280 REPORT OP OFPICE OF EXPERIMENT STATIONS. 



the office is constantly losing some of its best men, but the benefits derived by the 

 various States and counties through the distribution of trained men to all sections of 

 the country are so great as to be a vindication of the wisdom of this project. 



The editor in his annual report says that 27,594,877 copies of publi- 

 cations were issued. This was an increase of nearly 10 per cent in 

 the number of copies printed and distributed as compared with the 

 preceding year. The popular demand for the publications of the 

 department was unprecedented, and it would have required at least 

 5,000,000 additional copies to have met this demand fully. Regard- 

 ing the use of our pubhcations by schools and universities he says: 



The demand for the department's publications for use in schools of all grades and 

 also from universities continues to increase and is far beyond our ability to supply. 

 An effort is always made to furnish a limited number for this excellent use. Millions 

 of publications, especially Farmers' Bulletins, could be placed in the hands of the 

 youth of the country who are interested in agriculture and kindred subjects, and it is 

 believed that such distribution of them would encourage agriculture and increase the 

 prosperity of the Republic. An increase of the appropriation with this object in 

 view is worthy of serious consideration. 



The Bureau of Statistics, after conducting for three years, under 

 the direction of the Assistant Secretary of Agriculture, an investi- 

 gation of the priiotical workings of various types of consoUdated 

 rural schools in different parts of the United States, prepared and 

 transmitted to tlie Office of Experiment Stations a valuable report 

 on this subject, which has been published as a bulletin of the office 

 under the title "Consolidated Rural Schools and the Organization 

 of a County System." 



EDUCATIONAL WORK OF THE OFFICE OF EXPERIMENT 



STATIONS. 



The work of the Office of Experiment Stations in relation to- agri- 

 cultural colleges and schools has grown, but not sufficiently to keep 

 pace with the development of agricultural education in the United 

 States. There has been, as formerly, cooperation with and clearing- 

 house work for colleges and schools of agriculture, conferences ^vith 

 those concerned with the inauguration of new agricultural-school 

 projects, editorial and statistical work, and a large correspondence. 

 In tliis work the speciaUst in agi'icultural education has been assisted 

 by F. W. Howe, C. H. Lane, and B. B. Hare, assistants in agi-icultural 

 education; Miss M. T. Spethmann, in charge of statistics and the 

 rcAaewof foreign literature on agricultural education; and Miss M. A. 

 Agnew, in charge of the card directory of teachers and investigators 

 in agriculture and of the organization lists of agi'icultural colleges 

 and experiment stations. Mr. Howe resigned October 15, 1910, to 

 accept a more lucrative position with the New York State Depart- 

 ment of Education and was succeeded April 16, 1911, by Mr. Lane. 



