150 AGRICULTURE OF MAINE, 



seeds, however, contrary to the custom of former years, they 

 have been sent to the Station without description other than an 

 index number ; the complete information and history not being 

 communicated until after a report of analysis has been received 

 at this office. 



Marked attention has been given to fertilizer inspection and 

 more correspondents have taken advantage of the provisions of 

 chapter 130, P. L., 191 1, wherein the method of procedure for 

 obtaining free analysis of fertilizer samples is outlined, than 

 in previous years. 



Two hundred and fifty towns and cities of Maine have been 

 visited at least once, and many several times, by the inspectors, 

 and an attempt has been made to maintain as complete an 

 inspection as possible at all times in Portland, Bangor and Lew- 

 iston where, owing to the large population and varied industries, 

 all branches of inspection work have seemed to be necessary. 



As the consumption of feeding stuffs is greater in winter 

 than during the other seasons of the year, the inspection of this 

 commodity was vigilantly maintained throughout the winter 

 months, suspended during the smnmer and resumed in the fall; 

 fertilizer inspection began in the early spring and the bulk of 

 the samples was taken by July first, although scattering sam- 

 ples were collected as late as October. The inspection of seeds 

 was confined to the spring months and two inspectors were 

 employed for the work, an attempt being made to visit towns 

 previously unvisited. During the summer months the inspec- 

 tion of fungicides and insecticides was attended to and, al- 

 though not a great number of samples was obtained, the visits 

 of the inspector resulted in numerous registrations or the re- 

 turn by dealers to the manufacturers or jobbers of contra- 

 band goods ; as for the inspection of foods and drugs, greater 

 activity has been possible in this particular line of work and 

 more samples have been collected than last year. As stated 

 above, all samples have been forwarded to the Experiment 

 Station for analysis and, as the results of these analyses have 

 been published with detailed tabulations in the form of Official 

 Inspections, it seems unnecessary for me to do more than to 

 refer to the number of the Official Inspections or other publi- 

 cations where such detailed information relative to the com- 

 modities analyzed has been given. 



