14 Report of the President. 



tions on moisture and sulphur content of evaporated apples will be 

 continued. 



XV. The Farmers' Reading Course (maintained by State appropri- 

 ation) enrolled during the past year 1,523 active readers, of whom 998 

 were new members of the course within the year. In addition to these 

 there were 5,100 other readers not enrolled as active, making the total 

 distribution of the Farmers' Reading Course leaflets 6,623. In addi- 

 tion to supervising these reading courses the department has pro- 

 vided a large number of lectures before farmers' organizations 

 throughout the State, and close attention has also been given to cer- 

 tain phases of extension work in the schools of the State, especially 

 in the introduction of agriculture into the country school and the high 

 school. 



XVI. Department of Home Economics. — As the College of Agricul- 

 ture has been an experiment station for the farm so it is becoming an 

 experiment station for the farm home. The Farmers' Wives Read- 

 ing Course conducted under the supervision of the Department of 

 Home Economics enrolled during the past year 23,709 readers, x^t- 

 tention has also been given to the organization of farmers' wives 

 clubs, and there are now 31 active clubs, with a total membership of 

 900. But probably the most important new step taken by this de- 

 partment during the year was the inauguration of a regular four- 

 year course in home economics as an outgrowth of the reading course 

 and of the winter course in home economics which was established 

 three years ago. The laboratory which has been equipped in prepara- 

 tion for this regular instruction in the problems of the home was not 

 ready until February. 1908, so that no students were able to register 

 for the four-year course last year, but two general courses which were 

 offered in home economics in the second term had a registration of 

 36 students. 



XVII. Rural School Education and School Gardening.- — The major 

 part of the work in this department is a correspondence course for 

 teachers and children in rural districts which reached during the 

 past year 41.000 school children and 4,000 teachers in New York State. 

 As a basis for the educational Avork there were published each month 

 the Cornell Rural School leaflets, one for teachers and one for chil- 

 dren. The leaflet lessons covered not only general outdoor study for 

 the younger children but also elementary agriculture for the pupils 

 in more advanced grades. Attention has also been given to the or- 

 ganization of farm girls' clubs and farm boys' clubs throughout the 

 State, the purpose of the department being to aid in every way pos- 



