REPORTS OF DEPARTMENTS. To the President of the State Agricultural College : The following plan for the management of the College Farm for the year 1873 is respectfully submitted: In accordance with the system of rotation adopted last season, the crops of the farm will be as follows: East end of Field No. 1, 2 acres.-Oats, with timothy and clover seed. West end of No. 1, 4.64 acres, was newly seeded last year; the crop will be cut for bay. Field No. 2, 12 acres.-Meadow. Field No. 4.-Soiling crops and calf pasture. Winter rye and corn in succession will be principally used for soiling. Lucerne will also be tried for the same purpose. Field No. 5.-Roots as follows: 17 acres Skirving's Improved Swede; 1 acre large yellow globe turnip; 1 acre yellow globe wurzel; acre Lane's imperial sugar beet. The last mentioned is a new variety that has proved quite a success in the Eastern States. Field No. 6, containing 27 acres, is now in wheat of several varieties. The field is seeded to timothy and clover. Field No. 8, 23 acres. This field will be sown with oats of several varieties, viz.: Excelsior, White Schonen, and Somerset. In the fall the entire field will be sowed to wheat. Field No. 9, 23 acres. After stumping and clearing, this field will be planted to corn of the following varieties: yellow dent and white dent. Field No. 10, 19 acres, was seeded to clover and timothy last year. The crop will be cut for hay. Fields Nos. 7, 11, and 12 will be depastured. Most of the barnyard manure will be applied to the root and corn crops. The tillage and cultivation of the different crops will be the same as that practiced upon the farm for several years past. PERMANENT IMPROVEMENTS. Under this head will be mentioned the improvements that can be made to the best advantage the present season, with the usual labor force of the department. Fields Nos. 1 and 3 should be drained this summer, while they are in grass. The sewer across the college grounds will need to be lowered, and the upper channel of the stream straightened, in order to furnish a good outlet for the drains in fields Nos. 1, 2, and 3. With the present outlet, the thorough drainage of these fields is impracticable. The open ditch in field No. 12 should be continued through the marsh into field No. 11, and a cross ditch should be made along the line of the lane road. This will enable us to make a desirable addition to our permanent pastures in these fields. The clearing of these fields will be continued as fast as the labor at command will permit. The fences along the lane will be relaid and staked, and new gates and gateposts put in on the south side of the river. Lumber will be needed for the completion of the piggery and horse barn, and for the yards and fences south of the farm buildings. WANTS. As the operations of the farm are extended, the demand for additional facilities for carrying out the plan of management is necessarily increased. A permanent building for sheltering our wagons and farm implements is very much needed. Our wagons are uow all exposed to the weather throughout the year. The present implement shanty is not large enough to contain the tools required on the farm, even if it furnished suitable protection. The sales of pure bred stock are not as large as they should be, from the fact that we cannot, with our present stock, sell males and females together, on account of their close relationship. This is more particularly the case with the Shorthorns. The purchase of one or two choice females of different families would obviate the difficulty. A young Short-horn bull should also be purchased, to take the place of Captain Shaftoe. It is difficult to purchase bulls old enough for use, without paying very high prices. The better plan would be to select a young animal of desirable points and pedigree, a year or two before he is needed. With the number of females we now have, it is not safe to rely upon the services of a single male, as he is liable to be disabled. One of our lumber wagons that was thought last fall sufficient for another years' wear, has given out, and needs to be replaced. Three new sets of farm harness will also be needed. The foundations of the brick shop are not safe, and the south wall has settled so that a part of it must be rebuilt. The basement should be floored with concrete, to prevent any farther yielding of the side walls. An expenditure of $200, besides labor, would probably be sufficient to make the necessary repairs. When this building is repaired, a chimney should be built in the south eud, so that the blacksmith shop could then be removed to the basement, and the present unsightly building dispensed with. The addition of a steam engine and machinery, would then convert the building into a machine shop, whenever it was thought best to organize a mechanical departmeut. All of the improvements relating to the farm department that have been mentioned, could be provided for, if the proceeds of the farm are appropriated to that purpose. As a direct appropriation has been made by the Legislature to pay the indebtedness of the department, the present receipts and the accounts of last year may be reasonably asked for, to provide for these improvements. The following statement of the farm department receipts in this connection. is presented: $3,689 34 This amount will be considerably increased by receipts during the year. Respectfully submitted. M. MILES, Supt. of College Farm. TRANSACTIONS IN THE FARM DEPARTMENT. To the President of the State Agricultural College: The following report of transactions in the Farm Department for the year ending Dec. 1st, 1873, is respectfully submitted: A classified statement (marked A.) showing the cash receipts and expenditures of the department for the year, is herewith presented. From this it will be seen that the department, after paying all current