REPORT OF THE SECRETARY. 145 



lecturers, representing the agricultural colleges and experiment 

 stations in 43 States, were engaged in institute work last year. Thirty- 

 nine of these States report the days of service contributed by the 

 lecturers at 4,780 — a much larger contribution of time by these 

 institutions to institute work than during any previous year. 



THE department's INSULAR AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATIONS. 



The poUcy of conducting investigations looking to the diversifica- 

 tion of agriculture has been continued as before. Each station has 

 its special problems, and satisfactory progress has been reported on 

 the various hnes of work. 



In Alaska a demonstration is being made of the possibilities of 

 agriculture in that region. Cereal breeding, testing of varieties of 

 grain, methods of culture, and the introduction of new varieties of 

 grains and forage plants are made the important investigations at 

 the Rampart and Fairbanks stations, and it is gratifying to note the 

 success attained at the Rampart station in the introduction of hardy 

 early-maturing varieties of barley, oats, winter wheat, and winter 

 rye. In addition, by cross-fertUization a number of new varieties 

 of barle}' and oats have been developed, some of which were grown 

 this year for the first time. About 65 acres were cropped this year, 

 and data are being collected to show the possibihty of farming in the 

 Yukon Valley. The first self-binding reaper in Alaska was sent to 

 the Fairbanks station this summer. With the success thus far 

 indicated a demand has come for information regarding agricultural 

 lands, and a reconnaissance is being made of a number of regions 

 prehminary to a detailed land survey by the Department of the 

 Interior. The horticultural investigations are being extended, and 

 the plant-breeding work is beginning to give results. Of the large 

 number of hybrid strawberries made at the Sitka station at least a 

 score have proved thoroughly adapted to the coast region of Alaska. 

 They are hardy, prolific, and the berries are of large size, good sub- 

 stance, and excellent quality. The stock-breeding work at Kodiak 

 has been extended to include sheep. Forty Cots wold-Merino ewes 

 and two Lincoln rams have been purchased for the station, and the 

 success of this experiment is awaited with interest. If sheep can 

 be successfully wintered, there are large areas in ^Vlaska adapted to 

 their production. Experiments with some of the hardy breeds from 

 Scotland and Iceland are contemplated if the prehminary trials 

 prove successful. The Galloway cattle continue to give satisfactory 

 results at Kodiak, and at the end of the fiscal year the herd con- 

 sisted of 61 pure-bred animals of all ages. 



Great interest has been aroused in Hawaii by the cotton experi- 

 ments inaugurated by the station, and the growing of cotton in 



73477''_AGB 1910 10 



