(1916) Conservation Laws of Maryland Relating to Oysters

8/9/2019 (1916) Conservation Laws of Maryland Relating to Oysters

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S K405NSERVATION LAWSOF MARYLAND

RELATING TO

OYSTERS, FISH, CRABS, CLAMS, TERRAPIN,WILD FOWL, BIRDS, GAME AND

FUR-BEARING ANIMALS.

PUBLISHED 1916BY

CONSERVATION COMMISSIONOF MARYLAND


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CONSERVATION LAWSOF MARYLAND

RELATING TO

OYSTERS, FISH, CRABS, CLAMS, TERRAPIN,WILD FOWL, BIRDS, GAME AND

FUR-BEARING ANIMALS.

COMPILED 1916 BYW. THOMAS KEMP,

CHAIRMAN CONSERVATION COMMISSIONOF MARYLAND


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CONSERVATION COMMISSIONOF MARYLAND

COMMISSIONERSW. THOMAS KEMP, CHAIRMANWILLIAM H. KILLIAN,J. EDWARD WHITE.

STAFFSWEPSON EARLE, ENGINEERTHOMAS C. B. HOWARD, COMMANDERE. LEE LeCOMPTE, GAME WARDEN

OFFICE512 MUNSEY BUILDINGBALTIMORE, MD.

P. of D.FEB 27 1917


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TABLE OF CONTENTSNOTE.This Edition contains the general laws of Maryland now inforce (including Acts of 1916) relating to Oysters, Fish, Crabs, Clams,Terrapin, Wild Fowl, Birds, Game and Fur-Bearing Animals. Some lawshave been epitomized in whole or in part, hut in such cases, Code refer-ences are given. Local laws are not included in this Edition, exceptcounty licenses on pages 114-5 hereof.

PagePart I Act Creating Conservation Commission

of Maryland 5Part II Oysters; General Legislation 10

Tonging 10Culling 13Time for Taking Oysters 17Dredging 19Conservation Fund 23State Fishery Force 24Oyster Inspectors 30Packers and Commission Merchants'

Licenses 37Part III Oyster Culture 40Part IV Cultivation Reserved Areas 52Part V Concurrent Law, Maryland and Virginia,

Relating to Potomac River 58Part VI Fish and Fisheries 64Head of Bay 64

Patapsco 66Severn 66Patuxent 66Potomac 69Other Rivers 73Trout and Other Fish 74Chesapeake Bay 79


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PagePart VII Crabs and Clams 84

State-wide Laws 84Somerset County Crab Law 86Somerset County Clam Law 87

Part VIII Terrapin 90Part IX Wild Fowl, Birds and Game 92Game Warden and Deputies 108

County Gunning Licenses 114List of Open Seasons for State 116

Index 117


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Part IACT CREATING CONSERVATION COM-MISSION OF MARYLAND.(Acts 1916, Chapter 682.)

Annotated Code of Maryland, Article 19-A.1. The Conservation Commission of Maryland is hereby

created and established. The said Commission shall con-sist of three members, citizens and residents of this State,all of whom shall be men specially informed in one or moreof the following subjects: oysters, clams, fish, crabs, ter-rapin, wild fowl, birds, game and fur-bearing animals.The members of the Commission shall be appointed by theGovernor, and he shall designate one of said members toact as Chairman of the Commission. The term of themembers of the Commission shall be four years from thefirst Monday in June succeeding their appointment. TheGovernor shall have power of removal for cause and heshall fill vacancies in the Commission however occurring.In all cases the decision of a majority of the membersof the Commission shall be binding. The salary of eachCommissioner shall be $3,000 a year, and he shall be en-titled to receive in addition thereto the necessary travelingexpenses and disbursements incurred by him in the dis-charge of his official duties. The Commission shall at thetime of its organization, and from time to time thereafter,adopt such by-laws and rules of procedure for the conductof its business as it may deem necessary.

2. The Commission shall establish and maintain anoffice where its meetings may be held, and where all books,records, charts and other official papers and documents re-lating to the work of the Commission shall be kept. TheCommission shall employ a chief clerk at an annual salarynot exceeding $1,500, a deputy clerk at an annual salarynot exceeding $1,200, and, with the approval of the Gov-ernor, such other employees as the Commission may deemnecessary.


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3. The Commission shall have general supervisorypower, regulation and control over the following naturalresources of the State, viz: (1) oysters and clams; (2) fish,crabs and terrapin; (3) wild fowl, birds, game and fur-bearing animals. The Commission shall be charged withthe execution of all laws now in force or hereafter enactedrelating to any of the above subjects.

4. The Commission shall appoint the following staff offi-cers, who shall conduct the work of their respective depart-ments under the authority and supervision of the Com-mission :

(1) Engineer, at an annual salary not exceeding $3,000,who shall have had experience in scientific and practicalwork relating to fish and shell fish. He shall have chargeof surveying and marking natural oyster bars, reservedareas, leased bottoms, crabbing grounds, clam grounds, fishhatcheries, and any other areas set apart by the Com-mission for special purposes. He shall also have imme-diate charge of the experimental work conducted by theCommission in the propagation of oysters, fish and crabs.He shall also be allowed necessary traveling expenses anddisbursements incurred in the discharge of his officialduties, not to exceed $500 per annum.

(2) Commander of the State Fishery Force, at anannual salary not exceeding $2,000, who shall have chargeof all boats now or hereafter composing the State FisheryForce or Oyster Navy. The fleet under his command shallbe charged with the execution of the laws relating tooysters, clams, fish, crabs, terrapin, wild ducks, wildgeese and all other water game and fur-bearing animals.The Commission shall also appoint the deputy-commandersof the boats of the State Fishery Force, and the commanderand deputy-commanders shall appoint their respectivecrews. The salaries of the deputy-commanders and crewsshall be those now or hereafter provided by law.

(3) State Game Warden, at such annual salary as maynow or hereafter be fixed by law, who shall also be allowedhis necessary traveling expenses and disbursements in the


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discharge of his official duties. The Commission shall ap-point and issue commissions to such deputy game wardensas may be designated to it by the State Game Warden,and the Commission may revoke and annul any such ap-pointment at its pleasure. The duties and powers of theState Game Warden and of the deputy game wardens shallbe those now or hereafter prescribed by law, and theyshall report to the Conservation Commission wheneverrequired.

5. The Commission shall take over and exercise all ofthe respective functions, discretions, powers and dutiesheretofore exercised by the Commissioners of Fisheries, theBoard of Shell Fish Commissioners, the State ConservationBureau and the Commander of the State Fishery Forceand the State Game Warden, and to that end the records,charts, papers, documents and all other papers and prop-erty of said boards and officers, or any of them, shall betransferred to and kept in the office of the ConservationCommission of Maryland. The following offices are herebyabolished, viz : The Commissioners of Fisheries, the Boardof Shell Fish Commissioners and the State ConservationBureau. The Commander of the State Fishery Force andthe State Game Warden are placed upon the staff of theCommission as hereinbefore provided.

6. The Commission shall adopt such measures as it maydeem expedient to promote and encourage the leasing ofthe barren bottoms of the State for purposes of oyster cul-ture under the present or future laws of the State, and theCommission shall take such steps as it can to stimulate aninterest in private planting thereon.

7. The Commission shall have charge of the operationand cultivation and replenishing of reserved areas uponthe depleted natural bars of the State, and it shall haveand exercise all of the discretion heretofore vested in theCommander of the State Fishery Force as to setting asideor reopening any of the depleted areas reserved for oysterconservation.


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88. The Commission shall have control over the inspec-

tion of oysters, fish or crabs wherever caught or sold in theState of Maryland and of the enforcement of the cull lawsand other protective measures. They shall see that alllaws relating to licenses and inspections are enforced ; andthe general measurers and inspectors of oysters and thespecial inspectors shall be appointed by the Commissionand shall report to it whenever required.

9. The funds now known as the "Oyster Fund," the' ' Oyster Conservation Fund,

'' and the

'' Fund for the Con-servation of Natural Oyster Bars, ' ' are hereby consolidated

into a fund to be known as the "Conservation Fund,"and the moneys now paid or which would be hereafter pay-able into the State Treasury to the credit of any of saidfunds, including all revenue from oyster culture, shall beplaced in the "Conservation Fund" and shall be underthe exclusive control of the Commission, and shall be drawnupon for the payment of office rent and supplies, forsalaries and expenses of members of the Commission, itsstaff and employees, for equipment and maintenance ofthe State Fishery Force, and for any other expenses in-curred by the Commission in the propagation, cultivationand protection of the natural resources of the State aboveenumerated, the surplus, if any at the end of the fiscal yearfixed by the Commission, to become a part of the generalfunds of the State Treasury, first reserving, however, abalance of ten thousand dollars at the end of each year tobe applied by the Commission to its current expenses forthe ensuing year. The fund now known as the "StateGame Protection Fund," shall be placed under the super-vision and control of the Commission, but the moneys insaid fund shall be used solely for the salaries, and expensesof the State Game Warden and his subordinates, and forthe protection and propagation of birds and game of allkinds, the Commission to make an equitable distribution ofsaid fund among the counties of the State, in proportionto the amounts contributed to said fund by the respectivecounties.


