132 



tlie Bureau of Fisheries m-^y th\is be sold to cover the whole blolog- 

 icfil eoonoRP^ of //nerican seas. 



The fundamental marAne fishery problem is today the estimation 

 of the actual abundance of the stock of fishes in the sea, of the 

 drain to which they are now sub.iected with commercial fisheries, and 

 of the strain w'-ich the:/ Vi/ill safel^," stand. Consequently, the ulti- 

 mate aims of most of the pro.iects undertaken by the Btireau in its 

 marine work must be primarily economic. To reach this goal, however, 

 the only sound route is throu.'-h the study of the biology of the 

 specios in question, which leads far "field into the realm.s of phy- 

 sical and chemical oceanography, as explained more fully in another 

 chapter (Page 67 ). This applies equally to two other groups of 

 problems now facing the 'Burea'a: namely (1) attemipts to explain or 

 to predict the great temporal f luctiiations now known to occur in the 

 stocks of m_any of the most important commercial fisheries: (2) the 

 development of artificial propogatlon for such animals as can be so 

 maintained, --the oyster for example. 



Consequently-, the Eureau must necessarily devote much of its 

 resources to the investigation of what is often called "pure science" 

 concerned with basic problems in the natur'^l eoonom7r of the sea. 

 And the m.ore urgent the practical problems of conservation become, 

 the more im.peratlve will it be for the Eureaii to keep in close touch 

 with all advances in the science of Oceanograph:/, even if limitation 

 of its resources prevent it, as an institiition, from, expanding its 

 own efforts into the fields which at the mioment seem, the more remote 

 from practical ap-^lication, but which the future may prove to be of 

 the m.cst vital importance. 



The allocation by Congress of the funds of the Eureau to certain 

 fixed obiects m.akes it impossible for the B;areau itself to undertake 

 broad oceanographic explorations. And this condition will probably 

 continue because of the imminence of the problems InLmediately vital 

 in the conservation of misrine resources , and of tbe grO'Ving aoprecia- 

 tlon by Congress that these problems must be attacked. 



But it is safe to assume that for as long a period as it is 

 worthwhile to attempt to predict the course of human affairs the 

 Bureau of Fisheries will always be read^,^ to participate, so far as 

 its resources allow, in the oceanographic prcgrr.ms , whether biologi- 

 cal or nhyslcal, of private institutions, or of other governmental 

 bureaux, especially within striking distance of th:) coasts of ^^orth 

 Am.erica. 



There is, in fact, a precedent of long standinr for such coop- 

 eration b"- the Bureau* for instance the cruises of the Albatross in 

 the Pacific under the direction of Alexander Agassiz- the recent 

 exploration in the north-western Atlantic in coopej^ation witli the 

 Museum of Comparative Zoology: the fioint exoedition of the Bureau 

 and of the U. S. Coast and aeodetic Curvey to the oceanic triangle 

 between the United States , Bermuda and the Bahamas In 1914; and the 

 expedition to the Galapagos Islands in the winter ot 1928. 



For man7f years the BureaiT has maintained a sea-going ship cap- 

 able of long-sustained cruises with a well arranged laboratory ful- 

 ly equipped for dredging, towing and other biological work as well 

 as for the ordinary routine observations of temiperature, salinity. 



