INVESTIGATIONS OF THE ALBATROSS. Poo 
men do not allow their hooks to reach the bottom, but fish over them, 
as they express it, in order to escape their sting, which soon makes 
their hands sore. An old codfisherman who has spent several seasons 
on this bank said the slime (medusie) became so thick on the bottom 
late in the season that they had great trouble sometimes in lifting their 
dory anchors through it. Dread of handling the stinging cells had as 
much to do with the difficulty, probably, as the weight brought up by 
the rope and anchor. 
We found the bank to extend from the Northwest Cape of Unimak to 
within 10 or 15 miles of Amak Island, embracing depths from 20 to 50 
fathoms, scattering specimens being taken outside of this limit. It is 
about 85 miles in length, with an average width of 17 miles, covering 
an area of 1,445 square miles. The character of bottom as given by the 
lead was generally black sand and gravel, pebbles being frequently 
added, with rocks near shore and mud in the greater depths. 
At 8:20 p.m., June 25, we anchored off Cape Glasenap, or Round 
Point, in 9 fathoms. The weather was foggy during the afternoon, with 
increasing wind, which induced us to seek protection under the land. 
An examination of the entrance to Izenbek Bay developed a bar ex- 
tending from Cape Glasenap to the low island, over which not more 
than 2 fathoms could be carried at low water. A small vessel drawing 
from 8 to 10 feet might find a harbor inside of the cape, but its limits 
would be small, as most of the area is laid bare at low water. A school 
of walruses were playing outside of the surf for hours, but they did not 
come near the ship. Several being seen hauled out on a low protecting 
point of Cape Glasenap, Mr. Townsend landed and attempted to get 
within rifle range, but they were watchful and timid, and, as he was 
obliged to land to windward, soon scented him and took to the water. 
The fog continued next day, but lifted for a few minutes at a time, 
enabling us to see several miles. Being anxious to visit Amak Island, 
we got under way at 1:30 p.m., ran a line of dredging and fishing 
stations along the land for about 10 miles, then across to the island, 
where we anchored at 6 p.m. in 10 fathoms, the extremes of land bear- 
ing S. by E. ? E. and WSW. 2 W. (magnetic). This is a fairly good 
anchorage, with SW. winds. 
Amak Island is of voleanic origin, between 2 and 3 miles in length, 
and about 1,700 feet in height. There are plateaus from 30 to 150 
feet above the sea, extending back 500 or 600 yards from the beach, 
covered with a thick coating of moss, through which rank grass was 
showing. Flowers were beginning to bloom, giving the surface quite a 
cheerful aspect. Near the center was a rugged precipitous mountain 
of dark-brown rock entirely void of vegetation. No life was seen on the 
island, except three or four migratory birds, and it did not prove a prof- 
itable region for the naturalists. The weather was generally overcast 
with fog and mist on the morning of the 27th, but the sun came out 
at intervals. We could not reconcile our runs with the position as- 