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10. The Commission is empowered to provide for thevessels of the State Fishery Force such arms, ammunitionand equipment as may be required, and the Commissionmay from time to time make such repairs and additionsto the vessels of the force as may in its discretion benecessary for the efficiency of the force, provided that allmoneys expended by the Commission for such purposesshall be paid out of the Conservation Fund under its con-trol, unless other funds are specially appropriated there-for by the General Assembly.

11. It shall be the duty of the Commission, on or beforethe second Monday in January in each year, to prepareand present to the Governor of the State a printed reportshowing the operations of the Commission during the pre-ceding year, in which report shall be plainly set forth theamounts of revenue derived from the several industriesunder the supervision of the Commission, and also theamounts of money expended by the Commission and forwhat purpose. It shall be the duty of the Commission torecommend from time to time such further legislation asit may deem advisable.

12. The main object of this Article being to centralizeand vest in the Conservation Commission entire controlof the above mentioned natural resources of the State, itis hereby declared to be the intent of this Act that thesaid Commission shall supersede the former boards andofficers to whom the administration of the law relatingto such resources respectively has heretofore been en-trusted. In case any section or provision of this Act shallbe held unconstitutional or invalid, the same shall not beheld to affect any other section or provision of this Act.


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Part IIOYSTEES; GENERAL LEGISLATION.(Code, Article 72.)TONGING.

1. Tonging License. Any resident of this State de-siring to catch oysters with rakes or tongs, for sale, in anyof the waters of this State shall first obtain by applicationto the clerk of the circuit court for the county whereinhe may reside a separate license for every person to be em-ployed on such boat, and such license shall have effectfrom the first day of September, in the year which it mayhave been obtained, to the twenty-fifth day of April, in-clusive, next succeeding; provided, that such license shallnot authorize the taking or catching of oysters in anycreek, cove, river, inlet, bay or sound within the limit ofany county other than that wherein the license shall havebeen granted; and that the boundaries of the counties onnavigable waters shall be strictly construed so as not topermit the residents of either county to take or catchoysters beyond the middle of the dividing channel; pro-vided, that nothing in this section shall be so construedas to prevent the citizens of Queen Anne 's and Kent Coun-ties from using the waters of Chester River in common, orthe citizens of Dorchester and Wicomico Counties fromusing the waters of Nanticoke River in common, or thecitizens of Queen Anne's and Talbot Counties from usingthe waters of the Wye River and the mouth thereof incommon, or the citizens of Dorchester and Talbot Coun-ties from using the waters of the Choptank River in com-mon; provided, however, that the county commissionersshall be authorized to give special permission to any womanwho has no visible means of support to take and catchoysters without license.

2. Contents of License and Disposition of Fees.Each and every license issued in conformity to the pro-visions of Section 1 of this Article shall state the name,color, age and residence of the person to whom the license


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11is to be granted, the number thereof and the county inwhich the same is to be used; and every applicant forsuch license shall pay to the clerk of the circuit courtwhen such license may be granted, and before the issuingand delivery of the same, three and one-half dollars, theclerk to receive twenty-five cents for each and every suchlicense as a fee for issuing the same, including administer-ing the oath when required. Two-thirds of the amount re-ceived for such license shall be paid by the clerk to theschool commissioners for the use of the public schools inthe respective counties where such licenses are issued, andof this amount the portion received from white tongers togo to the white schools, and the portion received from thecolored tongers to go to the colored schools, and the re-maining one-third to be paid over by the clerk to theComptroller of the State Treasury, to be credited to theoyster fund. And one-third of the amount received fromany tonging license in any county in this State shall be paidby the clerk of the circuit court of the county when re-ceived, to the Comptroller of the Treasury, to be creditedto the oyster fund, any provision of any public local lawor public general law to the contrary notwithstanding.

3. Oath Required. Every applicant for license asaforesaid shall be required to make oath or affirmation be-fore the clerk authorized to issue the same, or some jus-tice of the peace, on whose certificate of the taking of suchoath or affirmation the clerk shall issue said license; thatthe facts set forth therein are strictly true; that he hasbeen a bona fide resident of the county for twelve monthsnext preceding his application for said license; that hedesires and intends to use said license in the county inwhich he resides or the waters used in common, as providedin this article, and that he will comply with and obey alllaws of this State regulating the taking or catching ofoysters.

4. Issuance and Expiration of Licenses. The Comp-troller of the Treasury shall cause to be printed and de-livered to the clerks of the circuit courts for the severalcounties the requisite number of such blank licenses and


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12take receipts for the same as for other licenses furnished;and said clerks shall, on the first Monday of March andDecember of each year, return to the Comptroller a listand account of such licenses issued by them, and at theend of each tonging season shall return all unused licensesto him and shall pay over to the Comptroller one-thirdof the amount received by them for such licenses, whichamount the said Comptroller shall place to the credit ofthe oyster fund; and no license to take or catch oysterswith rakes or tongs shall be used on any boat or vesselwhich is licensed to take or catch oysters with scoop, drag,dredge or any similar instrument during the season forwhich such boat or vessel is licensed ; and all licenses shallexpire at the end of the season.

5. Penalty. If any person shall take oysters withrakes or tongs, for sale, without first having obtained alicense as required by the preceding sections of this article,he shall, upon conviction thereof before a justice of thepeace for the county wherein the offense has been committed,be fined not less than twenty nor more than one hundreddollars, and stand committed to the county jail till all costsand fines are paid; and in any such case the boat orvessel used by him shall be forfeited, and may be con-demned, in the discretion of the judge or justice of thepeace, in the manner provided in Section 25. All personstaking or catching oysters under the provisions of thisarticle shall exhibit their authority for so doing whenrequired by any officer of the oyster police force, or otherofficers of the State.

6. What Tonging Devices Permitted in CertainWaters. It shall be unlawful for any person or personswho have obtained a license to take or catch oysters withrakes or tongs to take or catch oysters in the waters ofQueen Anne's, Kent, Talbot, Anne Arundel and Dor-chester Counties, or within one and a half miles of SandyPoint, Hackett's Point, Tolley's Point, Thomas' Point, Hol-land's Island Bar and Three Sisters and Holland's PointBar with any implement or device other than ordinaryrakes and tongs with wooden shafts, to be used entirely by


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13hand, and without any ropes or hoisting gear whatever.Any person or persons violating any one of the provisionsof this section shall be liable to the penalties prescribedin the preceding section for taking oysters with rakesor tongs without license; and the waters within one anda half miles of Sandy Point, Hackett's Point, Tolley'sPoint, Thomas' Point, Holland's Island Bar and ThreeSisters and Holland's Point Bar shall be held and con-sidered to be within the limits of Anne Arundel Countyfor the purpose of this section and article.

7. What Tonging Devices Permitted in PatuxentRiver, It shall be unlawful for any person or persons whohave obtained a license to take or catch oysters in thewaters of the Patuxent River above or north of a linedrawn from the north side of Kourkles Creek in St.Mary's County to the southeast side of the mouth of Hun-gerford Creek in Calvert County, with any implement ordevice other than ordinary rakes and tongs with woodenshafts, to be used entirely by hand, and without any ropesor hoisting gear whatever. Any person or persons viola-ting any one of the provisions of this section shall beliable to the penalties prescribed in Section 5 for takingoysters with rakes and tongs without license.

CULLING.8. Culling of Oysters. All oysters taken from anyof the waters of this State, either with scoops, dredges orany similar instruments, or tongs or rakes, shall be culledupon their natural bed or bar whence taken ; and all shells

shall be returned to the bed or bar from which they weretaken ; and all oysters whose shells measure less than twoand; one-half inches in length, measuring from hinge tomouth, shall be included in said culling and replaced uponsaid bed or bar as taken ; and the culling of oysters takenas aforesaid required by this section shall be actuallymade and completed before such oysters are thrown or de-posited in the hold or bottom of any such canoe or boator vessel aforesaid.


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149. Undersized Oysters. Any person, who shall have

oysters in his possession which contain more than five percent, of shells, and oysters less than two and one-halfinches from hinge to mouth, which for the purpose of thisarticle are declared to be unmerchantable oysters, shallbe guilty of a misdemeanor; and in ascertaining such per-centage the officers of the oyster police force and themeasurers and inspectors are hereby authorized anddirected to select such amount of oysters from any pile,hold, bin, house or other place as he may think properand to require the same to be culled and disposed of, asprovided in Section 11 of this article; and any personviolating any of the provisions of this section shall besubject to the penalties and fines provided in Section 11of this article, in precisely the same manner as if he werea captain of a boat.

