MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY. 57 



the Mississippi, in depths of from 118 to 600 fathoms, a number of inter- 

 estinjj forms of Fishes, of Aiinehds, of Molhisks, of Ophiunuis, and Sea- 

 Urchins. The hauls in deeper water, off the Mississippi, yielded no 

 specimens of importance. Throughout this last cruise we obtained, 

 below 500 fathoms, the forms characteristic of deep water in all the 

 deeper basins of the ocean, the more special or faunal species occurring 

 at a lesser depth. 



The new dredges improvised in Key AVest by Captain Sigsbee and 

 Mr. Jacobi worked very satisfactorily, and were a great improvement 

 on the old model, obviating completely the defects referred to in my 

 last letter. The double trawl also worked admirably, obviating all 

 fouling, and doing away with the frequent delays so annoying when the 

 ordinary single-beam trawl is used in deep water. 



The steel-wire rope continued to give excellent satisfaction, and we 

 experienced fewer mishaps from causes connected with our rope than 

 any other deep-sea dredging expedition. The uniform success attending 

 our use of this rope during the past season enables me to recommend 

 it to any future deep-sea dredging expedition as an economy of space, 

 time, and money, for our rope occupied about one ninth of the space re- 

 quired by a- hemp rope, and was, at the end of the cruise, as good as 

 when we first left Key West. 



There still remain many minor improvements, suggested by the use 

 of the steel-wire rope, which would facilitate the working of the dredge 

 or trawl, but not greatly increase their efficiency. Much still remains 

 to be done, for instance in the way of a perfect accumulator. The 

 accumulator devised by Captain Sigsbee consisted of a series of spiral 

 steel springs capable of withstanding a strain of 4,000 pounds, these 

 springs moved upon an iron rod ; the accumulator was lashed vertically 

 to the foremast, the play of the accumulator, some six feet, being trans- 

 mitted to a large iron sheave over which the wire rope played. This 

 iron sheave was suspended from a boom fiistened by a swivel to the foot 

 of the foremast, and projecting over the starboard bow fi\r enough for 

 the dredge or trawl to clear the side of the vessel. The steamer was 

 invariably backed while dredging, our operations being all carried on at 

 the bow. Of course, in a small vessel like the " Blake," a moderate sea 

 soon made it not only difficult to dredge, but also endangered greatly all 

 our dredging gear from the rapid rolling or pitching to which the accu- 

 mulator could not respond promptly enough. It seems very doubtful 

 if the accumulators used thus far are a great safeguard against accidents. 

 While dredging, what is going on at the bottom can readily be ascer- 



