184 Natural History Bulletin. 



ing a certain degree of spring to the support, so that any sud- 

 den jar to the crate would be greatly lessened before it was 

 communicated to the coral. The effectiveness of this method 

 of packing was demonstrated by the excellent condition in 

 which these large heads arrived at Iowa City, after a journey 

 of about twelve hundred miles by sea and a thousand miles in 

 a freight car. Such specimens as were not too large we 

 packed with hay in barrels, using great care and not permit- 

 ting one specimen to be in contact with another. 



While under way, the alcoholic specimens which had been 

 in the tanks for several da3's were taken out and placed in the 

 pans, which were soldered together, as described on page 56. 

 Two members of the party always attended to this soldering, 

 at which they soon became quite proficient, and it was sur- 

 prising to see the amount of material that could be safely dis- 

 posed of in a couple of hours. The result showed that speci- 

 mens preserved in this way were even safer than those kept 

 in alcohol. Should the alcohol be a little too weak, as is 

 sometimes the case, the specimens are irretrievably ruined. 

 As a matter of fact, none of the material in the pans was 

 injured, save a few^ specimens that w^ere spotted with rust. 



During the whole of our cruise the evenings were delight- 

 ful almost without exception. No matter how hot the day, 

 there was no discomfort from heat in the evening nor during 

 the night. The "dog-watch "' (from six to eight p.m.) was 

 our time for social enjoyment, and then the whole party would 

 usually be seated on the top of the cabin and on the quarter- 

 rail, engaged in singing and storv-telling. The hard work of 

 the day made this evening hour all the brighter, and every 

 one was then good-natured and happy. At such times we 

 w^ere at peace with the world, and often sat late into the night 

 in the stern-sheets or on the "lazy-board," either in quiet con- 

 versation or in silent communion with the spirit of Old Ocean, 

 watching the flashing of the phosphorescence in the wake of 

 the schooner, or listening to the hissing of the waters along 

 the side. Then each would roll up in his blanket and stretch 

 out on the cabin top, gazing upward at the moon or watching 



