CONVENTION OF OFFICIAL AGRICULTURAL CHEMISTS. 413 



attempts to secure uniformity, aud recomm ended that the true liter 

 (1,000 grn. of water at 4° C. weighed in vacuo) be adopted as a unit, 

 that specific gravity be always expressed in terms of water at 4° C, 

 and that the average temperature of each laboratory be determined. 

 This matter was referred to a committee of 5, consisting of B. W. Kil- 

 gore, C. L. Penny, E. E. Ewell, H. W. Wiley, and G.C. Caldwell, with 

 instructions to take steps to carry out the recommendations of the 

 report. 



The executive committee was requested to take under consideration 

 the advisability of issuing a programme of the proceedings with the 

 call for the convention. 



By action of the convention the names "reporter" and " associate 

 reporter" were changed to "referee" and " associate referee." 



The secretary was instructed to so classify and define the methods of 

 analysis when published that there will be no confusion of strictly offi- 

 cial methods with provisional methods. 



E. E. Ewell suggested that in reporting the work of different analysts 

 the individual determinations as well as the maximum, minimum, and 

 average should be given, the general average being calculated from 

 the sum of all determinations. 



The privileges of the fioor were granted to R. II. Atwater, who 

 briefly discussed the fertilizing value of sulphate of ammonia, claiming 

 that too low a valuation is generally given at present to the nitrogen 

 in this material. 



The Association spent one afternoon in inspecting the chemical 

 laboratory of this Department and in paying their respects to the Sec- 

 retary of Agriculture. 



Resolutions of thanks were voted President Whitman and Dean 

 Monroe, of Columbian University, the Cosmos Club, the Secretary 

 of Agriculture, and President Frear and Secretary Wiley of the 

 Association. 



OFFICERS OF THE ASSOCIATION. 



Officers were elected for the ensuing year as follows: President, 



A. L. Winton; vice president, R. C. Kedzie; secretary, H. W. Wiley; 

 executive committee, M. A. Scovell and J. L. Hills. 



The referees and associate referees are as follows: 



Phosphoric acid: Referee, B. W. Kilgore, Agricultural College, Miss.; 

 associate referee, E. G. Runyan, Washington, D. C. 



Nitrogen: Referee, R.J. Davidson, Blacksburg, Va. ; associate referee, 

 F. S. Shiver, Clemson College, S. C. 



Potash: Referee, C. H. Jones, Burlington, Vt.; associate referee, 



B. B. Ross, Auburn, Ala. 



Soils aud ash: Referee, Harry Snyder, St. Anthony Park, Minn.; 

 associate referee, B. L. Hartwell, Kingston, R. I. 



Foods and feeding stuffs: Referee, W. H. Krug, Washington, D. C.j 

 associate referee, G. L. Teller, Fayetteville, Ark. 



