The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1910-02-12
FOR STRAIGHT LINE
IN JAMES RIVER
Strong Plea Before Committee for
Changes Asked by Fisheries
Commission.
VISIT OF DIR. MOORE
Noted Specialist Appears in Be-
half of the Legislation Proposed
VISIT OF DIR. MOORE

After lengthy hearings before the
House committee on the Chesapeake
and its tributaries and the Senate
committee on fish and game, at both
of which DR.. III. r. Moore. assistant
commissioner of fisheries of the
United States. and MIR. Mcdonald Lee,
State commissioner of fisheries. made
strong financial and legal arguments
| for the breaking of the Baylor sur-
vey, about 100 oystermen held a
mass meeting Friday night. at vhich
they Endorsed the proposed straight
ening OF the line in James river
The line In James river is but a
small proportion Of the whole. but
the yielding of this much on The part
OF the oystermen Is taken to Indicate
that they. are weakening In their
fight. which has lasted so many years.
Before Friday night tl9ey opposet any
change whatever in the line.
The hearings Friday marked only
the beginning Of the fight Tor aud
against breaking the much mooted
line. The House committee ADJOURN
ed without setting any date Tor n
continuance of the hearing. while the
Senate committee named next We'd
nesday afternoon as the time at which
II viii hear the concluding argument
on the Byrd and Wickham bills.
The prediction seems warranted
that a majority of the members of
the Senate committee will vote that
the bills be favorably reported. The
House committee Is either deadlock
ed or In favor of adversely reporting
the measures.
The Line Necessity.
At the meeting before the Senate
committee Friday night Commissioner
Lee pleaded utter inability to enforce
the law because there was no line
by which he or his navy could
he guided or supported in court He
spoke with considerable warmth
about the alleged thefts of oyster
beds by tongers and planters. and
paid his respects to them for their
abuse of him for trying to enforce
the law.
Mr. Lee reiterated that there was
no reason for paying d salary to the
commissioner of fisheries to enforce
law as applied to the Baylor line.
which Is myth. except on PAPER
He said he had done his best to
make his administration successful
by correcting the mistakes of pre-
ceding commissioners and exercising
a rigid hand His plan was to have
straight line, beyond which planters
houses along this line. so that the
boundaries would be defined by sta
tionary structures instead of hIoys.
which might he washed away or
stolen.
The commissioner of fisheries WAS
repeatedly interrupted with a'Ies-
lions by Tidewater delegates. who arc
fighting tooth and nail againss chang
Ing the boundaries. Practically all
sin esft- hat Itsaf
were smouldering, and that the fury
of some old-time earthquakes had not
entirely subsidized.
Endorsed by DIR. Moore.
DIR. Moore also spoke before the
Senate committee. He told OF MAX
ing a survey last September. ana
added that considerab BILE difficulty was
experienced In making 1t because IF
encroachments on the part of plant
ers, DR.. Moore declared 1t to he i'm
possible for three times the force
Commissioner Lee now has TO protect
the Baylor line as it now is, and sug-
81 sted a strengthening for the best
financial interests of the State.
Commissioner Lee began the night
session of the Senate committee t,y
outlining his plan for correcting tile
evils which he believes now exist on
1idewater He was followed by Dele
gate Rawley and Captain FitchI1t 4
8ar, yur and practical oystcrman
Should Get More Rent.
Mr., Lee prefaeed his remarks by
saying he would suggest that the bin
providing for renting of any oyster
beds that might be declared inside
the new survey be amended so as to
allow the State tn rent them for
from 81 to So" instead of for 81 an
acre" He said little or nothing re-
,,ir 1f to vi
which was established sixteen or eigh-
teen years ago This was due, he said.
tn the fact that because of the zig
tagging way In which the survey was
made some of the buoys were anchor
ed in 100 and $50 feet of water. where
II was impossible to- keep them sta
tionary The men on the James river
don't want to see any buoys; they
don't want any law" said Mr.. Lee. Il
have been out there until O'Clock in
the morning anchoring buoys. and at
daybreak there was no sign of them
to lie seen.
AN | want Is mark or sign to go
BY declared Mr.. Lee, as he began to
warm up to a statement of his posi-
ton. There is no vestige of Bay
ior survey or any other survey in
Il do not purpose breaking the
l:ayicr survey because II don't exist
| pdrpose taking 5000 acres away
nom The tongers and give them 1900
other ceres. The oyster men abused
and Nillifed me for exercising the
rigid hand l did, but they now come
to me and say i am right, but say
don't break the Baylor survey. I'm
not trying to break what does not
exist, Without a line or definite
mark to support me and the law 1t
II Impossible for me to enforce the
law. 1t Is useless to spend $4,000 /
10 collect si,e8a. The people OF the /
State might just as well expect me /
T. take half dozen men and keep I
hack 1000 stampeding cattle from a
point they wanted to get at as to
expect me to keep these tongers and /
planters from encroaching beyond the |
lines without itne.
Placing OF Watch houses.