156 REPORTS OlP INVEISTIGATIONS AND PROJECTS. 



pheric electricity observations. Mr. J. C. Pearson having been continuously 

 on sea duty as magnetic observer from January i, 1906, to July 31, 1907, was 

 relieved and assigned to land and shore duty, as elsewhere related, Mr. 

 P. H. Dike being assigned to his place on board the Galilee. Mr. Dike, in 

 addition to taking part in the magnetic work, will undertake the experimental 

 work in atmospheric electricity, for which he has specially qualified himself 

 by work abroad, as stated in last year's report, and by further investigations 

 at Washington. No other change in the personnel took place. 



The cruise from Sitka was to be as follows: Sitka to Honolulu; thence 

 Jaluit, Marshall Islands ; from there to Christchurch, New Zealand ; then 

 return to San Francisco via Easter Island and Callao, Peru. It is expected 

 that the Galilee will complete this cruise about May, 1908. While she has 

 been well suited for the necessary preliminary experimental work, future 

 operations can be conducted more profitably and economically in a vessel 

 specially designed for ocean magnetic surveys, which, because of freedom 

 from magnetic properties, would materially reduce the labor of observing as 

 well as the labor of office reductions. 



The requisite instrumental determinations and comparisons having been 

 completed at the Sitka Magnetic Observatory, the Galilee put to sea once 

 more on August 10, and arrived at Honolulu on August 28, having had a 

 favorable passage. Here the vessel required overhauling and outfitting 

 before continuing the cruise above outlined. After securing the necessary 

 instrumental determinations and comparisons at the Honolulu Magnetic 

 Observatory, the Galilee left Honolulu September 26, and at the end of the 

 fiscal year had reached Jaluit, Marshall Islands, where connection was made 

 with the Galilee observations at this port in 1906. 



The Galilee party is under obligations, for valuable assistance rendered in 

 the instrumental comparisons, to Dr. H. M. W. Edmonds, observer-in-charge 

 of the Sitka Magnetic Observatory, and to Mr. W. F. Wallis, observer-in- 

 charge of the Honolulu Magnetic Observatory, the facilities of both of these 

 observatories having been courteously extended by special authorization of 

 the Superintendent of the U. S. Coast and Geodetic Survey, Mr. O. H. 

 Tittmann. 



The computations have been kept as closely up to date as was possible. 

 The observing party has reached a high state of efficiency and transmits the 

 records of observations with commendable promptness. For example, on 

 September 17, all the records up to the arrival of the Galilee at Honolulu on 

 August 28 were on file at the office in Washington. Furthermore, observa- 

 tions when received in general have been computed and revised by the observ- 

 ing party. Were it not for the troublesome deviation corrections, which 

 can not be determined finally until the close of a cruise, the results could be 

 made ready for publication with little additional office labor immediately 

 upon receipt of the observations. 



