Horace Harmon Lurton

“ Whatever power the several states had before the Union was formed, over the navigable waters within their several jurisdictions, has been delegated to the Congress, in which, therefore, is centered all of the governmental power over the subject, restricted only by such limitations as are found in other clauses of the Constitution. ”

“ If the public right of navigation is the dominant right, and if, as must be the case, the title of the owner of the bed of navigable waters holds subject absolutely to the public right of navigation, this dominant right must include the right to use the bed of the water for every purpose which is in aid of navigation. This right to control, improve, and regulate the navigation of such waters is one of the greatest of the powers delegated to the United States by the power to regulate commerce. ”

“ The single question, therefore, is whether the deepening of the channel across the bay, in the interest of navigation, with the incidental consequence to the oyster plantation of the lessee company, is a taking of private property which may be enjoined unless provision for compensation has been made.
The cultivation of oysters upon the beds of the shallow waters of bays and inlets of the sea, and of the rivers affected by the tides, has become an industry of great importance. ”