258 R. HITCHCOCK ON THE COAST SURVEY AND THE 



It has never been caught with a hook, the reason being that its 

 mouth is so formed that it cannot take one in. 



It has been ascertained that this fish lives at depths of from 70 

 to 150 fathoms on the western border of the Gulf Stream, up as 

 far as the Georges Bank, and this discovery was made by the use 

 of dredges. Not long ago, the fishermen coming in from the Jersey 

 coast and the Georges' Bank, reported that they had found a great 

 number of dead fish floating upon the surface of the water in those 

 localities. The fish were of a kind unknown to them, and the 

 descriptions given differed so much as to make it difficult to say 

 exactly what they were. Professor Baird suggested that they 

 might be tile-fish. The cause of their being found dead in 

 such large numbers is entirely unknown, but it was possibly due 

 to some great commotion in the deeper water, though no such 

 phenomenon has been observed and reported upon. 



You are probably familiar with the facts observed and recorded 

 by the " Challenger " expedition, and therefore I need not refer to 

 them at any length, but the United States Coast Survey have found 

 that in the distribution of temperature on the bottom of the sea, 

 the water lying in a valley is of the same temperature as that of 

 the current of water passing over the top of it. 



The trawls used were made on a somewhat different pattern from 

 those previously in use, having both sides precisely alike, so that it 

 did not matter which side went down first. The dredge employed 

 was one which was introduced by Captain Chester. It is a very 

 ingenious little affair, and the improvements have very greatly 

 increased the value of the instrument. It has an arm extending 

 about three feet, with a simple net placed upon it, so as to be about 

 two feet above the bottom when in use. This is found to collect 

 and bring up to the surface a lot of material which would otherwise 

 escape. 



The greatest depth yet reached was from the steamer " Blake," 

 about 100 miles north of St. Thomas, where they marked 4,561 

 fathoms, and found the temperature to be 36°. 



The accuracy of these results has been occasionally questioned. 

 It may therefore be desirable to explain the method used to obtain 

 them. This was to send down a weight of about 361b., which sank 

 and carried the wire down with it. In this way vertical casts 

 have been obtained, the vessel being still at the time. The line used 

 was fine steel piano wire wound on a drum, which measured just a 



