INVESTIGATIONS OF THE ALBATROSS. Pag 
with the 30-fathom curve. It enters Monterey Bay a little over 9 miles 
south of Santa Cruz, and Jeaves the southern side of the bay abruptly. 
The bottom food-fishes inhabiting this extensive area do not differ 
much from those found farther north, either as to species, quantity, or 
quality. Many rich spots occur as feeding-grounds for the various 
kinds of rockfish and other important species, but there are abundant 
muddy depressions where nothing of commercial value can be found. 
The fishermen all confine their efforts to depths much under 100 
fathoms. -Were more attention paid to deep-water fishing it would 
undoubtedly result in a material improvement in the size and quality 
of the boats. A large number of the fishing boats hailing from San 
Francisco, Santa Cruz, and Monterey have great stability and sea- 
worthiness, and they are often good sailers, but very much could be 
done to increase the comfort of the crew, for which there are at present 
practically no accommodations. 
On two occasions, while at anchor in Drake Bay, the bottom was 
tested with hand lines of different sizes, but nothing was captured, 
and the same negative results were obtained with the use of crab nets. 
A cod trawl, set for six hours across a rocky patch of ground on the 
northern side of the bay, afforded only 2 small flounders. Rocktfish 
inhabit this ledge in summer, but they never occur there in large num- 
bers. The principal edible fishes secured with the beam trawl about 
the Farallon Islands were flounders and soles, of several species, and 
red rockfish. Flounders, soles, anchovies, tomcod, crabs, and other in- 
vertebrates were taken by the same means in the vicinity of Noonday 
Rock, but only red rockfish were caught with hand lines. 
A cod trawl was set for seven hours on the western part of Cordell 
Bank, in a depth of 30-odd fathoms, the catch consisting of 47 red 
rockfish, averaging 64 pounds each, and 2 cultus-cod, weighing 18 and 
20 pounds, respectively. One orange rockfish, 2. yellow-tails, and 2 
cultus-cod were captured with hand lines during a drift which oceu- 
pied about three-quarters of an hour. All subsequent trials with hand 
lines and trawls on grounds farther south proved less satisfactory. 
This, however, may have been partly due to a strong wind which pre- 
vailed during the greater part of the time. 
Cordell Bank has not yet been fully explored. It covers approxi- 
mately an area of 20 square miles, and its small extent precludes its 
being resorted to by many vessels at a time. A vessel operating with 
six to eight dories could, under favorable conditions, obtain from 4,000 
to 5,000 pounds of fish a day, but whether this abundant supply would 
continue long can be only ascertained by experiment. The bottom 
consists of rocks, sands, and shelly patches, intermixed with mud. 
On grounds contiguous to Point Reyes, Russian River, and Bodega 
Head, and off the entrance to Drake Bay edible fishes were taken in 
considerable quantities with the beam trawl, but nothing worthy of 
special mention was obtained in the immediate vicinity of Point Reyes. 
Hauls were made at short intervals along the coast southward, begin- 
