1904.] OF THE HOUSE OF DELEGATES. 2025

oysters, shall have exclusive ownership of and title to
all oysters planted by him or existing on the land
leased.

" Sec. 18. And be it enacted, That no assignment or
transfer of any interest acquired by this Act shall be
valid for any purpose if made to a non-resident of this
State. If any such assignment is attempted to be
made, all interest of the grantor or assignor, shall
revert to the State, as if no lease had ever been made.

" Sec. 19. And be it enacted, That all questions and
disputes arising between any lessees or holders of
estates created by this Act touching the ownership,
title buoys, boundaries, extent or location of any
leased grounds within the area designated by this
Act shall be referred to and decided by the Shell Fish
Commissioner, who is hereby empowered on petition
of any person interested therein, to summon all
the parties in interest, as far as such parties may
be known to him, to appear before him at a time and
place in the summons named, which summons shall be
served by such person as said commissioners may di-
rect. The petition shall contain a sworn statement of
facts is claimed by the petitioner, to which any in-
terested parry may respond by filing a sworn counter-
statement of the facts so claimed by him; and after
hearing all the parties interested, with their witnesses
and counsel, the said commissioners shall make their
decision in writing as soon as convenient thereafter,
and the same shall be final, unless an appeal shall be
taken from such decision within thirty days there
after to the Circuit Court for the county, the county
seat of which is nearest to the land about which said
controversy shall be raised. If two county seats are
about the same distance from the place of said con-
troversy, the appeal may be taken to the Circuit Court
for either of sa:d counties.

"Sec. 20. And be it enacted, That it shall be lawful
for any tonger between the 15th day of April and the
15th day of Jane, in any year, to take oysters from
the natural beds or bars of the Chesapeake bay, and
provided, however, that such oysters shall not meas-
ure less than 2 1/2 inches in shell measurement from