Report of the Board of Shell Fish Commissioners. 19 
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DREDGING ON LEASED LOTS. 
Section 112 of Haman Oyster Culture Law has been in- 
__ terpreted by some to mean that dredging or scraping opera- 
tions cannot be carried on on lots leased for oyster culture 
situated in districts designated for tonging operations, but 
that planted oysters in such districts can be removed with 
tongs only. 
Other legal authorities, among whom is the present Attor- 
ney-General, are of the opinion that the existing law places 
no restrictions whatever upon lessees of barren bottoms as 
to the time or manner in which planted oysters may be 
gathered.’ If this latter opinion should be sustained by the 
courts there will be no need for further legislation on this 
subject, otherwise the ambiguity of Section 112 should be 
removed. 
 * Much of the barren bottom in Anne Arundel and Somerset 
counties best adapted for oyster culture is located in dis- 
tricts set aside for tonging operations and will not be leased 
for oyster culture until planters are unrestricted in the 
methods to be employed in planting and cultivating oysters. 
Tonging operations, as a method of removing oysters from 
the bottoms on which they grow, are very slow, as may be 
seen by reference to the part of this report (page 14) in which 
the areas are given which it is possible for tongmen to cover 
during a period of one hundred days of eight hours each, and 
it cannot be expected that planters will lease bottoms for 
oyster culture when the entire amount of time which is avail- 
able for the work of planting and cultivation is needed for 
gathering oysters. Planters should be able to place their 
oysters on the market when prices are best and when their 
oysters are in marketable condition and this cannot be done 
when tonging is the only method by which they may be 
gathered. 
The objection raised by oystermen against permitting the 
use of scrapes or dredges on private grounds in tonging dis- 
_tricts is that planted grounds situated near natural oyster 
bars will be made bases from which illicit dredging operations 
will be carried on on the natural bars. 
1See opinion printed on page 146. 
