44 



'1HK IRRIGATION AGE. 



'tions, the lines of experimental investiga- 

 tion which should be undertaken, there, 

 locations suitable for stations, and the 

 approximate expense of inaugurating and 

 maintaining the work. He will also look 

 into the feasibility of undertaking co-oper- 

 ative experiments with the residents of 

 Porto Rico and the best means of reaching 

 the people through publications, dem- 

 onstration experiments, and otherwise. 



Dr. W. C. Stubbs, director of the Louis- 

 iana Experiment Stations, will make the 

 preliminary survey of the 'conditions in 

 the Hawaiin Islands. He sailed for Ha- 

 waii about the middle of July and spent 

 the month of August in the island. The 

 conditions there differ from those in Porto 

 Rico, as a station for experiments in 

 sugar production has been maintained by 

 private beneficence for a number of years. 

 The lines in which investigation is most 

 needed, the possibility of greater diversi- 

 fication of agriculture, the expense of the 

 work, and the means of disseminating in- 

 formation will be carefully inquired into. 

 'This will probably prove a profitable field 

 for investigations on the use and economy 

 of water in irrigation since, according to 

 reliable reports, in no other place is so 

 much money expended for pumping water 

 for irrigation. Some pumps are said to be 

 raising 30,000,000 gallons of water per 

 day from a depth of 500 feet, and the 

 expense of irrigation in some cases reaches 

 . as high as $125 per acre annually. 



FOOD VALUE OF THE POTATOE. 

 The sientista connected with the De- 

 'partment of Agriculture have been making 

 investigations with the purpose af ascer- 

 taining facts regarding the food value of 

 the potato. These investigations have 

 had the result of confirming the belief that 

 the general practice of serving potatoes 

 with meat and other foods which contain 

 generous proportions of protein is justified 

 on scientific grounds, as one food supplies 

 the chemical elements lacking in the 



other. Potatoes and other foods which 

 contain carbohydrates are often ob- 

 jected to on the grounds that they 

 are starchy foods and do not supply a 

 sufficient degree of nitrogenous matter. 

 It is well to remember, however, that a 

 considerable amount of protein is con- 

 tained in the potato, and also that carbo- 

 hydrates are an indispensable part of a 

 well-regulated diet. The experiments re- 

 ferred to show that potatoes when properly 

 cooked supply such material in an easily- 

 digestible form. 



To secure the greatest food value from 

 potatoes they should not be peeled before 

 cooking, and should be placed directly 

 in the hot water and boiled rapidly. When 

 they are placed in cold water, which is 

 gradually heated to the boiling point, a 

 great loss of material is sustained Wash- 

 ington Times. 



EFFECTS OF MUSIC ON HORSES. 



Horses are, of all animals, the most sus- 

 ceptible to the influence of music, we are 

 told by M. Adolphe Guenon, who has just 

 published a book on "The Influence of 

 Music on Animals." "His experiments," 

 says Ihe National Druggist (December), 

 "were conducted* personally, the flute be- 

 ing the instrument used, and the horses 

 experimented on were those of the regi- 

 ment of cavalry to which he was attached. 

 He states that the number found by him 

 wholly indifferent to music was surprisingly 

 low, not more than one in five (20 per 

 cent.) The following excerpt from his 

 work is most interesting: 



"Those under the influence are visibly 

 impressed, demonstrating their feelings by 

 an attitude of attention, maintained 

 throughout the entire performance. They 

 swelled their chests, carried their heads 

 higher, the ears flung forward and 

 kept fixed in the direction of the 

 sound. The line of the back was 

 raised, and the tail carried as though 

 the animal was moving instead of 



