THE PROPOSED AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE. 



At the last session of the Legislature, the subject of Agricultural 

 Education catae up in connection with the question of accepting 

 the grant made by act of Congress to endow an Agricultural Col- 

 lege in each State. The grant was accepted ; but nothing farther 

 was decided upon ; doubtless some action will be taken during 

 the coming session. 



The subject was fully discussed before the Board of Agriculture, 

 and the result of the deliberation may be found in the resolutions 

 unanimously adopted, as given on page 5*7. The report accompa- 

 nying these resolves treats of the subject more in detail, and shad- 

 ows forth many of the essential features of the proposed institution 

 in so able and thorough a manner, that it seems unnecessary here 

 to dwell farther upon it, or to recapitulate the views and arguments 

 there presented. 



The deliberations of the Legislature, aside from the question of 

 acceptance, took little farther range than whether or not to accept 

 a proposal made by Waterville College to the State : which was, 

 substantiall}^ that the donation of lands be made over to that insti- 

 tution, and in consideration therefor, a specified number of pupils 

 were to be instructed at this institution, in applied chemistry, civil 

 engineering and other branches of learning more or less intimately 

 connected with agriculture, without any charge for tuition ; and for 

 this purpose to establish two professorships additional to those at 

 present existing in the College. This proposal was not accepted ; 

 and, chiefly, if the reasons are correctly apprehended, because, first, 

 the grant by Cougress, was not made to increase, or to extend the 

 facilities for instruction in any existing lilerarij institution, but, in the 

 language of the act itself, for " the endowment, support and mainte- 

 nance of at least one college where the leading object shall be, (with- 

 out excluding other scientific and classical studies, and including 

 military tactics,) to teach such branches of learning as are related to 

 agriculture and the mechanic arts, in such manner as the Legisla- 

 tures of the States may respectively prescribe, in order to promote 



