102 STATE BOARD OP AGRICULTURE: 



be required of every- regiilar student in the agricultural course as a 

 foundation and prerequisite for the zoological electives of the junior 

 and senior years, which aim to give a comprehensive and well-balanced 

 knowledge of the laws of animal life. Such required courses are almost 

 universal in the bettor agricultural colleges of the United States and 

 our own college has been most severely and justly criticised for its 

 weakness in this particular respect. It is true that we do give our agri- 

 cultural students a better course (required) in geology and mineralogy 

 than is supplied by most similar institutions, but this does not offset the 

 defect just pointed out. 



UNIVERSITY EXTENSION WORK. 



During the year much interest in the wild life of the state has been 

 shown by the public, and the demand for copies of Michigan Bird Life 

 has been large and constant. Tn accordance with the directions of the 

 lioard, complimentary coi)ies of this book were sent to prominent 

 scientists throughout the world, as well as to a selected list of scientific 

 periodicals and to a few libraries. About four hundred copies were 

 distributed in this way and an additional hundred wiis usesl for a 

 similar list of daily and weekly newspapers and periodicals dealing 

 largely with agriculture and rural life. 



The writer has received hundreds of most appreciative letters, not only 

 from all jiarts of the United States, but from a large number of foreigii 

 countries, many expressing surprise and pleasure at the character and 

 magnitude of the work and especially at the completeness and accessi- 

 bility of the information supplied. Although designed primarily for 

 Michigan readers this book serves fairly Avell for any inland locality in 

 the northern states east of the Mississippi, and teachers all over the 

 country are finding it a convenient and helpful work of reference as 

 well as a good laboratory manual. It has been purchased in many cases 

 for entire classes in high schools, normal schools and colleges and the 

 indications point to a s]teedy exhaustion of the erlition. Thus far, how- 

 ever, only the cloth-bound volume has been called for to any consider- 

 able extent. 



Press notices of the book, and especially the critical reviews by 

 technical journals have been uniformly commendatory, and the only 

 serious criticism thus far noted is the absence of a map of Michigan or 

 of the Great Lakes Region, an omission Avhicli should be rectified if 

 anoiher edilion is ]>ublished. Of course many correspondents regret 

 the absence of colored i)lates, but this was unavoidable. 



Aside from the work connected with the above publication, the de- 

 ])artment has a large correspondence with teachers throughout the state 

 and is called upon daily t<) give advice as to textbooks and laboratory 

 manuals for all grades of scliools, and to answer questions in natural 

 history which teachers are unable to settle. We also sene as an in- 

 fonnalion bureau for farmers and others who are often anxious to know 

 whelhcr <-erlain minerals, rocks, sands, clays and marls found on their 

 own or neigldjor's lands are of ecoiU)mic imporfauic. Thus during the 

 past few monlhs samjdes have l»een received wbich A\ere supposed by 

 the owners to be res[)ectively gold, silver, iron, diamond, lead, zinc and 

 coppci*, besides numerous samjdes (»f supposed clays, marls, molding 

 s;inds, etc. Of course most of tiicse questions belong to the State Geolo- 



