The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1922-12-11
DORCHESTER COUNTY
ROASTs NOT OF ROMANCE
BUT Is PRACTICAL

Continued From Page Three)
co counties and brought the primer
pals to Cambridge jail
Dorchester, from its location as
tidewater county, naturally TOOK 10
shipbuilding. AS early as 1852
both the Cboptank and Nantlcche
rivers had their shipyards. me nrst
register granted was for the schooner
"Charr,ine Beauty" This pioneer
was built Gil the Choptanh, at or very
near Cambridge. 1t seems unneces-
sary to follow the line Of boat build |
ing in this county; clipper shlps were
built, followed by the schooners'
DungieS, and later, the preSeht-oaS |
bugeye and skipjack. In all OF the
evolution the canoe was first, sun u.s.
and always will be the craft that Is
typical to Dorchester waters.
How we'll the present-day- accept-
cd sailing craft are built and handled
by Dorchester watermen was SHOWN
in The Sun and Evening Sun Work
boat Races at Claiborne. In both
these classics. Dorchester boats and
men were winners. Nor is it to be !
that a soodly portion of Dorchester
wealth comes from the bottom OF the
Cbesaneake More oysters are pre-
pared for the market at Camprlasel
Ethan at any other place IN the
world. From September until Aprli
the flow to the consumer is cohtlnu-
GUS Then in the summer nall
dozen factories or cookers prepare
crabs for the market. Sea 1000, TOT
years, was the principle industry OF
the county, but the development OF
the land has relegated it to second
place and the canning of vegetables
has become the greatest asset. 10
matoes and corn returned 10 the
county in 1921 about $3,500,0O0.
And then, scattered through the
county. there are more than 100, 900
fruit trees, bearing and nonbearlng.
! It really seems that Dorchester Isl
not more than half developed from
| an agricultural standpoint.
There is no county in Maryland
! that has as much waste land as Dor
| chester: with $4,000 acres in all,
! hut 100000 acres are under cultl-
walton. This is caused by a large
percentage of marsh land that prob
| ABLY never will be made suitable for
production purposes; but with the
/ handicap of so much waste lana,
! Dorchester ranks seventh in the1
| value of farm land in the State of
i Maryland. being given a value o.
| s32.OOO.0OO, divided up into farms OF
! 100 acres each, with but So per cent
| improyed. The average value OF
| land per acre is $40. 1t may be that
| the unsa tisfactory financial condition
| of Dorchester farms today IS due TO
/ the fact that but So per cent OF the
| farms are operated by their owners
| 1t is rather a coincidence that nut
! half of the farm land Is improved
| and that but one-half of the owners
feel, called upon to look after their
own property.
Dorchester county has not been
! liberal with it's schools. AT the re-
cent election, upon the referendum
vote. the people refused to give
| money to erect much-needed schools.
| In some parts of the county the vote
was 10 to / against borrowing money
! for the purpose. Cambridge, the
county seat, is one of the most ener-
getic cities of the Eastern Shore. APP
parently every one of the claimed
1900 people are busy at something
It's homes are places of comfort and.
with their yards of flowers: bear out
the reputation of the Cambridge peo-
pie that they love beauty. Witness
the stores At no place in Maryland
. has the writer seen SO much atten-
ton directed toward making the
L. Tn q
while the main street. lit has-three
namesl will be created into white
way. That is the side of the city
life. They do things on big scale
in Cambridge. Biggest oyster pack
ers, biggest canning plant, biggest
mills on the shore, biggest county
fair, and now they claim to have the
biggest theatre.
Two events mark the daily life of
Cambridge-the coming of the morn
ing mail and the going of the night
boat The women whose faces and
gowns have Statewide reputation
for beauty. parade to the post Office
in the morning and on moonlight
nights, down to the wharf. Every
body goes for the mail and looks his
best. Everybody goes down to the
boat when it is moonlight. They are
repaid, for never was there a more
,ovely sight than the Choptank when
lighted by the moon.
Daily boat goes to and arrives
from Baltimore Then there is a.
Tally ferry service to Baltimore for
passengers and express. Trains run
tour times a day to Seaford, connect
ing with the New York, Philadelphia
and Norfolk Railroad at Hurlock.
Hurlock is typical of the other towns
Of Dorchester. From there every
GUNNER are shipped the cantaloupes
and melons for which the county is
famous. In few years the fruit
has been relegated to minor stand
ing, and the people have gotten
themselves enough industries of a
manufacturing nature to take care Of