830 ANNUAL REPORTS OF DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 



for advice, seeds, plants, etc. Tlie demonstration farms, mentioned 

 in a previous report as supported by local funds and individual con- 

 tributions, are provinfj hi<(lily successful in carrying the work of 

 the stations to the people. These should and Avill be extended as 

 rapidly as possible with due regard to the investigational work, which 

 is of the utmost fundamental importance and which should not be 

 sacrificed for popularizing facts already known to scientific men. 



The several bureaus and divisions of the department continue their 

 generous cooperation with the stations and it is desired to make 

 proper acknowledgment for this aid. 



The administrative work in connection with the insular stations 

 continues to grow and the numerous matters involved require much 

 time and attention. This work continues, as heretofore, to be in 

 charge of Dr. Walter H. Evans. All the fiscal affairs of the tem- 

 porary disbursing agents are reviewed by the accountant of this office 

 and considerable assistance rendered in seeing that they are in proper 

 form. 



During the fiscal year 1912 the appropriation for the Alaska, 

 Hawaii, and Porto Rico stations was $30,000 each, and for Guam, 

 $15,000. These sums were supplemented by sales and other funds, 

 which were available for maintenance and the extension of the work 

 as follows: Alaska, $6,160.33; Hawaii, $13,749.40; Porto Eico. 

 $5,028.95; and Guam, $59.74. 



The work of the several stations has increased faster than their 

 revenues and facilities for investigation and there is an urgent need 

 for additional financial assistance for some of them. In Alaska the 

 plant-breeding work, especially that with cereals at the Rampart 

 station, needs a plant house, where different varieties of cereals can 

 be grown and blossomed at the same time and protected so that the 

 crosses shall not be interfered with. The disaster that overcame the 

 stock-breeding work at Kodiak, through the eruption of a volcano on 

 the peninsula 95 miles away, necessitated the removal of the stock at 

 large expense. To care for them and return them next year will be 

 a severe drain on the income of the stations and to meet this emer- 

 gency $5,000 additional appropriation is asked. In Hawaii the sta- 

 tion staff has outgrown its quarters, and additional laboratory space 

 for the horticulturist, the agronomist, and the entomologist is needed. 

 At the Porto Rico station the work in plant breeding, pot experiments 

 in soils and fertilizers, etc., is seriously handicapped on account of 

 a lack of a plant house where control conditions can be maintained. 

 Sudden tropical rains, strong trade winds, etc.. have destroyed the 

 work of weeks and this could be avoided by the erection of a plant 

 laboratory at a cost of about $2,500. 



ALASKA STATIONS. 



The work of the Alaska stations during the fiscal year ended June 

 30, 1912, was eminently successful. The fall of 1911 was mild, and 

 the summer continued later than usual, with the re.sult that vegeta- 

 bles, grains, etc., matured well. The advantageous weather made 

 possible more work in the fall, enabling better preparation for spring 

 seeding. . 



As has been indicated in previous reports, the work at the Fair- 

 banks station is being conducted with a view to demonstrating that 



