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346 
NATURE 
[AuGuUST 7, 1902 
THE FIRST “MEETING SOF DHE INTER 
NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR THE EXPLORA- 
TION OF THE SEA. 
T the conference which was held at Stockholm in 
June, 1899, having for its object the promotion of 
international cooperation in studying the physical and 
biological conditions of the seas bordering Europe, pro- 
grammes were discussed and formulated, which were 
revised at the second conference, held in Christiania, in 
May, 1901, when a scheme for the coordination of the 
proposed work was provisionally agreed to. This scheme 
contemplated the creation of an International Council 
nominated by the Governments of the countries interested, 
which should meet periodically and organise and direct 
the proposed work, utilising for this purpose funds to be 
placed at its disposal by the Governments in question. 
The question having been considered by all the mari- 
time countries of northern Europe, all except France 
decided to participate, in most cases, however, for a 
few years only, and with conaitions limiting the 
application of the funds which were voted to researches 
likely to produce practical results beneficial to fisheries 
at an early date. 
The first meeting of the International Council took | 
place in Copenhagen on July 22, when the following dele- 
gates and experts took part :— Great Britain, Sir Colin 
Scott Moncrieff and Prof. D’Arcy Thompson, with Dr. 
H. R. Milland Mr. W. Garstang as experts ; Denmark, 
Captain Drechsel and Dr. M. Knudsen, with Dr. C. G. J. 
Petersen: and Dr. Ostenfeld as experts; Holland, Dr. 
P. P. C.. Hoek; Finland, Prof. Homén and Dr. Nord- 
qvist; Germany, Dr. Herwig and Prof. Krummel ; 
Norway, Prof. F. Nansen and Dr. J. Hjort, with Mr. 
Schweigaard as secretary; Russia, Dr. Knipovich ; 
Sweden, Prof. O. Pettersson and Dr. Trybom, with Prof. 
P. T. Cleve as expert. The Council was received at the 
opening meeting by the Prime Minister, M. Deuntzer, 
who welcomed the delegates to Copenhagen and ex- 
plained that the Belgian Government, while not sending 
a delegate on this occasion, had not dissociated itself 
from the work. The King of Denmark received the 
delegates on a later occasion, and the Prime Minister 
and the Minister of Agriculture gave dinners in their 
honour. The meetings took place in the Foreign Office, 
and every possible facility was afforded for carrying out 
the work for which the Council had assembled. 
At the first sitting the Council was constituted. Dr. 
Herwig, of Hanover, the head of the German Sea- 
Fisheries Association, was elected president ; Dr. Otto 
Pettersson, of Stockholm,vice-president ; and Dr. P. P.C. 
Hoek, of The Helder, in Holland, was appointed general 
secretary, in accordance with the suggestions of the 
Christiania conference. 
The second sitting was occupied in discussions as to 
the management of the business of the Council, and two 
committees, each consisting of one delegate from each 
country represented, were appointed to draw up definite 
proposals as to the oceanographical and biological work 
of the Council. The third sitting received the reports of 
these committees and adopted them after discussion. 
The scheme of biological work has been considerably 
modified on account of the conditions imposed by most 
of the Governments in giving funds for the international 
cooperation. 
fisheries are sought for, and the money has been given 
definitely for that purpose, thus preventing the institution 
of researches of a purely scientific aim the results from 
which might not directly and rapidly lead to the benefit 
of fisheries. 
It was decided to undertake at once the systematic 
study of two problems of immediate practical importance 
—the migrations of the most important food-fishes of the 
Practical results of direct value to the | 
| 
North Sea, especially the cod and herring; and the 
NO. 1710, VOL. 66] 
question of over-fishing in those parts of the North Sea, 
Skagerrak and Kattegat most frequented by trawlers, 
with special reference to the plaice, the sole and other 
flatfish, and to the haddock. Each problem is to be 
studied by international observations directed by an 
international committee under a chairman or convener 
nominated by the Council. The committee on fish migra- 
tion consists of one representative each of Germany, 
Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Russia, and two 
of Great Britain (for England and Scotland) ; the con- 
vener of this committee is Dr. Johan Hjort, of the 
Norwegian Fisheries Department. The committee on 
over-fishing consists of one representative each of Ger- 
many, Denmark, Sweden and the Netherlands, and two 
of Great Britain (for England and Scotland), to whom will 
be added eventually one of Belgium. The convener of 
this committee is Mr. W. Garstang, of the Marine 
Biological Association. 
A third committee for the investigation of the Baltic 
was also appointed, consisting of one representative each 
of Germany, Denmark, Sweden and Finland, with Dr. 
Nordqvist as convener. 
The “ hydrographical,” or, as we would rather term it, 
the purely oceanographical work of the international co- 
operation is to be carried out by means of the steamers 
provided by the participating States in accordance with 
the provisions of the Christiania programme. The repre- 
sentatives of the various countries handed in provisional 
schemes authorised by their Governments, the British 
scheme including two areas for research—the English 
Channel west of the Isle of Wight and the Feroe- 
Shetland Channel. The Dutch area includes the southern 
and the German area the northern half of the North Sea ; 
the Danes undertake observations between Fzeroe and 
Iceland, the Norwegians observations in the western 
North Atlantic off the coast of Norway, and the Russians 
in the Arctic Sea. It is hoped that Belgium may under- 
take the eastern part of the English Channel. The 
countries possessing a coast-line on the Baltic divide that 
sea between them. The essential feature of the physical 
work consists of a simultaneous quarterly cruise by all 
the ships, employing instruments and methods of higher 
precision than have hitherto been thought necessary, and 
determining the horizontal and vertical distribution of 
temperature, salinity, dissolved gases and also of plank- 
ton. This does not, however, exhaust the programme, 
which provides for securing an extensive series of surface 
observations, and samples from regular liners crossing the 
North Sea and the Atlantic, and also aims at utilising 
lightships and coast-stations for regular observations at 
frequent intervals, in order to connect the various 
periodical cruises and so enable a continuous record of 
the march of seasonal change to be kept. 
The International Council will conduct its work through 
the Central Bureau, which has now been established in 
Copenhagen, and the International Laboratory, to be 
opened in Christiania. The Bureau consists of the 
president, vice-president and general secretary of the 
Council, with the addition of Captain Drechsel, one of the 
Danish delegates, as an honorary member. It will 
exercise the executive authority of the Council, calling 
the annual or extraordinary meetings when required and 
keeping up communication with the various national 
organisations through the secretary, Dr. Hoek. The 
chief assistant in the Bureau is Dr. Martin Knudsen, 
lecturer on physics in the Polytechnic Institute of 
Copenhagen. 
The International Laboratory at Christiania will be 
opened under Dr. Nansen, as honorary director, in the 
month of October, and Dr. Walfrid Ekman, of Stockholm, 
has been appointed first assistant, specially charged with 
the purely physical work ; a second assistant for chemical 
work will be selected by Dr. Nansen at an early date. 
The work of the Laboratory, as defined in the Chris- 
