LX REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE. 



against any unjust discrimination in foreign countries. To this end 

 an inspection, such as Congress provided for, is absolutely necessary. 

 During the past year this inspection was devoted particularly to exported 

 dairy products and wines, but it is hoped that Congress will provide 

 for the extension of this work to all food products of every description. 



INVESTIGATIONS IN CONNECTION WITH ASSOCIATION OF OFFICIAL 

 AGRICULTURAL CHEMISTS. 



The Division of Chemistry has continued during the year to study 

 methods of anal} r sis and investigation of soils, fertilizers, fodders and 

 other feeding stuffs, tannins, sugars, and dairy products, in connection 

 with the Association of Official Agricultural Chemists of the United 

 States. This work, in which the Division of Chemistry has taken a 

 leading part during the past sixteen years, has placed the agricultural 

 chemists of this country on a plane which, for unity of action and 

 purpose and the value of the results obtained, has enabled them to 

 secure a higher position of authority and achievement than any of the 

 other agricultural chemists of the world. There is, in other words, no 

 organized body of agricultural chemists to-day which compares in 

 efficiency and thoroughness of work with our own, and this has been 

 due largel3 r to the work of the Division of Chemistry, in collaboration 

 with the agricultural chemists of our colleges and experiment stations. 



WORK OF FOREST CHEMISTRY. 



The work of forest chemistry in the Bureau of Chemistry is of the 

 utmost practical importance to the investigations of forestry. This 

 work is devoted to the study of forest products in regard to their com- 

 position, their relation to the soil, and the products which they can 

 yield. When it is considered that many of the great technical chem- 

 ical industries of the country are intimately dependent on forest prod- 

 ucts, the magnitude of this work is easily understood. Among these 

 great interests the tanning industry stands, perhaps, first, followed 

 closely by the industries devoted to the manufacture of wood pulp and 

 to the distillation of wood and the production of wood spirit, methyl 

 alcohol, acetone, pyroligneous acid, charcoal, and other products. This 

 work is now thoroughly organized in the Bureau and will be prose- 

 cuted with still greater vigor. 



WORK OF DAIRY CHEMISTRY. 



The laboratory of dairy chemistry in the Bureau has been more fully 

 equipped and organized and is devoted especially to a study of the best 

 methods of detecting adulterated or preserved dairy products and of 

 preventing unjust discrimination against these products in foreign 

 countries by the application of crude or imperfect methods of analysis 

 or in the exercise of discrimination in any way prejudicial to our 

 interests. 



