160 THE OYSTER. 



upon the public beds shall be prohibited unless the 

 oystermen can convince us that they can be intrusted 

 with this right, without placing our common property 

 or the property of any citizen in peril The question 

 which we should ask them, which they are bound in 

 justice to ask themselves, is whether they are able to 

 give this assurance to the people of the State. They 

 cannot satisfy the community by calling for more laws 

 to keep them within bounds, or by asking for an armed 

 police force to prevent them from destroying their own 

 interests. 



They must satisfy the people that they themselves 

 have enough public spirit to organize themselves for 

 their own government and regulation, and that they 

 have enough self-restraint and forethought and intelli- 

 gent self-interest to provide for the protection and im- 

 provement of the property which is intrusted to them. 

 If they can give the community this assurance, all the 

 people of the State will be on their side and will aid 

 them by all means in their power. The question of 

 immediate revenue to the State will not be considered 

 for a moment, as compared with their prosperity. 



The tongmen and dredgers must acknowledge, how- 

 ever, that as the home consumer of oysters has no 

 right to oppose the commercial business, it is equally 

 clear that the public fishermen have no right to oppose 

 the development of our resources by private oyster 

 culture, unless it destroys their own livelihood. 



So long as they draw on the natural supply without 

 the devotion of any part of their labor or earnings to 



