ClU KKI'OKT OF OFFICE OF KXrKKlMKN'i' STATIONS. 



fiirmor by securing for him the most cHiciciit implfiiu'iil or inachim' for jM'rformiiifj 

 tin- (Icsin'd operation, and to the manufactnriT liy assistin<^' liiiii in th«' constniction of 

 the (Icsircd imi)lt'm('nts and niacliiiics.'' 



Tliis committee recommends tliat the siKsociation declare itj^elf in favor of the crea- 

 tion of separate departnicnts of rural en<rineering in the cftlleges, that it give it« 

 hearty support to t hi' »'fforts of the Secretary of Agriculture to extend the work of 

 his Department along these lines, and that the executive comuiittee he instructed to 

 urge tii)on Congress the importance of giving the Department lil>eral ai)i)ropriationH 

 for these purposes. 



COURSES IN RURAL ECONOMY. 



There has thus far been (•()iii})arativ('ly little instruction ^iven in our 

 agricultural colleges on subjects connected with the economic pro})lenis 

 of agriculture. Attention was called to this in the fifth report of the 

 conunittee on teaching agriculture of the A.ssociation of American 

 Agricidtural Colleges and Exi)eriment Stations in 1900, when a tentative 

 course in rural economy was outlined. Since then there has been a 

 somewhat greater interest in this suljject manifested l)y the managers 

 of f)ur agricultural colleges, and in a few institutions we have the 

 beginnings of definite cour.ses of instruction along these lines. 



At the College of Agriculture of the Ohio State University a cour.sc 

 on the histor}' of agriculture and rural economics is offered, which 

 consists of "lectures and recitations upon the historj- of agriculture; 

 present agricultural methods in various countries; cost and relative 

 profits of various farm operations and systems.'' Prof. H. C. Price, 

 who has recently been appointed dean of this college, is also desig- 

 nated professor of rural economy. 



In the College of Agriculture of the University of ]Minnesotaa course 

 in ''agricultural economics" is offered, which includes the following 

 topics: 



Farm management, sj^stems of farming, planning farms, fields, crops, 

 stock, labor, farm finances, sales, prices, agricultural statistics, pro- 

 duction, exports, wages, land laws, ownership, taxes, organizations. 



Special attention has also been given l)y this institution to original 

 investigations regarding the cost of production of agricidtural crops, 

 in cooperation with the Bureau of Statistics of this Department. 



At the University of Wiscon.sin a course in agricultural economics 

 is given by Dr. H. C. Taylor, instructor in commerce. "This course 

 treats of those principles which imdcrlie the prosperity of the farmer 

 and of all other classes in so far as they are dependent upon agricul- 

 ture. The subject is divided into two parts. Part one considers the 

 point of view of the farmer and those economic principles which 

 underlie the management of a farm in such manner as will make it 

 yield the largest net return. Part two discusses the point of view of 

 the nation as a whole and those pi-inciples which should guide the 

 statesman in his efforts to regulate and improve the agriculture of a 

 countr3\" 



