Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1903-02-27
Friday, February "a, 1908.
DO NOT CRIPPLE THE NEW IN
DUSTRIES.

~ NOT ChlPPLE The NEW IN
DUSTRIES.
There seems TO be much agitation
just at present ABOUT the relation
that oyster packers, or shuckers,
bear to the general oyster industry of
this State. We see that the Hanover
delegate in the Legislature, melted
no doubt by unfair newspaper COM
ments and the equally unfair COM
plants of some tongmen, has intro
duced bill seeking to Independently
tax this branch of the business. If
it can be demonstrated that they
ought Justly to pay tax we would
offer no objection to fair rate being
imposed upon them. But their posi-
ton appeals to us very much as does
that of the man who holds obliga-
tions of indebtedness-in many in
stances double or treble tax being
placed upon the same property or
money. The Legislature seems de-
termined on general principles to
put tax after tax upon the oyster
industry, which is already bearing
taxes out of proportion to other
properties Throughout the State, and
upon the same general principles
we are opposed to this particular
tax. The up-country members seem
determined to wiring from the Tide
water people money out of all due
proportion to their invested interests
or to their represen tation in church.
State or any other assemblage.
While in no way seeking to defend
the oyster packers in anything that
they may do wrong, we deem it but
fair to defend the fair-dealing ones
and speak word for a new industry
in this section that has done more in
recent years to develop the oyster
trade and produce good returns to
the oystefmau than any other. In
supporting the oyster-packing indus
tries we are supporting also the
cause of the tongmen. Without the
one the future would be very dark
for the other. But for the market
today created by the Virginia shuck-
er the tonger would have been un-
able to make a living at the prices
forced upon him for his stock.
Today Maryland, particularly Balti-
more city, is weeping bitter weeps
over the departure of the oyster
shocking industry, and the loss of
them has given the commercial in
terests of that State and CITY a
severer blow than anything in recent
years. Maryland has heretofore mo-
nopolized the canning and OYSTER
shocking industries of the Middle
Atlantic States, and they have won
derfully built up the material re-
sources and finances of that State.
Today they are focking to Virginia
and their coming has produced re.
sources in the way of labor revenue
and in the way of markets for water
and land products that it would be
hard to oyerestimate. The man is
very blind or selfish, indeed, who
can utter one word against the ad.
vance OF these enterprises, and it
behooyes all who are interested in
trucking or oystering to support
them in every laudable way. No
man is so blind as not to be able to
see the wonderful impetus given our
industries, our resources and our
population within the past five years,
and unless some fool Legislature, in
cited by worse than fool residents.
should cripple these industries, ten
years will not have passed before the
Rappahannock and Potomac sections
will be doubly as prosperous as they
now are.
We cannot express our contempt
for the mossbacks or ignorantly sell
fish who would stifle or cripple these
industries And what is true Of
these two is equally applicable to
others which are spring;ng up in
our midst We can bear with a
corpse because it cannot help itself, |
but cannot put up with dead man
walking, especially if he is croaker
A SEVERE ATTACHMENT.
Our contemporary, the Potomac
Progress, has felt called upon to