205 
3d. The number of dredgers may have decreased and the 
fertility of the beds may be greatly impaired. 
There are no statistics of the oyster fishery 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 fishery in the two seasons under consideration. 
By examining my previous report (Appendix C) it will be 
seen that in thirteen days we counted 1595 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 187c, 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 antumn 
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 w T as 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 Biver. 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~ 
