Bridgeton pioneer. (Bridgeton, N.J.) 1884-1919, 1902-12-04
OYSTER INDUSTRY
VERY IMPORTANT

placed in the Governors hands. gives
some new and interesting information
about the oyster interest of the State.
The principal seats of this industry
are. Delaware Bay and Maurice River
Cove, Tuckerton, Manahawken. West
Greek and vicinity, Barnegat Bay,
Raritan Bay and the Kills. New Jer-
sey is the fourth State in the Union
IN oyster growing, being outranked
only by Maryland, Virginia and New
York, in the order named. The ex-
tensive coast and natural peculiarities
OF the waters surrounding New Jersey
are highly favorable to the best re-
suits in oyster culture. This indus
try has been the subject of more legis-
lation and legal tinkering than any
other. The object of enlightened
statesmanship has been to rescue it
from the grasp of ignorant greed and
place it on scientific basis.
These two forces have for years
been fighting for control. The theory
of the former is that the oyster
grounds by nature, equity and i'm
memorial usage belong to the public.
They contend for the right to grab
oysters wherever they can be found.
Their attitude is that of those whose
short sighted greed ruined the seal
industry OF Alaska, the salmon indus
%ru of Tho CoI
clean the buffalo ranges of the great
plains The enlightened friends of
the industry have sought to rescue it
from these ravagers and to bring it
under intelligent regulation, by which
it would be developed, perpetuated
and it's annal product increased The
latter have of late years been getting
the upper hand. The State is awak-
ening to the Importance and possibili-
ties Of the industry, and is bringing
it under scientific control. In his.
torical review of the oyster industry
OF the State extending back to the
earliest times the report shows that
hundreds of square miles of former
prolific oyster grounds have been made
barren by the policy of unrestrained
greed. The chief obstacle to the
adoption of q progressive policy has
been the fact that the oyster pirates
have been in the territory and their
votes have made them terror to
politicians.
The total value OF the oyster crop
of Delaware Bay and Maurice River
cove last year, as ascertained by the
Bureau of Statistics, was So, 815, 900.
This was from 10, 900 acres planted,
operated by SO boats and 3, 881 men.
The wages paid to crews of registered
vessels aggregated 1854, $40, while
$59S, 1856 was paid to floatmen and
boatmen, and $2o6, ,oo4 to shoremen.
In addition to this there were three
hundred "tongers, who realized $1S6
each for their eleven weeks work.
These figures show an enormous in
crease over statistics of the industry
for ten or twenty years ago and afford
eloquent and convincing evidence of
the wisdom of the policy of State
supervision, under which the indus
try has so rapidly developed In all
the other oyster growing regions SIM
liar results have followed the adoption
of the policy of State supervision. In
Tuckerton Bay the industry expert
enced something of setback this year
from the invasion of vast school of
drumfish, which entered She bay about
May % and remained until the end of
June, in which period they destroyed
about twenty five thousand bushels of
oysters. How to circumvent these
marauding monsters is problem that
is now engaging the attention of
scientific men.
Other enemies of the oyster whose
yearly ravages are dreaded are the
tautog, sheepshead, toadfish, skate
/ and stingaree. "The latter" says
Professor Ingersoll, sis always present
and steadily at work along the whole
coast. Lying fiat on the bottom, he
works his triangular f1ippers until he
has washed away the sand from about
I the oyster he wishes to seize, if it is
at all concealed, and then crushes it
between his powerful jaws. Even
CLANS do not escape his sagacity in
capture and strength of mastication,
but are devoured in great numbers.
The sea star is another and most in
sidious and destructive enemy of the
Eoyster. :" Numerous other foes of the
popular bivalve are enumerated in the
report, and the wonder is that single
Oyster escapes these multitudinous
4 and destructive enemies.
Mother Gray's Sweet Powders for
Children.