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1194 JOURNAL OF PROCEEDINGS [Mar. 25,
competent to remedy all defects, and to make any changes
that the necessities of trade might require.
Influenced then by these general principles which I believe
to be sound, I come to the provisions of the bill before us.
The first Section differs from the Act of 1874, chapter 221,
principally, so far as to reduce the license fee of the measurer
of oysters, from ten dollars to five; and the compensation of
the measurer from fifty cents to forty cents per hundred bush-
els. The second Section provides, "that the Governor shall
appoint for the City of Baltimore five persons, to be known
as General Measurers of oysters, for the ports of Crisfield and
Annapolis, each, one person, to be known as General Meas-
urer of oysters; each of the General Measurers of oysters shall
give a bond to the State of Maryland, in the sum of three
thousand dollars, for a faithful performance of his duties; it
shall be the duty of said General Measurer to see that the
licensed measurers properly measure the oysters, and that the
law is complied with; all the licensed measurers shall be
under the control of the General Measurers, and no licensed
measurer Khali measure any oysters unless authorized by said
General Measurer; said General Measurers shall receive a
compensation for the faithful performance of duty, of twenty-
five cents per hundred bushels, to be paid by the seller; no
General Measurer shall act twice in any district, until he has
acted in eveiy district; any person violating the provisions of
this Act shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on
conviction, shall be fined not less than twenty, nor more than
fifty dollars for each offence, and imprisoned, until fine and
costs are paid; and in addition to the aforegoing penalty, for
wilful neglect of duty, or refusing to do his duty, the General
Measurer shall be civilly responsible."
The argument in favor of this provision is, that the parties
who dredge and sell oysters, are entirely at the mercy of the
wealthy packers, who control the licensed measurers, and
great injustice is done in the measurement, to those who can
ill afford to bear it. It appears to we, that even if the facts
are true as stated, such a state of things could not long exist
in an intelligent community, where, certainly one man is as
free to protect his own interest as another. It may be, and
doubtless is true, that there have been many instances in this
trade, where the poor man has become the victim of one who
is rich and unscrupulous, but it can scarcely be possible, that
a whole glass of traders can, be so imposed upon by the oyster
packers, that they can find no remedy or relief, other than a
special law for their protection. Besides, in what way does
this bill relieve them ?
It is claimed that the appointees of the State would be im-
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