10. Prohibiting Shipment of Undersized OystersOut of StatePenalty. It shall be unlawful for anyperson to transport, or attempt to transport, outside of thisState, for any purpose whatsoever, unmerchantable oysters,as declared in the preceding section of this article, whetherthe unmerchantable oysters be taken from or caught on thenatural bars or beds of this State, or from private bedsand lots in this State ; and any violation of the provisionsof this section shall be deemed a misdemeanor, and thecaptain or person in charge of any boat or vessel used inviolation of the same shall, upon conviction of violatingthe provisions of this section before any justice of thepeace or court of competent jurisdiction, be sentenced tothe House of Correction for a period of not less thanthree months nor more than six months, and the boat orvessel so used shall be forfeited, but shall be released uponthe payment of a fine not less than $100 and not morethan $300, and the cargo of such vessel shall be confiscatedto the State and shall be distributed under the supervisionof the commander or some deputy commander, or generaloyster inspector of the State Fishery Force, upon the nat-ural rocks and bars.


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1511. Inspection Required Before Sale; Undersized

Oysters to be Returned to Bar Where Taken. It shallbe unlawful for any packer, commission man or other per-son to purchase or receive any cargo, or any part of acargo, of oysters unless a general inspector, measurer orspecial inspector shall be present, and said inspector ormeasurer shall cause to be culled any portion or all of thecargo necessary to determine the percentage of culls insaid cargo, and if the said percentage shall be more thanfive per cent, of unmerchantable oysters of the portion ofcargo so measured, then the said cargo shall be deemed tobe unculled, and the captain, master or person in chargeof such oysters shall be required to cull the whole cargo,and, in case said cargo contains more than five per cent,of unmerchantable oysters, be fined the sum of twenty-fivedollars, and in addition to that the sum of six cents perbushel for the entire cargo, including all shells and oysters,large and small, in his or their possession or charge, andalso a further fine of one additional cent per bushel onthe entire cargo for each additional one per cent, of un-merchantable oysters which said cargo may be found tocontain; and the inspector or measurer, after ascertainingthe quantity of unmerchantable oysters so culled out, shallgive the captain or other person in charge of said vessela certificate showing the number of bushels of such un-merchantable oysters, and said captain or other personin charge shall return the said unmerchantable oysters soculled out and scatter them on the ground or rocks whencetaken, under the direction of the deputy commander ofthe oyster police boat on the beat ; and upon such deliveryand scattering, the deputy commander or other person incharge of the oyster police boat shall endorse the saidcertificate as to the number of unmerchantable oysters soscattered, which certificate shall entitle the captain, hisassignee, or any other person entitled thereto to receivethe sum of ten cents per bushel for each bushel of unmer-chantable oysters so disposed of and scattered; and theComptroller of the Treasury shall, upon presentation ofsuch certificate so endorsed, draw his warrant on the oysterfund' in favor of the party entitled to the same for the


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16amount therein specified. The fine of twenty-five dollarsand the per bushel rate fine herein mentioned to be re-covered on conviction before a justice of the! peace or acourt of competent jurisdiction, and in the event that theparty who has thus violated the provisions of this articlebe supposed to be financially irresponsible, the officer pre-ferring the charge shall demand of the purchaser of thecargo to withhold and pay over to the proper authoritysuch amount, and if said purchaser shall refuse or failto do so, the amount shall be recovered from him bywrit of fieri facias on the judgment obtained against theparty who has so violated the law. (Form of certificateomitted, see Code.)

12. Vessel to Eemain at Wharf Until InspectionCompleted. It shall be the duty of the captain or otherperson in charge of any vessel from which oysters arebeing taken, as provided in Section 11 of this article, tokeep said vessel at the wharf or other place of deliveryuntil the inspector of oysters shall have inspected theoysters dumped on deck, as provided for in the precedingsection, and give a certificate in form stated. (See Code.)And any violation of this section by any captain or otherperson in charge of any vessel shall be a misdemeanor,and shall be fined the sum of one hundred dollars for everysuch offense.

13. Evasion of Inspection; Time for Delivery ofOysters; Penalties. Any packer, commission man, boat-man or other person who shall conspire or agree with anyother person to evade any of the provisions of this article,or shall connive at or participate in such violation, shallbe guilty of a misdemeanor. It shall be unlawful for anycaptain or other person in charge of a vessel to dischargehis oysters, or for any packing house or any other personto receive oysters between the hours of 8 o'clock P. M.and 6 o'clock A. M. Any violation of this section shallbe a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of not less thanone hundred dollars and not more than five hundred dol-lars for each offense on conviction before a court of com-petent jurisdiction; one-half of said fine to go to the in-


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17former and the other one-half to the Comptroller to beplaced to the credit of the oyster fund, unless the informerbe an officer of the State Fishery Force. And the gen-eral inspectors and measurers or special inspectors shallbe on duty continuously during the working or deliveryhours, viz: from 6 A. M. to 8 P. M.

14. Inspector's Duties and Powers. It shall be theduty of general measurers and inspectors of oysters andother officers of the police force to supervise the operationof this article and diligently to aid in the enforcementof its provisions, and they and any of them are authorizedand empowered to enter into any house or boat, or anyother place where oysters may be dumped or stored, toinspect the same at any time ; and any packer, commissionman or boatman who shall refuse to open his house or boatwhere oysters may be dumped or stored for the inspectionthereof by the officer whose duty it shall be to inspect thesame, and any person who shall conspire or agree withany other person to evade any of the provisions of thisarticle, or who shall connive at or participate in suchviolation, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor andsubject to the penalties prescribed in Section 13 of thisarticle.

15. Dismissal of Inspectors. Any general measureror inspector of oysters in this State who shall knowinglypermit any evasion or violation of this article to takeplace without causing the arrest of the offender shall beguilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction of the same,shall be dismissed from the service and be fined not lessthan fifty dollars nor more than three hundred dollars, inthe discretion of the court or justice of the peace.

TIME FOR TAKING OYSTERS.16. Closed Season. It shall be unlawful for any per-son to take or catch oysters, or have oysters in his or

their possession, between the twenty-fifth day of Apriland the first day of September in each and every year;provided, that oysters caught before the twenty-fifth day


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18of April may be disposed of at any time before the thir-tieth day of April; nor shall it be construed to preventany person from taking oysters at any time from his pri-vate beds within the State for private use or transplanting"or cultivating but not for sale. Persons violating the pro-visions of this section shall be deemed guilty of a misde-meanor.

17. Penalties. Any person who shall violate any pro-vision of Sections 8 and 16 of this article shall be deemedguilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof be-fore any court of competent jurisdiction shall be fined notless than fifty dollars nor more than three hundred dollars,in the discretion of the court or justice of the peace bywhich such person shall be tried, or be imprisoned in thecounty or city jail or in the House of Correction for notless than one month nor more than twelve months, in thediscretion of such judge or justice of the peace; provided,however, that any owner, master or person in charge of acanoe or boat used in taking or catching oysters withrakes or tongs who shall be convicted of having in his pos-session on said canoe or boat oysters containing more thanfive per cent, of unmerchantable oysters, as provided inSection 9, shall be required to cull his cargo and disposeof the culls as required in Section 11 of this article, andshall be fined a sum not less than ten dollars nor morethan fifty dollars, in the discretion of the judge or justiceof the peace before whom such person shall be tried ; one-half of every fine imposed for any violation of this sectionshall be paid to the informer, unless he be an officer ofthe State Fishery Force.

18. Catching Oysters on Sunday or at Night Pro-hibited. It shall be unlawful for any person to take orcatch oysters on Sunday or at night ; and any person vio-lating this section shall, on conviction thereof, be fineda sum of not less than fifty dollars nor more than threehundred dollars, or sentenced to the House of Correctionfor a period of not less than three months nor more than


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19one year, or forfeit the boat, vessel or canoe used in viola-tion of this section, in the discretion of the judge or jus-tice of the peace trying the case.

