CONVENTION OF AMERICAN AGRICULTURAL COLLEGES. 313 



The following committee was appointed : II. P. Armsby, W. II. 

 Jordan, A. W. Harris, M. A. Scovell, and A. C. True. 



H. W. Wiley, of this Department, delivered an address on the sugar- 

 beet industry in the United States. He sketched the history of the 

 manufacture of sugar from beets iu France and its establishment in 

 this country, displaying a series of lantern slides illustrating the sugar 

 production of the world and of the United States, and the relative 

 proportions of cane and beet sugar produced. Illustrations of the 

 sugar beet itself were shown, and the process of manufacture was 

 described in detail and illustrated by slides showing the machinery used 

 in the various operations. He discussed the operation of the tariff laws 

 as affecting the production of beet sugar, and outlined the probable- 

 extent of territory in the United States in which the growth of sugar 

 beets would be profitable. He further stated that sugar making from 

 beets on a small scale is not practicable. 



In this connection G. H. Hicks, of this Department, called attention 

 to a possible source of profit to the farmer in raising beet seed. Prac- 

 tically all beet seed is now imported and much of its vitality is lost in 

 transit. He considered that the raising of sugar-beet seed might 

 become an industry of some importance in this country. 



W. 11. Jordan, from the committee on farmers' institutes, submitted 

 a report which stated that while the committee recognized "the great 

 need of coordinating and digesting for popular use the mass of data 

 bearing upon the practice of agriculture which has accumulated in 

 recent years," it was not prepared to indorse the plan presented by 

 J. Hamilton at the last convention, because there is at present a very 

 hopeful activity in the writing of popular books on agriculture, and 

 because the plan involves more time and expense than the Government 

 would probably be willing to incur, and if undertaken would subject it 

 to the criticism of competing with private business. 



A paper on "An experiment, its conception and methods of proce- 

 dure," was read by II. L. Bolley, of North Dakota. W. H. Jordan briefly 

 discussed this paper, especially the portion relating to variety tests, 

 and stated that, while he had no desire to defend the grosser forms of 

 variety testing, he was of the opinion that large collections of varie- 

 ties gave an opportunity for the study of certain general principles in 

 botanical horticulture which could not as readily be obtained in any 

 other way. 



H. J. Waters, of Missouri, submitted a report from the section on 

 agriculture and chemistry, calling attention to the recommendations 

 relating to uniformity in fertilizer laws agreed upon by a committee 

 of State inspectors of fertilizers at New Haven, Connecticut, March 9, 

 1897, and recommending that a committee of 5 be appointed to confer 

 with a similar committee from the Association of Official Agricultural 

 Chemists iu regard to this matter. The committee appointed in accord- 

 ance with this recommendation was H. J. Wheeler, H. P. Armsby, C. D. 

 Woods, E. H. Jenkins, and M. A. Scovell. 