expenses, has paid for permanent improvements, $1,027 98; for implements, $556 63; and for stock purchased, $392 97. It has also paid into the College Treasury $31 46 in excess of warrants drawn to the department for current expenses of the department, besides paying quite a number of accounts that are properly chargeable to the current expense account of the College. Previous to Sept. 1st moneys received for purchase and labor were expended by the Farm Superintendent, and itemized and detailed accounts of receipts and expenditures were from time to time rendered to the Secretary. Since Sept. 1st all cash receipts (excepting warrants) have been paid to the Secretary, and warrants have been drawn to pay bills of the department. The only apparent effect of the latter system is to double the receipts as shown by the cash-book, as the money expended has been twice receivedonce from the original source, and once from the Secretary. The other side of the account shows in the same manner that the money has been twice paid out, once to the Secretary and once to pay bills. A classified statement (marked B.) of receipts from all sources and expenditures for all purposes, for the year, is also herewith presented. In this statement the labor of students has been charged at the average rate of 83 cents per hour, and the labor of men and teams has been charged at $3 00 per day of 10 hours. This is believed to be a close approximation to the actual cost of labor, as the work of men and teams includes all items in the cash account for labor, board of men, harness repairs, horse-shoeing, and also the actual cost of feed consumed by teams. The sum of $880 57 has been expended in labor and materials for the construction and repairs of farm buildings, and $536 30 has been expended in construction of fences and repairs of bridge. The south end of the shop has been rebuilt, and four windows put in the two upper rooms. To prevent further settling of the walls of the building, a concrete floor has been put in the basement, which is fitted up as a blacksmith shop. The mason work and materials had were included in bills for the repairs of buildings, and paid for from the special appropriation for that purpose. All other labor, amounting to $149 64, was paid for by this department. The unclassified items for lumber and hardware, amounting to $238 26, should be charged to buildings and fences, the work on those permanent improvements being carried on at the same time, reudering it impossible to itemize the expenditure in detail. A Nichols' wind-mill (with 10 ft. sails), presented to the College by the Challenge Mill Co. of Batavia, Ills., through the General Agent, L. F. Brown, Augusta, Mich., has been put in operation to supply water to the barns. As a power for pumping water this mill cannot fail to give satisfaction, its rate of motion being nearly the same in a high wind as in a light breeze. It appears to be well made, and our experience thus far shows that it is not liable to get out of repair. A drive well 34 ft. deep under the tower of the wind-mill furnishes an ample supply of water. The pump is placed below the surface of the ground, so as to be out of the reach of frost. The reservoir for water, which is several feet above the level of the drinking troughs, consists of a tank 6 ft. in diameter and 8 ft. high, made of 2-inch staves, and coated inside and out with coal tar. This tank is protected from frost by a wooden building 12 feet square, with walls 6 inches in thickness, filled with sawdust, When the tank is full of water the sails of the windmill are thrown out of the wind, and remain at rest until the water is lowered about one foot, when the sails are thrown into the wind ready for action. An index on the tank-house, in the form of a clock face, shows at all times. the depth of water in the tank, and also serves to indicate any derangement of the pump and other fixtures for regulating the supply of water. The water is conducted from the reservoir to the barns in a gas pipe one inch in diameter, which terminates in a tub with a valve worked by a float, so that when the tub is full the flow of water is stopped. The drinking troughs are placed on the same level with the valve-tub, and connected with it by gas pipes. When the water in the drinking troughs is lowered the float in the regulating tub falls and opens the valve, admitting a fresh supply of water from the reservoir. There are seven drinking troughs now connected with the regulating tub, viz: one in the lane near the sheep barn, and six in the sheep barn. All of the work has been done by the students in a substantial and workmanlike manner, and the arrangements for conducting and regulating the supply of water are all that can be desired in that direction. It is proposed to extend the system next year so as to provide for a supply of water from the same source to the cattle barn and horse barn. The piggery yards have been completed, and board fences made around the pasture lot south of the boarding hall. The fences on both sides of the lane south of field No. 3, and the division fences between fields Nos. 7 and 8, and 9 and 11, have been relaid and staked in a substantial manner. The clearing of field No. 9 has been finished with the exception of stumping, which could not be done before planting corn, on account of the wet, backward spring. Considerable clearing has been done in fields Nos. 11 and 12, and the area of permanent pasturage thus increased. But little underdraining has been done on the farm this season, the sewer and drains on the college grounds north of the buildings having required all the labor that could be spared for that purpose. A statement (marked C.) of the receipts and expenditures of the College Farm for the year, is herewith presented. The farm at present consists of but 165 acres of land under cultivation, |