EEPOET OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES, XLVII 



question, was going to deal seriously with the sea fisheries, and not to 

 let them take care of themselves, as they had done for the last 1,000 

 years or so, they had a very considerable job before them j and unless 

 they put into that organization of fisheries the energy, the ingenuity, the 

 scientific knowledge, and the practical skill which characterized his 

 friend, Professor Baird, and his assistants, their efforts were not likely 

 to come to very much good. One of his great reasons for desiring that 

 the subject which * * * had been put before them should be laid 

 distinctly before the English public was to give them a notion of what 

 was needed if the fisheries were to be dealt with satisfactorily, for he 

 did not think, speaking with all respect to the efforts made by Sweden, 

 North Germany, Holland, and so forth, that any nation at the present 

 time comprehended the question of dealing with fish in so thorough, 

 excellent, and scientific a spirit as the United States." 



The conference papers, with the discussions, have all been printed, 

 and, together with a series of illustrated popular hand-books, the re- 

 ports of the juries, and the prize essays, will make up a very important 

 contribution to the literature offish and fisheries, making about twelve 

 volumes <Jctavo. The catalogue of the exhibition is in itself a small 

 cyclopedia of fisheries, the account of the exhibit of each country be- 

 ing prefaced by a description of its fisheries by some expert. The es- 

 tablishment of a literary bureau, in charge of Mr. Trendell, under whose 

 direction the publications were issued, was an important advance in ex- 

 hibition administration. 



The juries began their work early in June, and continued their ac- 

 tivity about two months. A certain amount of jury work was done at 

 a later period, even after the official announcement of the awards — a 

 kind of jury work which seems exceedingly desirable that exhibitions 

 should avoid in the future, if the dissatisfaction still being manifested 

 in England is to be taken as a criterion. The United States was well 

 represented on the juries by Messrs. Earll, Clark, Collins, McLellan, and 

 Hansmann. Mr. E. T. Eussell, of Boston, and Mr. Eomyn Hitchcock, 

 of New York, who were at that time in London, also served on juries, 

 and Mr. G-oode acted as one of the special jury upon prize essays. 



The success of the participation of the United States was greatly 

 increased by the fact that so many experts were employed upon its 

 staff, and were constantly in attendance to explain and give significance 

 to the collections — Captain Collins in everything relating to sea fisheries, 

 vessels, and boats ; Mr. Earll in fish-culture and the lake fisheries ; Dr. 

 Bean in marine zoology; Captain Chester in whaling and sealing; Mr. 

 Clark in fishery products ; Lieutenant McLellan in life-saving apparatus; 

 Mr. Hansmann in light-house affairs; Mr. Wood in angling and fine 

 tackle ; and Sergeant Mitchell in the work of the Weather Bureau. No 

 such attempt was made by any of the other countries, but its success 

 was so manifest that it is hoped that it may serve as a precedent in 

 future exhibitions. 



