156 



NATURE 



[June i8, 1903 



have since been regularly continued. The examin- 

 ation is always held in England. The successful 

 candidates receive a national diploma in the science 

 and practice of agriculture. 



Such, then, is the history of the diploma of which 

 we are at present speaking. It is, of course, obvious 

 that any society or societies may hold an examination 

 in any subject they please, and grant certificates to 

 successful candidates; but may such bodies, without 

 proper authority, presume to confer a national 

 diploma ? That is the serious question before us. The 

 charter of the Highland Society undoubtedly 

 authorises it to confer a diploma in agriculture in 

 Scotland, but the language of its charter, which we 

 have already quoted, clearly limits its authority to that 

 country. This fact is so manifest that we are now 

 told by the agricultural Press that the Highland 

 Society intends to apply to His Majesty's Government 

 for an extension of its charter. The charter of the 

 English Society contains no authority to grant 

 diplomas. 



We have already said that a national diploma in 

 agriculture appears to us as a desirable thing, if it 

 could be granted by national authority and awarded 

 only to thoroughly trained men. If powers to grant 

 such a diploma are now being sought, the terms of the 

 charter granted many years ago to the Highland 

 Society supply some pertinent suggestions. If the 

 diploma is to be really national, if it is to be stamped 

 with a national authority, the schemes of education 

 and examination laid down must not be decided on by 

 the members of two agricultural societies. The 

 charter of the Highland Society names six professors 

 of the University of Edinburgh as members of the 

 education committee. A charter granted with a 

 similar object now would naturally take a similar line, 

 but it would not limit itself to the University of Edin- 

 burgh. The ex officio members of a national com- 

 mittee should clearly include professors from other 

 British Universities, and representatives of the Govern- 

 ment Boards of Agriculture and Education. Until such 

 a general body is constituted and authorised to grant 

 diplomas, it is a misuse of language to speak of a 

 national diploma in agriculture or dairying. 



We turn now to the character of the examination 

 at present held for the award of the so-called national 

 diploma. If the diploma granted merely professefl to 

 be an agricultural societies' diploma, it would be 

 scarcely necessary to speak on the subject; but the 

 claim to national rank surely implies a diploma ex- 

 amination of first-rate quality, and if it fails of this 

 it certainly demands public criticism. 



The diploma in question is granted solely on the re- 

 sult of examinations, no previous course of training 

 being required. The examinations for the diploma em- 

 brace many branches of elementary science ; half of 

 the subjects are taken by the candidate in his first year 

 and half in his second year. The syllabuses pub- 

 lished of the subjects for examination are un- 

 doubtedly meagre, some of them strikingly so. 

 This is a real disadvantage, as the teachers who are 

 preparing students for these examinations naturally 

 limit their instructions to the syllabus. The examin- 

 ations are both written and oral, but include no 

 laboratorywork. In each subject the written examin- 

 ation is limited to two hours, save in the case of 

 practical agriculture to which three hours are allotted. 

 The candidates are generally directed to attempt every 

 question in the paper, six to ten questions being set. 

 The whole of the subject of practical agriculture is dealt 

 with in one paper of three hours, followed by an oral 

 examination. The tests applied by the examiners 

 would thus appear to be decidedly superficial. The 

 number of marks allotted to each subject must be sup- 



posed to indicate their relative importance in the eyes 

 of the examining board. We find that book-keeping 

 and agricultural chemistry receive the same number ot 

 marks, while general chemistry and veterinary science 

 each receive half as many marks as book-keeping ! It 

 is, indeed, essential that anyone who is to practise 

 farming should pass an examination in book-keeping, 

 but that a knowledge of agricultural chemistry should 

 be taken to represent no greater previous study or no 

 greater fitness for dealing with the problems of agri- 

 culture than a mastery of the art of posting trad^ 

 accounts is certainly remarkable, and surely indicates 

 a low appreciation of agricultural science by the 

 examining board. 



We have now done. The questions we have raised 

 demand earnest attention. The character of our whole 

 system of agricultural education depends on the 

 standard set by what is apparently its highest grade. 

 The present diploma has been given a title to which 

 it has no right, and if has failed to justify by its ex- 

 cellence the rank which has been sought for it. 



THE INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS FOR 

 APPLIED CHEMISTRY. 



^pHE fifth International Congress for Applied 

 A Chemistry, which sat in the Reichstags-Gebaude 

 of Berlin from June 2 to 8 under the masterly presi- 

 dency of Dr. Otto N. Witt, professor at the Technical 

 High School of Charlottenburg, will be remembered 

 as a great representative meeting. The actual attend- 

 ance figure was not announced, probably because 

 many of the members who had previously secured their 

 tickets forgot to enter their names on arrival. But the 

 figure cannot much fall short of 2700. Preparations 

 had originally been made for 1500 members. About 

 2500 had arrived by the time of the opening of the 

 Congress, and those joining later could .not be 

 favoured with invitations to the many pleasant re- 

 ceptions and excursions which had been arranged. 

 Everything possible was, however, done by the local 

 committee, over which Dr. J. E. Holtz presided, and 

 by the general secretaries, Dr. Pulvermacher and 

 T. Karwath. Everybody could gain admission to the 

 grand " Commers." The Diet had made a grant of 

 iS.ooo marks, donations had poured in from many 

 sides, and private hospitality was practised most 

 liberally. Chemical works, in the strict sense of the 

 word, were not opened to members, but visits to 

 I special exhibitions, scientific institutes, and manu- 

 factories would have supplied an amply long and in- 

 structive programme even if the sectional proceedings 

 had left members far more spare time than they did. 

 Some sections deliberated from 9 to i, and again from 

 3 to 6 and later. The ladies were excellently taken 

 care of during the whole congress week. 



Though a more suitable and dignified place for the 

 meeting could not have been found than the magni- 

 ficent palace of the Imperial Diet, the large committee 

 rooms of which afforded ample accommodation for all- 

 the sections, a parliament building is not a laboratory, 

 and some of the sections had to emigrate for their 

 experimental demonstrations. Section vii., ferment- 

 ation and starch, sat mostly in the Institute for 

 Fermentation, and had an exhibition of its own in the 

 grounds adjoining this institute. Section ix., photo- 

 chemistrv, was isolated— and rather neglected, too— 

 in the Technical High School at Charlottenburg. 

 Section x., electrochemistry and physical chemistry, 

 found a home in the Physical Institute of the Uni- 

 versity, close to the Reichstag. Each section had its 

 official luncheon restaurant. The plenary meetings 

 took place in the large hall of the Reichstag. 



NO. 1755, VOL. 68] 



