102 EXPEEIMENT STATION BECORD. 



yet, however, much remains to be done in the way of adequate pro- 

 vision for this subject and in a broader realization of its importance. 

 At the fourth annual meeting of the American Society of Agricul- 

 tural Engineers, held at Purdue Universit}^ during the holidays, Dr. 

 Samuel Fortier, in charge of the irrigation work under this Office, 

 presented a paper setting forth in a striking manner the scope of 

 agricultural engineering and the demand for this kind of training. 



Agricultural engineering as a teaching subject may be divided into 

 six branches, three of which relate to the farm and three to agricul- 

 tural communities. These are (1) farm machinery and farm motors, 

 (2) farm structures, including rural architecture, (3) rural water 

 supplies and sanitation, (4) public roads, (5) drainage, and (6) 

 irrigation. One or more of these divisions is now taught in most of 

 the land-grant colleges, but with a few exceptions they are mainly 

 side issues to what is considered the more important work of training 

 men to become jorofessional engineers. The institutions of this class 

 located in the AVest give instruction in irrigation as a part of the civil 

 engineering course; those of the Mississippi Valley offer courses in 

 farm machinery and farm motors, while the subject of roads and 

 pavements is included in a large number of engineering courses, but 

 chiefly from the standpoint of the municipal engineer. Rural water 

 supplies, farm sanitation, and farm structures are for the most part 

 overlooked. 



An engineering course combining the course of farm machinery 

 and farm motors as now given in the University of Nebraska and the 

 Iowa Agricultural College, of irrigation as now given in the Uni- 

 versity of California and the Agricultural College of Colorado, of 

 rural architecture and cement work as given in the University of 

 Wisconsin, and of highw^ay engineering as taught in the University 

 of Kentucky, is in large degree lacking. That there is an urgent need 

 for better and more general training for the engineering work of the 

 farm and the country is evidenced by the large interests represented, 

 and the relation of the subject to the health and comfort of country 

 living and the business side of farming. 



According to the report of the Secretary of Agriculture the crops 

 of corn, cotton, wheat, and oats for the past season aggregate a 

 value of nearly three and one-half billion dollars. All four are an- 

 nual crops requiring the preparation of the soil and subsequent opera- 

 tions of seeding, cultivating, harvesting, and marketing. An at- 

 tempt to estimate the large number of implements, machines, and 

 motors required for a task of this magnitude brings some realization 

 of what is annually expended by American farmers in the purchase 

 and maintenance of this necessary equipment. The census of 1900 

 placed the value of farm implements and machinery at $761,000,000, 



