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four-story fireproof farm mechanics building ;it the [own Agricultural Col- 
lege has been completed, which, with its equipment, cosl over $75,000, and a 
good course In farm mechanics is offered in the college curriculum, in this 
course during the spring term il'."» students were enrolled. 
in the Depart ni of Agriculture progress has been made by adding the 
departmenl of drainage to the work of the departmenl of Irrigation investiga- 
tion and changing the title to irrigation and drainage investigations. 
it is to be regretted that ;i complete bureau of "Irrigation and Agricultural 
Engineering" lias not been established, which was last year suggested by 
the committee and recommended by the Secretary of Agriculture. The agri- 
cultural colleges thai have established courses in farm mechanics have found 
that great interest is manifested in the work of studying the principles of con : 
Btruction and testing of farm implements. This is true not only of the students 
and the fanners, hut also of the manufacturers of these farm implements. 
who realize the importance of this work and are offering friendly coopera- 
tion ami assistance to the work. 
An example of what may be accomplished for the benefit of not only the 
farmers hut the manufacturers will illustrate the value of studying farm 
machinery in colleges. The farm mechanics department of the Iowa State 
College undertook last year to test various makes of corn planters to note the 
nccuracy of dropping the corn. It was found that there was considerable 
difference between the different makes and types of planters as to their accu- 
racy of drop. The attention of the manufacturers was called to ihis fad. and 
while they were at first thoroughly convinced that their planters were accurate 
in their work yet they found there was room for improvement, and two firms 
acknowledged that they improved the accuracy of drop of their planters l'<> 
per cent after their attention had been called to the defects of the planters and 
a remedy suggested. By means of this cooperation with the manufacturers 
the farmers of the country are greatly benefited. 
While the implement manufacturers of the country are no doubt seeking to 
bring out the best possible farm implements, yet their inte zests are from a 
purely business motive. The department of farm mechanics at the various 
colleges of agriculture and the Department of Agriculture can do much to fur- 
ther the improvement of farm machinery by making impartial tests and report 
on the defects to manufacturers. There is at the present time a great demand 
for information on the cost and efficiency of pumping machinery for irrigation 
purposes. The large projects of irrigation now under way in the Western 
States require the pumping of large quantities of water to be lifted from 10 to 
200 feet. Thousands of acres of land on the Missouri slope in North and South 
Dakota can be irrigated if the water can be pumped from the Missouri River 
cheap enough. Fuel is plenty in those sections of the country in the shape of 
lignite coal. The Department of Agriculture is performing a service of great 
value to the Western States by making experiments and collecting facts which 
will give information to settlers upon the best kind of pumping stations to 
install to supply the water for irrigation purposes. 
During the last couple of years Germany, the Scandinavian countries, and 
Holland have issued several bulletins which give very interesting data upon 
tests made of domestic as well as American made farm implements. These 
bulletins are of great value to those countries, giving as they do the cost of 
various implements, the amount of work that can be accomplished, and effi- 
ciency with which the different makes do the work. Germany has long recog- 
nized the value of agricultural and mechanical training both for the farm and 
for the factory. Our own manufacturers are anxious to obtain graduates from 
our agricultural colleges who have a knowledge of the requirements of agri- 
culture, together with a mechanical training in the designing of farm imple- 
ments. Several positions are now open for young men with training along 
these lines. 
There are so many and varied subjects embraced in agricultural engineering 
that the subject is entitled to a more prominent rank than it now holds in our 
agricultural colleges. It ought to hold equal rank with the departments of 
dairying, animal husbandry, agronomy, and horticulture. 
It is exceedingly important at this time that the Department of Agriculture 
take steps to organize a bureau or division of agricultural engineering, in order 
to aid the colleges which now have a course of agricultural engineering estab- 
lished and to collect the data which such colleges are obtaining in their experi- 
mental tests for publication and distribution among the farmers, also to carry 