19. Disposition of Fines; Duties op State's Attor-neys. (Text omitted, see Code.)DREDGING.

20. Steamer or Power Boat Prohibited. No steameror power boat of any kind shall be used or employed incatching or taking oysters in the waters of the State withscoop, dredge or similar instrument; and the captainof any boat licensed to take or catch oysters with scoop,dredge or similar instrument, who shall have on his boat,so licensed, any engine or motor of any kind, whetherattached to said boat or not, which is adapted to or canbe used in the propulsion of said boat, shall be guilty of amisdemeanor, and upori conviction thereof shall be finednot less than fifty dollars nor more than three hundreddollars ; and no other boat shall be used in catching oysterswith scoop, dredge or similar instrument without firsthaving been licensed as hereinafter provided.21. Dredging License; Exempted Waters; Transferof License. The Comptroller of the Treasury shall, uponapplication of any person who has been a resident of thisState for twelve consecutive months next preceding hisapplication, issue a license to such resident, and to noother person, to employ such boat in taking or catchingoysters with scoop, dredge or similar instrument within thewaters of the Chesapeake Bay, Potomac River and in East-ern Bay, outside of a line drawn from the southwest cor-ner of First Kent point to north end of Poplar Island;provided, that nothing herein contained shall authorizethe taking or catching of oysters with scoop, dredge orsimilar instrument on any oyster bar within one and one-half miles of Tolley's Point, Sandy Point, Hackett's Point,Thomas' Point, Holland's Island Bar and Three Sisters;nor within one and one-half miles of Holland's Point Bar'nor of Swan's Point Bar; nor between Poplar Island and


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20the mainland of Talbot County, south of a line drawnfrom the north point of Poplar Island to Low's Point onthe mainland; nor north of a line drawn from the endof the south bar of Poplar Island to Pawpaw Cove, onTilghman's Island; nor within one-quarter of a mile westof Poplar Island; nor within one-half of a mile of PlumPoint; nor within the boundary1 lines of any county,unless herein otherwise specified; which license shall holdgood for one season only and shall only authorize thecatching of oysters between the first day of Novemberand the fifteenth day of March, on which day the dredgingseason shall end ; provided, however, that in the waters ofthe Potomac River the beginning of the dredging seasonshall be on the fifteenth day of October; but it shall belawful for the owner of any such licensed boat wheneversaid owner shall sell and convey by bill of sale for abona fide consideration such boat to any person who hasbeen a resident of the State of Maryland for at least oneyear to transfer said license to said purchaser with saidboat, which license, when transferred, shall entitle saidpurchaser to the same privileges of catching and takingoysters with said boat in the waters of this State that theoriginal owner had before such assignment; provided,said seller and buyer appear before the Comptroller ofthe Treasury and make oath before him to all facts, mat-ters and things required of said original owner of suchboat before taking out such license, upon which said licensesaid Comptroller shall certify in writing that the saidpurchaser has taken said oath, for which said certificatethe said purchaser shall pay to the Comptroller the sumof five dollars for the use of the oyster fund. The pro-visions of this section in relation to the time of takingoysters, the time of expiration of license, and the transferof ownership, shall apply to all vessels licensed by anycounty in this State to take and catch oysters with dredge,scrape or scoop.

22. Unlicensed Vessels. It shall not be lawful forthe owner or master or any person on board of a vesselin this State to affix any crank, spool, winder or other


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21machinery or equipment for operating or handling scoopsor dredges, or to have on board any vessel a scoop, scrape,or dredge, with intent to affix the same to said vessel for usein taking or catching oysters, without having first obtaineda license to take or catch oysters with a scoop or dredgeas aforesaid; and the fact of having such scoop, dredgeor scrape on board of any vessel shall be prima facieevidence of an intent to use the same contrary to thissection.

23. Owner's and Master's Oaths Required BeforeDredging License Is Issued; Penalties. (Text omitted,see Code.)

24. License Fees; Commanders to Inspect DredgeBoats. After granting such license, the Comptroller shallreceive two dollars and eighty-five cents for every grosston the boat shall measure, except boats of less than fourtons gross measurement, when the license shall be eightdollars for each of said boats ; and where any license issuedby authority of any county, the clerk of the circuit courtfor the county shall receive for such license from the ap-plicant one dollar and ninety cents per ton for every grosston the boat may measure, except boats of less than fivetons gross measurement, when the license shall be eightdollars for each of said boats, said measurement to begross tonnage of custom-house measurement ; but no allow-ance or deduction shall be made or allowed by reason ofdunnaging, and the captain or masters shall always havesuch license on board of their boats, and shall exhibit thesame wherever it shall be demanded by any duly author-ized officer. It shall be the duty of the Commander ofthe State Fishery Force, and any officer under his com-mand, at any time that he or they shall deem it proper,to inspect and verify the measurements of any boats andtheir gross tonnage, and the measurement ascertained bysuch officer shall be conclusive and final; and any licensegranted shall be corrected and amended in accordancewith such measurements and the appropriate license feehereinbefore named paid in accordance with such cor-rected measurement, and the right granted by any license


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22already issued shall be suspended until the full paymentof such license fee is made. And one-third of any licensefee received by the clerk of the circuit court for anycounty in this State shall be paid to the Comptroller ofthe State Treasury by the said clerk within ninety daysafter receiving the same, to be by the said Comptrollercredited to the oyster fund; and all acts and all publicgeneral or public local laws inconsistent with the pro-visions of this section be and the same are hereby repealed.

25. Penalties for Violation of Secs. 20-22. (Textomitted, see Code.)26. Arrest of Offenders; Justice of Peace to IssueWarrant; Posse Comitatus; Speedy Hearing. (Text

omitted, see Code).27. Firearms Prohibited on Dredge Boats ; Exception ;Penalties. It shall not be lawful for the owner or master,

or any person on board of or having control over any boator vessel licensed to catch or take oysters in the watersof this State with scoop, dredge or similar instrument, tohave or permit to be kept on such boat or vessel anycannon, howitzer or any piece of ordnance, or any swivel,musket, rifle or other piece or species of firearms largerthan a pistol, except two-shot guns not larger than anumber ten gauge, and not to use larger than number oneshot. (Part of text omitted, see Code.)

28. Arrests. It shall be the duty of the sheriff, con-stable or officers of the State Fishery Force to arrest anyperson, and to seize any canoe, boat or vessel found viola-ting any of the provisions of this article and bring theoffender or offenders before a judge of a court havingcriminal jurisdiction, or a justice of the peace most con-venient or accessible, to be dealt with as herein provided.

29. Forfeiture and Sale of Vessel Violating Law;Distribution Proceeds of Sale ; Right of Appeal ; Asser-tion of Liens upon Vessel. (Text omitted, see Code.)

30. Forfeiture and Sale of Vessel Owned by Non-residents. (Text omitted, see Code.)


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23CONSERVATION FUND.(Formerly Oyster Fund.)

31. Moneys Included. All moneys received or obtainedfrom dredging licenses issued under the provisions of thepreceding sections of this article, and one-third of themoneys received from the county tonging licenses, andall fines, penalties or forfeitures imposed in pursuancethereof, shall, upon the warrant of the Comptroller, bepaid into the treasury and placed to the credit of a fundwhich shall be called the oyster (now conservation) fund,and the same shall be kept separate and distinct from otherfunds in the treasury, and shall only be drawn upon forthe purpose of maintaining sufficient and proper policeregulations for the protection of fish and oysters in Mary-land waters, and in the payment of the officers and men,and keeping in repair and supplying the necessary meansof sailing the boats and vessels of the State Fishery Force.And the Comptroller is hereby required to state in hisannual report particularly the receipts and expenditureson account of said funds and the balance standing to thecredit of the State at the time of making such report.

32. Painted Numbers for Dredging Vessels. TheComptroller shall have painted in black figures, on whitecanvas, one number corresponding to the license to catchoysters with scoop, scrape, dredge or other similar instru-ments; each figure shall be twenty-two inches in lengthand of proportionate width, and the figures at least sixinches apart. And he shall give to each person taking outsuch license one number thereof, which shall be securelysewed upon the starboard side and in the middle of thatpart of the mainsail which is above the close reef; thisnumber shall be placed in an upright position and wornat all times during the dredging season, and returned atthe end of the season, and shall not be concealed or de-faced, and no other number shall be exposed to view orused than that which is furnished by the Comptroller. Anyperson who shall violate the provisions of this section shallbe deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, as provided in Section


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2417 of this article; and in any such case the boat or vesselshall be forfeited and condemned, in the discretion of thejudge, in the manner as provided in Section 29. The pro-visions of this section shall apply to all boats licensed totake oysters with scrape or scoop by any county in thisState, except that the numbers for such boats shall bepainted red instead of black; and the numbers shall bedelivered by the Comptroller to the clerks of the courts asthey! may be ordered ; and at the end of the season alllicenses not used shall be returned by said clerks to theComptroller; and the said clerks shall also pay to theComptroller one-half of all moneys received by him forsuch licenses, which sum shall be placed to the credit ofthe oyster fund.

DREDGING IN EXEMPTED WATERS.33. Vessels Dredging in Exempted Waters to be

Seized; Oysters on Hand Prima Facie Evidence ofViolation. (Text omitted, see Code.)

STATE FISHERY FORCE.34. Arms and Ammunition. The Board of PublicWorks (now Conservation Commission) are empowered

and directed to purchase for each of the guard boatssuch arms and ammunition as may be necessary to makethem efficient, and the officers of such boats shall be author-ized to use such arms, in their discretion, for the enforce-ment of the provisions of this article.

