The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1904-03-26
NARY ,A|.ND.|I.l Is
CHAF|'l]v'!'|.C YET: I |:
That Virginia Gets Equal Fish.
ing and Oyster Rights 81 POI
tonac + antalizing.
ii Il oil c E MUCH PU j. zzL I!
Boundary Never Clearly Defined
and Offenders lake Many
u Advantages. 5a.s
!. 80 {. - q
From c)ur Regular CORRESPOND nt.


tFrom our Regular Correspondent)
sWAsHINGTON.$ D. c. March e5-Rep-1
Preventative Jones. OF the f irst " ginia
District, is greatly interested In the work
about TO be undertaken by the Joint.
committee from Maryland and Virginia!
Legislatures of defining more accurately
The boundary line between the two States
II ~: the Potomac River. Nj. \. Jacob Neff,
Brennaman. the clerk Of + the gtnia,
Committee has been In this city for sey-i
folk by way OF Richmond. rs will have,
everything ready for the COMMITTEES
aboard the pilot boat when the members
arrive Tomorrow afternoon. The start
will be made from Norfolk at th;x: time.
t Mr.. Jones Is very hopeful OF seeing the
work OF the committee result N tangl-s
bio benefits to the peoph, Of the two
States. NJ s$s
89g All the com mittees have to do Is to
decide upon what are Hheadlands on the
3south bas K Of the river There Z, ha 9
never been any other subject OF conten-5
ton q 8 to the dominion over the st eam,s
Or certainly none other since the Eva rd
made sby the Joint CO. imtssIon from the;
Two States, which met at Mount YER
non IN 1856 This conmtssi on,s OF WI
General Washington was q MEMBER, and
probably thu president. decided thai the
State OF Maryland should have tjurlsdlcs
ton over the river to low wat waite - ma * <
On the virginia shore. but that the peo-s
pie OF thetwo States should nave eau li
right TO take fish from the streSm. 5s
Nothing was said about the right 70
taxa oysters, as the oyster industry At At
that time amounted to practically moth
ing. and a hundred years la ter the Mary
land fishermen contended that while the
award had given the Virginias the right
t. taxi, fish from the waters, 1t should
rot he con!u rued as giving them the rlsht
TO take shell fish from the bottom q the
river. The Supreme Court or the =: H l
states finally decided that VirEinians
could taxa oysters fnom t1e Potomac,
51,nttom ilas veil as take fish from the va Y
ters and went further and decided that
the whole OF Pocomoke Sound. one q. 4
tho. finest clustering GROUNDS IN #$ ne
world, was wholly within the State OF
Virginia. and that Marylanders had no
right TO take fish or oysters from Nt the ne
waters. fs35. i.
The result of this decision was that
many Maryland people LIVING on me
shore Of the sound were ,torcea g Ie.-j
move to other fishing fields and many many
3; hem who had purchased homes on
the Maryland shore. uttered severe
Financial losses. The law to-day for DOS
q ma n residing on the Maryland shore
az the sc4lnd from taking a crab ne may
sseo floating IN the water at his st [s''''#
doorstep. st38 Va {, j. ~
The Marylanders have always cha 9, fed
under this decision o. the court oes--
eral6 Joint commissions from ne Is TWO
states have In recent years attempted 70
states In the Potomac by defining and
naming the headlines along the south-.
err bank a commission decided some
years ago that tho Maryland line ran
from teadland to headland.I . hat e 4 49,,
where coyes and inlets made ir to the
Virginia shore. the State line. did no.
ffollowFthe wlndlngs Of the river, nu ,
that 1t ran from the point IA at :Wn le,
the stream dverged to The next head
land or promontory.G . But the Legisla-E
sture Of Maryland has never taken + q ny
actor to define what constitutes head
land. or to define the boundary by CIV
Ing the names OF the headlands when
have all been designated BY the coast
and geodetic survey. The Maryland I.
have Invariably sought to induce VIZ
Fginia to make some oncesslons N Inc
matter OF fishery rights II poeomok !, 3
Sound, but the Yirglnians have stead
lastly refused, and SO the matter has been
Edeadlocked for years, u III 81 r. fl
ss ". HAVE POLICE sQuABBLEs,
The failure to define the State line
clearly In the Potomac has caused Smucht
friction between the police authorities Of
tho two States. Yiolators of the oyster
laws have been taken by the officers OF
Maryland or Virginia 4 by the former,
they would claim that they were within
tho headlands. ard therefore IN Virginia
territory, and IL by the latter, that they
were in the river and under the jurls dle-i
ton OF Maryland. The matter Will
hardly be finally settled until there are
some concessions made to Maryland by
Virginia regarding fishery rights ir Pos
5conoke Sound, and 1t will be q long while,
before Virginia will 8oopsent to give up
anything over there, as the fisheries there
are more valuable than those OF the
Potomac. II. 81
+ But it is very probable that the pres
fent commission may be able to secure
soma changes In the law regulating the
taking Of oysters In the Potomac At
present oysters, under the Maryland law
governing the Potomac, may be taken
some weeks earlier than from the wa tiers
OF Virginia, and possibly from other
Maryland waters. gi
Ri The members 81 the joint commission
from the Virginia Legislature consist
of sena tors nv a,ker, Sale and Maeher,
and Delega les Ca ton. III Greene, HuNley.I