1882. ] SHELL-FISH COMMISSIONERS’ REPORT. 53 
courteously and promptly granted; and much valuable aid 
has been given to the commissioners in the prosecution 
of their work, especially that of surveying and mapping 
the oyster-grounds. And a government vessel, the Palin- 
urus, under charge of Assistant Gershom Bradford, was 
ordered to Long Island Sound, to co-operate with the com- 
missioners in such parts of their work as came within the 
plans of the coast survey, and which the superintendent 
had had in contemplation to do at some future time. By 
these generous acts, and similar favors at the hands of 
Acting Superintendent J. HE. Hilgard, the work of Engineer 
Bogart has been greatly facilitated and much time, labor, 
and expense saved, to the commissioners and the State. 
The details of the valuable services of Assistant Bradford 
will be found in the Engineer’s Report presented herewith. 
By the time the commissioners were ready to attend to 
applications for grounds, blank forms had been prepared 
by Commissioner Pike, which were submitted to Chief 
Justice Park, and approved by him as provided by the 
third section of the act. Copies of these forms, the appli- 
cation, the notice, the grant or deed, and the assignment are 
hereto appended. 
Record books were also procured and lodged with the 
town clerks respectively of the twenty-four shore towns, 
for recording grants and assignments. Like books of record 
have also been procured for the commissioners’ office, 
pursuant to the requirements of the act. 
In view of the nature of the preliminary work for con- 
structing maps required by the second section of the act, 
it has been pushed as rapidly as could be expected; and it 
is hoped that the large State map will be completed so far 
within the next twelve months as to permit the locating 
thereon of such grounds as have been, or may be hereafter, 
designated. 
As a part of the necessary preliminary work: for the 
maps the records of the several towns have been searched 
for description and ownership of grounds; and it has been 
found that in some instances the papers as recorded are 
defective and incomplete, and in others there is no trace 
