1130 MISCELLANEOUS. 



EXTRACTS FROM REPORT ON THE PRINCIPAL FISHERIES OF 

 THE AMERICAN SEAS; BY LORENZO SABINE.* 



CUSTOM-HOUSE, BOSTON, 

 Collector's Office, December 10, 1852. 



SIR: I transmit herewith a report on the fisheries, by Lorenzo 

 Sabine, esq., which he has prepared for the department. 

 I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 



P. GREELY, Jr., 



Collector. 

 Hon. THOMAS CORWIN, 



Secretary of the Treasury, Washington, D. C. 



FRAMINGHAM, December 6, 1852. 



SIR: I submit herewith the report which I have prepared, in ac- 

 cordance with your instructions of the 2d of February last. 



More than twenty years have elapsed since I formed the design of 

 writing a work on the American fisheries, and commenced collecting 

 materials for the purpose. My intention embraced the whale fishery 

 of our flag in distant seas; the fisheries of our own coasts, lakes, and 

 rivers, as well as those which we prosecute within British jurisdiction, 

 under treaty stipulations; and the fisheries of the Indian tribes within 

 the limits of the United States. That a part of my plan has now 

 been executed, is owing entirely to the interest and zeal which you 

 have manifested in the undertaking. 



Our first interview upon the subject was caused by a communication 

 to you from the Treasury Department, in which the Secretary con- 

 veyed a request that a report of limited size should be furnished from 

 your own office. During our conversation, you expressed a desire to 

 look over my collection of documents and state-papers, and they were 

 accordingly deposited with you for examination. On returning them 

 to me, you were pleased to give a favorable opinion of their value, and 

 to say that you would at once suggest and recommend to Mr. Corwin 

 the expediency of employing me to write a paper somewhat more 

 elaborate than he had contemplated. 



Subsequently, you announced to me that the Secretary promptly 

 adopted your views, and submitted the whole matter to your discretion. 

 I undertook the task with all my heart, and with a determination to 

 complete it, if possible, in a manner to meet the expectations of the 

 department and of yourself. It is finished. Whatever the judgment 

 pronounced upon it, I have still to express my grateful acknowledg- 

 ments to Mr. Corwin for the kindness which has allowed the partial 

 gratification of a long-cherished wish, and to you for the original sug- 

 gestion, for your countenance, your sympathy, and your personal 

 supervision. 



If I may venture to hope that, as the result of my labors, an impor- 

 tant branch of national industry will hereafter be better understood and 



* All footnotes printed with these extracts are as they appear in the original report. 



