OF MASSACHUSETTS. 145 



oyster culture. The depth of water over the grants varies from dry 

 to 6 feet at low tide. 



Records show that a natural oyster bed once existed in Oyster Pond, 

 as in 1802 " excellent oysters, but scarce," were reported. Even now 

 old shell heaps are found, which contain extremely large oyster shells, 

 and indicate that the Indians used these oysters for food. Indeed, 

 the name, Oyster Pond, was given long before grants were issued, 

 and doubtless received this name because of these natural oysters. 



No natural oysters remained in 1877, when the first grants were 

 issued to George S. Atwood, John Vanhise, Jonathan Small, Stephen 

 Gould and Frank Lanpier. The last three named held together one 

 grant in Oyster Pond River; Atwood's grant was in Oyster Pond; 

 while Vanhise's grant was partly in Oyster Pond and partly in Stage 

 harbor, where oyster culture was a failure. The planting was not very 

 successful at first, owing to a lack of proper methods. 



These grants were issued in 1874 for a term of twenty years. The 

 next series of grants were issued for ten years, and in 1893 the first 

 grants were renewed for the same length of time. Since the pei'iod 

 of the twenty-year grants there have been two ten-year leases, and 

 the present leases will expire in 1911. 



A town regulation restricts the oyster grants to the southern waters 

 of the town, and allows no grants to be given in the waters of Pleasant 

 Bay, where there is considerable territory which might be suitable for 

 oyster raising. As all the available territory is now taken up in Oyster 

 Pond, no more grants can be issued. 



The method of obtaining a grant by a resident of the town is to 

 choose the locality, stake out the grant and report the same to the 

 selectmen, who will grant a license if the bounds are satisfactorily 

 described, and no part of another grant is included. The price of the 

 license, which runs for a period of ten years, is $2, and 50 cents is 

 charged for recording it. No regular survey of the grant is made. 

 Taxes are paid yearly on stock and working capital. 



Capital invested, $26,533 



Power boats, ........... 1 



Value of power boats, ......... $300 



Sail boats, 2 



Value of sail boats, •> $500 



Dories and skiffs, .......... 8 



Value of dories and skiffs, . . . . • • • $105 



Scows, 12 



Value of scows, $790 



Implements: — 



Dredges, ........... 10 



Tongs, 34 



Value of implements, ......... $313 



Value of shore property, ......... $1,225 



Value of oysters on grant, ........ $23,300 



