224 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
The situation at present is as follows: Both Maryland and Virginia oystermen 
pursue their calling in any and every part of the river that they may choose outside 
of the tributaries. Even though operating side by side, the Maryland oystermen are 
supposed to work in accordance with Maryland laws, and those of Virginia comply 
with the statutes of that State, this being in accordance with the convention act of 
1884 (ch. 76), which is now operative. The one pays $3 per ton license fee and the' 
other $1 per ton.* The one is expected to cull out and return all oysters under 2£ 
inches in length, while the other may take all he can catch, without regard to size. 
The result is that there is practically no culling regulation in the Potomac; and this 
has had a bad effect upon the enforcement of the cull law in other portions of Mary- 
land. This condition of affairs in the Potomac constitutes a serious obstacle to the 
proper enforcement of the oyster laws of the State. The license laws and the close- 
season regulations, however, are very generally observed in the Potomac. 
The area of this river from its mouth to the southern border of Prince George 
County is 358 square miles. In addition to this, the tributaries situated in the limits 
of St. Mary and Charles counties have an area of 37 and 21 square miles, respect- 
ively, in which only the tongmen of those respective counties are authorized to 
oyster, giving a total of 416 square miles. The area of oyster reefs approximates 42 
square miles in the “State waters” and 7 in the tributaries situated within the 
“county waters.” The average annual product of these reefs is about 1,600,000 
bushels, valued at $700,000, of which about 500,000 bushels are obtained by the 
oystermen of Virginia. About 150,000 bushels of these oysters are annually marketed 
at Washington, D. C., but the majority are sold at Baltimore. From this river come 
the famous “Kettle Bottoms,” the largest oysters produced in Maryland. 
“ Bay -shore grounds .” — The Bay-shore grounds are situated on each side of the 
Chesapeake Bay outside of the tributaries previously mentioned, and extend from 
Pool Island to the Potomac River on the Western Shore, and from Worton Point to 
Smith Island on the Eastern Shore. The reefs are found in all depths of water up to 
45 feet, and are almost continuous along the shore, excepting in the northern portion 
of the bay, and in some places are 1| miles in width. The total area of these reefs 
approximates 116 square miles, of which 14 are situated within the county limits of 
Anne Arundel, which, together with 23 square miles located about Tally Point, Sandy 
Point, Hackett Point, Thomas Point, Holland Island Bar, Swan Point Bar, Plum 
Point, and Poplar Island, are reserved for the tongmen, leaving 79 square miles for 
the use of the dredgers. The annual product from these grounds during the last five 
seasons has averaged about 3,025,000 bushels, valued at $1,522,000, of which about 
1,850,000 bushels, valued at $940,000, were obtained by the dredgers, and 1,175,000 
bushels, valued at $582,500, by the tongmen. 
The oysters obtained from these reefs, particularly those caught by dredges from 
the Anne Arundel shore to Point Lookout, are among the finest in Maryland, and are 
usually sold at the highest market price, being nearly always large and fat. The 
product from the bay shores has fluctuated very much during the last eight years, 
during some seasons the quantity obtained being almost twice that of the succeeding 
year. This was true of the seasons 1888-89 and 1889-90, and the quantity obtained 
since the former season has been very light compared with the extent previously. 
Because of the depth of water and the extent of the area along the bay shores, the 
* The dredging license fee in Virginia is 50 cents per ton per month, but vessels in that State 
usually dredge only about two months each season. 
