30 
TENTH REPORT. 
THE CLAIMS OF THE MICHIGAN ACADEMY OF SCIENCE. 
The State Academy of Science was organized in June, 1894. At a meet- 
ing of the advisory board, it was unanimously agreed that it have for its 
principal object the study of agriculture, archeology, botany, geography, 
geology, mineral resources, zoology of the State of Michigan, and the diffu- 
sion of the knowledge thus gained amongst men. You observe that provision 
was made at the first meeting for investigations in agriculture, and at the 
first meeting for the presentation of papers, one paper was read by Manly 
Miles, M. 1)., entitled “ Futile Experiments for the Improvement of Agri- 
culture.” At the next annual meeting A. A. Crozier spoke on “Recent 
Advances in Agricultural Botany,” and Prof. Walter B. Barrows spoke on 
“Food Habits of Michigan Birds.” At a field meeting of the academy held 
at the Michigan Agricultural College, June 13th, 1896, formal permission 
was given for the organization of a section of agriculture with Prof. Clinton 
D. Smith as chairman. The agricultural section of the academy was organ- 
ized at the request of some twelve persons connected with the teaching 
force and experiment station of the Agricultural College, with several objects 
in view; one of which was to furnish opportunity to professors of the State 
University, colleges and normal schools to become interested and instructed 
in the relation of science to agriculture. 
At the seventh annual meeting of the Academy held in Ann Arbor with 
Prof. J. A. Jeffery in the chair of the agricultural section, in the opinion of 
those present, an excellent program was furnished, consisting of “Some of 
the Relations of Botany to Agriculture,” Dr. W. J. Beal; “Some New De- 
mands upon Agricultural Education,” Kenyon L. Butterfield. Three 
persons were present, including the chairman and the two who read papers, 
and they incidentally began to cite the statement of John Hopkins and the 
log. It needed no argument to show that the program did not draw. 
At the eighth annual meeting held in Ann Arbor, Prof. Jeffery in the chair 
of the agricultural section, there were four papers read; one by J. J. Ferguson, 
instructor in agriculture; one by a student, George Severance, a senior of 
the Agricultural College; one by Dr. W. J. Beal, and one by Kenyon L. But- 
terfield. 
There was a single visitor present, C. A. Davis, then instructor in forestry 
at the University, who came to listen to the paper by Dr. Beal on “What 
Shall the Michigan Farmer Grow for Fence Posts and Telegraph Poles.” 
A strenuous effort was made to make the ninth annual meeting attractive 
to outsiders, with just a little improvement over the other meetings by way 
of attendance. 
The officers of the academy had claimed all along that the section of sani- 
tary science could not be successful unless the section met at Ann Arbor, 
where the meeting would receive support from the faculty and students of 
the medical college. It began to dawn on some of the agriculturists, why 
should some ten of the members of the agricultural college faculty go to 
Ann Arbor with papers to read solely to their own number? To be brief, 
permission was granted to hold the agricultural section at the Agricultural 
College, thus securing more easily a better program and larger attendance, 
