Daily press. [volume] (Newport News, Va.) 1896-current, 1910-08-23
MR.. LEE REGISTERS A PRorEs

August -, 1910.
| Editor Daily Press --
II is With reluctance fSar a'tcn-
! ton to cercsious errors in your cdNoi-
ial OF yesterday on the James river
oyster situation. but this editorial
| should not pass without proper cor
rection. as | did one of "A few days ago
containing structures upon the Com.
mission of Fisheries. because il "p
peared to me censurc sprlhSiAt N"h
land aimed al personal source WHY
your paper. the only one IN inc s'''"
now. takes occasion to pepper the COY
Ter officials / am at a loss to DIVINE ]
do know. however. that for the usual
mart Won are writing from stand.
point displaying utter ignorance o..
the subject IN general and the recent
subjects of discussion in parl'nlAI- 81
ia no fault of the oyster officials iha'
Won are not better posted ON these
subjects. for every such ohcia, from
the highest TO the lowest, would wei
come a scrutiny of the work ana 'h'
industry: yes. would accommodate"
Won TO the fullest with means Tor IN
vestigating our work.
GNitsAtN NOu aas '-'N
cries commission should M TO
lease to planters consldeIapie iai 10
or even all. of the states natuTii osH-
Ter rock. the planters wonid remain
i'm possession of the rocks Tor twenty
wears. in spite OF the Legislature ana
everybody else
M such statement or inttmailoh
has ever been made by mo OF any
official connected with me. We can
not lease natural rock chat Is Withih
the BAYLOR Survey or give tue 10
same Your confusion arises from
the fact that Baylor ground ana ma
rural rock are now synonymous terms
in the intent Of the law, but not 50
appearing 10 you.
The question as to the holding OF
any natural rock left out of the Bay
lor Survey lines was the one at issue.
and l now reiterate what you quoted
Yesterday, and has been upheid OE
the Supreme Court. that
where lands had been leased 10
planters. Wiener natural rock or not
il was contract which not even the
legislature could break until the TWEEN
" wear period hau elapsed.
This statement had no bearing upon
the natural rocks within the baylor
lines. To the contrary, stated AZ
Battery Park. and reiterated 1t today
AZ Rescue. that where a planter was
holding ground within the Baylor
lines we had ample law to Dust hlm'
and that the statutes gave MN no
rights there. save the one allowing
limited time to remove oysters OF
shells he had placed thereon. ana theh
provided only that he was placed there
hv mistake and no fault Of his own.
ANY such contracts were not binding;
those pertaining TO grounds outside
the Baylor lines were
If you had. Mr.. Editor Joited your
memory a little you would nave To-
called that in Warwick and Nanse-
mond counties the present coumis
sion has been active in ousting such
tenants. spending eight or ten thou-
sand dollars to this end. one case
alone costing two thousand dollars.
Abiding to our turning over natural
rock to planters in the James, chai
lenge YOU TO cite one case where We
have doue so. Further, | declare 10
Won what is to others common KNOW
adze that not a single new assign
ment of oyster Sound OF any char-
acter in the James has been MADE Dy
this commission during its hve years
in office. Every foot Of assignment
in your river was made before we
took charge and upon coming INTO OIL
fee our inspectors were Instructed 10
arbitrarily refuse TO make any more
assignments. and SO far as can learn
they have obeyed these Instructions
More than that. we have been grad
ually-as money and force would war
rant-driving back over the lines, anG
forcing out. holders OF poor bottoms
that had been LEASED as subterfuge
to depredate upon the rocks.
To these facts the most radical
tongers have assented. and had you
mad a representative at Rescue TO-DAY
YOU would have learned that your
structures Of yesterday and previous
we're unwarranted.
Respectfully.
NJ. MCDONALD LEE.
Commissioner Of Fisheries
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