CHAPTER VIII 



THE REPORTS OF THE EXPEDITION; 1842 ONWARD 



Preparation of Three Quarto Reports on the Geology, the Zoophytes, and 

 the Crustacea of the Expedition In Washington and New Haven 

 Difficulties Respecting the Publication of the Reports Letters to 

 Gray Characteristics of the Three Reports. 



FROM this time forward the letters of Dana are of a 

 different character. There are no more tales of 

 adventure in the distant seas, and the confidences of an 

 absent son to his parents are not as frequent as they were, 

 nor as detailed, though they lose nothing in affection. 

 On the other hand, relations were quickly established 

 with the foremost naturalists in America and Europe. 

 For several years more than a decade the absorbing 

 duties of the explorer consisted in the preparation of 

 three voluminous reports entrusted to him. Mr. Dana 

 was first appointed in the field of geology, and his ob- 

 servations and deductions are given in a large quarto 

 volume of 756 pages, with a folio atlas of 21 plates (1849). 

 Later, however, in part because of the return of one of 

 his colleagues to the United States, he assumed charge 

 also of the Crustacea and zoophytes. These combined 

 departments gave full scope to his zeal and industry. 

 The results of his work in these departments of zoology in- 

 clude a Report on Zoophytes, a quarto volume of 741 pages, 

 with a folio atlas of 61 plates (1846); and a Report on 

 Crustacea, in two quarto volumes aggregating 1620 pages 

 (1853) accompanied by a folio atlas of 96 plates (1854). 



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