GEOGRAPHIC WORK OF THE U. S. COAST SURVEY 295 



To these immediate problems the Survey addressed itself with 

 vigor and foresight under the guiding hands of Hassler and his 

 eminent successors. Hassler, the friend of Jefferson and Galla- 

 tin, enjoyed the confidence and support of these eminent states- 

 men, but he had before him difficulties as great as his field was 

 wide. Inert public opinion as to the utility of the proposed Sur- 

 vey had to be vitalized and molded, men had to be trained to 

 carr}^ out the technical parts of the work, instruments had to be 

 constructed, and correct methods had to be prescribed. How 

 these difficulties presented themselves and how they were over- 

 come will form a proper chapter not only in the history of the 

 great Survey which yet remains to be written, but also in the his- 

 tory of the progress of science in this country. 



It may be said that Hassler, in 1844, saw the fruition of his 

 hopes when a general plan of operations prescribed by him was 

 adopted by a scientific commission composed of Army and Navy 

 officers and civilians. Its adoption marks the official recognition 

 of the necessit}'' for precise and systematic work in the mapping 

 of our domain. Its sim])le and correct outline of the operations 

 to be followed in making a survey of great extent has permitted 

 the extension of the work in a manner commensurate with the 

 enlargement of our national domain by acquisitions of territory 

 from France, Spain, and Mexico. With the expansion of terri- 

 tory came the extension of the scope of the survey, and finally, 

 when the advantages of a transcontinental triangulation became 

 apparent, its geodetic function was recognized by law^ 



In accordance with its primary duties the Survey has devel- 

 oped and charted the depth of the waters along our coasts with 

 exti'eme minuteness and accuracy, not only in the rivers, bays, and 

 harbors, but off shore as far as the needs of commerce demanded 

 it. Going be3^ond the immediate requirements of the mariner, it 

 has devoted itself to discovering the depths of the sea over large 

 areas, as is shown by the complete survey of the Gulf of Mexico. 

 Its depths were sounded and charted, its salinity tested, and the 

 temperatures of its waters were recorded. Much earlier than these 

 successful surveys of the Gulf were the explorations of the Gulf 

 Stream, important not alone in their geographic results, but in 

 developing methods, often by failures, which rendered subse- 

 quent success possible. The hydrographic results achieved are 

 shown on between five hundred and six hundred charts, many 

 of them of such exquisite perfection as to form a standard of ex- 

 cellence for all cartographers. 



