92 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. XI. No. 264. 



American Mathematical Society may play 

 in promoting further advances. With re- 

 Bpect to these enquiries I should be loath to 

 hazard a prediction or to oifer advice. But 

 there appears to be no reason for entertain- 

 ing other than optimistic expectations. The 

 routes along which exploration may proceed 

 are numerous and attractive. We have 

 only to follow the example set by Laplace, 

 Poisson, Green, Gauss, Maxwell, Kirch- 

 hoff, Saint-Venant, Helmholtz, and their 

 eminent contemporaries and successors. 

 In commending the works of these great 

 masters to the younger members especially 

 of the American Mathematical Society, I 

 would not be understood as urging the cul- 

 tivation of pure mathematics less, but 

 rather as suggesting the pursuit of applied 

 mathematics more. The same sort of fi- 

 delity to research and the same sort of 

 genius for infinite industry which enabled 

 those masters to accomplish the grand re- 

 sults of the nineteenth century, may be con- 

 fidently expected to achieve equally grand 

 results in the twentieth century. 



E. S. Woodward. 

 Columbia University. 



OBUISE OF THE ALBATROSS. 

 II. 

 The following letter from Dr. Agassiz, 

 dated Papeete Harbor, Tahiti Island, No- 

 Tember 6, 1899, has been received by the 

 United States Fish Commission and is here 

 published by courtesy of Commissioner 

 Bowers. 



During our stay in Papeete some time 

 was spent in examining that part of the bar- 

 rier reef of Tahiti which had been surveyed 

 by the Challenger. We found the condi- 

 tion of the outer slope of the reef quite 

 difierent from its description as given in 

 the Challenger narrative. The growing cor- 

 als were comparatively few in number, 

 and the outer slope showed nothing but a 



mass of dead corals and dead coral bowlders 

 beyond 16 or 17 fathoms, few living corals 

 being observed beyond 10 to 12 fathoms. 



We also made an expedition to Point 

 Venus, to determine, if possible, the rate 

 of growth of the corals on Dolphin Bauk 

 from the marks which had been placed on 

 Point Venus by Wilkes, in 1839, and by 

 MM. Le Clerk and de Benaze, of the French 

 navy, in 1869. We found the stones and 

 marks as described, but, in view of the na- 

 ture and condition of Dolphin Bank, did 

 not think it worth while to make a careful 

 survey, as Captain Moser had intended to 

 do. On examining Dolphin Bank in the 

 steam launch I was greatly surprised to- 

 find that there were but few corals growing 

 on it. I could see nothing but sparsely 

 scattered heads, none larger than my fist, 

 the top of the bank being entirely covered 

 by nullipores. We sounded across the 

 bank in all possible directions and examined 

 it thoroughly, and at the stage of water at^ 

 which we sounded, found about 18 inches 

 difference from the soundings indicated by 

 the charts. It is also greatly to be regret- 

 ted that Dolphin Bank was not examined,, 

 neither in 1839 nor in 1869, and notes made 

 of what species of corals, if any, were grow- 

 ing on its surface ; for an excellent oppor- 

 tunity has been lost to determine the growth 

 of corals during a period of 60 years. The 

 choice of this bank as a standard to deter- 

 mine the growth of corals was unfortunate, 

 as it is in the midst of an area comparatively 

 free from corals. 



Extensive collections have been made at 

 Papeete during our visit by the naturalists 

 of the Albatross. 



After refitting and coaling here, we left 

 on the 5th of October for a cruise in the 

 Paumotus. 



We steamed for Makatea, which we had 

 visited on our way to Tahiti, and not only 

 examined the island more in detail, but 

 took a number of photographs of the cliflFa 



