702 EXPERIMENT STATION EECOBD. [Vol 37 



There will be need for a larger number of persons expert in the vari- 

 ous fields of applied science than ever before. Such persons will be 

 needed both during the war and after its close. I therefore have no 

 hesitation in urging colleges and technical schools to endeavor to 

 maintain their courses as far as possible on the usual basis. There 

 will be many young men from these institutions who will serve in the 

 armed forces of the country. Those who fall below the age of se- 

 lective conscription and who do not enlist may feel that by pursuing 

 their courses with earnestness and diligence they also are preparing 

 themselves for valuable service to the Nation. I would particularly 

 urge upon the young people who are leaving our high schools that as 

 many of them as can do so avail themselves this year of the oppor- 

 tunities offered by the colleges and technical schools, to the end that 

 the country may not lack an adequate supply of trained men and 

 women." 



Subsequently, under date of November 23, 1917, a letter of much 

 the same tenor from the Secretary of War to the chairman of tlie 

 special committee on universities and colleges of the Council of Na- 

 tional Defense was made public, which reads as follows: "The suc- 

 cessful outcome of the war is so dependent upon the applications of 

 science that the United States can ill afford at this time to risk any 

 diminution of this supply of technically trained men. Such diminu- 

 tion we must in part suffer by reason of the fact that class exemp- 

 tions in the execution of the selective service law are prejudicial 

 to its general success, but I have constantly in mind the fact that 

 the Government service will demand more and more scientifically 

 trained men, and so I hope those who are in charge of scientific in- 

 stitutions will impress upon the young men the importance and de- 

 sirability of their continuing their studies except to the extent that 

 they are necessarily interrupted by a mandatory call under the pro- 

 visions of the selective conscription law.'' 



It will be noted that in both these statements particular stress is 

 laid upon the need for men trained in applied science. In this group 

 would be included, of course, the graduates of the agricultural col- 

 leges. In view of the important and unique functions which these 

 institutions have to fulfill, and the realization that in some ways 

 the conditions regarding their prospective attendance differed from 

 those in other institutions, it was deemed of general interest to at- 

 tempt to ascertain, after their reopening, how they had fared as 

 regards enrollment. Information was, therefore, sought by the 

 States Relations Service as to the initial registration of college 

 students in agriculture this fall as compared with the previous year, 

 and also as to how any changes in the enrollment in agriculture 

 compared with other kinds of education. A general survey of the 

 existing situation, rather than a collection of statistical data, was 



