262 



PARLIAMEN TARY P U BLIC ATIO N S . 



inspection of the educational and experimental work of the 

 several institutions aided, and in inspecting and reporting on 

 the work of certain county councils. By far the larger 

 portion of the funds distributed consisted of subventions of a 

 general character to eight collegiate centres of Agricultural 

 Education in England and Wales. Grants of a subsidiary 

 character were made to certain institutions providing facilities 

 for dairy instruction not available at the aided colleges ; 

 certain sums were also awarded in aid of the cost of specific 

 experiments undertaken, under arrangement with the Board, 

 by agricultural societies and associations. The most im- 

 portant payments of this type were made to complete the 

 prolonged investigations into the conditions of Cheddar 

 cheesemaking undertaken by the Bath and West ol 

 England and Southern Counties Society, whereof a full 

 report has been separately prepared and presented to 

 Parliament in the course of the recent session (C. 9374). 



Reference is made in the report to the recent foundation 

 of a chair of Agriculture at the University of Cambridge and 

 the Board express satisfaction at the action the University 

 has taken in thus establishing, for a period of ten years, a 

 Department of Agriculture under the direction of a 

 Professor. 



In the appendix to the report statements are furnished 

 respecting the educational work done during the year by 

 the subsidised colleges and dairy institutes. Summaries are 

 also given of some of the principal experiments carried out 

 under the supervision of these institutions and of the societies 

 referred to below. The Board express satisfaction at the 

 increasing development of interest in instruction by experi- 

 ments and demonstrations. In many instances the experi- 

 mental plots are reported to have been visited by large 

 numbers of agriculturists to whom explanations were offered 

 either by lectures or by the issue of printed reports, of the 

 main facts to be deduced from the investigations in progress 



As indication of the diversified nature of their experi- 

 mental and research, work in agriculture, carried out in 

 England and Wales during the year 1898-99, it is interesting 

 to note that the investigations of which summaries are given 



