542 



the difficulty is that ordinary farm experiments are affected by such a 

 variety of conditions and those conditions are so incapable of measure- 

 ment or control that the results can not as a rule be generally applied 

 until the same experiment has been repeated many times and in many 

 different places. There are, indeed, cases which justify large use of 

 the farm and of practical farm methods, and very often one of the best 

 ways for the station to extend its influence and usefulness is by institut- 

 ing farm experiments in different places. But as a general rule the 

 experimenting that is most widely and permanently useful is not that 

 in which the station farm is the principal factor. 



The history of the experimental farm idea is interesting, and one 

 notable feature is the way it repeats itself. It commonly begins with the 

 impression just referred to. Thefarm is secured ; a laboratory is perhaps 

 added. The plats are laid out and the crops selected for experiment; 

 different methods of planting, tillage, and manuring are tried; seeds 

 of different plants are tested side by side ; cattle, sheep, or swine are 

 purchased and fed on this or that diet and the results noted. Faith- 

 ful, intelligent work is done ; results of value are obtained ; but they 

 do not have the practical value that was anticipated. Gradually the 

 experimental work gravitates to the laboratory, the plant house, the 

 experimental stall, and the respiration apparatus. More or less land is 

 reserved for tests of one sort or another, but in most cases the use of 

 the farm for farm purposes is practically given up. And when it comes 

 to starting a new station, if the promoters have had experience they 

 do not usually make much outlay for land except for what is needed 

 to build upon. 



The first of the European stations, that at Mockern in Saxony, was 

 established with this idea and located on a farm donated for its use. 

 Its first work was largely on thefarm, with methods akin to the best 

 farm practice, but later it was narrowed to experiments for which only 

 a small stable connected with the chemical laboratory was required. 

 The station is now one of the best equipped in Europe ; it makes little 

 use of the land, but has elaborate laboratory facilities, including a res- 

 j)iration apparatus. 



The largest station in Europe is that at Halle, in Prussia. It is con- 

 trolled by an agricultural society, and was located for years on a farm 

 in the little village of Salzmiinde, about eight miles outside the city. 

 The farm was noted for its size and the pecuniary success of its manage- 

 ment. The proprietor was keenly interested in the experiment station 

 movement and offered many facilities for the work of the station 

 upon his farm. But gradually it became apparent that the work could 

 be done better in Halle, and the station was moved to the city and 

 brought into connection with the university. The station at Weende, 

 where Henneberg and his assisljants for many years carried on their 

 famous experiments, was likewise on a farm, but experieiu;e showed 

 that a more intimate connection with the university at Gottingen waa 



