Introductory 



within their scope, though adjacent to the ' official ' area. During the 

 year 1904 my yacht Silver Belle made an extended cruise from 

 Valentia (Ireland) to the Azores, thence to Madeira and Gibraltar, 

 and back to England across the Bay of Biscay to Plymouth. 



The cruise of 1905, which at the time of writing was being 

 undertaken, covered much of the same ground, certain stations of the 

 1904 cruise being revisited, to again examine the conditions of a large 

 amount of Mediterranean water in the Atlantic, which formed so 

 striking a feature of the hydrographical results of 1904. Professor 

 Pettersson having kindly forwarded me one of his current meters, an 

 attempt was made to use this on all occasions possible, and the 

 faunistic work was largely devoted to trawling observations. 



A private worker cannot hope to be equipped with the same costly 

 appliances in the shape of steam vessels, etc., which a body expending 

 Government funds may employ. Possessed only of small sailing- 

 ships — nr st, in the Faeroe Channel, of a small cutter yacht of less than 

 40 tons, subsequently of a ketch yacht of 130 tons — all the work 

 accomplished has been with comparatively small means. But I have 

 taken care to have my ships equipped with apparatus of the most 

 perfect and modern description, and the rest depends only upon 

 accuracy of observation, and the power and patience to work under 

 conditions often difficult, and to a landsman even appalling, but 

 which to a seaman are but everyday incidents. I would with 

 becoming modesty like to instance the amount of work accomplished 

 by my yacht, as an example of what may be done by sailing-vessels of 

 small tonnage, and to suggest that a great deal of very valuable 

 scientific work might be accomplished by similar vessels, especially in 

 areas which the International Council does not include within its plan 

 of operations — work which would greatly contribute to that extended 

 knowledge of the hydrography and conditions of life in the sea which 

 it is now the endeavour of combined nations to acquire. I cannot but 

 think that there are many yachtsmen who would willingly give their 

 assistance if they were only initiated into the work, and only realized 

 of what great importance scientific observations of this kind may be 