35. Division of Waters into Districts. For the moreefficient working of the State Fishery Force, the watersof this State shall be divided into seven districts, of whichthe waters of Kent and Queen Anne's shall be the first;the waters of Queen Anne's and Talbot shall be the second

;

the waters of Talbot and Dorchester, the third ; the watersof Wicomico, the fourth; the waters of Somerset, the fifth;the waters of Anne Arundel, the sixth; the waters of St.Mary's, Charles and Calvert, the seventh. Each of said


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25districts shall be guarded by one sailing vessel, except thesecond, which shall be guarded by two; and the third,which shall be guarded by four ; and the sixth and seventh,which shall be guarded by two each. And it shall be theduty of the deputy commander of the first district toguard the waters of Chester River belonging to QueenAnne's County, and the waters of Kent County, includingSwan Point Bar; and the duty of the first commanderof the second district to guard the waters of Eastern Bayand its tributaries ; and the duty of the second commanderof the second district to guard the tonging reservation ofPoplar Island Narrows and the waters of Talbot Countyas far down as Black Walnut Point ; and it shall be theduty of one of the deputy commanders of the third districtto guard the waters of Choptank River and its tributariesas far as Cambridge; and the duty of the second to guardthe waters of Little Choptank River, in Dorchester Countyand the third to guard the waters of Fishing Bay, HongaRiver, Tar Bay, Hooper's Straits, Holland's Straits andwaters of Dorchester County up to the line dividing Dor-chester County from the Counties of Wicomico and Som-erset; and the fourth to guard the waters of the GreatChoptank River from Cambridge up as far as oystersgrow, and the remaining' commanders to guard their re-spective districts; provided, that the Board of PublicWorks (now Conservation Commission) or the Commanderof the Fishery Force are hereby authorized and empoweredto order the deputy commander to do duty in any of thewaters in the State when, in the judgment of either, thesame may be necessary. (Special guard boat for WicomicoRiver, Somerset County, provided by Section 131 of Arti-cle 72.)

36. Appointment of Commander and Deputies. TheBoard of Public Works (now Conservation Commission)shall have power to appoint a suitable person to commandsaid force, who shall be known as the Commander of theState Fishery Force, and shall command the one steamerthat is regularly in commission as a part of the StateFishery Force, and to appoint a deputy commander foreach sailing vessel for their respective districts from among


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26persons of the counties whose waters comprise the differentdistricts, who shall be commissioned by the governor; andthe said deputy commanders shall have power to appointtheir subordinates and select their crews; and the termsof office of said commanders shall be for two years, unlesssooner removed for incompetency or neglect of duty ; andif any of the said officers shall fail in the discharge of hisduty by reason of collusion with parties interested inviolating any of the provisions of this article, he shallbe deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, upon indictmentand conviction in a court of competent jurisdiction, shallbe fined or imprisoned, at the discretion of the court. Noperson shall be eligible to the office of commander of theState Fishery Force or deputy commander who is theowner of or who has any interest in any scrape or dredgeboat ; and it is hereby made unlawful to appoint any suchperson as commander or deputy commander of any boator vessel in the State Fishery Force. The steamers andboats belonging to the State Fishery Force are to be usedonly on business pertaining to its official duties or on Statebusiness.

37. Removal of Officers or Crew. The Board of Pub-lic Works (now Conservation Commission) shall havepower to remove any officer of said force for neglect ofduty or incompetency; and the commander of the forceshall have power to suspend any officer of the force fora period not exceeding thirty days for any neglect of duty

;

and any officer commanding in said force shall have powerto remove any subordinate under his command and to ap-point a person to fill the vacancy whenever the interestof said service may, in his judgment, require him so to do.

38. Methods for Reducing Expenses of State FisheryForce. (Text omitted, see Code.)

39. Duties of Deputy Commanders of Steamers. Thedeputy commanders of the steamers are hereby required tokeep their vessels constantly on duty when circumstanceswill permit; and every locality where a violation of thelaw is likely to occur shall be visited, not only in the sea-


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27son, but during the closed season, both day and night, asoften as the duties of the force and condition of the ves-sels will allow ; or whenever there is any information thata violation of this article is likely to occur, then it shallbe the duty of the deputy commanders at once to proceedto the places suspected and vigilantly to guard the saidplaces to see that no one will violate the provisions of thisarticle; and every three months a report shall be madeto the Board of Public Works (now Conservation Com-mission) of all official action taken under this article.

40. Duties of All Deputy Commanders. It shall bethe duty of the deputy commanders of the said vessels toconfine themselves ordinarily to their several districts,night and day, in and out of season; but it shall be theirduty also to enforce any of the provisions of this articlein any water adjacent to their district when a violationof the same shall come to their knowledge.

41. Oath and Bond^ of Deputy Commanders. Thecommanding officer and the deputy commanders of saidforce shall, upon entering upon the discharge of theirduties, take before one of the judges of the circuit courtsthe oath prescribed by the constitution; and the com-manding officer of said force shall enter into bond to theState of Maryland in the sum of ten thousand dollars,and each deputy commander in the sum of three thousanddollars, to be approved by one of the said judges, for thefaithful performance of their duties as prescribed in thisarticle, the said bond or bonds to be filed with the Comp-troller.

42. Salaries, Etc. The salary of the Commander ofthe State Fishery Force shall be fifteen hundred dollarsper annum, and he shall have power to appoint one officer,at a salary of six hundred dollars per annum ; one engineer,at a salary of eight hundred dollars per annum, and oneassistant engineer, at a salary of six hundred dollars perannum; one pilot, at a salary of thirty-five dollars permonth during the oyster season, and thirty dollars permonth during the closed season; two seamen, two firemen,


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28and one cook, at a salary of thirty dollars per month each

;

and each deputy commander of the said vessels shall havethe power to appoint one officer, at a salary of five hun-dred dollars per annum, and three seamen, at a salary ofthirty-five dollars each per month during the oyster season,and thirty dollars per month during the closed season,except the deputy commander of the second guard boatof the second district, who shall receive fifty dollars permonth for the year, and he shall appoint a mate, at asalary of forty dollars per month, and two seamen, at asalary of thirty dollars each per month, each to be selectedfrom the district in which they are respectively to serve.

43. Rations. The members of said force shall at alltimes keep themselves neatly clothed in proper uniformwhen on duty at their own expense. The officers andcrews of the steamers and sailing vessels of the StateFishery Force shall receive one ration per day of thequality such as is allowed by law to the officers and crewsof the revenue marines of the United States, and the sumof thirty cents per day for each man is hereby appro-priated to carry into effect the provisions of this section;which sums are payable out of the oyster fund of theState of Maryland to and upon the approval of the Com-mander of the State Fishery Force; provided, however,that the provisions of this section shall only apply to theofficers and crews of the State Fishery Force employed on,steamers and vessels owned by the State of Maryland, andnothing herein shall apply to the officers and crews uponany boat or boats leased or hired by the State.

44. Duties of Officers of Force. It shall be the dutyof all officers of the oyster police force to diligently watchand guard and to arrest all violators of any of the pro-visions of this article, and the commanders of both thevessels and steamers shall keep their boats on duty at alltimes, both day and night, so far as possible, Sundays in-cluded, and shall cruise near to the line dividing thegrounds which they are assigned to guard from the dredg-ing grounds; and shall harbor as near said line as it ispossible for them to do; and shall remain on board their


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29boats at all times, unless disabled by sickness or excusedby the commander of the force; and shall keep a log oftheir movements ; and shall once in each month forward acopy of such log to the office of the commander. Any viola-tion of duty in these respects shall be deemed a sufficientcause for the removal of any officer, and he shall be soremoved.

45. Enforcement of Fish Laws. The State FisheryForce shall have authority to enforce all laws of this Staterelating to fish, whether general or local, and the severaldeputy commanders of sloops and vessels shall be requiredto visit the tributaries and streams of their respective dis-tricts at least once in two weeks between the first day ofMay and the first day of October, and at any other timewhen notified by citizens or others of violation; and theyshall arrest and bring to trial all persons found violatingany section of this article and cause them to be tried andpunished, as provided by law.

46. Commander of Force; His Office and Clerk.The commander of said force shall have control and direc-tion of said force, under the supervision of the Board ofPublic Works (now Conservation Commission) with powerto direct its movements, and shall have an office, to whichplace all complaints and applications for assistance shallbe addressed. And it shall be his duty to have kept anitemized account of all expenses and disbursements of saidforce, and report same monthly, accompanied by properreceipts and vouchers. The said commander shall be per-mitted to have a clerk, at a salary of one thousand dollarsper annum ; said clerk shall remain at the office in Annapo-lis and issue, by power, all orders necessary for the propermaintenance and supply of said force.

CRAIGHILL CHANNEL.52. Dredging Within 500 Yards of Craighill or

Cut-Off Channel Prohibited; Penalties. (Text omitted,see Code.)


