PREFACE 



WHETHER any book needs a Preface as well 

 as an Introduction is a question that may 

 fairly be debated. But I have ever had a kindness 

 for Prefaces, have, from my earliest acquaintance 

 with books, always read them carefully; and so, 

 although the first part of this book that was written 

 was the Introduction, when all else was finished I 

 felt that I could not let it go forth to the world 

 without a Preface as well. 



There were several reasons why I should write a 

 Preface, not the least of which was that I could 

 now see how far my execution of a pleasant task 

 had corresponded with my desires. Alas ! Upon re- 

 reading that Introduction I feel that I have indeed 

 fallen short of my ideal — that I have done very much 

 less than bare justice to my marine friends, far less 

 than I had hoped. But still, I do feel that in many 

 instances I have been enabled to bring before my 

 readers some first-hand glimpses into that intimate 

 life of the sea which is so little known, and accounts 

 of which may be sought for in vain in natural 



