150 HATCH EXPERIMENT STATION. [Jan. 



There have also been collected, under the provision of the 

 feed law, and tested, either individually or in composite, 

 694 samples of concentrated feed stuifs. This makes a 

 total of 3,622 substances analyzed during the year, as 

 against 3,036 last year and 2,045 in the previous year. 

 Work on the pentosans and galactan, not included in the 

 above, has been done for the Association of Official Agri- 

 cultural Chemists. In addition, forty-five candidates have 

 been examined and given certificates to operate Babcock 

 machines in creameries and milk depots, and 5,041 pieces 

 of glassware have been tested for accuracy. 



C. Character of Chemical Work. 



(a) Water. — It has been the custom, ever since the 

 establishment of the Massachusetts State Experiment Station, 

 in 1882, to make sanitary analyses of drinking waters free 

 of cost to all citizens of Massachusetts. Work of this 

 character has increased until it has become quite burden- 

 some. Acting with the approval of the Experiment Station 

 committee, the following rules were adopted, and went into 

 effect July 1 : — 



1. Hereafter, all parties wishing to secure a sanitary analysis 

 of water at the Hatch Experiment Station must make known their 

 desire by postal or letter, whereupon a glass bottle, securely 

 encased, accompanied by full instructions for collecting and 

 shipping the sample, will be forwarded by express to the applicant. 



2. According to a recent official ruling, no party shall be allowed 

 to have more than two samples of water tested at this station free 

 of cost in a single month. Additional analyses may be obtained 

 within this time at a cost of two dollars each, providing the 

 resources of the station permit. 



Heretofore, parties have been allowed to send in any 

 number of samples, at any time, in any kind of vessel. 

 One result of this custom was, that the station often received 

 more samples than could be properly handled, and other 

 work was crowded to one side. Now it is possible to 

 regulate the number of samples by the time at our disposal. 

 Because of the largo amount of work on hand, it has become 