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30PATUXENT RIVER.

53. Closed Season. It shall be unlawful to take orcatch oysters, with rakes or tongs, in the waters of thePatuxent River between the first day of April and thethirtieth day of September, inclusive; provided, that noth-ing in this section shall prohibit any person from takingor catching oysters from his private bed or bar.

54. Penalty. Any person violating the provisions ofthe preceding section shall be deemed guilty of a misde-meanor, and upon conviction thereof shall be punishableas provided in this article.

PATUXENTPOTOMACCHOPTANK.55-59. Further Regulations as to Closed Seasons

for Catching Oysters in Patuxent, Potomac and Chop-tank Rivers; Certain Privileges ,t(J Lessees of St.Mary's, Charles and Calvert Counties; Penalties.(Text omitted, see Code; also Act of 1912, Ch. 603.)

POTOMAC.60-68. Regulations for Catching Oysters or Fish inthe Potomac River. (Text omitted, see Code. These sec-

tions probably superseded by Act of 1912, Ch. 4, beingconcurrent legislation between Maryland and Virginia.See pages 58-63 hereof.GENERAL MEASURERS AND INSPECTORS OF

OYSTERS.(Amended Act 1916, Chapter 702.)

69. Appointment General Inspectors. The Conserva-tion Commission of Maryland shall appoint nine suitablepersons to serve as general measurers and inspectors ofoysters, four of whom shall be assigned to Baltimore Cityand the remaining five shall be assigned to such ports or


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31districts elsewhere in the State as the Commission may inits discretion deem best for the good of the service. Eachgeneral measurer and inspector of oysters for the City ofBaltimore shall give bond to the State of Maryland in thesum of three thousand dollars, and all other general meas-urers and inspectors and all the special inspectors shallgive bond to said State in the sum of one thousand dollarsfor the faithful performance of their duties; and thegeneral measurers and inspectors shall have the samepower and authority over oysters sold in the watersadjacent to the port to which they may be assigned ashereinafter given to the general measurers and inspectorsover such city, town or port for which they shall be re-spectively named.

70. Appointment Special Inspectors; Duties; In-spection Tax upon Oysters Caught Within the State.The Conservation Commission, at the commencement of,or during the oyster season in each year, as needed, shallappoint from the counties producing oysters for packingpurposes in the State, not exceeding twenty special in-spectors, at a salary of forty-five dollars per month, whileactually employed during the oyster season, and they shallbe stationed at such places as in the judgment of said Com-mission their services may be needed. Before assumingthe duties of their offices the said special inspectors shalltake an oath, to be administered by one of the membersof the Commission, to diligently and faithfully dischargethe duties of their said offices; each said special inspectorshall inspect all oysters in the district to which he is as-signed ; upon the inspection of any such oysters, each spe-cial inspector shall make a certificate of the number ofbushels in triplicate, one of which shall be given to thepurchaser, one to the seller, and the other daily to thegeneral measurer and inspector of the district where suchinspection occurred; in order to help defray the expensesoccasioned by the inspection of oysters caught within thelimits of the State of Maryland as provided for by thissection and by the other sections of this article, includingthe expenses of the State Fishery Force growing out of


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32the inspection by it of oysters caught within the limits ofthe State of Maryland as required by the various pro-visions of this article, an inspection charge of one cent perbushel is hereby levied upon all oysters caught within thelimits of the State of Maryland, unloaded from vesselsat the place in Maryland where said oysters are to be nofurther shipped in bulk in vessels, to be charged equallyto the buyer and seller, but to be paid weekly to theComptroller of the State Treasury, or his agent, by thebuyers; the certificate given the general measurer and in-spector shall be by him mailed weekly to the Comptrolleror his agent, and in case the amounts of money shown tobe due be not paid in one week thereafter to the Comp-troller or his agent, which is hereby required to be done,the properties of the parties so indebted may be levied onand sold by the said Comptroller or his agent, as in casesof taxes in default, without other process of law ; the saidinspection charge of one cent per bushel hereby leviedis also made a charge on oysters caught within the limitsof the Stajte of Maryland and sold by commission merchantsand others selling by less than. the cargo; and also an in-spection charge of three cents per barrel containing notmore than three bushels of oysters caught within the limitsof the State of Maryland ; on oysters caught within thelimits of the State of Maryland contained in bags an in-spection charge of two cents per bag containing not morethan two bushels; and all transportation companies carry-ing oysters in the shell caught within the limits of theState of Maryland, consigned to Baltimore, shall furnishto the oyster inspector or collector of oyster tax, a copyof their manifest showing the number of bushels on boardon arrival of steamer and to whom consigned, and thespecial inspectors are charged with the duty of seeing thatthe proper returns are made for the purpose of this sec-tion by such commission merchants or retailer, and in per-formance of their duty the said special inspectors areauthorized and directed to visit the places where oysterscaught within the limits of the State of Maryland in lessthan cargo lots, are sold, and get from such sellers a state-ment under oath as to the number of bushels sold from time


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33to time and return to the general measurers and inspectorsa certificate thereof to be forwarded to the Comptrolleras required in the case of certificates for cargoes, and thepayments of the amounts so found to be due shall be simi-larly enforced. All oysters found within the State ofMaryland shall be presumed to have been caught withinthe limits of the State of Maryland and the burden ofproof shall be upon any one claiming to the contrary toestablish his said claim by clear and satisfactory evidence.All such general measurers and inspectors or special in-spectors may be removed at any time by the ConservationCommission for neglect or malfeasance in office. The saidCommission shall furnish to each of the said special in-spectors certificates in book form, supplied with carbonpaper, so that each of the said triplicate certificates shallbe exactly the same; the form of the certificates shall beas follows

19....I hereby certify, that I have this day inspected for

Captain , schooner ,a cargo of oysters caught within the limits of the Stateof Maryland, sold to , and found thesame to contain bushels of merchantable oystersand bushels of unmerchantable oysters.

(Signed)71. Inspection of Oysters Caught Without the

State. (Text omitted, see Code. Provisions similar topreceding Section 70, except that rate of tax is fixed atone-third cent per bushel, and tax is applied to pay costof inspection only.)

72. Inspection Districts; Sworn Statements Re-quired of Oyster Packers. At the beginning of eachoyster season the Conservation Commission shall divide theinspection points in Baltimore City into four inspectiondistricts and organize the board of inspectors provided forthe City of Baltimore in Section 69 of this article, andall general measurers and inspectors provided in said Sec-tion 69 shall be assigned to and remain during the whole


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34season at the specific points to which they are assigned, sub-ject, however, to the discretion of the Commission; andthe Commission shall have general control and supervisionover all general measurers and inspectors and specialinspectors; and the said general measurers and inspectorsand special inspectors are hereby required to report to theCommission whenever required, and if they shall refuse orneglect to make such report they shall be fined for eachsaid failure or refusal the sum of ten dollars, to be de-ducted from their salaries, and the said Commission shallhave the power to transfer any general measurer and in-spector or any special inspector from any house or districtwhenever it may deem it best for the good of the service toenforce the proper inspection, the cull law and the collec-tion of the tax for the oyster fund. In addition to thecertificates required by Sections 70 and 71 hereof, everypacker or commission merchant buying oysters in the Stateof Maryland shall furnish to the special inspector of hisdistrict a weekly report under oath showing the numberof bushels, bags or barrels of oysters purchased by himduring the preceding week. Every packer or canner ofoysters, and every person selling oysters on commission,when taking out a license at the beginning of the oysterseason as required by Sections 79 and 81 of Article 72,shall make oath that he will furnish such weekly reportsshowing correct number of oysters purchased by him dur-inp the preceding week. The said oaths may be made be-fore any general measurer and inspector or special meas-urer, each of whom is hereby authorized and directed toadminister such oaths without charge, or before any notarypublic or justice of the peace.

73. Duties and Powers of General Measurers and In-spectors. It shall be the duty of said general measurersand inspectors of oysters to see that the law in referenceto the inspection of oysters be strictly complied with byall subordinates, and the general measurers and inspectorsof oysters shall have authority at all times to enter allplaces and all vessels where oysters are being measured andinspected in the shell, and to inspect all the measures or


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35instruments used in measuring oysters, and to see that theinspection laws are properly enforced, and if the measuresare incorrect, the said general measurer and inspector ofoysters shall take possession of the incorrect measures ; andthe inspectors of oysters are authorized, directed and re-quired to arrest any person or persons violating any ofthe provisions of this article. It shall be the further dutyof the general measurers and inspectors of oysters to returnunder oath to the Comptroller of the State annually a com-plete statement of the amount of oysters inspected ormeasured in the city, town or port for which they shall berespectively appointed.

