OF MASSACHUSETTS. 31 



town forbids its shellfisheries to the inhabitant of neighboring towns, 

 is to-day an important factor. It is fair that a town which improves 

 its own shellfisheries should not be interfered with by a town which 

 has allowed its shellfisheries to decline. While this is true perhaps 

 of the clam, quahaug and oyster, it does not hold true of the scallop. 

 The result of this close-fisted policy has resulted in the past in a great 

 loss in the scallop industry. The town law in regard to scallops is all 

 wrong. The scallop fisheries should be open to all the State, and no 

 one town should " hog the fishing," and leave thousands of bushels to 

 die from their dog-in-the-manger attitude. 



IV. Sectional Jealousy. Another evil, which in the past has been 

 prominent, but is becoming less and less as the years go by, is the 

 jealousy of the north shore v. the south shore, Cape Cod v. Cape Ann. 

 In the past this has been a stumbling block against any advance, as any 

 plan initiated on the south shore would be opposed from sheer prejudice 

 by the north shore representatives, and vice versa. The cry of " entering 

 wedge " has been raised again and again whenever any bill was intro- 

 duced for the good of the shellfisheries by either party. Merely for 

 political reasons good legislation has been defeated. However, the last 

 few years have shown a decided change. The jealous feeling has in a 

 large measure subsided; the shellfisheries need intelligent consideration, 

 and all parties realize that united effort is necessary to insure the future 

 of these industries. 



V. Quahaugers v. Oystermen. On the south shore the worst evil 

 which at present exists is the interclass rivalry between the quahaugers 

 and oystermen. This has caused much harm to both parties, through 

 expensive lawsuits, economic loss, uncertainty of a livelihood, as well as 

 retarding the proper development of both industries. 



VI. Waste of Competition. At the present day the utilization of 

 waste products in all industries is becoming more and more important. 

 In this age material which was considered useless by our forefathers 

 is made to play its part in the economic world. Through science indus- 

 trial waste of competition is being gradually reduced to a minimum, 

 although in any business which deals with perishable commodities, such 

 as fish, fruit, etc., there is bound to be a certain amount of loss. 



Under the present system the shellfisheries suffer from the effects of 

 waste resulting from competition. Both the fisherman and the con- 

 sumer feel the effects of this, in different ways, the fisherman through 

 poor market returns, the consumer through poor service. As long as 

 the shellfisheries are free to all, there is bound to be that scramble to 

 get ahead of " the other fellow," which not only results in the destruc- 

 tive waste of the actual catch, but also causes a " glutted " market, 

 which gives a low return to the fisherman. Thousands of dollars are 

 thus lost each year by the fishermen, who are forced to keep shipping 

 their shellfish, often to perish in the market, merely because the present 

 system invites ruthless competition. The fishermen in this respect alone 



