FARMERS' INSTITUTES.

The work of the Farmers' Institute committee has been conducted along the same successful lines as in former years. The act of Legislature increasing the annual appropriation for the support of institutes from $5,000 to $10,000 was timely and exceedingly helpful. The demands of the institutes had far outgrown the means at the disposal of the committee, even with liberal aid from the University, which aid as has been pointed out was never intended or expressed in the original act of the Legislature.

During the year there were held 104 institutes, with a total attendance of 25,664 persons. Every phase of the institute work has shown marked progress and advancement, indicating that the educational purpose of the enterprise is being fulfilled. The increasing attendance, the character of the programs, the demand for speakers of the better class, the interest and participation of farmers, and the direct testimony of individuals in all parts of the State show that the institutes have quickened the intelligence and aroused the aspirations of the entire farming community of the State.

It is becoming evident, also, that as the institutes occupy more and more the public attention, there will be a tendency to make use of their organization to further many interests foreign to their purpose. It should be kept clearly in view that the Farmers' Institute act is specifically, as well as by intent, educational in purpose and that it intentionally makes no provision for many other interests of commerical or political character of however much importance they may be to the farmer. The wisdom of this measure will be at once evident to every thoughtful person. When only one or two institutes are held in a community each year the time is too valuable and the opportunity too precious to use in any other way than to give helpful instruction in farm practice and methods, and to discuss general topics calculated to uplift the industry. Any consideration of matters leading to controversies; any diversion of the meetings for political or private ends is a perversion of the proper function of the institutes and will certainly diminish their efficiency and value.

THE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION.

This institution, established by act of Congress in 1887, is an organic part of the University, although its functions do not include participation in the work of student instruction. Its object and duty as defined by law is "to conduct original researches or verify experiments on the physiology of plants and animals; the diseases to which they are severally subject, with the remedies for the same; the chemical composition of useful plants at their different stages of growth; the comparative advantages of rotative cropping as pursued under a varying series of crops; the capacity of new plants or trees for acclimation; the analysis of soils and water; the chemical composition of manures, natural or artificial, with experiments designed to test their comparative effects on crops of different kinds; the adaptation and value of grasses and forage plants; the composition and digestibility of the different kinds of food for domestic animals; the scientific and economic questions involved in the production of butter and cheese; and such other researches or experiments bearing directly on the agricultural industry of the United States as may in each case be deemed advisable, having due regard to the varying conditions and needs of the respective States or Territories."

To meet the expense of this work the sum of $15,000 is annually appropriated by the United States.

The University has set aside for the use of the Station, buildings and land, together with an equipment of live stock, tools and laboratory apparatus, which are now maintained by the funds received from the United States. These funds, with the exception of the farm receipts, constitute the sole income of the department..

The Station employs experts in the field of agricultural chemistry, botany, horticulture, dairying, entomology, live stock husbandry, veterinary science and general agricultural practice, and maintains laboratories or field experiments in all of these lines. In each of the various departments there are constantly in progress investigations bearing upon all phases of agricultural practice, the results of which are published and distributed freely to the press,

to a large number of farmers and to any other persons who may apply for them. Besides this, hundreds of letters of inquiry upon special topics are answered in the course of a year.

Covering a period of many years, the Experiment Station has carried out systematic investigations upon important general questions bearing upon the agriculture of the State as follows: Beet sugar industry; hog cholera; rotation of crops; feeding of live stock; testing of varieties of fruits and grasses; injurious insects; composition and value of commercial fertilizers; diseases of plants, and numerous other important topics.

During the past year the Station has published six pamphlet bulletins, six newspaper bulletins and an annual report, comprising in all upwards of 200 pages of printed matter giving the results of the most scientific and accurate observations upon the subjects treated.

Naturally, the demands upon this department increase. No line of work which has proved its importance can well be abandoned, and new fields are constantly opening, until it becomes necessary for the Station to meet a pressure to render larger service than its funds will permit. It has not infrequently happened that valuable reports could not be published for lack of the money to do so, and several important investigations, of more than ordinary value to larger interests, could not be entered upon.

In view of these facts, viz., that the Station has done such important and valuable work in behalf of the great agricultural interests of the State; that the work has been done without cost to the State; that the time is now come when the work is checked in its development and usefulness by reason of lack of means, the question may well be raised whether some further support is not deserved. In many of the States where these experiment stations have been established the Government appropriations have been met by equal, or, in many cases, much larger appropriations from the State. The Indiana Station has never received anything from the State, although its work ranks with the best of similar institutions for efficiency. It were an empty plea to make such request on the ground that a similar request has been made and granted elsewhere. The only basis for the appropriation of public money is that its use is for the public benefit. That the Agricultural Ex

periment Station has proved a benefit to Indiana no one can deny, nor is there any doubt that its usefulness could be much extended by even small additional resources.

A full report of the work of the Station, together with a complete financial statement for the year, as required by law, is published separately.

THE NEEDS OF THE UNIVERSITY.

A larger income for meeting the general current expenses of the institution is needed in order to maintain the work at its present high state of efficiency.

The attendance has increased in five years from 664 to 1,049, or 63 per cent. The regular income has not increased in this time to an appreciable degree, but the larger number of students has rendered necessary more instructors, increased equipment and larger amounts of supplies of all kinds. The last Legislature made specific appropriations in favor of the agricultural department, but these are not available to relieve these needs where they are most felt.

The engineering laboratories are no longer adequate to accommodate the larger numbers of students assigned to work in these departments. To relieve this pressure it is recommended that new and larger shops be provided adjacent to the present engineering building and that the present shops be added to the laboratory space.

Attention has been previously called to the situation in regard to the heating and power plants. It is only necessary to add here that the present service is becoming more inadequate in every respect. The natural gas supply affords no reliance in the cold season and in its place the high priced grades of coal must be used. On this account the expenditure for extra labor is larger and after all the service thus expensively secured is inefficient. A first-class central heating and power plant is a necessity, especially now that an additional large building must be provided for.