RECORDS OF THE ALBATROSS. 



391 



will be found a series entitled "Scientific results of explorations by 

 the U. S. Fish Commission steamer Albatross"', the bulletin and 

 memoirs of the Museum of Comparative Zoology contain a series of 

 "reports on the dredging operations off the west coast of Central 

 America and Mexico to the Galapagos Islands and in the Gulf of 

 California, under the direction of Alexander Agassiz." 



The bibliographical matter is arranged chronologically and is com- 

 posed almost entirely of American papers, although the titles of a few 

 European publications will be found near the end of the catalog. 

 The explorations of the vessel have been referred to from time to time 

 in the reports of the Challenger and other European deep-sea exploring 

 expeditions, and in the journals of geographical societies, but very 

 few contain more than brief notes on the subject. 



It has not been thought desirable to include the titles of certain 

 official documents relating to the naval patrol of Bering Sea, in which 

 the Albatross was much employed; and some unimportant references 

 in periodicals have also been disregarded. A considerable amount of 

 deep-sea exploration was accomplished by the U. S. Fish Commission 

 steamer Fish Haivk, both before and after the launching of the Alba- 

 tross, which has been the subject of numerous reports in the publica- 

 tions of the Fish Commission and elsewhere. In some reports the 

 results of the work of the two vessels were combined. 



The Albatross has been regularly in charge of naval commanders 

 whose periods of service have been as follows: November, 1882, to 

 May, 1894, Z. L. Tanner; May, 1894, to May, 1896, F. J. Drake; May, 

 1896, to the present time, J. F. Moser. Occasionally, when employ ed 

 in special investigations, the work of the ship was placed under the 

 direction of other persons. 



During the work of the Albatross, which was primarily the investi- 

 gation of the fisheries and fishing-grounds, dredging was carried on 

 more or less regularly as opportunity afforded, but it has been b} T no 

 means continuous from year to year. For several years, from about 

 1892 to 1898, comparatively little work of this character was accom- 

 plished, owing to the vessel having been frequently detailed for spe- 

 cial lines of work in other departments of the public service. In 1889 

 the Albatross was assigned for a time to the service of the Senate 

 Committee on Indian Affairs in Alaskan waters, and in 1891 was 

 engaged for several months in the survey of the cable route between 

 California and the Hawaiian Islands. In 1898 it was detailed to the 

 Navy Department for service in the war with Spain. During the long 

 period of the Bering Sea controversy the vessel was much employed 

 in connection with the naval patrol of Bering Sea and in the service of 

 the commissions created for the investigation of the fur-seal fisheries. 

 The surveys of fishing-grounds, always accompanied with considerable 

 use of the dredge, and the special voyages for deep-sea exploration 

 were thus so frequently interrupted that dredging was practically 

 discontinued for long periods. 



