Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1907-03-29
IS DESIGNATED.
PLANTS MAY BE TAKEN IN
THE UPPER BAY.
The Auae Arundel County Bottoms Are
Not Affected SheIIfiSh Commission
Takes Action AZ a Meeting Held In
Baltimore City.
OYSTER ToNGERs ANXIOUS.

uAh uttlutu liiat al the oNhNtIS III ttit
waters of the Chesapeake Bay, north
of an imaginary line from Bodkin
| Point in Anne Arundel county, to Swan
Point, i'm Kent county, shall be
thrown open To tongers between April
- and May 5,for the purpose of catch
ing oytscrs for planting.
This action by the board has been
anNiously waited for sometime by
the oystermen and il is from this
territory that all the new bars in the
state are To be stocked. Instead Of
meeting in Annapolis yesterday, the
commissioners all went TO Baltimore
| and held their meeting there. All
three of the membres were present, as
was the counsel for the board, ex-
senator Thomas n. Robinson, OF Bel
Air.
Coupled with the order the board
has made three regulations governing
the catching of oysters during the
extra month. From year To year the
Shellnsh Commission may change the
location of oysters is allowed. and il
may make any provisions each that
the members of the board may think
aady isable.
According to the regulations for this
year, only longing is allowed, and
the tongers must hold a license for
the season of 1906 1907. All oysters
must be culled at the place where
they are caught. but the tonger is
compelled 10 throw back OF ly the
shells, SO that there may be a natura
bed for the cultivation of more of the
bivalves.
The second regulation provides that
before any oysters are carried away
l..w
The captain, or the master OF the vessel,
must show to the commander of the
police boat patrolling that area a con
tract OF purchase signed by one or
more Of the lessees of the land. The
list Of these lessees is TO be kept by
the clerk OF the Shellfsh Commission,
and duplicates will be furnished TO the
members of the Maryland oyster police
force.
The news that the Shellfish Com
mission had designated the section
from which oysters could be taken by
tonging between April 10 and May 10,
to be placed ON leased bottoms, reach
cd Annapolis last night and was re-
ceived with great interest. There is
general satisfaction that none of the
bottoms generally used by Anne
Arundel tongers have been designated
for this purpose and consequently no
claim can be made that the local
tongers have been injured.
The line drawn between Bodkin
Point and Swan Point includes only
two sections of natural bottom sur
veyed by the Sbellfisb Commission
and both of these are dredging grounds
and used practically exclusively by
them and not by tongers. These
grounds are Bodkin Point Bar con
tanning about 55) acres, and the
northern section of the "Lumps," is
in solated sections of oyster grounds,
containing altogether about 800 acres
OF oyster ground. AS stated, neither
of these sections are used by tongers,
and oysters can be taken by longing,
as the law requires in sections desig
mated for the taking of oysters for
pl ats between April 10 and May 10.
Tho line, as drawn, passes about
mile south of Seven Foot Knoll light
house.
Swan Point Bar, which is excluded
from the section where oysters may
be taken for planting, has not been
surveyed aud il will not be possible
to mark on its limits with the accu-
racy which has prevailed in the sur
NtNts IiS itHtas HONbNDis van 't
roughly determined from the evidence
procurable from those who are ac-
quaintcd with ii.
IL is known here that the designa
tion of this section by the Shellfish
Commission is in strict accord with
the underlying purpose of the section.
IL is known that the large major
ity of oysters in this section do not
reach the marketable size of two and
half inches aud arc consequently
OF no value to any individual or a
source of wealth to the State. For
this reason il was thought advisable
to allow them TO be taken during a
short period for use as seed oysters
and the trainers of the Oyster Culture
Act had this i'm mind when the sec
tion WAS included in the act.
The fact that no part of their oys
ter grounds has been included in the
area designated, removes the chief
point upen which the organizers of
the Oystermen's Union have sought
To array the oystermen against the
provisions Of the bill. In fact the
strongest obligation that body has re-
quired of its members is that they
shall not take any oysters during the
special season. The oystermen have
feared that their best bars would be SO
designated and the planters would
have an extra month during which
they could take the oysters at the ex-
pense of the natural bars. This fear