Virginia citizen. (Irvington, Va.) 1891-1921, 1905-04-28
FISH And OYSTER NOTES.


two thousand barrels, or more than
half million crabs, each day. Grabs
disappear from inland waters at the
close of summer, and it has moi
been customary to do any packing
in winter. But this year the can
ners learned that the crabs buried
themselves in mud IN the bay under
water thirty feet deep, and stayed
there during the winter. Dredges
were built, and the Gamers raided
the crab roost. In dredging the
crustaceans from the mud many are
lost, and these, becoming chille1,
cannot rebury themselves, but die,
and are cast on the beach by thous-
ands. Fear is expressed here that
the crabs will be exterminated, and
there is talk of stopping the whole
sale mining operations. So many
have been taken this winter that the
markets here and in Philadelphia,
New York, Baltimore and Boston
have been glutted. At New York,
many crabs have been condemned
by the food inspectors and dumped
overheard because stale.
sHAD TOO COMMON FOR EARLY
COLoNIsTs.
A little less than a hundred years
ago it was considered "disreputable
to eat shsdl" David ID. Field, in a
GA Statistical Account of the County
of Middlesex in Connecticut, Middle
town, 1872" writes as follows: "This
river (Connecticut), with its tribu-
tary streams, used to abound with
fish, with salmon, shad, bass, ale
wives, pike, carp, perch, etc., which
cast their spawn on logs and objects
along the shores, where they re-
mained unmolested till nature had
accomplished its work. But as there
was a general prejudice against the
use Of the most common and impor-
tant kirds of these fish, either
because they were so generally used
by the Indians, or from some other
cause which am unable to assign,
little effort was made to take them
for more than a century after the
county (Middlese1) was settled.
Within the memory of persons living,
there was very little demand for
aud as for shad it was dis
reputable to eat them. But as this
prejudice gradually died away, and
as profitable markets for fish were
opened, fishing became an important
business thirty or forty years ago,
aud has continued so ever since.
This has rendered fish places objects
Of consequence. Hence Motifs Island,
which was purchased in l742 for
e600, old tenor, about $500 in specie,
was assessed in 1914 at $22, ,0OO."
RAVIsHING THE NATURAL ROCKS.
tEssex Cor. Free LanceD
Your correspondent, in an inter-
view with the Ware Brothers of
Wares wharf, learned some startling
facts about the effect of the "Baylor
Survey" of oyster rocks in this por-
ton of the Rappahannock. Rust's
Rock (the highest rock except Cart
er's Rock which amounts to but little)
covers not less than 20 acres of river
bottom, and had it been properly
surveyed the rs acres should have
been reported as the natural bed of
that rock. Just how much was re-
ported as the natural bed / do not
know, but of what was not reported
at all or reported depleted rock, so
acres of it was rented at 81 an acre
by one person in Richmond county,
and by him leased to r. K. Pratt, of
that county. Yesterday Mr.. Pratt
offered to sell out his interest in the
rock. He has dredged it, 1 am in
formed, until there is practically
nothing left of the natural growth.
1t may recover if left alone for years
but at present is good for bedding
ground alone. Now, what is the re-
suit of this? For $50 year one
person has exclusive rights and priv
lleges to so acres of natural oyster
rock of the finest favored oyster that
can be found IN the river, and scores
OF tongmen are utterly deprived of
use, a privilege, -honored right
granted them ever since the estab-
lishment of this Commonwealth and
even to the earliest settlement
Young's Rock, just. below Wares
wharf, covers not less than 40 acres,
and less than one acre was turn
ed into natural rock by the Baylor
Survey. SO 80 acres of natural rock
there may be taken up by one indi-
vidual, and every tongman and every
family, rich or poor, debarred from
the privilege of taking one oyster
from it, and all for $50 revenue to
the State. The Lewis-Lansford
Packing Company have under their
control 75 to 100 acres of the natur-
al rock of Moratico Bar oyster beds,
near Wheaton wharf. These beds
are noted, and to have the exclusive
right to such a piece of river bottom
IS small gold mine all their own.
The same condition exists, / am
informed, all along the river, and a !
few are greatly benefited and some
of them making small fortunes,
while the poor tongmen and the ri
parian owners are cut out Of priv
ilege which might we'll be called
God-given, and the State is receiv-
ing most paltry sum in return for
ts creating, what seems to me, a
most pernicious monopoly.
The following appears as COM
munication in the "Oysterman,"
which paper courteously makes cor
rection as indicated:
DEAR SIR:-I notice in your editorial
column under date of March Both, that
Mr.. e. G. Jordan and Mr.. w. D. Gard.
we'll know q good thing when they see Il
IS will be seen In their organization of
he Tar Bay Oyster business. We wish
hem every success In the business. The