THE "ALBATROSS" PHILIPPINE EXPEDITION 



In 1907 the President of the United States authorized and directed 

 the assignment of the steamer Albatross of the United States Bureau 

 of Fisheries to a survey of the aquatic resources and fisheries of the 

 Philippine Islands. This investigation was undertaken partly at the 

 request of the insular government and partly in pursuance of a plan 

 that had been under consideration in the Bureau of Fisheries for 



some years. , 



The vessel, which, as formerly, was manned by naval officers and 

 crew was under command of Lieut. Commander (later Commander) 

 Marbury Johnston from September 25, 1907, to June 10, 1908, and 

 Lieut. Commander C. M. McCormick from June 10, 1908, to the end 



of the cruise. 



The civilian staff of the vessel consisted of: 



Hugh M. Smith, deputy commissioner of fisheries, director of 



the expedition; 

 Frederic M. Chamberlain, resident naturalist; 

 Lewis Radcliffe, general assistant and naturalist; 

 H. C. Fassett, fishery expert; 

 Paul Bartsch, zoologist, representing the United States National 



Museum ; 

 Clarence E. Wells, assistant and clerk. 



The Albatross left San Francisco, Calif., October 16, 1907 and, 

 after making short stops at the Hawaiian, Midway, and Guam Islands, 

 reached Manila November 28, 1907. During the next two years the 

 vessel was actively engaged in the survey, with the exception of 

 several months spent at Hong Kong in 1909 undergoing extensive 

 repairs necessitated by hard and continuous service. The work was 

 performed by a series of cruises to different parts of the Philippine 

 Archipelago and adjacent waters, with Manila as a base for supplies 

 and for the storage of collections. # , .. . w-; 



After several months spent in operations in the vicinity of Manila 

 Bay, the Albatross made three extensive cruises to the southward 

 during February to June, 1908. One cruise was along the southwest 

 side of Mindanao and thence through the Sulu Archipelago to the 

 most southerly islets of the Philippines, and extended as far as San- 

 dakan in British North Borneo. The second cruise was to the central 

 group of islands of the Philippine Archipelago and included Panay, 

 Negros, Cebu, Bohol, Leyte, Samar, Masbate, and Marinduque. The 



