Tisbury selectmen have ordered a comprehensive report into operation of the town police force, driven by internal conflicts which this week forced Chief John Cashin from his job.

Mr. Cashin stepped down from the position on Wednesday, less than a week after he labeled his department dysfunctional and accused selectmen of undermining his authority with the force.

His departure, engineered at two extraordinary meetings of the selectmen on Friday and Monday, came two and a half months before the expiration of his three-year contract.

Paul Bagnall has seen many cuts, the trenches of sand dug to connect pond and ocean, but they’re all a little different.

As shellfish constable Mr. Bagnall oversees the opening of Edgartown Great Pond between three and five times a year. The opening resalinates the pond, purges nutrients and allows shellfish to thrive. It also fills the pond with herring and striped bass, much to the delight of local fishermen.

Hope for an ailing Island commercial fishery was on the menu at the Home Port restaurant in Menemsha Wednesday night, along with some hearty chowder and fresh herb-crusted swordfish.

Most of the Island fishing community was on hand for the first annual meeting of the Martha’s Vineyard Dukes County Fishermen’s Association, along with representatives from Cape Cod and Maine.

Tommy Osmers’s behavior at the benefit function thrown for him last Sunday night belied the dire state of his health. He cruised the party, chatting, joking and checking out the women. He danced, played a little boogie woogie piano, and even used the occasion to give a little talk on the state of the marine environment.

“I was charged right up,” he said a few days later. “I don’t think I looked a sick man.”