PROGRESS IN AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION. 609 



the necessity for these investifjations and their importance to the whole country is 

 destined to increase. 



There is no country wiierc drainage pr<>])leins are an important as in the I'nited 

 States. Tlie swamp and overtlowcil lands of this country if reclaimed will eijual in 

 productive capacity practically liu- whole oi France, yet the jiroblems of drainage 

 and dikini;, on wliirli their successful reclamation depends, have as yet received but 

 little study, and the practice in both direitions is susceptible of fjreat improvement. 



The construction of country roa<ls is an essential feature of rural engineering. The 

 great extent of our country, its recent settlement, and the necessity for extensive 

 improvements in those directions, make it an imjjortant factor in the work of the 

 Department of Agriculture. The necessity for improvements in roads ha.s been 

 referre<l to above, but the study <»f tlie character of these imj)rovements involves also 

 a study of the kind of machines and vehicles that are to travel on them. Along with 

 the study of road making should go a study of the limitations and re(juirements of 

 traction engines, automobiles, and all of the new forms of transjxjrtation which are 

 becoming an essential factor of American farm life. The relation of the problems of 

 farm machinery to irrigation and drainage has already been shown by the necessity 

 of including in these investigations a study of the applications of power to pumping, 

 becaasf pumping is the only means of supplying water ior irrigation in certain dis- 

 tricts and an essential means of removing water from over-irrigated lands in others. 

 The study of jiumping lias, <jf necessity, leil to a study of the relative economy and 

 effectivenessof different forms of power for the ojieratiou of pumps. There is equal need 

 of similar studies (jf the applic-ations of the different forms of jjower, whether steam, 

 gasoline, electricity, water, or wind power in the other branches of farm work, and 

 these are lieing bnjught home each year with increasing force to both the manufac- 

 turers and users of farm machinery. We believe, therefore, that all these related 

 lines of work shouM be brought together in the Department of Agriculture in a single 

 bureau, exactly as all the related lines of instruction in these subjects should be 

 brought together in one distinct course in our colleges. 



The necessity for increased attention to tliese su1)jects has been recognized bv both 

 the Secretary of Agriculture and the Director of the Office of Experiment Stations. 

 Dr. True has recommended that the name "irrigation investigations" be changed 

 to "irrigation and agricultural engineering" in order to more correctly indicate the 

 nature of the work being done, ami the Secretary of Agriculture, on the recommen- 

 dati()n of Dr. True, has included in his estimates to Congres^s a request for this change 

 and for an increa.sed appropriation to be expended in making investigations in the 

 applications of power to farm machinery, tlu' direction of these inquiries, as indi- 

 cated in Dr. True's report, to be: 



"(1) I'relimiiiary work in the collection and ])ublication of information regarding 

 the evolution, character, ami usi's of farm implements and machinery in this and 

 other countries. This is important because the available literature on the subject is 

 scattered, fragmentary, and out of date. A small beginning has just been made in 

 this direction in a bulletin on The Kvolntion of Reai>ing Machines recently i>uljlished 

 by this OflBce, and another bulletin describing corn-harvesting machinery, which is 

 being j)repared. 



" (2) I^aboratory and practical tests, involving a study of jirinciplesof construction 

 and metiiods of operation of farm inqilements and machiner\- with special reference 

 to efliciency and economy. Tln-se might very properly include certain strictly 

 techni'al in(|niries regarding tlie fundamental nature of the various mechanical farm 

 operations with a vii'W to suggesting the best means of performing them with the 

 imi)lements and machines at present available, or with others, the construction of 

 which will be indicated by the results of the inquiries. Such in<iuiries would require 

 consideral)le laboratory equipment, but the results obtained would be u.seful to the 

 S. Doc. 148, 58-2 39 



