Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1897-06-07
EXPERIMENT STATIONS.
Their History, and What They Have Done in
This Country and Europe.

| tton in the world was estAblSht.u iess
| than fifty years ago in the village o.
| Moeckern. Germany. \ company o.
| farmers. believing that science couie
T, help agriculture. formed an association
engaged a chemist. and put him al Wort
10 investigate some OF the problems
which underlie agriculture. In Germany
l.eibG; in France Boussingault: in Eng
land. Lawes x Gilbert; had been at WORE
opening up the road whereby agriculture
might be benefited by science. This sta
ton at Moeckern was established in 1851
IL proved Itself to be of SO much Nalu,
that the number of stations multiplied
rapidly. SO that i'll 1851 there We're tfteeF
experiment stations in Germany ana
other European countries and today, on
the continent OF Europe. there are oven
one hundred stations.
The history OF the experiment station
movement In this country Is familiar 10
you. Connecticut has the honor of in
itiating the movement. Through the
Iiberality of Mr.. Orange Judd and an
appropriation from the Connecticut legis-
lature, the first agricultural experiment
station in America was started In the
chemical laboratory of the Wesleyan uni
versity al Middletown In October lsi1t
The history OF the experiment station
movement in this country Is n repetition
Of It's history in Germany. In less than
two years of its experimental existenc
this experiment station demonstrated
clearly its value TO the agriculture OF
Connecticut that the legislature of 1876
It's present permanent basis. Stations
We're established in other states. so thai
in 1870 there were seventeen stations IN
this country in fourteen different states.
The cause of agricultural education had
been greatly advanced by the establish
ing OF the land-grsint colleges. The ex-
pertinent station movement commended
Itself so generally to the country that il,
1887 The Hatch act WAS passed by the
United States Congress- which act. under
certain conditions. appropriates S56I;
per annum To each state and territory
for the establishment of experiment sta
lions. As a result of this. eXperimcn.
stations have been started in nearly every
state and territory. Today. not counting
Sub-stationS, there are ffty-four agricul-
tural experiment stations in this country.
lifty-onc of which receive the appropri.t-
ton provided i'll the act of Congress re
ferred to.
The experiment stations of the United
States employ more than five hundred.
and fifty men The total revenue of thu.
experiment stations from all sources is
more than million dollars.
THIS Is an enormous amount Of money,
and this question at once arises in the
mind of one studying the experiment sta
ton movement. rs this great cost iusti
lied 1t Is a recognized fact that along
the lines of fertilizer control alone tho
experiment station has saved to the
larmer OF the state many times its cost
The same fact holds in nearly all of the
states east OF The Mississippi Wherever
fertilizers are used to any conSidpra bic
amount we find the control station and
the annt;u saving along this line alone
is much greater than the total cost OF
the experiment station.
a method of analysis In common usc
and so simple that min of common
intelligence can work 1.-THE B;thcock
test-originated with an experiment sta
ton man, and was Il sift to the dairy
pubic. This one gift of the experiment
station to the dairy public has i'm my
opinion been n far ~ H.,
dairy industry than the total cost of
experiment stations mp to this time II
would take too much time to mention
the numerous ways in which cxpprlmt. nj
stations have been of decided pecuniflrv
benefit TO agriculture. SPRAYING for fungi
ana injurious insects, which methods of
protection are the result of experiment
station work saves annually many times;
the total cost of maintaining stations
Not the least part of the work of cx,
pertinent stations is educational Tween
t}-hNc years ago II was practically i'm
possible for an ordinary farmer to obtain
information concerning agriculture anC
the principles which underlie IT, Thcrc
was no agricultural literature How is
Il today? There is an enormous litera-
ture--valuable literature-whjch is NJ
every mans disposal; it is to be had for
the asking. Every experiment station Is
required by law to publish reports ana
bulletins OF its work. In 1891 the expert
ment stations issued ffty-four anpu,l
=.
and there We're distributed. in the aagre-
gate, nearly five milton copies of these
publications in the United States and
territories
The station bulletins are regularly dis
tributed to a half-million persons who
are cither farmers or closely Unidentified
VITA the agricultural industry The kinds
OF experiment station work is discussed
IN thousands of newspapers. One EXPERT
ineHt station estimates that each one of
its publications. directly or indirectly.
reaches more than haf-mllion readers.
Besides this the experiment stations carry
on very large correspondence with
farmers. Hundreds of public addresses
are made by station officers at farmers
meetings, and the results of station work
are taught to thousands of students in
our colleges.
The stations have also taught the farm
crs BOW TO help themselves. In many
lines their work has shown that to be
thoroughly successful the farmer him
self must pc an experimenter. The sta
tons haVd found out thinns which are
of great economic value. in the study of
soils and fertilizers, in the tests of new
varieties of c@.9als. forage plants. vege-
tables, and fruits; in each research upon
the composition and digestibility of feed
ing stuffs. in feeding experiments with
sheep. pigs and dairy cattle: and in in
vestigations in dairying. and in observ;1-
tions in plant diseases.
The problems which the experiment
stations undertake to solve are many.
They rsser to the tilIage of the soil. 10
the nainre and action. of manures. to the
culture of crops. to the food and nutri-
leo l..