50 MAINE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. I9OO. 



INCOME OF THE STATION. 



The revenue of the Station prior to 1888 was $5,000 per 

 annum from the State, and fertilizer fees, the total income being 

 something over $6,000 a year. 



At present, the annual income of the Station is about $22,000. 

 $15,000 of which comes from the Hatch fund, something over 

 $5,000 from the fertilizer and feeding stuffs control, and the 

 remainder from miscellaneous business and sales of produce. 

 The State makes no appropriation for the State. Its funds 

 come entirely from the National Government and from fees and 

 sales of. produce. 



THE OBJECT OF THE STATION. 



The purpose of the experiment stations is denned in the act 

 of Congress establishing them as follows : 



"It shall be the object and duty of said experiment stations to 

 conduct original researches or verify experiments on the 

 physiology of plants and animals ; the diseases to which they 

 are severally subject, with the remedies for the same ; the chem- 

 ical composition of useful plants at their different stages of 

 growth ; the comparative advantages of rotative cropping as 

 pursued under a varying series of crops ; the capacity of new 

 plants or trees for acclimation ; the analysis of soils and water ; 

 the chemical composition of manures, natural and artificial, 

 with experiments designed to test their comparative effects on 

 crops of different kinds; the adaptation and value of grasses and 

 forage plants ; the composition and digestibility of the differ- 

 ent kinds of food for domestic animals ; the scientific and 

 economic questions involved in the production of butter and 

 cheese ; and such other researches or experiments bearing 

 directly on the agricultural industry of the United States as 

 may in each case be deemed advisable, having due regard to 

 the varying conditions and needs of the respective states or 

 territories." 



INSPECTIONS. 



In accepting the provisions of the act of Congress, the Maine 

 Legislature withdrew the state appropriation for the mainte- 

 nance of the Station, and thereby did away with the original 



