The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1919-06-25
RIPARIAN RIGHTS
Ex-senator Terrell Defends His Posi-
tiOn Toward Them
Tallahassee. June %.

Tallahassee, June %.
Editor Star: In response to your
request through the Star under date
of June Is, as my personal friend, l
take pleasure in writing you frank
and full expression of my views on
this very important public question.
| shall not review your editorial,
but will submit to you the law and
the facts affecting the riparian situa-
ton and the riparian act, as / under
standthe INTO be, and leave you to
draw your own conclusions.
As a premise for the basis OF my
argument, / will state that the beds
OF all lakes, rivers, streams, bays,
harbors and other bodies of navigable
waters within the jurisdiction of this
state are what are known as sover-
eighty lands and are held by the state
in trust for the benefit of every citi-
zen of the state, regardless OF his
position, locality or situation, and as
such every citizen enjoys the right,
unmolested, to boat, bathe, fish and
carry on commerce in such waters
The free, unrestricted use of these
waters and water bottoms by all the
people for the purposes as above has
always been the law of our state, and
this is no new thing, for an examina-
ton of the law of practically every
state along the Atlantic, Pacific and
Gulf coasts discloses that the same
law prevails in each of these states.
The same was true under the law of
Aho laxu 0f
England, from whence our forefathers
came. 1t would therefore seem that
if any principle is fundamental in our
law it is the fact that every citizen,
big or little, old or young, rich or
poor, regardless of location, has a
right to the free and unrestricted
use, for boating, bathing, fishing and
commerce of all the lakes, rivers,
streams, harbors and other navigable
waters in this state.
The riparian act of 1856 (Sections
CAB and GA General Statutes Of
Florida) vested an easement "for the
benefit of commerce" only in all wa.
ter bottoms in front of the land of
of riparian owners whose uplands ex-
tended to Glow water" as far as to
the edge of the channel The term
Glow water" and other restrictions
carried in the act reduced the owners
who could avail themselves of its
benefits to a neglible number, and at
the same time safeguarded the rights
of the public generally in these wa
tiers. The act of 1919, which seeks
to amend the act of 1856, and which
was vetoed by the governor, elimi-
mates all the restrictive features,
changes the term "low water" to
"high water" and attempts to give
an absolute fee to all water front
owners along the streams and tide
waters of this state in and to these
lands from high water mark out to
the edge of the channel and autho-
rizes such owners to prohibit the
tresspass thereon of any other indi-
vidual. In other words, unless l am
a water front owner, my inherent
right to the use of that which has al
ways been public property for boat
ing, bathing, fishing and commerce is
taken from me and vested in the rip
arian owner.
Unless you are the owner of water
front property, your free use of the
banks and shores along the tide
waters and streams of this state Off
camping, fishing and outing purposes
Is taken from you and vested in the
water front owner; nor can you tie up
your boat or net anywhere betweenI
high water mark and the edge of the
channel, which covers a distance of
from few feet to three and four
miles along some of our waters. This
would certainly be an unusual hard