Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1903-11-28


are, hereby appointed and created
special Joint and are here
by authorized and directed to lease
ont to citizens of The State such bar
rem and exhausted or depleted oyster
bottom within the Baylor geodetic
survey as may be applied for and
which said committee may t1ud 70 oe
either barren of oysters or so eXhaus-
ted or depleted by Overwork, or other
wise, as not to be profitable to the
citizens of the State licensed and
authorized by law to work upon the
same, and such barren and exhaus
ted, or depleted bottom, when so
leased TO such persons, as aforesaid
shall be, and is here defiued and de
termined 70 be. planting ground,aOd
not natural beds, rocks, or shoals
within the meaning of section one
hundred and seventy-tve OF the Con
stitution. Any such persons desiring
to obtain a location for planting or
propagating oysters in any such por-
tion of said geodetic survey, shall
make application in writing to the
chairman of said committee, to have
such location ascertained and deslg
mated and surveyed, and the same
shall be marked with suitable stakes,
smooth and free from snags and
spurs, or by other metes and bounds.
courses and distances having their
places of beginning and ending
designated by pei uanent objects on
the shore agreed upon between such
applicant and the said committee,
and such applicant shall pay the ex-
penses incurred by said committee In
examining such ground and leasing
the same, and all of the costs of max
ing such survey and of marking the
same as aforesaid, and il said com
mittee shall deem such ground to be
barren or depleted or exhausted as
aforesaid, they shall assign the same
to such applicant unless they are of
opinion that such assignment would
be prejudical to the best interest of
State, or would be unfair and unjust
to any other citizen or citizens OF the
State holding or applying for plant
ing ground, or unless they shall be OF
opinion that such assignment would
result in injury to the natural oyster
rocks, beds and shoals in the vicinity
of such ground. The said committee
shall certify to the oyster inspector
OF the district in which such planting
ground is located, the fact that the
same has been assigned to such appli-
cant, and shall include in such certl-
ficate a sufficient description Of the
location of such planting grounds by
metes and bounds, courses and dis
tapces. or otherwise, including plot
of the same; and thereupon such TO-
spector shall cause such plot TO be
recorded as is now provided by law
in the case of other assignments Of
planting ground, and the said appi.
cant shall pay to such inspector the
rent for such ground so assigned to
him at the rate of one dollar per acre
for each and every year of his rental.
to be payable on the first day of Sep
TENDER of each year, and so long as
such applicant shall continue to pay
such rent for the whole of such plant
ing ground assigned to him, he shall
have The exclusive right to occupy
such ground for period OF twenty
years, subject, however, to the right
of the General Assembly to revoke
such assignment for violation; by
such applicant, or his assigns, of any
oyster law or laws now il force, or
which may be hereafter enacted
Such ground as may be assigned un
der the provision of this act shall be
in as compact and regular shape as is
practicable, with as few corners as
possible, and no assignment shall be
made under this act TO any one per-
son of more than two hundred and
fitty contiguous acres.
2. The said committee is authorized
to Fit during the session OF the Gen-
eral Assem- bly,, as well as during the
vacation of the same, and may en-
ploy q clerk and surveyor whenever
they may deem either or both neces-
sary.
3 The board of fisheries is hereby
authorized and directed TO render
the said committee all the assistance
it can, including the use OF one OF the
police steamers.
This act shall be in force from its
passage.
A careful reading of the bill only
seems to be necessary to convince
anyone having at heart the best in
terests of the State, that it should
not be enacted into law, and the fact
need only be noted to show the dan
ger il the measure, that the bill pro-
vides for the appointment of mem-
bers of the House and Senate as a
committee, which will have control
of all the oyster interests of the State
This means, of course, if that bill be-
comes law, that it is with that COM
mittee to say not only what lands are
barren or unproductive but that, in
their discretion, they can assign
them to anyone, who for personal
reasons, or otherwise, they may de-
sire to have them. This means too
that, in the exercise of their unlim
tied power, not only the barren bot
toms but the oyster rocks can be
passed over by the members of that
committee to a syndicate whenever it
might be their pleasure to do so
This means, in word, however ig-
norant or dishonest the members of
that committee might be, they would
be the sole arbiters of the oyster in
terests of the State, whatever jobbery
might be perpetrated by them.
That the bill will be enacted into
law,we cannot believe, and in this con
nection it is gratifying to be able to
.to<o %hof oooOrdip0 +o tbo l.+o.4 Il
vices, a step has been taken in the
right direction, by the House Com
mittee of the Chesapeake and its
tributaries by vote of to 2, in re-
porting adversely the bill breaking
the Baylor survey. The General AS
sembly will approve the action of
that committee, if it would not de.
priye thousands of the means of live