INTRODUCTION. Vll. 



Committee have in view. I think all who are engaged in 

 this work feel that it is growing steadily under their hands 

 in every direction. Not only are there many animals 

 and whole groups of animals in our sea still awaiting 

 examination and record, but there are many points of 

 view, the speciographic, distributional, anatomical, physio- 

 logical, embryological, bionomical and others, from which 

 even the best known forms would well repay further and 

 more detailed investigation ; and wider problems such as 

 the association of animals together on particular sea- 

 bottoms and at particular depths, and other questions of 

 bionomics and of oceanography — some of them having 

 important bearings upon Geology and upon Fishery 

 questions — are now opening up before us and pressing 

 for solution. 



We are a small body, the Naturalists of Liverpool, our 

 laboratory at Port Erin is a modest establishment with 

 but scanty equipment, we have no State, County or 

 Municipal subsidies, and our available funds (private 

 subscriptions) are barely sufficient for the necessary 

 expenses of steamers and apparatus in our explorations, 

 and for the publication of our results ; but fortunately 

 there is no lack of work for us to do, work which is 

 interesting in the doing, and work which, if we seek it 

 earnestly and do it honestly, we cannot but beheve will 

 be of value to science, and may, through its connection 

 with the fishing industries, be of direct benefit to mankind. 



W. A. Heedman. 



University College, 



Liverpool ; October, 1895. 



