1876.] On the Biology of the 'Valorous' Cruise, li76. 



177 



XXIV. ^''Preliminary Report of the Biological Results o£ a Cruise 

 in H.M.S. ' Valorous ' to Davis Strait in 1875.^' By J. Gwyn 

 Jeffreys, LL.D., F.R.S. Received June 12, 1876. 



[Plates 2-4.] 



On this occasion I propose to adopt the same course that was taken in 

 presenting to the Eoyal Society the Preliminary Report o£ the scientific 

 exploration of the deep sea in H.M. Suryeying-vessel ' Porcupine ' in the 

 years 1869 and 1870, in both of which expeditions I took a part. 



jSTaeeatite. 



1. The Government having, at the instance of the Society and other 

 scientific bodies, determined to equip and send out last year two ships (the 

 'Alert' aud 'Discovery') on a JN'orth-Polar Expedition, and with these 

 vessels the ' Valorous ' frigate as a store-ship to accompany them as far 

 as Disco in Davis Strait, it was considered desirable to make the last- 

 named vessel available for sounding and dredging on her retm^n voyage. 

 Accordingly the following correspondence with the Admiralty took place, 

 and wiU serve to explain the circumstances under which the scientific 

 results now about to be noticed were obtained : — 



" Council Minutes, April 15. 

 " Read the following letter from Dr. Carpenter : — • 



" University of London, Burlington Gardens, W., 

 April 14, 1875. 



" Dear Me. Peesident, — Since I wrote to you on the subject of the 

 Arctic Expedition, the Admiralty has decided upon sending as a store- 

 ship, not the merchant- vessel then contemplated, but a man-of-war of 

 considerable tonnage. Although there will be no opportunity on the 

 voyage to Disco for any scientific observation that would delay the pro- 

 gress of the Expedition, yet such opportunity will be available both while 

 the ship remains at Disco and on the return voyage, which will be made 

 at a time of the 3^ear most likely to be favourable. And I have reason 

 to believe that the Admiralty authorities are quite willing that advan- 

 tage should be taken of this opportunity, to such an extent as circum- 

 stances may permit, if the Council of the Roj^al Society should be of 

 opinion that valuable results are likely to be obtained by the utilization 

 of it. 



" I have already pointed out to you that a Temperature-Section across 

 the North Atlantic to Cape Farewell and Temperature-Sections, trans- 

 verse and longitudinal, in Bafiin's Bay are just what are needed to com- 

 plete the survey of the thermal condition of the great oceanic areas that 

 is being so admirably carried out by the ' Challenger.' — The same remark 

 applies also to -the zoological inquiry, the animal hf e of great depths in 

 the North Atlantic and Arctic Seas being still very imperfectly known. 



VOL. XXV. 



