58 ANNUAI. REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF A(JRICULTUR'E. 



biiil(lin<T:s more inflammable than these. The property and records 

 of the Government in them arc exposed to serious fire hazard at all 

 times, to say nothing of possible loss of life in the event of fire. For 

 what length of time it will be necessarj' to occupy these buildings 

 has not been indicated, but to continue to use them indefinitely is, in 

 my opinion, contrary to the best interests of the department. 



No other department of the Government in Washington is as inade- 

 quately and unsatisfactorily housed as is the Department of Agricul- 

 ture, and immediate attention should be given to the development and 

 execution of a building program for it. The first step should be the 

 construction of the long-deferred central building between labora- 

 tories A and B along the lines of the original designs, which are 

 still in the files of the department, the acquisition of the land and 

 buildings in one of the squares lying immediately south of the de- 

 partment's reservation, a:ncl the erection thereon of a modern fire- 

 proof structure of plain though pleasing appearance. This would 

 make it possible to bring the scattered units of the department closer 

 together, to relinquish many buildings which are remotely located, 

 unsuitable for offices and nonfireproof, and to effect a large annual 

 saving in rentals. 



THE PROBLEM OF PERSONNEL.. 



In any discussion of what the department has done during the 

 year, it must be borne in mind that every item of progress was ac- 

 complished under serious difficulties. Rapid advances in the costs of 

 supplies and equipment, materials, and services, and an abnormal 

 turnover in personnel have presented many problems. Increased 

 costs have resulted in the forced curtailment of many lines of work, 

 and the inability to pay adequate compensation has made it impos- 

 sible to establish and maintain satisfactory personnel standards. 



The department is charged with duties that are extremely varied 

 and of th» utmost importance. It is conducting fundamental re- 

 search in every phase of crop and live-stock production and market- 

 ing, and it is actively studying the broad economic problems in the 

 field of agriculture. It is supervising the expenditure of the Fed- 

 eral funds which have made possible the inauguration and execution 

 of the greatest road-building program ever undertaken in the his- 

 tory of the world. It is administering the national forests, which 

 comprise within their boundaries 155,000,000 acres of land, and it is 

 enforcing more than 30 regulatory laws, all of them of great im- 

 portance to the people of the country. It can not hope to main- 

 tain these and other activities on a satisfactory basis, or to render the 

 most effective service, without an adequate force of well-trained men 

 and women. And it must not only be prepared to discharge, in full 

 measure, its present responsibilities, but it must look to the future. 

 Some of the most fundamental and difficult problems in agriculture 



