DEPARTMENT OF MARINE BIOLOGY.^ 



Alfred G. Mayor, Director. 



Themajorobjective of theyearhas been an expedition to complete the 

 intensive study of the reefs of American Samoa which we commenced 

 in 1917. In this connection it is a privilege to express our gratitude 

 for many acts of kindness and interest on the part of Commander 

 Wan-en Jay Terhune, U. S. Na\y, governor of Samoa, who gave the 

 Du-ector the opportunity of visiting Rose Atoll, which no man of 

 science had seen since 1839. We are also indebted to Mr. Herbert 

 H. White, president of the South Seas Pacific Company, who kindly 

 permitted the members of our expedition to occupy the commodious 

 warehouse of this company at Pago Pago and use it as a laboratory. 



It is also a pleasure to speak of the kindness of Professor T. C. Frye 

 in granting the facilities of the Friday Harbor Laboratory on Puget 

 Sound for the use of Professor A. L. Tread well, while he was engaged 

 in the study of annelids on the Pacific Coast. Also, Rev. C. J. Kin- 

 nersiey, of Leone, Tutuila, who was so kind to Professor Daly in 1919, 

 again rendered effectual aid to our expeditions in 1920 by entertaining 

 Professors Treadwell and Setchell. 



Due to the generous interest of Coleman Wall esq., curator of the 

 Fiji Museum, we were presented with excellent fossils from the elevated 

 reef at Walu Bay, Suva Harbor, now about 60 feet above tide-level. 



Official sanction was kindly granted to the expedition by a letter of 

 recommendation from Hon. Frankhn D. Roosevelt, Assistant Secretary 

 of the Navy, to his excellency the governor of Samoa. 



On September 9-10, 1919, the center of the most violent hurricane 

 yet recorded by the Key West Weather Office swept over Tortugas, 

 Florida. The wind was especially severe between 12 p. m., September 9, 

 and 2 a. m. September 10, the anemometer breaking at 92 miles per 

 hour, but the maximum velocity was estimated at about 120 miles. 



The barometric gradient was about 1.5 inches in 30 miles, this being 

 the steepest yet observed in the Florida region. Thus, according to 

 H. B. Boyer, meteorologist of the U. S. Weather Bureau, the lowest 

 barometer at Key West was 28.83, while at Rebecca Shoal Light- 

 house it was 27.68 and at Tortugas 27.57. The two dock-houses, 

 dock, wind-mill, and old laboratory building at Tortugas were so 

 seriously damaged as to necessitate reconstruction, but the main 

 laboratory, building-shop, and pumping-station escaped without seri- 

 ous injury. Temporary repairs to secure the property from further 

 deterioration were made at once, but owing to the unprecedently high 

 cost of materials and labor, it was deemed inadvisable to open the 

 laboratory in the spring of 1920, but instead we completed the in- 



' Situated at Tortugas, Florida. 



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