554 ANNUAL, REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



and the use of the grounds now occupied by the Department of 

 Agriculture as an experiment farm, together with its scientific inves- 

 tigations, served to stimulate nation-wide interest in such work. 



At length, in 1875, there was the definite establishment of an 

 experiment station after the German plan in Connecticut and about 

 the same time in California. A number of States very soon followed 

 these examples, and the agricultural colleges and some farmers 

 began to urge Federal appropriations for experiment stations. The 

 first bill for this purpose was introduced in Congress in 1883 and 

 after four years of agitation the Hatch Act was passed in 1887. 



Meanwhile the Association of American Agricultural Colleges and 

 Experiment Stations had been formed and with the cooperation of 

 the United States Commissioner of Agriculture had advocated the 

 establishment in the Department of Agriculture of an office to pro- 

 mote the general interests of the stations. This was provided for 

 in general terms in the Hatch Act, as follows : 



Sec. 3. That in order to secure, as far as practicable, uniformity of methods 

 and results in the work of said stations, it shall be the duty of the United 

 States Commissioner (now Secretary) of Agriculture to furnish forms, as far 

 as practicable, for the tabulation of results of investigation or experiment ; to 

 indicate from time to time such lines of inquiry as to him shall seem most 

 important, and, in general, to furnish such advice and assistance as will best 

 promote the purpose of this act. 



The first appropriation under the Hatch Act was carried in the 

 appropriation act of the department for 1888-89, together with an 

 item of $10,000 for the Federal work called for in the Hatch Act. 



THE OFFICE OF EXPERIMENT STATIONS. 



By order of Commissioner Colman the Office of Experiment Sta- 

 tions was established in the Department of Agriculture October 1, 

 1888. Dr. W. O. Atwater, professor of chemistry in Wesleyan 

 University, who had been director of the first experiment station 

 established in Connecticut, was appointed Director of the Office of 

 Experiment Stations, with the understanding that he would give 

 two-thirds of his time to this work. A. W. Harris was appointed 

 assistant director, and Miss S. L. Sommers was transferred from the 

 War Department as clerk. 



In November, Dr. A. C. True joined this force under a temporary 

 commission from the Government board for the Paris Exposition of 

 1889 to prepare a small exhibit of photographs and a report on the 

 agricultural colleges and experiment stations for that exposition. 

 On March 3, 1889, he became a member of the staff in an editorial 

 capacity as the result of a civil-service examination. 



Immediately after its establishment, the Office of Experiment Sta- 

 tions began to assemble information regarding the organization, 

 revenues, work, equipment, and publications of the agricultural col- 

 leges and experiment stations. An address list of the stations was 

 soon published, and this was followed by an organization list, which 

 was developed to include both college and station. This has been 

 issued annually up to the present year. An effort was made to collect 

 station publications, and this has been systematically continued, 

 with the result that the office has the most complete set of these pub- 

 lications from their beginning to the present day. 



