206 THE OYSTER. 



" Why do they not use larger vessels, and haul the 

 dredge by steam ? " 



** As the amount of the license fee depends on the 

 size of the boat, it is for the owner's interest to use a 

 small vessel and pack it as full of oysters as possible. 

 The use of steamboats is not allowed, and the law re- 

 quires that the dredge shall be hauled by hand." 



" How does it happen that with all your natural 

 advantages the work is so unprofitable ? " 



** Our people have always been taught that our 

 natural beds are inexhaustible, so nothing has ever 

 been done to determine just how many oysters they 

 could furnish each year without injury, and the result 

 is that they have been overworked until they are so 

 nearly exhausted that they no longer furnish a living 

 for the oystermen." 



" I think," said the farmer, " that I begin to under- 

 stand the situation. It seems something like this. 

 As the beds belong to the community, private oyster 

 culture has not been permitted, since it would be a 

 monopoly. Yet the common property of the citizens 

 of the State has been given up to one class of citizens 

 in order that they might have profitable employment. 

 They have not managed their trust wisely, and have 

 brought it so near the verge of ruin that it is no longer 

 attractive to Marylanders, and they have called in the 

 cheaper labor of foreigners. To give these foreign 

 laborers employment the people of the State have not 

 only given up their rights, but have also paid taxes for 

 the support of the navy. This state of things cannot 

 last. What do you propose to do about it ? " 



