EDITORIAL. 607 



It will have occurred to the reader that perhaps the largest ele- 

 ment of chance lies in the human equipment. The ability of a sta- 

 tion to enter upon a given piece of new work hangs on the chance of 

 getting some one competent to take charge of it, and liis qualifica- 

 tion can not alwaj^s be determined in advance. Even when such a 

 worker is secured and is making encouraging progress, a successful 

 issue is contingent on the ability to retain him. This is being con- 

 tinually brought home to the stations. To provide the necessary 

 men of proper equipment, special efforts are being put forth, and to 

 insure the continuity of investigations, attempts are being made to 

 link the leaders more closely to their special problems. 



In the past what the station was doing depended to no small ex- 

 tent on what the men could manage to fit into their other duties, 

 and what they were able to accomplish depended on their ability 

 to adjust their studies to the opportunity which the year brought 

 forth. It has not been unusual for men to explain that they did not 

 take up certain exacting lines of stud}'^ because they knew their other 

 duties would probably not permit them to follow these studies con- 

 tinuously or to devote the necessary time to them. 



With the larger measure of relief of station investigators from 

 other duties and from interruption, these elements of uncertainty 

 are constantly growing smaller.* The station's program at the pres- 

 ent time is, to a far less extent than formerly, contingent on circum- 

 stances and other demands on its working staff. But the case of the 

 supervising and coordinating head of the station, on whom general 

 direction depends and to whom the men should look for stimulation 

 and encouragement, is less favorable. He is often attempting to 

 do too much and too great a variety of things, which leaves insuffi- 

 cient time for consideration of the station's work and management. 

 The effect of this is to increase the element of chance, because it is 

 inadequately guarded against. 



A primary object of the experiment station is to remove the 

 element of chance in farming — to make the art better understood 

 and more certain in its results. The greater confidence of the public 

 in experimenting and the extent to which the stations' teachings are 

 now being incorporated into practice make it doubly necessary for 

 the experimenter to be conscious of the elements of error, to make 

 haste slowly, and to develop his studies along an orderly constructive 

 program. 



It behooves us to make experiment and investigation in agricul- 

 ture as secure and adequate as possible, both in method and result — 

 to eliminate or reduce to the lowest practicable terms the chance of 

 failure or ineffective effort. The means for this are a part of the 

 9635°— No. 7—15 2 



