020 RKPOKT OK OFFH'K OF EXPERIM3':N'r STATKWS. 



(|uosti()n.s wliich tin* us«> of miicliiiuTy, jircatci' facilities in (•(unmuiii- 

 ciitioM and transportation. tiTcatcr political iJluTtics enjoyed to-flav, 

 and like changes liave forced upon the present generation for solution. 

 Lectures on financial science, civil oovernnient, and agricultural law 

 also form a j)art of the course. Counnercial law, agricultural ))ool<- 

 keeping, and taxes and taxation are studied in connection with the 

 course on farm management. As in some of the other institutions, 

 so in the agricultural school at Ilohenheim, social, political, and 

 economic to})ics, especially' those of interest at the time being, are 

 studied and discussed in an economic seminar. The ]i))rarv of the 

 institution contains about 18,200 volunjes, of which about 1,500 are 

 works on economic subjects. 



In the agricultural winter schools of the Grand Duchy of Hesse the 

 course on economics consists of lectures on general conditions of pro- 

 duction, tlieor}" of values, money, forms of credit, exchange, agricul- 

 tural societies, factors affecting agricultural pursuits, cost of agricul- 

 tural production, systems of farming (individuals, corporations, 

 intensiv^e, extensive, crop production, raising of live stock, mixed 

 farming), crop rotations, civil government, and agricultural law. 

 Four hours weekly are devoted to the subject. 



Two hours per week are given to the study of agricultural ])ook- 

 keeping, which includes single and double entry, American bookkeep- 

 ing, trial balance, banking, and business transactions. 



SHORT AND SPECIAL COURSES. 



In the effort to meet the needs of various classes of students the 

 agricultural colleges have been unusually active in recent years in 

 organizing special and short courses of different kinds. In order to 

 determine the status of this work in the United States irenerallv, a 

 summary of these courses as offered in the different States and Terri- 

 tories has Ijeen prepared during the past year bj' ]VIr. D. J. Crosby 

 and published as Bulletin 139 of this Office. The general features of 

 these courses are shown in the introduction to that l)ulletin, which is 

 given herewith: 



One of the features of the recent forward movement in agricukural education has 

 been the development of agricultural courses of study lower in grade and shorter than 

 the regular four-year collegiate course. Sixty-three agricultural (colleges and schools 

 receive funds from the Government. Forty-four of these have organized special or 

 short courses. This has been done to meet the needs of several t'lasse-s of young 

 people, who may be classified somewhat roughly as follows: (1) Those preparing to 

 enter a four-year agricultural course; (2) those desiring instruction in agricultural 

 subjects, but having insufficient scholastic attainments to carry the full collegiate 

 course; (3) those unable to leave home for an extended course, who desire in.struc- 

 tion in some particular phase of agricultural science or wish to become proficient 

 in some branch of agricultural practice; and (4) teachers desiring to prepare them- 

 aeWes to give instruction in nature study and elementary agriculture. 



