NEEDS OF THE STATIONS. 33 



Since the .stations Were established under the Hateh Art, tlic States 

 have materially increased their ai)propriations for their maintenance, 

 and it may be asked why should not the States be called upon to add 

 to the resources of the stations whatever additional funds are needed 

 for their more perfect development. In reply to this it may l)e said 

 that there are likel}- in the future to be such demands on the States to 

 pi-ovide for the extension of agricultural education in o^eneral that it 

 will be increasingly difficult for them to add to the resources of the 

 stations. This has already been the case in a number of States. Thus 

 far, in most of the States, the stations have been aided by appropria- 

 tions for l)uildings and equipment which have Vjeen for the joint use 

 of the agricultural colleges and experiment stations. The increased 

 interest which is now being manifested in those forms of education 

 which are furnished by the agricultural colleges has had the result 

 thtit the number of students in those institutions is increasing more 

 rapidly than the facilities provided for them. This is putting addi- 

 tional burdens on the officers of these institutions, manj' of whom are 

 employed in both college and station, and is making the new buildings 

 inadequate for the purpose for which thev were intended. Moreover, 

 outside the colleges there is a rapidly growing demand for secondary 

 schools of agriculture and the introduction of agricultural subjects 

 into the public schools. The States will therefore need to provide 

 largely increased funds for agricultural education, and this is likel}' to 

 absorb their revenues to such an extent that it will not be practicable 

 for them as a rule to materially increase the resources of the stations. 



Thus far the stations have been maintained mainly by National 

 funds, and this polic}' having been once adopted it seems reasonable 

 that the nation should increase its contributions to the support of 

 these institutions as the demands of their work increase, and thus 

 leave the colleges more free to advance the agricultural education of 

 the people with the aid of State funds. This argument has more 

 inqjortance from the fact that the results of the work of the stations 

 are more and more depended on to furnish the materials on which 

 courses of instruction in agi-iculture of different grades can be suc- 

 cessfully based. If the nation makes the institutions of research in 

 agriculture strong and far-reaching in their work, it will thereby la}'^ 

 the foundation for a system of agricultural education which, if the 

 States and local communities do their duty, will eventually profoundly 

 affect the material and intellectual well-being of the masses of our 

 riwal population. 



The theory on which appropriations of public monej' are made to the 



agricultural colleges and experiment stations is, that since these are 



institutions for the promotion of an industry on whose success the 



whole fabric of the nation's material prosperit}' depends, all oui' people 



S. Doc. 148, 58-2 3 



