Through the great liberality of the government authorities I 

 was enabled to unclertake investigations along the northern coast 

 and the northern fjords in the months January to May 1899. As 

 during the whole of the time I disposed of a small steamer consi- 

 derable funds were necessary, and besides the government grant I 

 also had pecuniary assistance from the Bergen Museum. During 

 the whole expedition I had an able assistant in Mr. Niels Haagen- 

 sen, who had previously for some time been useful to us on work 

 occurring at the Biological Station. The intention was. as far as 

 possible, to get a knowledge of the coast sea at the time when the 

 immigration of the cod shoals takes place, further to try get 

 an insight into the hydrographical changes of the fishing sea proper 

 and into the possible influence of the latter on the catches, and to 

 gather information on the physical conditions of the Arctic fjords 

 at winter time. The chief objects of the investigation have con- 

 sequently been: 



1. Observations on te mp er a ture and saltness at 



different depths. 



2 . Plankton investigations. 



3. Investigation of the bottom fauna by me ans 



of a lit tie trawl. 

 I reserve to myself to comprise in a later work the whole of 

 the results of the expedition. on the present occasion only treating 

 of certain hydrographical facts that may be of interest. 



I. Temperature and saltness in the deeplayers of the fjords. 



The temperature observations first produced in our country 

 had shown that it was almost exclusively in the uppermost 200 

 metres layers that temperature and saltness were subject to changes 