74. Licensed Measurers. No person, after April 8,1908, shall act as a measurer of oysters in Baltimore City,except the general measurer and inspector of oysters, andsuch persons who shall be duly licensed measurers for saidcity. Any person, after April 8, 1908, who shall desire toengage in the business of oyster measurer in BaltimoreCity shall, on or before the first day of September in eachyear, before he undertakes to act as such, first apply to theclerk of the superior court of Baltimore City for a licenseso to do, which license shall be issued upon application, andthe payment to said clerk of a license fee of five dollars andfifty cents, which license shall expire on the first day ofMay of the following year. Five dollars of said fee shallbe by said clerk accounted for and paid over to the State,to be placed to the credit of the oyster fund, and the re-maining fifty cents shall be applied by said clerk to hisown use and fee for issuing said license ; said oyster meas-urers shall also take the usual oath of office, and give bondto the State of Maryland in the penalty of one hundreddollars each for the faithful performance of their duties.

75. Salaries of Oyster Inspectors; Penalties forViolations.; Reports. The general measurers and inspec-tors for Baltimore City shall receive a salary of one hun-dred dollars per month each and all other general meas-urers and inspectors provided for by Section 69 shall re-ceive a salary of fifty dollars per month each, the saidsalaries to be paid only during the oyster season and for


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36those months in which said general measurers and inspec-tors are actually engaged in the performance of the dutiesof their respective offices. Any person who shall violateany of the provisions of Sections 69, 70, 72 to 75, inclusive,of this article, or who shall interfere with the generalmeasurers or inspectors of oysters or the special inspectorsin the discharge of their duties, shall be deemed guilty ofa misdemeanor, and, upon conviction before any justice ofthe peace or court of competent jurisdiction, shall pay afine of fifty dollars and costs, one-half of said fine to theinformer, unless he be an officer under this article, and theother half to the Comptroller, to the credit of the oysterfund. In default of payment of fine and costs, the partyconvicted shall be confined in jail for not more thantwenty days. Each and every inspector shall reportmonthly to the Conservation Commission, or oftener, ifrequired by them, concerning all the oysters which maybe disposed of within his inspection district, and such re-ports shall be a full and complete account of all sales ofoysters that have been made within such districts. TheCommission may at any time for good cause shown suspendor remove any inspector from office.

76. Measuring Oysters. All oysters sold in this Stateshall be measured either in a one-half bushel tub, abushel tub, a bushel and one-half tub, or a three-busheltub, and no instruments shall be used for measuring oystersin the shell but an iron circular tub with straight sidesand straight solid bottom, with holes in bottom for drain-ing, such holes to be no larger, however, than one inchin diameter. A half-bushel tub shall have the followingdimensions, all measurements to be from inside to inside

:

Fifteen inches across the top, thirteen inches across thebottom, and seventeen inches diagonally from the insidechime to the top ; a bushel tub shall measure sixteen andone-half inches across at the bottom from inside to inside,twenty-one inches diagonally from the inside chime to thetop, and eighteen inches across from inside to inside fromthe top ; a bushel and one-half tub shall measure nineteeninches across the top from inside to inside, eighteen inches


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37

across the bottom from inside to inside, and twenty-fourinches diagonally from the inside chime to the top ; a three-bushel tub shall measure twenty-four inches across the topfrom inside to inside, twenty-two inches from inside to in-side at the bottom, and twenty-nine twenty-six-hundredthsinches diagonally from the inside chime to the top; andall oysters measured in the shell, as required by law, shallbe even measure to the top of the tub only. (Penaltiesomitted; see Code.) The measurers or special inspectorsare hereby forbidden to handle or interfere with the oystersin or upon the tub or measure for the purpose of pressing'or pushing down same under penalty of removal from officeand a fine of ten dollars for each offense.

PACKING OYSTERS.79. Packer's License. It shall be unlawful for any

person, firm or corporation to engage in the business ofpacking or canning oysters without first taking out a licenseto engage in such business by application to the clerk ofthe circuit court of the county in which the place of busi-ness of such applicant may be situated, or to the clerk ofthe Court of Common Pleas, if the place of business ofsuch applicant shall be in Baltimore City ; and such appli-cant, at the time such license is issued to him by the saidclerk, shall pay the said clerk the sum of twenty-five dol-lars for such license, and said license shall have effectfrom the first day of September, in the year in whichit may have been obtained, to the tweny-fifth day of April,inclusive, next succeeding; and all said moneys receivedfor said license shall be paid over and accounted for bythe several clerks of courts to the Comptroller of theState, to be placed to the credit of the oyster (now con-servation) fund, as provided by Section 31 of this article.(Sworn weekly statements required of oyster packers andcommission merchants by Act 1916, Ch. 702; see aboveSection 72, paragraph 34, hereof.)

80. Penalties. If any person, firm or corporation shallengage, or attempt to engage, in the business of packingor canning oysters without first obtaining a license, as


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38provided in the foregoing section, he shall be deemedguilty of a misdemeanor, and shall be fined not less thantwo hundred and fifty dollars nor more than one thousanddollars for each offense.

81. Commission Merchant's License; Penalties.Every person or member of a firm, or member of a cor-poration, engaged in the business of selling oysters oncommission shall, on or before the first day of Septemberin each year, take out a license to engage in such businessby application to the clerk of the circuit court for thecounty in which the place of business of such applicantmay be situated, or to the clerk of the Court of CommonPleas, if the place of business of such applicant shall bein Baltimore City; and such applicant, at the time ofissuing such license, shall pay the sum of twenty-five dol-lars; and all said money received for said license shall bepaid over and accounted for by the said several clerks ofcourts to the Comptroller of the State, to be placed to thecredit of the oyster (now conservation) fund, as providedby1 Section 31 ; and if any person, member of a firm ormember of a corporation, shall engage or attempt to en-gage in the business of selling oysters on commission with-out first obtaining a license, as provided in this section,he shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and shall befined not less than one hundred dollars nor more thanone thousand dollars for each offense. (See page 34.)

82. Oyster Gallon Cup. All shucked oysters openedat any oyster house in this State, or any other place whereoysters are opened or sold as a business, or delivered toproprietors of any such oyster house or other place, shallbe shucked by the gallon and not by the can or vessel ofany other name and designation ; and it shall not be lawfulfor the proprietor of any such place to contract with anyperson to shuck or open oysters at any such house or forthe proprietor thereof for the purpose of shipping thesame to the customers of said proprietor otherwise thanby the gallon. The said oyster house, or the proprietorsthereof, may in consideration of the quantity of water con-tained in shucked oysters, use a cup, which is hereby de-


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39clared and determined to be an oyster gallon cup, whichshall contain nine pints and no more, and no other thanthis standard measure or said oyster gallon cup shall beused in said houses or by the proprietors thereof in meas-uring any oysters received by them from the shuckers.Said oyster gallon cup shall be inspected and stamped bythe same officer in the City of Baltimore or in any ofthe counties of the State, as is now required by law to in-spect and stamp measures. (Penalties omitted, see Code.)

83. License Blanks; Worcester County Exempt. Itshall be the duty of the Comptroller to furnish the clerksof the several courts of the State with forms of applica-tions and license and of the reports or returns required bythe preceding sections; and it shall be the further dutyof the Comptroller to furnish all other blanks requiredunder this article. Nothing in this article shall be con-strued to apply to Worcester County as to the taking orcatching of oysters in the waters of the said county.


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40

Part IIIOYSTER CULTURE.(Code, Article 72.)

85. Natural Bars Excluded. Any resident of Mary-land shall have the right to plant and cultivate oysters inthe .waters of this State; such right shall be exercised inthe manner prescribed in the following sections of thisact, and shall be subject to the regulations, provisions andlimitations hereinafter set forth, but no corporation orjoint stock company shall be permitted to lease or take up,or to acquire by assignment, or otherwise, any lands ofthe State for oyster planting or cultivation. All naturalbeds or bars shall be excluded from the operation of thisAct, and no person shall be permitted to plant or cultivateoysters thereupon, or in any way to appropriate the sameto his own use. The term "natural beds or bars" wher-ever used in this act shall hereafter be construed to meanand include all oyster beds and bars under any of thewaters of this State whereon the natural growth of oystersis of such abundance that the public have successfullyresorted to such beds or bars for a livelihood, whethercontinuously or at intervals, during any oyster seasonwithin five years prior to the time of the filing of the ap-plication for a lease of the area in question, or if no ap-plication has been made for a lease of the area in question,then within five years prior to the making of the resurveyunder Section 96-A, or the filing of a petition under Sec-tion 96-B of this act, provided that the actual conditionof the area in question at any time within said respectiveperiods of five years or up to the date of hearing shallbe taken into consideration in determining whether or notsaid area is a natural bed or bar, as above defined.

86. Board of Shell Fish Commissioners of MarylandCreated and Duties Defined. (Text omitted; Boardsuperseded by Conservation Commission of Maryland,which takes over all "functions, discretion, powers andduties" of the former board. In sections following, the


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41name "Conservation Commission" should be substitutedfor "Board of Shell Fish Commissioners."

