1088 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



tilt' coiHiiiissioners are of the opinion tliat it is essential to reiioal all existins,' 

 drainage acts and to pass a new one snited to existing conditions. It is ])ro- 

 posed that this act shall provide " for the initiation, execution, and maintenanc(- 

 of new districts as well as for the maintenance of existing ones." It con- 

 templates bringing into liarmonions worthing a drainage department, the i'onnt.\- 

 councils and the rural councils, as well as the individuals to be directly bene- 

 fited. The organization is so designed, since many small districts could be 

 drained and improved at small cost without much engineering difficulty and 

 the assents of the proprietors could be easily obtained, while the increased 

 value of the land would repay the outlay. On the otlier hand, there are large 

 works presenting serious engineering difficulties and involving heavy expendi- 

 ture. Where such worlvs are to be iuidertal<en an excess of tlie tfctual over 

 the estimated cost umst be contemphited, and tlie dilttculty of securing the 

 assents of the proprietors to the scheme would be correspondingly increased. 

 The security for the repayment of the loan wouhl also have to be considered. 

 Finally tlie large works, such as tlie improvement of tlie outfalls of large- 

 rivers, l)eing admittedly of unproductive nature, but absolutely essential, would, 

 if done at all, have to be assisted l)y the State by means of free grants. 



The connnission recounnends that in many instances outfall works should be 

 designed to meet the ordinary annual floods instead of providing works capable 

 of taking care of exceptional floods which occur at intervals of perliaps 20 

 years, and thereby saving considerable in tlie tirst cost. 



The report descril)es tlie constitutidii and powers of the proposed administra- 

 tive bodies and deals with the tinancial considerations involved. It is rec- 

 ommended that government lo.ins for arterial drainage should be made direct 

 to the county councils, the councils recovering the due proportion of the annual 

 installment from each landholder by means of the " pnor rate." Further, tlic 

 commissioners are of the opinion that it would be injudicious as well as unjust 

 to levy a pro ratum assessment on the entire catclmient basin for the purpose 

 of drainage, lait that the cost should lie borne by tlie land actually drained and 

 improved. 



Portable hog houses, J. G. Fuller {Wiscottsin aS'/o. Rpt. 1D06, pp. .'/.i-'/H. 

 p(js. :l). — Describes method of construction and gives nniteriil necessary for a 

 small portable cot costing complete about .*pl2.r)(). 



Farm implement investigation, ('. A. Ocock {Wiscunsin shi. I'i)t. lUiiH. iii>. 

 285-287). — Gives information in tabular form as to the number of farm machines 

 used by the Wisconsin farmer and an idea cf the care given these machines. 



RURAL ECONOMICS. 



Cyclopedia of American agriculture. Farms, L. II. Bailey et al. (No in 

 York: The Maciiiilhui Co.. J'.IOl. rol. 1. pp. A \'l 1 1 +(ilS. j,ls. 2.'>, /if/s. 756). — This 

 volume is the tirst of a contemplated series of four volumes and is a popular 

 survey of agricultural conditions, practices, and ideals in the United States and 

 Canada. It consists of four parts dealing, respectively, with the agricultural 

 regions, the projecting of a farm, the soil environment, and the atmospheric 

 environment. On these topics a great storehouse of available information is 

 presented. 



Report of the Irish Agricultural Organization Society, Limited, N. T. 

 EvERARD and K. A. Anderson, (h'pt. Irinh Ayr. Orc/aii. <s'oc., l!)0ij, pp. 130). — 

 Detailed statistical data and discussions of the work of the affiliated organiza- 

 tions for the year ended June 30, 190G. There was a net gain over the pre- 

 ceding year of (jO societies, of which 32 were credit societies or cooperative 

 banks and 18 agricultural societies for the purchase of farm supplies. 



