OYSTERS. 915

of the permit issued, shall be returned by said officer to the commander of
the State Fishery Force of Maryland, if said officer be a Maryland official,
or to the secretary of the Commission of Fisheries of Virginia, if said officer
be a Virginia official, to be filed by him in his office. Blank forms for such
oath and permit shall be furnished to the respective oyster inspectors, and
the respective captains of the oyster police boats, by the Comptroller of
Maryland and the Auditor of Public Accounts of Virginia. For adminis-
tering said oath and issuing said permit, the inspector or officer issuing
same shall be entitled to receive from the applicant a fee of twenty-five
cents. The owner or master of any boat or vessel found carrying or buy-
ing such seed oysters without such permit shall be fined not less than twen-
ty dollars nor more than one hundred dollars. Any owner or master of
any boat or vessel violating the provisions of this Section by buying or car-
rying or knowingly selling such seed oysters to be carried elsewhere, or for
any other purpose than to be planted in the waters of Maryland or Vir-
ginia, shall be fined not less than one hundred dollars nor more than one
thousand dollars, and in addition thereto the boat or vessel so used shall,
with its cargo and equipment, be forfeited to the State wherein such of-
fender is convicted; provided, no permit shall be granted to any person
engaged in taking or catching, buying or carrying seed oysters or having in
his possession oysters measuring less than three inches from hinge to
mouth, who shall have any scoop, scrape or dredge or any part thereof, on
any boat or vessel to be used in taking, buying or carrying seed oysters,
and it shall be the duty of the officer who issues said permit to first inspect
said boat or vessel and satisfy himself that no such appliance is on said
boat or vessel before he issues any permit; and any person who shall have
any scoop, scrape, or dredge, or any part thereof, on any boat or vessel en-
gaged in catching, buying or carrying seed oysters or oysters measuring
less than three inches from hinge to mouth, and any owner or master of
any boat or vessel violating the provisions of this section by having any
scrape, scoop or dredge or any part thereof on any boat or vessel engaged
in taking, catching, buying or carrying seed oysters shall be fined not less
than two hundred and fifty dollars not more than five hundred dollars, and
in addition thereto, the boat or vessel so used with its cargo and equipment
be forfeited to the State wherein such offender is convicted. ¹

1931, ch. 517.

75A. It shall be unlawful for any person to take or catch oysters from
the Potomac River by means of a dredge or scrape, or any instrument other
than ordinary shaft or patent tongs at any season of the year. Any person
violating the provisions of this section, upon conviction thereof, shall be
confined in the penitentiary for not less than one year nor more than three
years, or may be confined in jail not exceeding one year, and fined not less

¹ Sec. 2 of ch. 476 of the acts of 1927 repealed all laws inconsistent therewith to
extent of inconsistency, and sec 3 provided: "That upon the taking effect in the State
of Virginia of the provisions described in this act, the Governor of Maryland shall
issue his proclamation declaring the provisions of this act to be effective. "