﻿205 
  

  

  3d. 
  Tlie 
  number 
  of 
  dredgers 
  may 
  have 
  decreased 
  and 
  the 
  

   fertility 
  of 
  the 
  beds 
  may 
  be 
  greatly 
  impaired. 
  

  

  There 
  are 
  no 
  statistics 
  of 
  the 
  oyster 
  iishery 
  in 
  the 
  localities 
  

   under 
  consideration 
  except 
  those 
  collected 
  by 
  myself, 
  and 
  I 
  

   am 
  consequently 
  obliged 
  to 
  put 
  a 
  greater 
  dependence 
  upon 
  

   them 
  than 
  they 
  intrinsically 
  merit. 
  They 
  are 
  necessarily 
  

   somewhat 
  rude, 
  but 
  in 
  the 
  absence 
  of 
  other 
  information 
  they 
  

   can 
  be 
  used 
  as 
  giving 
  some 
  indication 
  of 
  the 
  probable 
  progress 
  

   of 
  the 
  iishery 
  in 
  the 
  two 
  seasons 
  under 
  consideration. 
  

  

  By 
  examining 
  my 
  previous 
  report 
  (Appendix 
  C) 
  it 
  will 
  be 
  

   seen 
  that 
  in 
  thirteen 
  days 
  we 
  counted 
  lo9-> 
  vessels 
  working 
  on 
  

   the 
  various 
  beds 
  in 
  both 
  Sounds. 
  

  

  From 
  our 
  records 
  of 
  the 
  past 
  season 
  I 
  find 
  that 
  the 
  num- 
  

   ber 
  observed 
  by 
  all 
  persons 
  was, 
  in 
  thirty 
  seven 
  days, 
  2275, 
  or 
  

   in 
  187-^, 
  the 
  average 
  number 
  working 
  on 
  each 
  day 
  was 
  122, 
  

   while 
  in 
  1879 
  it 
  was 
  61, 
  or 
  about 
  one-half 
  as 
  many. 
  

  

  Therefore, 
  the 
  small 
  yield 
  of 
  the 
  beds 
  during 
  the 
  autumn 
  

   months 
  of 
  1879, 
  and 
  the 
  small 
  estimate 
  of 
  the 
  yield 
  for 
  the 
  

   year, 
  may 
  be 
  accounted 
  for 
  by 
  the 
  smaller 
  number 
  of 
  vessels 
  

   at 
  work. 
  

  

  As 
  in 
  round 
  numbers 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  oysters 
  estimated 
  as 
  

   taken 
  in 
  1879 
  was 
  about 
  one-half 
  that 
  estimated 
  in 
  1878, 
  I 
  

   think 
  that 
  the 
  previous 
  estimate 
  may 
  be 
  accepted 
  as 
  practi- 
  

   cally 
  correct. 
  

  

  My 
  last 
  advices 
  from 
  Crisfield 
  inform 
  me 
  that 
  there 
  is 
  but 
  

   very 
  little 
  dredging 
  going 
  on 
  in 
  the 
  Sounds, 
  most 
  of 
  the 
  ves- 
  

   sels 
  working 
  in 
  the 
  Bay 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  Potomac 
  River. 
  The 
  

   principal 
  cause 
  assigned 
  for 
  this 
  is, 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  young 
  

   growth 
  on 
  the 
  beds, 
  by 
  which 
  is 
  meant 
  immature 
  oysters 
  

   under 
  two 
  years 
  of 
  age. 
  

  

  The 
  presence 
  of 
  this 
  class 
  in 
  large 
  numbers 
  prevents 
  the 
  

   oysters 
  from 
  fattening 
  rapidly. 
  

  

  Another 
  reason 
  given 
  is 
  that 
  the 
  beds 
  are 
  much 
  broken 
  up, 
  

   and 
  that 
  the 
  returns 
  are 
  very 
  poor 
  for 
  the 
  usual 
  amount 
  of 
  

   labor. 
  

  

  CONCLUSIONS. 
  

  

  My 
  additional 
  experience 
  in 
  the 
  investigation 
  and 
  informa- 
  

   tion 
  collected 
  during 
  the 
  past 
  season 
  has 
  proved 
  that 
  a 
  few 
  

  

  