16 REPOKT OF OFFICE OF EXPERIMENT STATIONS. 



TerritoiT has been withheld, and if so, the reason therefor." He 

 is also charged in general terms " with the proper administration of 

 this law," On March 20, 1*J0(). the Secretary of Agriculture sent a 

 letter to the directors of the agricultural experiment stations in the 

 several States and Territories in which he stated that "* the Director 

 of the Office of Experiment Stations is hereby designated my repre- 

 sentative in all matters relating to the business of this Department 

 in connection with the administration of this law, and the Office of 

 Experiment Stations will aid in promoting effective work under this 

 act in the same general way as it has heretofore in relation to the 

 Hatch Act." 



Under the authority thus conferretl by the Secretary the Office 

 immediately took measures to determine what stations were entitled 

 to receive the benefits of the Adams Act, to make the necessary ar- 

 rangements with the Treasury Department preliminary to the pay- 

 ment of the installments of the Adams fund as they became due, to 

 l^repare and issue the schedules for reports of the expenditures of 

 this fund for the past fiscal year, and to reach an understanding with 

 the stations regarding the lines of work and the expenditures allow- 

 able under this act. 



It is already evident that the business of this Office in relation to 

 the work and expenditnres of the stations vuider the Adams Act will 

 be considerable in amount and will have much importance as a factor 

 in detei'inining the kind of progress to l)e made by these institutions. 

 The oi-oanization of lines of work which niav fairlv l)e called '* origi- 

 nal research " in agricultural ])roblems has occasioned much iliscus- 

 sion as regards the nature and scope of such work as related to 

 conditions existing in the several States and Territories, the men to 

 be selected as in>'estigators, the means and ai)pliances needed to make 

 the work undertaken successful, etc. The policy of tlu> Office, as 

 heretofore, is to endeavor to formulate and hold to such general 

 principles in the administration of the Adams Act as seem most 

 likely to secui'c llie efficient use of the Adams IJiml for research 

 work of a high and substantial character and a( I he same time to 

 safeguard the autonom}' of the stations and raise their work and its 

 results in the estimation of ihcir farniei- constituents. This in\()lves 

 much additional correspondence and personal conference in order 

 that the best results may be obtained. Thi'ough the cultivation of 

 more thorough accjuaintance with the managers and work(>rs of our 

 stations, and through participation in the councils of the Associa- 

 tion of American Agricultural Colleges and Experiment Stations. 

 this Odicc hopes to be able to act as a gatherer and disseminator of 

 sound \ie\vs regarding the aims and methods of research work in 

 agriculture in such a way that its utterances will have behind them 

 the substantial consensus of the men best (lualified *o judge of the 



