Of the de-
csion of the Supreme Court in the bred Scott
case. The Supreme Court could only have
meant to say, that bred Scott was not citizen
in the fullest sense of the term, and therefore
was not entitled to the full immunities and pri-
vileges of the best citizens. AS those privileges
and immunities are varied according to the
whim Of the various States, therefore, even a
white man is not admitted to political citizen
ship in every place where he may happen to be.
AS general thing, all the States have the lead
ing qualification pretty much the same. 1t is
summed up in the short and common sentence
he must be 'f1ee s0hite, and t,0enty-one," there
fore, according to the strict construction of the
law, ladies nor boys are citizens in no sense of
the term ; the latter because they are under age
the former, because, forsooth, they Heaven
bless them for it, lack that which would consti-
tute them men. Will it be said that they are
not still citizens and are not entitled the full
protection of the laws though she lack the pre-
fix? We think not. We have parallel cases in
the various societies and churches in the coun-
try, all of which have their various qualifications
for minor as we'll as full membership. The va
rious churches admit infants as we'll as adults
to membership, by BAPTISM still baptism
does not admit the recipient unless an adult to
full membership and so with the State, all who