456 ANNUAL. REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



issues was advanced to a current basis, although inability to secure 

 paper of the quality hitherto deemed essential for a permanent refer- 

 ence work such as the Record was causing unexpected delays in print- 

 in"; at the close of the year. 



Beginning with volume 42, two mechanical changes were adopted. 

 The first of these was the trimming of the pages of the individual 

 issues, and the second the substitution of a new and more conspicu- 

 ous type for the titles of the various abstracts and notes. Both of 

 these changes were intended to promote the convenience of the users 

 of the Record, and have brought many expressions of approval. 



Steps were also taken within the year to distribute the surplus 

 stock of back numbers, for which adequate storage space was no 

 longer available. The opportunity thus afforded institutions and 

 individuals to complete their files was quite freely used, the many 

 requests indicating in a concrete way the value attached to the pub- 

 lication. 



No general index of the Record has been prepared since 1911, the 

 last issue including volumes 13 to 25. It has been the intention to 

 issue a similar index covering volumes 26 to 40 as soon as possible 

 after the completion of the latter volume, but the shortage of the 

 printing fund has thus f&r rendered its preparation impracticable. 

 The need of such a combined index and the widespread demand for 

 it are alike unquestioned. 



INSULAR STATIONS. 



The Division of Insular Stations continues to represent this de- 

 partment in the administration of the work and expenditures of the 

 Federal experiment stations in Alaska, Hawaii, Porto Rico, Guam, 

 and the Virgin Islands. 



During the year the stations began a readjustment from the active 

 campaign for food production and conservation to the less spectacu- 

 lar but equally essential investigation of fundamentals of agricul- 

 ture. In many instances the work during the war indicated lines 

 of experimentation that needed development in order to present a 

 program for diversified agriculture for the territory served by the 

 stations. Conditions since the war have necessitated a study of all 

 the projects at the different stations and the elimination of those 

 that are not connected with some urgent problem. Even with a 

 careful revision of the lines of work the stations find themselves 

 seriously handicapped by a lack of funds. Everything connected 

 with the cost of operating the stations has increased, but the reve- 

 nues have not been augmented in like proportion. The appropria- 

 tions for the stations for 1920 were : Alaska, $75,000 ; Hawaii, $50,- 

 000 ; Porto Rico, $50,000 ; Guam, $20,000 ; and Virgin Islands, $15,000. 

 These sums ( onstituted their entire resources, the funds arising from 

 the sale of products being no longer available for the maintenance 

 of the stations. The stations covered into the Treasury of the 

 United States as miscellaneous receipts $10,502.96 during the fiscal 

 year ending June 30, 1920. 



The stations almost without exception are in need of additional 

 buildings to properly house the staff and to provide laboratory and 

 other facilities. Most of them are so remotely situated that resi- 



