6 ANNUAL REPORT OF THE Off. Doc. 



nuwiy prefer this life, to domestic service. This freedom, and the 

 comrader}' and ecjiiality of young women, wliich comes from being 

 engaged in a common occupation, accounts, more than the price 

 which they receive for this labor, for their preferring factory or store 

 service, to that of life in a farm home. Whatever the cause, the fact 

 is, that young girls do leave for other lines of occupation, and the 

 country housewife is obliged to do the work, and care for her chil- 

 dren, unassisted by hired help. For this there seems to be oo relief, 

 except to simplify living, introduce improvements in the arrangement 

 of the interiors of homes, and adopt labor-saving appliances that wall 

 I educe steps and save strength. The difficulty, therefore, in secur- 

 ing labor, available when needed, both for farm work and domestic 

 service, has become a most serious obstacle in the way of profitable 

 agriculture. 



CLASSIFICATION OF THE DEPxVRTMENT WORK. 



The work of the Department is distributed among its various Divi- 

 sions, and each Division, through its official head, is entrusted with 

 the carrying out of all the details of the duties assigned. The fol- 

 lowing summary, shows "the classitication: 



DIVISION OF FARMERS' INSTITUTES. The work of this Di 

 vision is educational, carrying information to the districts in which 

 the farmers" live, and reached during the past year about one hun- 

 dred and forty-four thousand farming people. 



CROP REPORTS. The system of crop reports is made part of 

 the work of the Institute Division. Careful reporters are en- 

 gaged in collecting data for the Department in every county in the 

 State. These data are then arranged and published in the Annual 

 Report. 



THE DAIRY AND FOOD DIVISION. This Division is under 

 the immediate supervision aod direction of a Dairy and Food Com- 

 missioner, who is charged with the enforcement of the laws rela- 

 ting to the inspection of the character of the various foods on sale 

 in the State, and the prosecution of those who are found violating 

 the law. The Commissioner has charge also of the Dairy industry 

 of the State, including dairy statistics and improved management 

 of creameries and dairy herds. 



DIVISION OF ECONOMIC ZOOLOGY. This Division is in 

 charge of a Commissioner who is known as the The Economic Zoolo- 

 gist, whose duties are to make examination and investigations into 



