2 BULLETIN OF THE 
Corrientes, bringing up nothing but mud and decomposed vegetable 
matter. This induced us to keep up the Gulf of California, till we were 
off the Tres Marias. From that point until we reached Guaymas, on the 
23d of April, we carried on our usual operations with the trawl, the tow- 
net, and the Tanner net. 
In the afternoon of the same day I parted from the ship with great 
regret, but more than satisfied with the results of this expedition. 
The more I saw of the “ Albatross,” the more I became convinced that 
her true field is that of exploration. She is a remarkably fine sea boat, 
and has ample accommodation for a staff of working specialists such as 
would be needed on a distant expedition. The time will soon come when 
the Fish Commission will hardly care to continue to run her, and I can 
conceive of no better use for so fine a vessel than to explore a belt of 20° 
of latitude north and south of the equator in the Pacific, from the west 
coast of Central America to the East Indian Archipelago. 
The success of the “ Albatross” thus far has depended entirely upon 
the zeal, energy, intelligence, forethought, and devotion of Captain Tan- 
ner, if I may judge of the past by the present. He never spares himself, 
and he is always ready to make the most of the time at his disposal for 
the benefit of the special object he has in charge. He looks after every 
haul of the trawl himself, and will not allow any one else to jeopard in 
any way the material of the vessel, or the time it requires to make a 
haul. That responsibility he assumes himself, and it constitutes his 
daily work. In looking over the records of the ‘“ Albatross” during her 
voyage from New York to San Francisco, [ am struck with the amount of 
work which has been accomplished. It would be but a just return to 
Captain Tanner, if Congress would make the necessary appropriations to 
work up and publish, not only all that he has brought together on that 
cruise, but also what has been left untouched thus far of the immense 
collections made from the time he first commanded the “ Albatross.” In 
his cruises off the east coast of the United States and in the Carib- 
bean, to say nothing of his explorations in the Gulf of California, on the 
coast of California, on the coast of Alaska, and in the Bering Sea, he 
has accumulated in the “ Albatross ”’ endless most interesting material, 
which no other ship could have got together unless she had another 
Tanner in command. 
My cordial thanks are due to Colonel Marshall McDonald, the United 
States Fish Commissioner, for having given me the opportunity to join 
the ‘ Albatross ” on this extended cruise, and for his kindness in urging 
the President to allow the vessel to be detailed for this work. To Mr. 
