Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1897-02-08
INSTITUTIONS OF LEARNING
School of Mines at S0cOrrO, Agricul-
tural College at Las Cruces, Nor
NAL School at Silver City.
A FEW FACTS CONCERNING The WORK
The Principals of the Schools Tell
Something of What They Are
Doing.

New Mexico has three institutions of
learning which are of great Importance
to the people and are destined to be
great factors in the development of the
resources of the territory in the future
These schools are the School of Mines, at
Socorro; Agricultural college, at Las Cru
ces, and the Territorial Normal school,
at Silver City. Saturday afternoon Profs.
Seamon, Jordan and Light, who are at the
head of these colleges, were interviewed
concerning them, and the reports are GER
tainly encouraging.
SCHOOL OF MINES.
Prof. W. H. Seamon, in speaking of
this institution, said:
"We now have two teachers, including
myself, and an enrolment of twenty
seven students in classes ranging from
preparatory to senior. The course of
study requires six years to complete and
consists of mathematics, chemistry,
physics, minerology and geology, both in
technical and scientific aspects; mining
engineering, assaying, analytic chemistry
and drawing receiving particular atten-
tion. Last May two were graduated and
next May one will finish the course.
"This is the second year of the school,
and the attendance shows an increase of
81 per cent over that of the first. We are
doing all the work possible for so small a
faculty, but could care for more pupils
and do better work if the number Of in
structors was larger. The work we do is
strictly on the lines of mine engineering,
the mornings given to class work, the
afternoons to laboratory duties, and the
results obtained, in my Judgment, are
satisfactory to the students.
"The prospects for the school are good
Forty per cent of the attendance comes
from outside of Socorro county, which
when it is known that neither advertising
nor travelling is done in the interest OF
the school, speaks we'll for our work. The
school is advertising itself, and next year
the attendance will undoubtedly be much
larger than at any time heretofore. One
of the difficulties in the way of growth and
successful work is lack of sufficient
funds.
uO bCuoOl 10 ChuAlNlJ oOPChuoAu pun
Legislative appropriations, and the funds
available prevent the employment of the
instructors actually needed. In my opinion
the mineral wealth of the territory is our
greatest resource. Mining will always be
the predominating industry and the
School of Mines should be equipped fol
efficient work. If it is il will do more to
hasten the development of mines than
any other institution in New Mexico. We
have the buildings, the opportunity, and
students are easily gotten, all That is
lacking for the school to accomplish the
% i; joov for which it was established is
sufficient money"
AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE.
Prof. G. T. Jordan, president of the
Agricultural college, located ct Las
Cruces, gave the following concerning
the school:
"The intention of the law establishing
agricultural colleges is to make them
| tirst-class schools of applied science, with
agriculture and mechanics as leading
features. Similar schools in the states
we're originally endowed with large land
grants, afterwards a supplemental appro-
priatIon was made for them. The terri
torial schools never received the land
grant endowment, and in consequence
the income of ;he territorial Agricultural
college from the United States is limited
to the supplemental appropriation,
amounting last year to 1921 900. In order
to get this appropriation the college
must comply with certain conditions;
must teach or be prepared to teach GER
tain things provided for in the bill max
ing the endowment. These things, be-
sides the English branches, are political
economy, science of government, history,
and all the varied sciences that bear up
agriculture and mechanical arts.
"The college at Las Cruces has nine
departments, each of which is in charge
of specialist in that particular line. In
some of these departments assistants are
also employed. These departments are
divided in accordance with the general
rule governing the agricultural and me-
ohanical colleges of the country.
"The fact that the government appro-
priation can only be used for certain pur-
poses makes it necessary that the territory
should supply funds for those purposes
for which the government funds are not
applicable, such as payment of an in
structor in Spanish, insurance, printing
of catalogue, stamps and stationery,
jaAitors. fuel, light and other incidental
expenditures.
"The members of the faculty ore able
men, specialists in their lines and de-
voted to scientific work, most of them
coming from the leading universities Of
the country. The salaries paid are much
less than those paid by similar schools in
the states.
"The enrolment for the present year
is 149, an increase of 40 per cent over last
year.