2018 JOURNAL OF PROCEEDINGS [Apr. 4

tended to apply to all land where oysters grow natur-
ally in such quantities as to justify a person or
persons in resorting to it regularly for a livelihood.

"Sec. 3. And be it enacted, That this Act is not in-
tended to apply to any lands owned by private persons,
the bounds of which extend into or beneath the waters
of this State; neither is it intended to affect in any
manner the rights of any person who may have here-
tofore planted oysters in accordance with any existing
law of Maryland. This Act shall not be so construed
as to apply to any creek, cove or inlet, less than one
hundred yards in width at its mouth at low tide.

"Sec. 4. And be it enacted, That the Board of Shell
Fish Commissioners of Maryland is hereby created.
There shall be three of said commissioners, one of whom
shall be a resident of the Eastern Shore, another, a
resident of one of the counties of the Western Shore,
and the third, a resident of Baltimore city. The term
of the members of said Board shall be two years, reck-
oning from the first Monday in May after they are
appointed. They shall be appointed by the Governor
of Maryland with the advice and consent of the Senate
if in session and without said advice and consent if not
in session. The acts and duties to be done and perform-
ed by said commissioners under this Act may be done
and performed by two of said commissioners, and in nil
cases the decision of a majority of said commissioners
shall be binding. One of said commissioners, shall be
designated by the Governor as the Chief Commissioner
and his salary shall be $2,500 a year. The salary of
each of the other commissioners shall be $2,000 a year.
The commissioners shall be allowed to employ a chief
clerk upon a salary of $1,200 a year and such assis-
tants, not exceeding six in number of graded salaries,
to be named by the commissioners, not to exceed $1,000
a year for any of such assistants, as they deem neces-
sary to aid them in the proper performance of their
duties as prescribed in this Act. They shall also be
allowed to employ a competent surveyor, who shall
also be a hydrograpliic engineer, upon a salary to be
named by said commissioners, not exceeding $2,500 a
year. All salaries, outlays and disbursements author-