NOTES. 799 



15 to 17. It is expected that special prominence will be given on the general 

 program to a discussion of some of the administrative features of the Smith- 

 Lever Act, the development of home economics work, especially along extension 

 lines, and the enlargement of military service in the land-grant colleges under 

 the recent Federal legislation for increasing the military resources of the 

 country. 



National Agricultural Society. — This society was formally organized in Xew 

 York City, April 27, the purpose stated in press reports being that of serving 

 as the mouth-piece of the farmers of the United States in agricultural questions 

 of nation-wide interest. Hon. James Wilson, of Iowa, former Secretary of 

 Agriculture, was elected president ; Theodore N. Vail, of Vermont, vice-presi- 

 dent ; G. Howard Davison, of New York, chairman of the executive committee ; 

 and T. Coleman DuPont, of Delaware, John A. Spoor, of Chicago, R. V. Linda- 

 bury, of New Jersey, Hon. William H. Moore, of New York, Governor H. C. 

 Stewart, of Virginia, Senator James W. Wadsworth, of New York, and Fairfax 

 Harrison, president of the Southern Railway, as members of the board of 

 directors. 



The society has begun the publication of the Agricultural Digest. This is a 

 monthly which summarizes the important happenings in agriculture, and con- 

 tains announcements, notes, signed editorials by a number of prominent agri- 

 cultural workers, and similar material. 



Southern States Conference on Secondary Agricultural Education. — The second 

 conference on secondary agricultural instruction for the Southern States was 

 held at New Orleans, La., April 17. The attendance aggregated about fifty, all 

 the Southern States being represented. The conference was a joint undertak- 

 ing between the States Relations Service of this Department and the U. S. 

 Bureau of Education, and included professors of secondary education in state 

 universities as well as supervisors of secondary agricultural instruction in 

 state departments of public instruction. 



C. H. Lane summarized some of the more important happenings in connec- 

 tion with teacher training that had taken place at similar conferences held in 

 the North Atlantic and North Central States. He also stated that the aim of 

 this conference was to work out a tentative course which may be taken as a 

 guide for training teachers in agriculture, and when revised and tested, may be 

 made the basis for licensing teachers in lieu of the present required examina- 

 tions. The more important features of this course include a minimum for the 

 first two years of agricultural subjects 24 hours, science 24 hours, humanistic 

 subjects 15 hours, electives from agriculture 6 hours, and optional 3 hours. 

 The minimum for the junior and senior years is agricultural subjects 12 hours, 

 sciences 12 hours, humanistic subjects 12 hours, professional (education) 9 

 hours, special methods in secondary agricultural instruction 12 hours, electives 

 from the foregoing gi'oups 9 hours, and optional 6 hours. The course presented 

 and in general approved by the conference also provided for general courses 

 in the first two years of from 3 to 4 hours in field and forage crops, soils and 

 fertilizers, animal husbandry and dairying, horticulture and forestry, and farm 

 machinery, including shop and farm practice. 



The report of the committee on annual conferences and programs, approved 

 by the conference, recommended the continuation of the conferences, which 

 have been found most useful in providing standards in agricultural teaching. 

 It was thought that the conference should hereafter meet with the Conference 

 for Education and Industry in the South, and that its next subject should be 

 The Supervision of Agricultural Teaching. The belief was expressed that the 

 proceedings should be published and distributed as widely as possible. Some 

 action should be taken to insure the adoption of the recommendations of the 



