604 KKPOKT OF OFFICE OF EXPEKIMKNT STATIONS. 



injjs to tliflVrent parts ol the I'aiiii, may involve iiiiirlv(.'(l oc.oiioiuy or si^riou.M wayte in 

 the ex[)enK'H of construction and in tlic distances traveled in tjoinp to and from the 

 lidds. It is tlu-rcfore one of tiie tilings to wliich attention sliouM l>c directed in our 

 institutions of lcarnin<r. 



Closely related to 1 lie arrangement of lields is the construction and {grouping of 

 farm houses and farm Imildinf^s, not only to secure efficiency and economy, Imt to 

 ccmtrihute to the healtiifnlness and attractiveness of farm life. There is no doubt 

 that ]>resent conditions in these ]iarticulars in the T^nite<l Shdes are inferior to those 

 in most iMU-opean coiuilries, and it is e(|iially certain that improving,' the conditions 

 of farm life will have much to do with dctciiniiiiMjj; whether the (^xodns of peftple 

 from the country to the cities will he checke(l or hecome greater in the future than 

 in the ])ast. 



In the construction of farm buildings, hotli harns and houses, the farmer is almost 

 entirely dependent on his own knowledge and ingeiniity in j preparing })lans and often 

 in their execution. The designing of city buildings is largely in the hands of archi- 

 tects and engineers, and they are constructed by i'X])i'rt mechanics. They have, 

 therefore, a finish and convenit'nce which add largely to the attractiveness of city 

 life. In the country, however, exactly the reverse is true. The great majority of 

 farm buildings are unsatisfactory, whether considered from the standpoint of appear- 

 ance, durability, adaptability to the work to he done, healtiifnlness, or ])leasantness 

 for the occni)ant,s. Some problems in connection with farm buildings need careful 

 study. Among thep^ is ventilation. The fact is we do not know either the effect of 

 poor ventilation or the most efficient means of sec^nring good ventilation. But the 

 majority of the improvements to he Avronght <lo not re(]uire research so much as the 

 application of skill and ingenuity in design. One illustration of this is the fact that 

 nothing is oi more service in a home than a convenient water system. Much of the 

 dislike which many Avomen have to farm life comes, consciously or unconsciously, 

 from the heavy work of handling water in cooking an<l washing, all of which could 

 be easily saved by the adoption of readily available means. There is no reason why 

 a farmhouse should not be as attractive as a city house, and there is no reason why 

 the grounds surrounding farmhouses should not be made as attractive as city ])arks. 

 It is largely because farm life and the farm home are not attractive that many of the 

 enterprising, aggressive youth of the country flock to the cities. 



Heretofore, nearly all farm 1)uildings have been built of wood. A change in this 

 direction is inevitable in the near future. Timber is becoming scarce and costly and 

 nuist be sup])lemented by brick, stone, or conc^rete. We ought to begin in the near 

 future to determine the relative value and cost of these different materials, and this 

 is particularly a work for the colleges and stations. The character of farm buildings 

 has also changed greatly in the past quarter of a century. Formerly they were 

 simply storage places for grain or shelters for live stock. With the introduction of 

 feed cutters, silos, power churns, centrifugal cream separators, and scores of other 

 machines formerly unknown, these buildings are becoming as complex in their 

 desigJis and uses as factories, and there is need of scientific study to determine the 

 most economical designs to fulfill these different requirements. 



Another reason for strengthening these courses' of study is the fact that all of the 

 public lands susceptible of cultivation in their natural condition have been taken up, 

 so that this outlet for our growing ])opulation is closed. We have, however, large 

 areas of land which, when drained or irrigated, can be settled upon and cultivated. 

 Ttie importance of irrigation is manifest from the statement that in two-fifths of the 

 United States it is an absolute necessity to the existence of civilized life, and there is 

 every reason to believe that it is destined to be an important means of increasing 

 production throughout tlie whole country. But in ordiT that lields may be irrigated 

 they must be smoothed so that water will flow over them; and in order that the 

 beat results may be obtained the methods of ajtplying water to crops to secure the 



