8 3 



creeks — tiny reefs of dead shells encompassed by vast 

 expanses of soft mud ; I fear the level of these reefs has 

 been so reduced by the spoliation of the oystermen that 

 the mud around is covering up and fouling- the greater 

 part of the available cultch and that even if oyster spat 

 be present in the water of the creeks it may be lost for 

 want of clean surfaces for its attachment. Hence the 

 need for man to come to nature's help and among other 

 measures to ensure that the area occupied by clean cultch 

 shall be increased. It will probably be found necessary 

 also to introduce quantities of mother-oysters from out- 

 side localities to provide the supplies of spat needed to 

 re-populate the exhausted beds. 



Kutch has been linked with Sind as the other Indian 

 locality where the State has exercised some control over 

 the edible oyster trade. In this case it has been restricted 

 to the imposition of a gradually increasing export tax 

 upon each boat load of oysters collected for the Karachi 

 market on the Kutch coast. For some years previous to 

 1904, the rate levied was Rs. 15 per boat load. In 1904, 

 it was raised to Rs. 50 as the Kutch Durbar, fearing that 

 their beds should suffer the fate of exhaustion which had 

 fallen upon those of Sind, decided to endeavour to 

 diminish the drain on their beds by this heavy increase 

 in the export charge. The Karachi oyster merchants 

 endeavoured to evade the effect of this increased levy 

 by despatching boats of greater capacity, and the Kutch 

 Durbar has had, I understand, to double the charge, 

 which when last I heard, was understood to be Rs. 100 

 per boat load. In view of the risks of the voyage from 

 Kutch to Karachi, this is well nigh prohibitive and so 

 \\hile the Kutch authorities may be conserving their 

 beds they are burking the oyster trade of their State. 



Before I leave this portion of my subject, it is neces- 

 sary to state that the mode of occurrence and the habits 

 of the Sind oysters approximate very closely to those 

 typical of oyster-patches in the muddy backwaters of 

 the Madras coasts. One description will serve for both 

 localities, although the oysters themselves appear to 

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