SECTION OP^ NAVAL ARCHITECTURE. 97 



luteriiatioual Fisberies Exhibition at London, 1883, or obtained at 

 that exhibition, as has already been mentioned, by exchange. Much 

 of this material, being of a very fragile nature — particularly the rigged 

 models — notwithstanding the great care that was exercised in packing 

 it, was, when unpacked in the spring, found to be more or less out of 

 rei>air. Lacking competent assistance, I was compelled to make the 

 repairs with my own hands, in almost every instance, and it was only 

 by a special etibrt — working late at nights for upwards of three weeks — 

 that it was possible to make even a preliminary installment of the vari- 

 ous objects now exhibited. To get the material into the cases, and else- 

 elsewhere, so that it might be protected from injury, demanded, of 

 course, my first attention, while the matter of classification, cataloguing, 

 and the i)reparation of descriptive labels, could be attended to at a 

 later date, whenever an opportunity might be afibrded. 



I will state here that nearly all of the material sent to London was 

 properly catalogued and descriptive labels of most of the objects were 

 ])repared and printed. After the installation of these models in the 

 Museum, allusion to which has already been made, I attempted to com- 

 plete the entering of the various objects in my department, and also made 

 an effort to prepare a lull set of descriptive labels. Could I have had any 

 assistance in this work, very commendable progress might have been 

 made, and many highly valuable objects would have been so fully re- 

 corded and described as to preserve their identification, which alone can 

 render them of any worth or importance to the Museum. But being al- 

 most wholly without assistance of any kind ; obliged to continue making 

 repairs on the models even after the first installation, and having many 

 other matters on hand which engrossed the greater part of my time, I 

 succeeded in doing only a very small part of the work of cataloguing 

 and writing labels before I was called away to attend to duties that, at 

 the time, imperatively' demanded my attention ; one of which was the 

 collection of material to represent the development of naval architecture 

 in the American merchant marine. A part of this collection has been 

 sent to the World's Exposition at New Orleans, but will ultimately be 

 installed in the National Museum. 



RESEARCHES PROSECUTED UPON MATERIAL BELONGING TO THE DE- 

 PARTMENT. 



For the reasons mentioned in the preceding j)aragraph, it has been 

 impossible to prosecute any research of importance on the material 

 in this department. In the introduction of Section I, " Catalogue 

 of the Collection Illustrating the Fishing Vessels and Boats," &c., ex- 

 hibited by the United States at the International Fisheries Exhibition, 

 London, 1883, I have discussed in a general way the history and de- 

 veloj)ment of the American fishing vessels, and have spoken at length 

 of the introduction and use of steamers in certain fisheries of this c(»nii- 

 try. Brief mention has been made of certain tyjtes of fishing boats 

 and the general collection of api)aratus accessory to rigging fishing 

 S. Mis. 33, pt. 2 7 



