14 JOURNAL OF THE 



benefits resulting to the people of the State, growing out of his 

 work as State Geologist, or his contributions to science. The 

 former of these cannot now be estimated with accuracy, but we 

 may safely say that his work has been an im])ortant factor in the 

 recent material growth of the State. 



In connection w^ith the mining interests, during the past twenty 

 years, several millions of dollars have been brought into the 

 State; and while exercising an important influence in connec- 

 tion with this, the survey has encouraged a more judicious 

 investment of home ca})ital, and has done an important work in 

 preventing numerous investments where the undertaking would 

 have proved a failure and the money invested lost. 



The agricultural interests of the State received at all times 

 Professor Kerr's earnest attention. He made numerous analv- 

 ses of soils and marls, and he did all in his power to stimulate 

 the improvement of worn-out soils by the use of marls, lime 

 and other fertilizers, and by other methods. The inspection and 

 analvses of commercial fertilizers, inaugurated and continued for 

 several years by him, and later carried on by the Experiment 

 Station, has proved of incalculable benefit to farmers in every 

 portion of the State; and Professor Kerr, together with the hon- 

 ored President of this University and a few others, was instru- 

 mental in the establishment of the Department of Agriculture 

 and the Agricultural Experiment Station. He inaugurated the 

 movement of a few years ago looking to the increase in supply 

 of food fishes in the streams of the State; and (as stated already) 

 he established and kept in existence for a time a series of meteor- 

 ological stations in different portions of the State. He originated 

 the silk-raisino; movement in North Carolina — a result of his 

 visit to the Vienna Exposition. He measured the water-power 

 of all the important rivers of the State. 



In the matter of advertising the State's resources by making 

 collective exhibits at great expositions, Professor Kerr believed 

 that much benefit would result to the State, and subsequent 

 developments have proved that he was correct. In 1873, 

 though the Legislature of the State declined to appropriate 



