considerable ice, all of which has been listed in detail in "Table of 

 ice and of other obstructions, " pages 21 to 30. 



The Modoc had an opportunity on the 23d instant to search 

 northward along the eastern edge of the Bank for menacing ice. 

 We proceeded northward as far as the forty-fifth parallel but found 

 nothing. We could do nothing more in this line because of foggy 

 conditions, so on April 24 the ship was headed westward in order 

 to meet the relief. The Tampa was met about 4 in the afternoon 

 of the 25th. During this cruise the Modoc received a total of 53 

 reports of ice sighted by passing vessels, furnished information to 

 16 ships, and received a total of 950 reports of sea water temperatures. 



THE THIRD CRUISE, "TAMPA," APRIL 25 TO MAY 10, 1926 



After effecting the relief and assummg the duties of patrol ship 

 the Tampa was kept off on a course for the first one of several ocean- 

 ographic stations arranged in positions around the Bank in accord- 

 ance with a previously arranged program. In view of the fact that 

 no ice was south of the fortj^-fifth parallel and also that there had been 

 considerable postponement in the oceanographic work, the patjrc^ 

 decided the work better be commenced while opportunity existed. 

 Bergs, moreover, were to be expected soon invading the waters 

 around the Tail and it was desirous that the patrol vessel have on 

 board a current map of this critical area. 



The next nine days were mostly devoted to collecting data of 

 temperature and salinity from several depths at stations scattered 

 netlike around the Grand Banks. During this period the work was 

 delayed by the presence of a fog and near the latter part of the inves- 

 tigation a strong westerly gale was encoimtered. Wliile heading the 

 gale on the 2d of May a report was received from the steamship 

 Rousillon regarding the position of an iceberg on the east side of the 

 Bank in latitude 44° 10'. This was without doubt one of a group 

 of five bergs that had previously been reported by Cape Race track 

 steamers but it was the southernmost berg so far for 1926 and in that 

 respect was a poiat of interest for the patrol. 



A fog prevented us searching for this berg and so we waited until 

 conditions became clearer. During this period the oceanographer 

 with the data collected calculated the direction and rate of flow of 

 the water in the regions surveyed and a map of the currents was 

 drawn and posted for the information of those in charge of the patrol 

 work. This is the first time in any expedition that the results have 

 been immediately determined on board ship for practical employ- 

 ment. 



\lsij 7 the Tampa was near the fishing fleet and one vessel was 

 spoken and another was boarded. Sea stores were traded for fresh 

 fish and we anchored for the night in on the Bank. The oceanog- 



