48 KANSAS ACADEMY OF SCIENCE. 



No one questions tl\e fertility of the soil of Kansas, and owing to its fine 

 natural drainage, it is less afiected by excessive rains or excessive drouths 

 than the heavy soils of the Mississippi valley States. Our rainy season is 

 our crop-growing season; our dry season is our stock-feeding season. 



Taking our average of the past ten years, our record as an agricultural 

 State is equal to that of any State in the Union. The great diversity of our 

 soil and climate brings within our reach the production of a great diversity 

 of crops; and if we carefully observe and study all its peculiarities, with a 

 view of adapting all our products to it, there is no good reason why Kansas 

 should not be among the leading agricultural States, if not the leading one, 

 of the Union, 



ON THE MAGNETIC DECLINATION IN KANSAS FOR 

 OCTOBER, 1880. 



BY PROF. H. S S. SMITH, STATE UNIVERSITY, LAWRENCE. 



It is required by the law of this State that each county surveyor shall 

 "compare the rnagnetic with the true meridian at least four times a year, 

 viz., between the first and fifteenth of January, April, July, and October," 

 and shall report "to the Secretary of State, and" to " the President of the 

 University of the State of Kansas." Up to the present year, this law has 

 been, so far as I know, a dead letter. In September last, the President of 

 the University asked me to take charge of the matter, and the results ob- 

 tained are as follows. It is to be regretted that the discussion is so partial, 

 but the small number of counties heard from — only 36, in a total of 75 organ- 

 ized counties — renders a complete summation impossible. The total number 

 of reports for January is 12; for April, 13; for July, 14; for October, 36. 



The following are the figures, arranged in alphabetical order of counties. 

 I give only those for October, as the small number of reports for January, 

 April and July render any conclusions for those months next to worthless : 



Eastern 

 Town. County. Deelinalion. 



Garnett, Anderson, 10° 40' E. 



Great Bend, .... Barton, 10 45 30" 



Concordia Cloud, 10 16 



Junction City, . . . Davis 10 35 



Lawrence, Douglas, ..... 9 30 15 



Kinsley, Edwards, 11 29 30 



Ellsworth, Ellsworth, 10 43 



Ottawa Franklin, 9 37 30 



Eureka, Greenwood, .... 10 10 30 



Fordharu, Hodgeman, . . . .11 45 30 



Burr Oak, Jewell, 11 46 



Oswego Labette, 9 44 30 



Leavenworth, . . .Leavenworth,. . . 9 46 



Mound City, .... Linn, 8 30 



Peabody Marion, 9 8 



Marysville, Marshall, 11 45 



Paola, Miami, 9 35 



Beloit, Mitchell 11 3 



Eastern 

 Town. County. Declination. 



Council Grove, . . Morris, 9° 20' 



Seneca, Nemaha, 10 27 



Bazine Ness, 11 30 



Norton, Norton 11 49 



Lyndon, Osage 10 27 



Osborne, Osborne, 12 20 



Minneapolis Ottawa, 11 22 



Phillipsburg, . . . .Phillips 11 55 



Louisville, Pottawatomie, . . 10 57 



Hutchinson, .... Reno, 10 35 



Survey Rooks, 11 50 



Lacrosse, Rush, 11 



Russell, Russell, 11 4 



Salina Saline, 11 46 20 



St. John, Stafford,. : . . . . 11 55 



Washington, .... Washington, ... 10 15 



Fredonia, Wilson, 10 30 



Yates Center Woodson, 10 30 



