New York Ageicultural Experiment Station. 11 



estimated financial needs of the institution for the 



fiscal year 1913-1914. 



In making jjublic the estimates decided upon by your Board as 

 needed appropriations for the institution during the fiscal year 

 1913-19il-4 it is proper that certain explanations should be offered. 



It will be noticed that the items requested for the maintenance 

 of the Station for the next fiscal year, outside of the aid given the 

 Commissioner of Agriculture in the administration of agricul- 

 tural law, exceed the appropriation for the present year by 

 $16,700. This increase is distributed among the items for sal- 

 aries, labor and expenses for maintaining the various lines of re- 

 search and experimentation carried on by the institution. 



It is easily seen that this increase is not requested for any single 

 purpose, but is regarded as necessary because of the general en- 

 largement of the activities of the Station due to the steady growth 

 of the demands made upon us by the agricultural public. It 

 should not be forgotten in this connection that agricultural prac- 

 tice has undergone, during the past few decades, very far-reach- 

 ing changes largely in the direction of a steadily increasing de- 

 pendence upon the conclusions of science. For this reason, the 

 agricultural public is more and more turning to such agencies as 

 the college of agriculture and the experiment station for the 

 solution of problems and for direction in farm practice. It may 

 be said that there seems to be no limit to what may be expended 

 in agricultural research and education and it is true that the 

 amounts appropriated by the State for the support of its agricul- 

 tural agencies has been steadily increasing until they are now an 

 important item in the State's annual financial budget. 



The real question to be considered, however, is whether these 

 expenditures are profitable, whether it is really worth while to 

 secure and apply knowledge that results in more economical pro- 

 duction, whether it is worth while to defend the farmer against 

 pests, which, without the application of modern methods, would 

 render almost impossible the production of certain farm crops. 

 It is safe to assert that the action of the State Legislature in liber- 



