JOHN WALTER SMITH, ESQ., GOVERNOR.

1101

Sections 255 and 256 shall catch oysters within two hundred
yards of the shore; and the County Commissioners shall
furnish two suitable buoys, and the captain of the police boat
guarding these waters shall keep said buoys anchored on said
line from Bishop's Head Point to Clay Island Lighthouse,
and the use of scrapes or other similar instruments for taking
or catching oysters north of this line are hereby prohibited;
provided, that it shall be lawful for citizens of Dorchester
County to catch oysters with scoops, scrapes or dredges in
the aforesaid waters of said county in boats owned by said
citizens, which were licensed for the oyster season ending
March 15th, 1900, whose custom-house measurement does not
exceed ten and fifty-two one-hundreths gross tons according
to rules of the custom-house measurement, such measurement
to1 be ascertained as is hereafter provided for boats of seven
tons gross tonnage.

Other
regulations.

254. It shall not be lawful for any damaged boat, canoe or
vessel to be employed to catch oysters with scoops, scrapes or
dredges in the waters of Dorchester County, and all timbers
more than five inches in depth used in the construction of
said boat to which her bottom is fastened, or any and all other
materials used to make the space between the ceiling and the
bottom planks over five and one-half inches, and all ceilings
over two inches thick, and any and all materials used between
such ceiling and deck decreasing custom-house tonnage, shall

Unlawful for
damaged
boats, etc., to
be used in
catching
oysters.

be considered dunnage, and the admeasurers to be appointed by
the Governor as hereinbefore in Section two hundred and fifty-
one of this Article providing as amended by the Acts passed
at the January session, nineteen hundred, shall examine and
measure all boats over six tons gross (custom-house measure-
ment), or smaller boats, if in their judgment they have reason
to believe that such boats have been incorrectly measured
prior to the granting by the Clerk of the Circuit Court for
Dorchester County a license to catch oysters with scoops,
scrapes or dredges, and the said admeasurers, acting together,
shall as soon as notified and paid one dollar for each boat and
traveling expenses and cost of certificate and revenue stamps
by the captain or managing owner of such boats, proceed to
examine and measure the same; if after examining and meas-
uring such boat or boats, the admeasurers find that such boat
is under seven tons gross, or under ten and fifty-two one hun-
dredths tons gross, if such boat was licensed to take oysters
with scoops, scrapes or dredges in said waters, for the season
ending March 15th, 1900, and no dunnage in any of said
boats, they shall, under oath, certify to the clerk of said

Admeasurers
appointed by
the Governor.
Duties of.