In the last number of the Bulletin we sketched the life of Albert Dibblee, a San Francisco commission merchant whose business papers comprise one of the finest collections ever presented to the Society. This article will give a little of the history of Albert Dibblee's business as seen through these papers. The material has all been taken from the letters and account books now available at Baker Library. There are nearly 200 volumes as well as a large quantity of unbound papers in the collection.

German business firms, especially banking firms, have frequently undertaken the preparation of memorial volumes devoted to the development of their particular enterprise.

The two engravings published by Pyne and Nattes in 1800, from which the illustrations (page 6) were made, are reminiscent of a delightful old account book kept by a wheelwright of Charlestown (Massachusetts) during the years 1798-1808. The book, which was among the earliest gifts to the Society, is as entertaining as it is informing. The young man who kept the book made an entry for every single day during the years covered. He records not only a description of the work undertaken each day but also his recreational activities.

The best piece of manuscript material the Society has ever received on the whaling industry surely deserves mention here. The book was presented to the Society about a year ago by one of its members. It is a descriptive catalog of New Bedford whaling ships for the years 1790-1906, prepared by Joseph Dias of New Bedford between 1880 and 1906. He has listed some 650 ships, giving a brief history of each, including dates of various voyages, waters explored, quantities of sperm oil, whale oil and whalebone brought back, as well as the names of the captains and agents for each voyage. One of the most valuable things about this book is that it adds information to every other piece of material that we have on New Bedford whaling.