The Farmville herald. [volume] (Farmville, Va.) 1890-1934, 1908-01-24
A SirOnQ Protest.

stitute we publish below extracts from
an open letter addressed by DIR. Bar
ringer 10 Senator Rison, Of Pittsylya-
mia. The latter has introduced a bill
in the Senate which proposes the re-
moyal Of the geological survey from
the V. p. /. 10 the University at
Charlottesville:
Hon. G.. +. Rison, Chatham, Va:
My Dear Senator-lour kind letter
Of the 18th instant, with enclosed bill
relating TO the establishment Of ge-
illogical survey i'm Virginia, just 10
hand. Allow me 10 thank you for
the courtesy Of an early view ofthe bill
and for your request for criticisms and
suggestions. After this fair and kind
ly dealing on your part, l am really
sorry to have TO differ with you on
your bill. but / must-for il is not fair
10 the institution ! represent / heard
a few DAYS ago that some such move
was 10 be made, but was told it
would come through another channel.
The part of this bill 10 which | par
ticularly object is the statement, "cre-
ated and established at the University
Of Virginia"
In the first place is il not little
late 10 call for the "creatiOn Of geo
logical survey I'm Nirginia2 For more
than two years there has been con-
Quoted at the Virginia Polytechnic In
stitute. under the auspices Of that in
stitutiOn and the State board Of agri-
culture, a systematic geological study
OF "the building and ornamental
stones, cements, cement materials,
claws. non. metallic minerals and me-
tallic minerals or ores Of the state Of
Virginia The result Of this survey /
was a series of large bulletins headed, /
"The Geological Survey of Virginia, /
by Thomas l.. Watson, geologist in /
charge" The first OF these, "rhe /
Lead aud Zinc Deposits Of Virginia, /
issued ia 1898, was by Professor Wat /
son himself; the second, on "Ihe /
Clays of Virginia, issued in 1906, was
by DR. Heinrich Ries. and the third,
is ued in 1906, was on The Hydro
graphy of Virginia stream measure
ment, was by y. &. Grover and X.
II. Bolster. The last two Of these bull
letins were prepared in conjunction
with the United States geological
survey.
Another aud a much more preten-
tious work, on the geology OF Virginia,
has lately been published as the re-
suit Of this survey. This work was
published through the courtesy Of the
Jamestown Exposition Commission,
as handbook on the "Mineral Re
sources Of Virginia 1t went TO press
last summer, although the prefsce is
dated September 80, 1907, after Pro
lessor Watson had been member Of
The faculty of the University Of Viz
ginia for full [ % weeks. As IL was
then dated from the University Of
Virginia, and a. Professor Watson
signs himself on the title page ~ "Pro-
lessor of Economic Geology in the
University Of Virginia" il might very
readily be inferred from this fOrtuitOus
Of circumstances, that IL
was the result Of work done at that
but a careful examination
Of the preface will reveal the fact that
This work was all done, with much
more yet unpublished, AT the Virginia
Institute. The opportu-
mites of Prof. Watson at this institu-
lion were extremely good. lie was
I'm view OF this work, assigned only
half the teaching duty usually assign
ed a professor, and was given all his
extra time for scientific investigation,
while his travelling expenses through
out the State were paid for by the
state Board Of agriculture, at a cost OF
81 900.
Secondly, let me inquire why II Is
TO remove this work, already
well started at the Virginia POlytech-
mic Institute, TO the University Of
Virginia. The University Of Virginia
has had eighty or more years in which
10 create such an enterprise why was
il not done before? IL was because
her leaders in their generation were
wise The University Of Virginia has
always been, and always should be,
a school of the humanities, a school
Of high cultural aim. lndustrialism
has no place in that atmosphere, lis
sickly growth there i'm the past is the
best proof Of this argument. William
Rogers had to seek another field.
llEinld diANhAN 0hlANAo AAA!lN AAah
any State know from an unwise di-
vision of effort. This is shown in the
presence Of three great State schools
the State University, the Virginia
Institute. Each costing
the state large sums annually, each
upon and interfering with
the work OF the other, and none able
To compete with the best outside
by reason Of this very
division. This being true, every ef-
fort should be made to classify and
outline the province Of each Of these
schools, and their efforts concentrated
on their legitimate work. This bill is
adroitly drawn 10 still further muddle
the existing chaos and produce its re-
suits IN the most expensive manner
possible. I can but feel that the Nir-
ginia Polytechnic Institute has pecu-
liar rights i'm this controversy, as 10
division of research effort. She has
within her walls, on the average more
Virginia students under training than
the other State schools combined.
She Is, as al land grant college, the
natural and chosen legatee Of the great
kIM~A lNNWf HNNN ~ AiAt d AA'NAA hWNT
eminent for the advancement ~ az
riculture, geology, the study Of the
soil, crops, water, etc. The Y. =. J..
already has the Hatch fund, the grow
ing Adams fund, available for soil
research, the study of "adaptability Ia
particular crops" she has specially
trained chemists already az work on
this problem, paid for By the Federal
but available for Virginia
work, if done here, bat not when done
elsewhere boo the state. Lett wise to
take from an institution. ioslered rs
the nited States department Of agrl-
culture, such work and transfer 10 n
another where it must be- paid f0f
from Stale funds. and this al time
when the nl,el aies government b.
tO distribute The greater
than ever bciopl l-it wise /
90 sever the reciprocal relations now
existing between the geological survey /
~ the United states aud this institu-
ton. land grant institution, and
transfer 10 for this relation Taking