INTRODUCTION 



The Rolhainsted Kxperimenlal Station was founded in 1843 

 by the late Sir J. B. Lawes, with whom was associated Sir J. H. 

 (iilbert for a period of nearly 60 years. Lawes died in 1900 and 

 liilbert in 1901 ; they were succeeded by Sir A. D. Hall from 1902 

 to 1912, when the present Director, Dr. E. J. Russell, was 

 appointed. 



For many years the work was niainlained entirely at the 

 expense of Sir J. B. Lawes, at first by direct payment, and from 

 1889 onwards out of an income of £2,400, arising- from the endow- 

 ment fund of £100,000 given by him to the Lawes Agricultural 

 Trust. In 1904 the Society for extending- the Rothamsted Experi- 

 ments was instituted for the purpose of providing funds for expan- 

 sion. In 1906 Mr. J. F. Mason built the Bacteriological Laboratory; 

 in 1907 Iht; Cioldsmiths' Company generously provided a further 

 endowment of £10,000, the income of which is to be devoted to the 

 investigation of the soil, thus raising the total income of the 

 Station to £2,800. In 1911 the Deveh)pment Commissioners made 

 their first grant to the Station. Since then Government grants 

 have been made annually, and lor the year 1919-20 the Ministry of 

 Agriculture made a grant of £9,781 in respect of Plant Nutrition 

 and Soil Problems, and £4,023 in respect of Plant Pathology. 

 Viscount Elvedcn lias generously borne the cost of a chemist 

 for studying farmyard manure since 1913, and until his death the 

 late Mr. W. B. Randall defrayed the salary of a biologist. 



The increase in the permanent trained and skilled staff has 

 been considerable. In 1912 there were 9 members of the scientific 

 staff, 3 of the oHice staff, and 12 assistants; in 1920 the scientific 

 staff consisted of 29 members, in addition to 4 in the office, with 16 

 of the assistant staff, thus showing an increase of 25 during the 

 years in question. 



The laboratory expenditure has grown and almost exactly 

 balances the income, there being only an accumulated deficit which 

 has resulted from refitting after the War. 



On the farm, however, the cost of the experimental work has 

 latterly increased so much as to cause grave concern to the Com- 

 mittee. After deducting receipts the figures for net cost are : — 



1911-12 - £692 1914-15 - £595 



J912-13 - £456 1915-16 - £284 



1913-14 - £509 1916-17 - £397 



1918-19 - Oct. 1st to 31st March £217 



, 1919-20 - U years to Sept. 30th £1,694 



For the season 1920-21 the net cost will be nearly £2,000. 

 The period reviewed in the present report has completed the recon- 

 struction which began in 1913, and has progressed continuously 

 since. As a necessary preliminary, the laboratories have been 

 entirely rebuilt, and were opened in' October, 1919, by Sir Arthur 

 Griffith Boscawen, in the unavoidable absence of Lord Lee, then 

 Minister of Agriculture. A library has been collected and now 

 contains some 15,000 volumes dealing with agriculture and cognate 

 sciences. The equipment of the farm has been completed, cattle 

 sheds erected, a tractor and other machinery added, and cultiva- 



