EDITORIAL. 603 



opportunity for development along the line of his ideas. A call to 

 the agricultural institute at Berlin was declined because it was not 

 thought to afford him the desired opportunity. 



Up to that time agricultural instruction had been confined mainly 

 to special technical schools — ^^agricultural academies, and there was 

 little confidence in agricultural work in a university. Even Liebig's 

 view that the union of agricultural courses with the universities would 

 most advantageously meet the needs of agricultural students carried 

 little weight with the Prussian authorities at that time. Chairs of 

 agriculture had been established in some of the Prussian universities 

 much earlier, but the subject had not been developed in any large 

 way, the teaching was remote from the practical calling of the farmer, 

 and the field of activity was limited principally to training experts 

 and administrative officials. 



It is therefore natural that the preference should have been given 

 to independent agricultural academies located on the land and giving 

 special attention to the practical phases of agriculture. There Avas 

 little public confidence in the outcome of university instruction and 

 little demand for it. Kiihn's appointment at Halle was therefore 

 regarded as a matter of no significance by the agricultural press of 

 the day, and was referred to disparagingly. 



But his announcement of courses showed that he brought to his 

 position a new ideal and a different point of view. His success in 

 winning confidence is evidenced by the attendance which his work 

 attracted. In his first semester he had only three pupils, but in the 

 spring semester the number increased to twenty, and this increase 

 continued steadily until in the winter semester of 1864-5 the attend- 

 ance was 1'22. This equaled the highest attendance at the older 

 agricultural academies. His instruction developed the advantage 

 of higher education in agriculture, which combined a knowledge of 

 science and principles with their application in practice. A feature 

 of his success appears to have been this ability to give a practical bent 

 to his scientific deductions, a trait which rested on his deep interest 

 and his wide familiarity with agricultural practice. 



It was Kiihn's ambition from the first to establish an agricultural 

 institute for teaching, investigation, and demonstration. His idea 

 was that of a college correlated with the work of the university and 

 forming an integral part of it. It was an effort to secure recognition 

 of agricultural theory and practice as a subject suited to university 

 courses and entitled to specific provision in the way of organization 

 and facilities. This would give an individuality to the agricultural 

 instruction, and win for it a place among the special schools of the 

 university. 



