242 The Irish Naturalist, November, 



can best help agriculture by giving a sound general education with 

 " Nature-study " as an influence pervading the atmosphere of the 

 place. At present, in Ireland, agricultural education is carried on in 

 provincial winter schools, by itinerant instructors in the counties, in 

 large provincial agricultural stations, such as Ballyhaise, Clonakilty, 

 and Athenry, at the Albert College, Glasnevin, and at the Royal College 

 of Science. The agricultural courses at the Royal College of Science and 

 at the Albert College are ample for training in the technology of agri- 

 culture. There is, however, a class of the community whose position and 

 influence in the nation demand that the}' should have clear and sound 

 ideas on agriculture in its broadest aspects. Those destined for public 

 life, members of the clerical, legal, and other learned professions, journa- 

 lists, administrators, teachers, and all those whose position demanded 

 for them a liberal education — for such full provision should be made in 

 our educational system. Agriculture, as now taught in most universities, 

 both in Great Britain and elsewhere, being largely concerned with the 

 details of an industr}-, belongs to the domain of technology, and not to 

 pure science or to the humanities But agriculture can also be treated 

 as a branch of the wide subject of national economics. Its importance 

 in the national life is such as to demand from all public men a knowledge 

 of its history, development, laws, potentialities, and relation to our 

 social and economic sj'stems — a knowledge which too few public men 

 possess. Agriculture, taught as a profession, is alread}' fully provided 

 for by the Department, whose business it is to supply instruction of this 

 nature to those engaged in the industry, or intending to be agricultural 

 leaders, teachers, or scientists. To the universiiv belongs the function 

 of vshapiug the general higher education of the class indicated, and it is 

 to be hoped that agriculture, in its humane aspect, will receive from the 

 new Irish colleges the attention it merits. 



IRISH SOIL MAPS. 



BY T. HALIvESSV, B.A. 



The work of preparing soil maps of Ireland was begun in 1837, but 

 abandoned in 1840. Since then very little had been done until a few 

 years ago, when the work was resumed under the direction of Professor 

 Cole. In soil mapping the physical properties of the soils, rather than 

 their chemical composition, are the important matters to consider. The 

 important thing to take into account is how the soil gets up water to 

 the crops rather than what it is composed of Farmers show that they 

 know this b> classifying soils as clays, loams, and sands, rather than as 

 potash or phosphoric soils. In a district a little over a mile .square, of 

 which a .soil map was shown, nine different sorts of soil had been found. 

 The work done has shown that it is not necessar}' to make a detailed 

 map of Ireland, but that it is quite sufficient to make a drift map, and to 

 take samples in the various drifts in Ireland and describe them. 



