THE OYSTER FISHERY OF CONNECTICUT. 
473 
that their titles would be secure cultivators obtaiued as much as practicable of what 
was thought to be “ good ground but, because of a limited knowledge of the needs 
of the oyster and of the character of the bottom, many acres of unsuitable ground were 
secured. Much of this was resold to the State in consideration of $1 per acre, under 
the provision made in one section of the act establishing a Shellfish Commission, 
providing for the return to the State, under certain restrictions, of all ground found, 
after a fair trial, to be unadapted to the cultivation of oysters. 
The decrease in area designated annually is due to several causes : The grounds 
held by the State have unavoidably become more and more distant from the fishing 
centers and markets ; the condition of the distant ground is generally less desirable 
than the designated areas; the chance of obtaining a “set” is uncertain, and the 
danger from the starfish is great; it has therefore generally been deemed unwise to 
attempt the improvement of remote areas under such disadvantages. It is believed 
by some that there are yet many acres of unappropriated bottom equally as good as 
much which has been taken up. 
17. Value of oyster grounds . — The present market value of all the private ground in 
the State is about $1,237,695, of which $920,820 is for the cultivated grounds, and 
$136,875 for the unimproved portion. This gives an average value for the former of 
$31.14 i)er acre, and for the latter of $6.46 per acre. 
The value of cultivated grounds varies from $5 to $2,500 per acre, the latter being 
the price for a few acres in New Haven Harbor, where southern oysters are bedded in 
spring to be taken up in the fall. The price paid for this was $1,300 per acre. The 
best grounds lie off New Haven, Norwalk, Stratford, and Bridgeport; those in the 
eastern part of the State are less valuable. 
But values are constantly changing, since localities that are very productive one 
year may be almost worthless the next, on account of being covered with sand, mud, 
etc. The best ground has a clean, rocky, or shell bottom, in a moderate current of deep 
and brackish water, and in the neighborhood of other beds of spawning oysters. A 
muddy bottom causes the oysters to grow fast, but they are liable to suffocation, and 
besides have not so delicate a flavor as those raised on rocky ground. Much of the 
muddy ground has been recently reclaimed by spreading upon it large quantities of 
sand and gravel, but this is a somewhat costly method. Sometimes a bed may be 
slightly lower than the adjacent grounds, thus causing it to receive many oysters 
from adjoining areas, increasing the value of the one at the expense of the others. 
While there may be considerable fluctuation in the value of bottom devoted to oys- 
ter culture, it will be observed that the average is much above that of land used for 
strictly agricultural purposes, while the annual product of the 15,400 acres on which 
there are oysters amounts to about $1,500,000, and this on an area which, 15 or 20 
years ago, was for the most part unproductive. 
18. Taxes . — The State derives a small revenue by a 1 per cent, tax on about a 50 
imr cent, valuation on the grounds under the jurisdiction of the Shellfish Commission, 
while some of the towns collect a uniform tax of 25 cents per acre from the areas within 
their jurisdiction. The State grounds thus cost the holders at first $1.10 per acre, plus 
expense of buoying, etc., and an annual tax averaging about 8| cents per acre. The 
minimum tax collected from a single individual in 1888 was 25 cents; the maximum 
tax on a private holding was $666.33; the total tax amounted to $6,761.83. 
