471 



in the college. It is also true that the commissioner of agriculture is virtute officii a 

 director in the three experiment stations, and is also trustee of the Agricultural and 

 Mechanical College, but this trusteeship is by appointment and not virtute officii. The 

 fact that one or more individuals who are trustees or directors of one institution are 

 also directors or trustees in another, docs not in any legal sense connect them or make 

 them branches the one of the other. 



It also admits of question whether the experiments which the independent experi- 

 ment stations are required to conduct under the State law, comply with the spirit 

 and scope of the experiments to be conducted at the stations provided for by section 

 2 of the Hatch act, and the bill under consideration in appropriating the money does 

 not require it to be devoted to such purpose, but simply appropriates a part thereof 

 to each of the experiment stations named therein, to be disposed of necessarily 

 according to the laws under which they are organized. 



In corroboration of the views herein expressed, I incorporate the following letter 

 from Hon. Justin S. Morrill to the president of the board of trustees of the Agri- 

 cultural and Mechanical College, which is as follows : 



COMMITTEK ON FINANCE, UNITED STATES SENATE, 



January 10, 1891. 

 Dear Sir: In reply to your favor of the 6th inst., I am clearly of the opinion that 

 the proposition before your legislature would be considered an evasion of the Hatch 

 act. I should regret to see it passed for the reason that it is somewhat doubtful how 

 long this $15,000 appropriation will be continued, and should it be considered by 

 Congress as having been misapplied, they would suddenly bring such appropriations 

 to an end, 



Verj' truly yours, 



Justin S. Morrill. 



Fiuaucial statistics of the agricultural experiment stations in tbe 

 United States as finally computed for the Eeport of the Secretary of 

 Agriculture for 1890, show the following aggregates: The station reve- 

 nues for 1890 amounted to $973,146, of which $052,500 was received 

 from the United States ; $220,573 from States ; $5,500 from local com- 

 munities; $10,125 from individuals; $38,007 from fees for analyses of 

 fertilizers, etc. ; $33,971 from sales of farm produce ; and $6,1G7 from 

 miscellaneous sources. If we add to this the United States appropria- 

 tion for this Office, $15,000, we have a grand total of $988,146 as the 

 income of the station system in this country' last year. This is au 

 increase of about $150,000 over the amount reported for 1889. It is 

 especially encouraging to observe that the appropriations by the several 

 States have materially increased, showing that they appreciate the 

 desirability of co-operating with the General Government in promoting 

 the interests of this great enterprise in behalf of agriculture. 



For the fiscal year ending June 30, 1892, Congress has appropriated 

 $728,000, of which $20,000 is for this Ofihce. The appropriation bill for 

 the current fiscal year provided $660,000 for the stations in forty-four 

 States and Territories. In the bill just passed full provision was made 

 for additional stations in Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana, while Okla- 

 homa was given $3,000, the sum requested by her Delegate in the House 

 of Representatives. 



