<>38 EXPERIMENT STATION RECORD. 



with u rici' tlmishci' of tlic hitcst American nniko. TlicMiiost approved 

 methods of rice cuhiirc will be followed on this farm, whicli is 

 expiH'ted to serve not only as a demonstration farm, l)ut to yield con- 

 siderable revenue also. 



Professor Scribner points out some of the opportunities and some of 

 the needs of agriculture in the Philippine Islands. Manila hemp, the 

 product of abaca, is known the woi'ld over, and is the most important 

 source of revenue and the leading industry of the archipelago. The 

 reasons for its prominence are found in the existing natural and indus- 

 trial conditions. With the development of other forms of agricul- 

 ture it is l^elieved tiiat the crude methods in practice will have to be 

 improved upon. A more careful selection of the species of hemp 

 grown and l)etter methods of culture w^ould greatly increase the yield of 

 merchantal)le liber. In the extraction, drjdng, baling, and transpor- 

 tation of the tiber there is also opportunity for great improvement, 

 and it is believed that the perfection of a machine for stripping and 

 cleaning the hemp liber would aid more than any other one thing in 

 developing the industry. Up to the present time no practical machine 

 has been devised for this purpose, and the work continues to be done 

 b}' hand, resulting in great variation in the quality, color, length, and 

 texture of the fiber, as well as difficulty in securing the necessary labor. 



Sisal hemp forms an article of considerable commercial importance 

 in some sections, and will grow in regions entirely unsuited to abaca 

 and upon soils otherwise of little A'alue. The opportunity for extend- 

 ing the indiistr}" and for importing suitable machinerv for extracting 

 the fiber is thought to be unusually good. 



The preparation of copra from the meat of the cocoanut, which is a 

 staple article for export, is carried on in many places by exceedingly 

 crude methods, the drying being done over pits or ovens dug in the 

 ground Avhich are little less than smokehouses. The method is thought 

 to be in urgent need of improvement, and it has been suggested that 

 desiccators or ovens especially constructed for this purpose could be 

 introduced to great advantage. 



From this brief outline it will be seen that in the short period of its 

 existence the Bureau of Agriculture has accomplished a very credita- 

 ble amount of work in agricultural exploration, experimentation, and 

 investigation. It has been somewhat restricted by the limitations of its 

 organization, since all work of a scientific character requiring laboratory 

 equipment is assigned to the Bureau of Government Laboratories. 

 Under this provision the studies of diseases of plants and animals, the 

 composition of crops and agricultural products, and similar problems 

 which requii-e laboratory investigation are without the domain of the 

 Bureau of Agriculture. The botanical work, which was in its charge 



