24 



No oysters were fouud on tlie soft bottoms east of the beds. Those scattered to the westward 

 were large and of good quality. Very few young and fewer drills were found; where the groups 

 were encountered in a few cases, a moderate number of the oysters were "young growth," but gener- 

 ally there was a marked absence of that class. Sponges were found on the sand in moderate 

 quantity. The number of oysters to the square yard, the mean of fourteen observations, was 0.1i7. 

 The number on the area occupied by scattered oysters, the mean of twelve observations, was 0.03. 



PauVs Bed. — This bed lies on the western side of the channel, opposite the mouth of the Little 

 Annemessex River. It is south of the Terrapin Sands and north of a bed called the Woman's 

 Marsh, with which it is connected. It is similar to the latter bed, being broken in many places by 

 mud and sand sloughs, and with the oysters growing in groups and patches. Its area is 7(5."), 000 

 square yards. The depth of water over the bed is from 14 to 10 feet. The bottom is generally of 

 sand, but many mud sloughs were found. No specimens were obtained from this bed, but the 

 oysters are probably similar to those found on the Woman's Marsh Bed, which will subsequently 

 be described. 



Between Paul's Bed and the Terrapin Sands, on the area covered by the broken lines, very few 

 oysters are found, and on the eastern side of the channel, between Harris' Bed and the bed off 

 Jane's Island Light-House, none at all, presumably on account of the character of the bottom, 

 which is soft, shifting sand. 



Bid oft Jane's Island LUjht-House. — To the northward of the channel into the Little Anne- 

 messex River, and to the eastward of the channel of the Sound, there is a bed extending from the 

 channels to and over the shoal about the lighthouse off Jane's Island. It comprises an area of 

 1,800,000 square yards, and is unbroken except about its southern and western boundaries, where it 

 joins the channels. The depth of water is from 17 to 47 feet, the deep water being found on the 

 western edge and the shoal water in the vicinity of the light-house and shoal extending from it to 

 the westward. The oysters were unevenly distributed and were in largest numbers about the cen- 

 tral portion of the bid in 'A\ and 4 fathoms water. Along the edges of the bed where it is broken the 

 oysters are scattered in groups and are in smaller numbers. The bottom is hard and of sand aud 

 shells, except near the channels, where some mud was found over the hard stratum. West of the 

 bed there is soft mud and cast of it hard sand. The oysters were single or in clusters of two or 

 three, the single oyster of moderate size predominating. The young were no more evenly distrib- 

 uted than the mature oysters, large numbers existing on some parts of the bed, and very few on 

 others. Those parts farthest from the channel appeared to have the largest proportion of young 

 to mature oysters. A few sponges and some grass were found on the northern part of the bed. 



The Great Rock. — On the eastern side of the Sound off Great Fog Island, and south of the 

 channel into tin; Little An neinessex River, lies the largest oyster bed in either Tangier or Poco- 

 moke Sound. It is called the "Great Rock," and comprises an area of 8,505,000 square yards. Its 

 greatest length is 3% miles, and its greatest width, 1^ miles. It is irregular in shape, and about two- 

 thirds of its length to the southward it is divided into two portions. Originally these portions 

 were widely separated, but, through the action of natural causes and the dredges, each portion has 

 been extended until where the bottom was hard they have become united, and probably in the 

 course of time the union will be more complete. The depth of the water over the bed cau be seen 

 by referring to the chart. The inner limit of the northern and larger bed is approximately indi- 

 cated by the 3-fathoin curve, aud as no oysters were fouud in deeper water than 8 fathoms, the 

 depth of water over the bed is, therefore, within those limits. Generally speaking, the deepest 

 water is over the lower part of the larger portion. The inner limit of the smaller portion of the bed 

 is not as well defined as that of the other, aud some of the oysters on this area are found in 2 

 fathoms of water, and on and about the 2-fathom shoal off Great Fog Island; The muddy bottoms 

 of the main channel lying in from 5 to 9 fathoms of water define the western limit of the bed, and 

 a deep mud slough which separates it lrom the bed off Jane's Islaud Light forms the northern 

 boundary. 



The northern and western portions of the bed are somewhat broken, the oysters growing in 

 groups, which decrease in size aud number as the edge of the bed is approached. Similarly towards 

 the eastern aud southern limits the oysters begin to scatter in groups aud singly, but the main bed 

 may be considered solid, only a few mud sloughs and sand spaces of inconsiderable area existing in 



