DEPARTMENT REPORTS. 83 



This year we have entered upon the plan of giving all the required 

 chemistry in the Agricultural and Forestry courses in the freshman year, 

 making a continuous three terms work in chemistry for men in these 

 courses. I, however, regard this change, desired by the faculty, as 

 more or less of an experiment and question very much in my own mind 

 whether chemistry should be placed so early in the course. 



Almost exactly 40 years from the time of the laying of the founda- 

 tion of the original Chemical Building at M. A. C the erection of the 

 new addition authorized by the Board in 1910 was begun, and very 

 fortunatelv was completed in time to be occupied at the opening of 

 the college year 1911-1912. 



As this new portion of the laboratory has some features which are 

 of interest to former students and graduates as Avell as those persons 

 who make a study of the construction of chemical laboratories, I have 

 had prepared plans of the new addition as well as the entire building 

 as it now exists. Figure 1 shows the south front of the Chemical Build- 

 ing, Figure 2 shows the north front of the Chemical Building and Figures 

 8 and 4 show the general plan of the main floor and lower floors of the 

 building. As the amount of money provided limited us to the erection 

 of a building Avhich provides space for a new lecture room and one large 

 additional laboratory, whatever else was jiut into the building came 

 in as a secondary consideration. 



The new lecture room is somewhat unique in construction owing to 

 the fact that the windows are placed at such an elevation that it is 

 impossible for the student's attention to be attracted by what occurs 

 outside, yet by means of a skylight over the lecture table the room is 

 flooded Avith light. (Figure 5.) The illustration gives an incomplete 

 idea of the arrangement of the seats and lightfng. The seats (250 in 

 number) are placed on a cement raised platform going back ten steps. 

 Fortunately on account of the shape of the room and the arrangement 

 of the seats, each student has a full and free view of the lecture table. 

 The space beneath this elevated seating stage has been utilized for two 

 very pleasant and convenient laboratory rooms. Beneath the new 

 lecture room on the lower floor is the new organic laboratory, which 

 provides laboratory space for 180 separate students and working space 

 for 144 at a maximum. By sectioning the class we usually are not 

 obliged to accommodate more than 60 at anv one time in this room. 

 This laboratory is lighted by 19 windows so placed that light comes 

 from every side. Figure 6 gives us an idea of the laboratory tables 

 and light, as the center of the picture represents the center of the room. 



By going below the ground line in construction nearly one-third of 

 the height of the room is below the ground level. This tends to keep 

 the temperature of the room, even in the warmest or coldest weather, 

 fairly stationary. There are no ventilating hoods in this laboratory to 

 cut off light. In ijlace of these are 13 flues built in the wall and con- 

 tinued through the roof. These terminate at the proper working height 

 above some slate slabs and give the advantages of draft hoods at 13 

 dift'erent points in the room. 



