The daily state chronicle., 1891-02-25
THE OYSTER QuEaHiox AGAIN.

the People OF the Oyster Counties
Proper, Especially, ask That Their
Great Oyster Resource be Preserved
and FOstered.
Especial Cor. STATE CHRoNICLE.l
BEAUFORT, n. c., Feb. 16 In your
issue of the 18th inst. appears COM
municaton from Mr.. Jno. Il. Small, OF
Washington, n c., upon the oyster
question, to which, in part, this IS re-
ply. 1 think it unnecessary, and 1t
would certainly be ungenerous to ask
space for the quotation of such parts OF
Mr.. Small's article as l shall refer to, as
the points made, if any, can be readily
understood by all who read both COM
munications.
While Mr.. SIS. article, as he says of
former communication from Beaufort,
by experience, presents nothing new
upon the subject before the Legislature,
vet it contains many hackneyed mis-
takes, and stale, though no doubt uninten-
tional Misrepresentation that are likely
to mislead many who are uniformed
about the matter, and do serious, and
irreparable damage to North Carolina,
unless they are corrected publicly.
Upon this all-important oyst ter subject |
speak not from the stand point of an at
| torney, or an expert, or tonger, or the
son of tonger, but as one interested
| only in common with his countrymen,
as one who has visited every part OF the
oyster section, and knows that our peo-
ple are almost unit against dredging
oysters in any manner, aud to any extent.
| It is a fact better known than some
suppose that Mr.. Small is representing
| only portion of the citizens of Wash
ington, Beaufort county, including prom
| inently, the canneries aud a hundred or
| two Bohemian emigrants, and not Beau
| fort county entirely, whose citizens in
mass, almost, have already expressed
their wishes in no uncertain sounds up
on this subject. 1t is pretty generally
known fact, also, that the people of
| Beaufort county are an agricultural peo-
| Pile, and that only a very small per cent.
of them are engaged in the oyster busi-
ness in any way. And while we cheer.
fully admit their equal rights
and privileges to the States oys-
ters, and rejoice with them in
| the possession OF this Inheritance. Yet
it is necessary, III order that justice
may be impartially administered in this
matter, that everything be plainly set
islature, Washington, Mr.. Small and all
Within the boundary lines Of Beaufort
county there are few or no oysters-not
enough by any means to supply the
tables of half the citizens of Little
Washington And yet our Legislature,
besought by OVER JEALOUS attorneys and
factory employees to set apart a portion
of the choicest public oyster grounds in
other counties, whose people are largely
dependent upon their little oyster boats
and tugs for livelihood, for limited
dredging, for the benefit OF the canneries
of Washington and the support Of THEN
cheap imported lalorers.
This little pet plot or area suggested
for limited dredging that Washington
has fallen so desperately in love with, and
cannot live without, is situated directly
!; off the mouth of Pamlico river, in the
very nearest oyster grounds to, and the
most available for her canneries anc
comprises the best grounds of Hyde
Pamlico and Carteret counties, and oul
factories have at Beaufort received hun
, dreds of bushels weekly from this very
plot, and have never canned a dredge(
oyster since their establishment. Per
haps our Washington friends can stand
the shock Of these assertions also tha
our factories secure quantities Of oyster
taken from the "shallow waters of Gov
Sound" in a depth of ten feet of water
) Couldn't dredging be done here, unde
, these circumstances? Mr.. Small say
} not. Further the oysters in Cartere
are getting somewhat scarce, but not
man says dredge under any circumstan
, ces. The factories of this place are sen
ding to the waters of Onslow county b
] sea route, and getting thousands c
8 bushels of oysters from these weekly
:, Since We have such countless acres G
shallow water oysters, why does not on
: little sister Washington send he
a boats and get as many as sh
i needs and keep her factories running
instead of shutting down and beggn
the Legi stature for donation at be
threshold. There is no sea between III
and she would be welcome. 1t is tru
i that the 'open and deep waters of Pan
j. lico Sound" are between US, but "
;, think she might stand these, if we ca
: and do go to sea for our oysters.
g 'Dredging under proper restrictions
i is vague, and deceptive idea-a dar
a gerous theory, that in every instance ha
:. exploded ere the experiment was ha
10 tried, with utter destruction OF all inte
70 est involved.
n Ten thousand armed men could NJ
# enforce law permitting limited dreds
! ing of oysters in North Carolina. FS
~ every inch given, five miles would be tai
le en- even in day light, and at night tt
], bottom of Pamlico Sound would be scr,
r. ped from Roanoke Island to the mout
,r Of Neuse River, and in fye years the
. wouldn't be a cannery in tt
m State, nor enough oysters left +,
a. the sick IN our own homes, an
it our ''last oyster bonanza in Il
is South" would be eternally gone; 70
v. according to the testimony of 1t. Win
low, the expert, in the whole oyster hi
y tory of the world there was ONLY on
- exhausted field known to have been r
a cuperated
n, To make and mark the boundary lin.