HEARINGS BEFORE COMMITTEE ON AGRICULTURE. 387 
The Cuarrman. The country was divided into four districts? 
Mr. Doper. Yes, sir; four districts and a resident agent at each one 
was appointed, and then $10,000 was devoted to the laboratory work; 
and this year they have asked for 18, as the chairman has said. 
Mr. Scott. In that connection, you are carrying now on your lump- 
sum roll one chemist ? 
Mr. Dopnex. No, sir. That is inthe Chemical Division. That would 
be taken care of, and has been taken care of, out of the $10,000 that 
has been set over. Your act of appropriation, of course, makes a 
lump sum of it, but the Secretary has made the apportionment cf the 
fund and set over $10,000 each year for that work, and this chemist is 
paid, and an engineer, out of that, and all the office force and the 
machinery that they have bought in that work has been taken care of 
out of the $10,000. 
Then $6,000, as I have said, has also been set aside for the payment 
of four resident agents, so it has left me, I think, but an exceedingly 
small sum out of which, of course, I had to pay the office force. Our 
office force is not large, is not expensive, but what we really need is a 
larger number of persons in the field to respond to the very numerous 
and, 1 think, very reasonable requests. As I recollect, Mr. Scott, 
you had a request for some work in your State, but we have never 
been able to respond to that, although we did go to the State in 1900 
and do a little work. 
Mr. Scorr. I understand that that $10,000 of the uppropmaucn 
which you had last year was set apart for chemistry work 4 
Mr. Doper. Yes, sir. 
Mr. Scorr. And $6,000 for the resident agents? 
Mr. Dopege. Yes, sir. 
Mr. Scorr. So that left you only about $4,000—adding the cost of 
your office force to the $10,000 appropriation for chemical work, and 
%6,000 for the resident agents, you are only left about $4,000 for the 
miscellaneous work? 
es Dover. Yes, sir; traveling expense and miscellaneous work, 
and all. ; 
Mr. Apams. What is the practical relation of chemistry to road 
building ? 
Mr. Dopvcx. The only practical relation, so far as I know, is ascer- 
taining the properties of material. There has been some doubt and 
some question among scientific men as to what process took place in 
theconsolidation. You understand, theangular fragments of rock when 
reduced to about a uniform size will consolidate under proper treat- 
ment with pressure; they consolidate and make a mass almost like solid 
rock itself. It is impervious to water. That chemical change, or 
physical change, was questioned, and they are investigating that. Ido 
not know really to what extent the chemical feature cuts a figure, but, 
as I cndemrtanie. it, most of the work in the testing laboratory is done 
by the machine to stand the physical properties of the rock. 
Mr. Burteson. As I understand you, Mr. Dodge, this $30,000 
increase would be expended in building roads as object lessons, prin- 
oy 2 
r. Doper. That is, in cooperating in building. I do not want to 
be misunderstood. We would not tales any money to go to any place 
on our own motion and build any roads, but we would try to respond 
to those who requested us to assist them. 
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