THE CRAB INDUSTRY OF MARYLAND. 423 



each, an average durino- the season being about li cents. In buying, 

 the dealer often counts three small crabs as two large ones, or two 

 small as one large one, according to the size. 



Si!jj>plt/.— There has been no very material change in the catch of 

 crabs throughout the region, except a slight increase due to the greater 

 number of crabbers each year. In 1901 at Crisfield and vicinit}' the 

 catch was light, while at Deal Island, Holland Island, and neighboring 

 localities this w^as the most profitable season known. In 1902 the 

 catch of crabs was small throughout the state. The fishermen attrib- 

 uted this to the .-severe winter of 1901-2. It is claimed by the resi- 

 deijts of Deal Island that up to about 1882, when crabbing for market 

 was begun there, it would take a fisherman a day to catch enough crabs 

 for use as bait for line-fishing the next day. 



There are no legal restrictions imposed upon crabbing in Maryland 

 either as to the size of the crabs, or the season in which they can be 

 ^aken. Dorchester is the only county in which a license is required, 

 a fee of $2.50 being charged for the privilege of scraping. No license 

 is necessary for scoop-netting. 



Manj^ fishermen are of the opinion that scraping for crabs over 

 oyster grounds is of material benefit to the latter, as mud would settle 

 on the oysters and would smother them unless removed by the scrapes; 

 also, spat would be prevented from settling on the shells. The crab- 

 ber regards scraping as a method of cultivating oyster grounds. 



The early history of the crab industrj^ of Crisfield may not be 

 uninteresting as given in the words of Capt. John H. Landon, the 

 first and oldest living crab shipper of this toy»'n. 



When I first began crabbing in Crisfield I could catch over ten dozen crabs in a 

 day with a scoop net. We did not know what to do with them. There were only 

 ft wo firms that handled them at that time, one in New York and one in Philadelphia. 

 It was in 1873 or 1871 that the first shipments of crabs were made from Crisfield. 

 These were consigned to the firm of John Martin, in Philadelphia, and were shipped 

 on commission. Sometimes they would bring 60 cents a dozen, and at other times 

 §1. The price now is kept down by the great comiDctition among the crab buyers, 

 who make such low rates in their contracts with firms in the cities. There was no 

 trouble at first in selling onr crabs, as the men to whom we shipped were pretty well 

 posted, but we had considerable trouble in extending the trade, as many j^eople 

 thought the crabs were poisonous and had a very poor opinion of the crabbers as a 

 set. Soft crabs were eaten in Crisfield sometime before there was anj^ thought of 

 shipping them to the cities. A few were at first sold to express agents and railroad 

 employees. These men would take them to friends or sell them to game dealers in 

 Philadelphia, which may account for the fact that Mr. Martin, to whoih the first 

 shipments were made, was familiar with their edible quality. 



The boxes in which the crabs were first shipped were very heavy, \^ hich made the 

 express charges high. That was one of the mistakes that the shippers made. We 

 had considerable trouble in getting the crabs to market, as we did not use ice in those 

 days, at least for the first two years. The re.sult was that we would lose about one- 

 half of the crabs before they reached the market. Mr. Martin was the first to sug- 

 gest the use of ice. We fitted up a very nice box in w'hich to ship them in ice, but 

 it proved to be too expensive. It had trays, as at present, but was much heavier. 



