630 EXrERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



alHO his feeder until May 1, showed him no preference, for, as he says, "we noticed 

 notiiiii!,' in him to give him a preference." He was fed by the university from May 

 until tlie time he was sliipped to Chicago, and during the latter part of the period 

 "was under extremely high-pressure feeding, consuming 25 lbs. of grain per day, 

 be.sides a few pounds of sugar beets and about 8 lbs. of alfalfa and prairie hay." He 

 gained 200 lbs. in the last two months and weighed 1,760 lbs. when he was shipped 

 to the show. His total cost to the college, not including freight and labor, was 

 $105.72. He won $430 in prize money and sold for 26 cts. per pound, or approxi- 

 mately §450. Challenger dressed 1,135 lbs. of meat, or 65 per cent of his live weight. 

 It was reported at the ])lace where he was slaughtered that " he made a magnificent 

 carcass of beef, by far the best our cattlemen had ever seen." Challenger is being 

 mounted for the St. Louis Exposition, after which he will be returned to the Uni- 

 versity of Xel)raska for class-room illustration. 



Farmers' Institutes in Georgia.— The past year a very successful series of farmers' 

 institutes was held in the State, which aroused much interest. This was the first 

 systematic attempt to introduce the farmers' institutes, and was supported by the 

 University of Georgia, the trustees of which set aside $1,000 for the purpose. Dur- 

 ing the year 44 institutes were held, one in each senatorial district of the State. One 

 of the objects of the first year's work was to organize the institute system thoroughly, 

 and with this end in view a president and secretary were elected for each district, 

 and a vice-president from each county in the district. One-daj' sessions were held, 

 with an average attendance of between 150 and 200. The faculty of the agricul- 

 tural college and the staff of the experiment station took part in these institutes, 

 presenting papers at a considerable number of meetings, but neither organization 

 was made responsible for the management of the institutes, which was placed in the 

 hands of Hon. Harvie Jordan, of Monticello, as director of institutes. It is hoped 

 that provision will be made for carrying on the institutes another year so that at 

 least one meeting may be held in each county and the sessions continued for two 

 days in each place. 



Hawaiian Sugar Chemists' Association. — An association of chemists who are or have 

 been engaged in sugar work, either in sugar factories or in experiment station labo- 

 ratories in Hawaii, has been formed with a membership of over thirty. The object 

 of the association is the study of sugar chemistry and the methods of analysis used 

 in the chemical control of sugar-house work, with a view to arriving at uniformity 

 both in methods and statement of results. A meeting was held October 26 and 27, 

 1903, at which provisional methods were adopted and these, together with specimen 

 blanks for the rendering of reports, have been issued in pamphlet form. The presi- 

 dent of the association is P. A. G. Messchaert, of Waipahu, Oahu, and the secretary- 

 treasurer is E. C. Shorey, chemist to the Federal experiment station at Honolulu. 



School of Practical Gardening for Girls. — A recent issue of the Brttii^h MedlcalJournal 

 descril)es the women's l)ranch of the Practical Gardening School of the Royal Botanic 

 Society. The pupils in this school are for the most part young women who have 

 obtained scholarships from the London school board, and w^ho intend to adopt gar- 

 dening as a profession. They are nominated by the technical education board of the 

 London County Council. The students are allowed to work in a portion of the 

 grounds of the botanical gardens in Regent's Park,, and also learn practical hothouse 

 work in the conservatories. 



"The longest course is three years. The first-year students are taught ground 

 operations, flower and vegetable gardening, and everything connected with the 

 operations. During the second year the sulijects taught are outdoor work, indoor 

 work, and theoretical work. The third year is devoted to pruning, mowing, care of 

 conservatory, plant houses, frames and pits, etc., and to theoretical work, such as 

 keeping accounts, elementary meteorology, landscape gardening, sprays and washes 

 for insect pests, and to classes and laboratory work in botany and horticultural 

 chemistry. 



