Chap. 225.—An ACT to amend an re-enact section 3292 of the Code of Vir-
ginia, and to repeal an act entitled an act to amend and re-enact subsection
13 of section 2086 of the Code of Virginia, as heretofore amended, approved
February 19, 1918. [H B 165]

Approved March 15, 1922.

1. Be it enacted by the general assembly of Virginia, That sec-
tion three thousand two hundred and ninety-two of the Code of
Virginia be amended and re-enacted to read as follows:

Section 3292. License to take crabs; amount of tax; restrictions
on privilege; display of license numbers and letters —Any resident
of this State desiring to take or catch crabs from the waters thereof
by any of the means hereinafter mentioned, or any person desiring to
engage in the business of buying or marketing crabs for picking or
canning the same in any way, shall pay to the oyster inspector of
the district in which he resides, the following license tax and in-
spector’s fee:

(1) For each person working in any boat in taking or catching
soft crabs with scrapes, or either hard or soft crabs with nets or
ordinary trot lines, two dollars, and an inspector’s fee of fifty cents,
and on patent trot lines, ten dollars and an inspector’s fee of fifty
cents; provided no steam or motor boat shall be used in the taking
or catching of soft crabs; provided further, that it shall be unlawful
for any person to use ordinary trot lines or patent trot lines for the
taking or catching of hard crabs, on planted grounds of private indi-
viduals in the waters of Wormeley’s creek, which flows into the
York river. ,

(2) For each said boat to be used for the purpose of taking or
catching hard crabs with scrapes or tongs, and for each power boat
under thirty-two feet in length used for the purpose of taking or
catching hard crabs with scrapes or tongs, five dollars and an inspec-
tor’s fee of seventy-five cents.

(3) For each power boat over thirty-two feet in length used
for the purpose of taking or catching hard crabs with scrapes, twenty-
five dollars and an inspector’s fee of one dollar.

(4) For each picking or crating house, ten dollars and an in-
spector’s fee of one dollar.

(5) For each canning and packing house, twenty-five dollars
and an inspector’s fee of one dollar.

(6) For each boat used in buying crabs, or for each person or
firm engaged in marketing hard crabs by barrel or crate, five
dollars and an inspector’s fee of fifty.cents; but no person who is
duly licensed to catch crabs shall be required to procure further
license for marketing or shipping his own catch. No scrapes or
dredges shall be used for catching hard crabs between the first day
of May and the first day of December of any year, nor shall it be
lawful for any person to dredge for crabs on the planted grounds of
private individuals, or any of the natural rocks of this Common-
wealth, or to dredge for crabs or clams on any of the public grounds
of this Commonwealth, from which clams are taken by tongers using
ordinary or patent tongs, nor shall any person catch, take. or have
in possession at any time a hard crab, other than one in the peeler
stage, which shall measure less than five inches across the shell from
tip to tip of spike, nor any soft crab measuring less than three inches
from tip to tip of spike nor shall any person take, catch, or have in
possession at any time between the fifteenth day of June and the first
day of September, an egg bearing female crab, known as “spawn
crab,” “sponge crab,” “blooming female crab,” or “mother crab,” or
such a female crab from which the egg or bunion has been removed.

In licensing persons for taking crabs, the oyster inspector shall
cause to be placed upon the starboard prow of such person’s boat the
number of such license in conspicuous figures of not less than five
inches in length preceded in all cases by the number of oyster district
and the letter “C,” and within the “C” the number of persons licensed
on such boat, for example, “4C2 1” means district number four,
license number one, and two persons licensed. Said number and
letters shall be kept displayed during the crabbing season by the
master of the boat. No person shall be authorized under the provi-
sions of this section or otherwise, to locate or maintain any net or nets
in the waters of Hampton Roads adjacent to the county of Elizabeth
City, between Old Point Comfort and Newport News Point, at a
distance of less than three hundred yards from any other stand or
stands. Any person failing to comply with any of the provisions of
this section, or in any way violating the same, shall be fined not less
than ten nor more than two hundred dollars for each offense.

2. An act entitled an act to amend and re-enact subsection thir-
teen of section two thousand and eighty-six of the Code of Virginia,
as heretofore amended, approved February nineteenth, nineteen hun-
dred and eighteen, is hereby repealed.