87. Records. The Commissioners shall keep, at theiroffice in the City of Baltimore, books of record, in whichshall be recorded all leases, assignments and other con-veyances of land to be used for the planting or cultivationof oysters in accordance with this act. A set of clear andsimple forms, for all subsequent conveyances of any kind,shall be prepared by the Board, with the advice of theAttorney-General, and no title shall be vested in any lesseeor transferee of any interest or estate acquired under thisact until the conveyance or conveyances evidencing suchleases or transfers shall have been recorded in the officeof the Board of Shell Fish Commissioners.

88. Surveys. The Board of Shell Fish Commissionersshall, as soon as practicable, after the passage of this act,cause to be made a true and accurate survey of the nat-ural oyster beds, bars and rocks of this State, said surveyto be made with reference to fixed and permanent objectson the shore, giving courses and distances, to be fully de-scribed and set out in a written report of said survey, ashereinafter required. A true and accurate delineation ofthe same shall be made on copies of published maps andcharts of the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey,which said copies shall be filed in the office of the said Com-missioners in the City of Baltimore; and the said Com-missioners shall further cause to be delineated upon copiesof the published maps and charts of the United StatesCoast and Geodetic Survey, of the largest scale one copyfor each of the counties of this State in the waters ofwhich there are natural oyster beds, bars and rocks, allnatural beds, bars and rocks lying within the waters ofsuch county, which maps shall be filed in the offices of theclerks of the circuit courts for the respective countieswherein the grounds so designated may lie. The said sur-vey shall be made by the hydrographic engineer employedby said Board, as provided in Section 86 of this act, actingunder the direction and control of the said Commissioners.The said natural beds, or bars, shall be marked by buoys,which shall be known as State buoys.


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4292. Neutral Zones. The said Board, in defining the

natural beds and bars, shall exercise its judgment liberallyin favor of the natural beds and bars, and allow a reason-able margin of the barren bottoms, rather than encroachon a natural bed or bar. The natural beds or bars shall bebounded by straight lines, even though some portions ofbarren bottoms may thus be necessarily included withinsuch lines. All natural beds or bars shall be surroundedby neutral zones 200 yards wide in the Chesapeake Bayand Tangier Sound, and 50 yards wide elsewhere, to belocated contiguous to but entirely outside of the naturalbeds and bars, which neutral zones shall be excluded fromthe operation of this act, and no person shall be permittedto plant or cultivate oysters thereon or in any way toappropriate the same to his own use; provided that noth-ing herein contained shall affect in any manner leasesactually issued and in force prior to the approval of thisact within such neutral zones.

96-A. Resurveys. The Board of Shell Fish Commis-sioners may at any time hereafter re-survey and re-exam-ine any portion of the areas of the Chesapeake Bay andits tributaries in the State of Maryland for the purposeof correcting surveys theretofore made by them, and ifupon such re-survey the Board shall find that natural bedsor bars have been incorrectly located, they shall preparea revised or amended chart showing the natural bed orbar thus re-surveyed, and shall cause to be marked ordefined as accurately as possible the correct limits andboundaries of such natural bed or bar, and said amendedchart shall be filed in the office of the Board in the Cityof Baltimore within ninety days thereafter, and copiesthereof shall be filed with the clerk of the circuit courtof the county in which or nearest to which the natural bedor bar thus re-surveyed is located ; provided that such re-survey shall in no manner affect leases of a part or all ofthe area re-surveyed, actually issued and in force at thetime of such re-survey, unless the respective lessees thereofshall voluntarily surrender their leases as hereinafter pro-vided, or shall forfeit their leases by non-payment of


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43rentals as, provided in Section 100, or unless the rights, in-terests and properties of the lessees under said leases shallbe acquired by the State by condemnation proceedings in-stituted not later than January 1st, 1915, as provided inSection 96-C. The said Board is authorized to accept vol-untary surrender of leases of any lots within the area thusre-surveyed and found to be natural beds or bars, andto refund to such lessee the rentals and charges theretoforepaid to said Board for the lot or lots surrendered.

96-B. Court Eeview of Disputed Areas upon PetitionFiled Prior to January 1, 1915. (Text omitted, seeCode.)

96-C. Condemnation of Leases on Natural Bars.The rights and interests of lessees under leases outstandingand in force at the time of the passage of this act, coveringareas within the limits of natural beds or bars which maybe established by the re-surveys provided for by Section96-A, or by proceedings taken under Section 96-B, and theoysters belonging to such lessees, located on such areas,shall be condemned by the State of Maryland for the useof the public. The proceedings for the acquisition by theState of the rights, interests and properties of such lesseesshall be that set forth in Chapter 117 of the Acts of 1912and it shall be the duty of the State's Attorney of thecounty in which or nearest to which the areas in questionare located to institute forthwith in the circuit court forsuch county condemnation proceedings in behalf of theState of Maryland against the said lessees or those claim-ing under them, and to conduct said proceedings to afinality in accordance with the provisions of said statute,and the respective circuit court for the counties In whichor nearest to which the areas so condemned are locatedare hereby vested with full power to hear and decidesuch cases, with right of appeal to the parties as pro-vided by said statute. But no such right, interest orproperty shall be divested until the compensation awardedin such condemnation proceedings to the lessees or thoseclaiming under them has first been paid to them by theState of Maryland.


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4498. Crab Scraping Areas. The Board of Shell Fish

Commissioners shall cause an accurate survey of and de-lineation upon the maps and charts aforesaid of all bot-toms of the tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay where grassgrows and it is profitable to scrape for soft-shell or sheddercrabs, and shall have such bottoms properly designated bypermanent objects on the shore, as provided hereinbeforefor natural oyster beds, bars and rocks, which said crab-bing sections shall be exempt from leasing for oysterculture.

100. Leases; Terms; Acreage. After the survey orre-survey provided for herein shall have been completed,it shall be the duty of the Board of Shell Fish Commis-sioners to lease, in the name of the State of Maryland,tracts or parcels of land beneath the waters of this State,whether within the limits of the counties or elsewhere, inthe area to be opened for oyster culture, according tothe provisions of this act ; provided that no tract so leased,if situated within the territorial limits of any county inthis State, shall contain less than one acre of land, and ifsituated in any other place, no tract so leased shall containless than five acres. It shall be the duty of said Board torequire that the tracts so leased shall be as nearly rec-tangular as is convenient. It shall be the duty of thesaid Board to demand from each lessee payment of therent each year in advance. No person shall be permitted,by lease, assignment or in any other manner, to acquirea greater amount of land than thirty acres situated withinthe territorial limits of any of the counties, or five hun-dred acres in any other place ; provided, however, that anindividual may acquire a tract not exceeding one hundredacres of land beneath the waters of Tangier Sound. Leasesof such lands shall be made only to residents of Maryland.The term of such leases shall be twenty years, and theannual rent reserved to the State shall be one dollar peracre for each of the first two years of said term of twentyyears; two dollars per acre for the third year; three dol-lars per acre for the fourth year; four dollars per acrefor the fifth year, and five dollars per acre during the


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45remainder of the term. On and after April 1, 1913, theBoard of Shell Fish Commissioners may lease at a rentalprice which, in their judgment, is a proper one and com-mensurate with the value of the land so leased, any landsubject to the provisions of this act which has not beenapplied for or leased up to that time; provided, however,that no land shall be leased at a less price than twenty-fivecents (25c.) per acre, and the land so leased under thisprovision shall be subject to all other provisions of thisact. If any part of the rent reserved under such leasesshall remain unpaid for more than sixty days after thesame becomes due, such lease or leases may at the optionof said Board be declared void, and in that event the landshall revert to the State and may be leased again in accord-ance with the provisions of this act. The said Board may,at the request of any lessee, if it shall appear equitable soto do, upon cause shown in writing, cancel his lease as tothe whole or a part of the lands leased. The Board ofShell Fish Commissioners is hereby directed to submita plan to the next session of the General Assembly ofMaryland providing' for the assessment of rentals forleased bottoms in accordance with the value of these bot-toms for the cultivation of oysters.

101-2. When Leasing to Begin. Priority to RiparianLand Owner, Then to Oystermen, Then to Public.(Text omitted, see Code.)

103-104. Application Forms Prescribed. Leases to beMade in Order Application Received. (Text omitted,see Code.)

105. Application Fees; Advertisements; Protests;Trials. Any person who may desire to plant and culti-vate oysters in the area hereinbefore designated shall filewith the Board of Shell Fish Commissioners an applica-tion substantially in the form prescribed in Section 103 ofthis act. The applicant, who must be a resident of theState of Maryland, shall indicate plainly the location ofthe land he desires to lease. The application shall be swornto before a justice of the peace of this State. A fee of five

Documents

(1916) Conservation Laws of Maryland Relating to Oysters