EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



Vol. VI. No. 9. 



At the last convention of the Association of Official Aftricnltnral 

 Chemists the abstract committee was reqnested to arrange for the 

 periodical publication of their abstracts in the Experiment Station 

 Eecord, the object being to make the abstracts more promptly available 

 to the members of the association. This committee consists of five 

 persons, and was first provided for at a meeting of the association in 

 1892. Its function is to prepare abstracts of current work on methods 

 of analysis. Previous to that time a review of the work of the year 

 had usually been furnished by the reporters on methods, each confining 

 himself to his own special subject. It was expected that the abstract 

 committee would not only relieve the reporters of this work but would 

 also cover the ground more completely. The committee for 1894-'95 

 consists of W. Frear, of the Pennsylvania State College, chairman; 

 W. D. Bigelow, of the Division of Chemistry of this Department; J. 

 P. Street, of the New Jersey State Station ; W. E. Stone, of Purdue 

 University, Indiana; and R. H. Loughridge, of the University of Cali- 

 fornia. This committee has arranged for the publication of its abstracts 

 in the Eecord, and several abstracts have already appeared. The 

 names of the members of the committee are attached to the abstracts 

 prepared by them. It is hoped that by the cooperation of the associa- 

 tion and the Division of Chemistry with this Office a quite complete 

 survey of the work in agricultural chemistry now in progress through- 

 out the world may be promptly presented to the readers of the Eecord. 



In the present number of the Record Dr. Ewald Wollny begins a short 

 series of articles in continuation of those published in volume 4, in which 

 « he will present a summarized statement of the results of investigations 

 on the physical properties of soils. Renewed interest is being taken in 

 soil investigations at home and abroad, especial prominence being given 

 to studies of the physical properties and the bacteriology of soils. This 

 is shown by the recent establishment of the Division of Agricultural 

 Soils in this Department, which will give a very prominent place to 

 studies of the physical properties of soils ; by the investigation of the 

 chemical comi^osition and bacteriology of soils undertaken by the Divi- 

 sion of Chemistry; and by the recent official announcement that the 

 United States Geological Survey will broaden the scope of its work to 



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