Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Benton County, Or.) 1900-1909, 1901-02-08
Limit Rather Than Expand.

ny Iuo puollC SeIeTaliy, anu prOnl-
nent persons in particular, during
the recent discussion concerning
the power of the legislature to di-
vide the college; and, also the ap-
parent confusion of ideas on mat
ters affecting the management and
establishment Of experiment sta
tons, have seemed to make it ad-
visable that we publish the follow
ing extract from Circular 20, issued
by the United States Department
of Agriculture:
This Department holds that the !ex-
penditure of funds appropriated in ac-
cordance with Ethe provisions of the act
of congress of March 2, 1887, for the
maintenance of permanent substations is
contrary to the spirit and intent of said
act. The act provides for an experiment
station in each state or territory, which,
except in cases specified in the act, is to
be department of the college estab-
lished under act of congress OF July 2,
1862. The objects OF the station as de-
fined in the first mentioned.act are evil
dently Of such character as to necessi-
tate the services of expert workers.
Most OF the lines Of Investigation named
in the act are general rather than local,
and involve scientific equipment ard
work. 1t is obviously the intent that
the stations established under this act
shall carry on Important investigations
which shall be Of general benefit to the
agriculture of the several states and ter
ritoiies. The sum of $4,000 which is
annually appropriated by congress un-
der this act for each station is only
sufficient to carry out a limited number
of investigations of the kinds contem-
plated by the act.
AS the work of the stations in the
different states las developed, it has
been found necessary to limit rather
| than expand the lines of work of the in
divldual stations. Thorough work in a
| few lines has been found much more
! effective and productive of more useful
results than small investigations in
numerous lines. When we consider the
nature of the investigations, the amount
of money provided for the work of each
Hstation, and the fact that the act ex-
pressly provides for only single sta
I ton in connection with each college,
it becomes very clear that expenditures
fsuch as are necessary to effectively main
tain permanent snbstatiens ought not to
be made from the funds granted by con
gress to the states and territories for
! experiment stations. The maintenance
| OF permanent substations as rule in
wolves the erection of buildings and the
making of other permanent improve
fments. The sums of money which can
be expended for permanent improve
! ments under the act of congress afore
said are so small that it is clear they
were not intended to meet the needs of
| more than one station in each state and
territory.
When the legislature of a state or ter
| ritory has given it's assent to the pro
visions of the act of congress of March
2, 1887, and has designated the institu-
ton which shall receive the benefits of
said act, it would seem to have exhausted
its powers i'll the matter. The respon.
| sibility for the maintenance of an ex-
pertinent station under said act devolyes
upon the governing board of the instr
tuition thus designated. If the legisla-
ture of the state or territory sees fit to
provide funds for the equipment and
maintenance of other experiment sta
| tionsIand to put them under the con-
troll OF the same governing board, well
and good, but this does not in any way
diminish the responsibility of the board
to administer the funds granted by con-.
grsss in accordance with the provisions
of said act.
The wisdom of congress in limiting
the number OF stations to be established
in each state and territory under the
Aforesaid act has been clearly shown by
the experience of the few states and
territories which have attempted the
maintenance of substations with the
funds granted under said act, The ex-
pense of maintaining substations has as
a rule materially weakened the central
station, and the investigations carried
on at the substations have been super
icial and temporary. 1t is granted that
in many states and territories more than
one agricultural experiment station
do useful work, and in some states more
than one tation have already been sue
'cessfuliy maintained; but in all these
cases the state has given funds from its
own treasury to supplement those given
by congress. 1t is also granted that
experiment stations established under
said act Of congress and having no other
funds than those provided by that act
will often need to carry Oh investiga-
tions in different localities in their re-
spective states and territories, but it is
held that this should be done in such a
way as will secure theS thorough super
vision OF such investigation by the ex-
pert officers. of the station and that ar
rangements for such experimental in
Quirles should not be of so nermanent O