SIXTH ANNUAL REPORT

OF THE...

Agricultural College of the University of Wyoming,

FOR THE YEAR 1896.

I hereby submit the Sixth Annual Report of the Agricultural College of Wyoming, in compliance with enactments of Congress.

Inception of the College and Station.

The courses in agriculture and mechanic arts have, from the organization of the University of Wyoming, been regularly established departments. It was provided, moreover, in the act of incorporation that "as soon as the income of the University will allow, in such order as the wants of the public shall seem to require, the said courses in the sciences, and their practical applications, shall be expanded into full and distinct schools." The departments of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts were thus organized into separate colleges of the University shortly after January 10, 1891, when an act of the Legislature of Wyoming placed the control of the appropriations from the Morrill and the Hatch Acts of Congress in the hands of the Board of Trustees of the State University. The Morrill Act, approved August 30, 1890, was intended to aid the Agricultural and Mechanical Colleges in the various States, and the Hatch Act, approved March 2, 1887, was for the purpose of establishing an Agricultural Experi

ment Station in each State. The Trustees of the University have for six years administered these federal appropriations in accordance with their original purposes, and it is with the progress during 1896 of the College and Station maintained by these appropriations that this report is concerned.

Present Management and Course.

The names of the Trustees of the University and their organization, together with the Agricultural Committee, will be found on the preceding page. The names of the Faculty of the Agricultural College, and the chairs filled by each member, also appear on the same page. Since several of the professors occupy similar chairs in the College of Liberal Arts, the State is saved considerable expense and a much better corps of instructors is maintained.

The course in agriculture and that in mechanic arts are appended to this report, and will be seen on examination to compare in standard very favorably with similar courses in the best institutions of the country. As the educational opportunities of the State advance, and the number of students increases, the requirements of the College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts will be gradually raised, so as to keep pace with the times. Already some improvements for next year's catalogue are in contempla

tion.

Improvements in Equipment.

The condition of the laboratories and work shops is this year better than ever before. Large additions of apparatus have been made to each of the departments, especially to that of mechanical engineering. The department of physics has been entirely refitted, more space has

been given for the chemical lecture room, the herbarium has received large additions, and the number of saurians now collected for the study of paleontology amounts to nearly thirty. Several iron working machines have been added to the equipment of the mechanical shop. A new sink has been put in, the floor of the engine room has been freed from oil and grime, and newly painted, the missing window lights have been supplied, the stairs rebuilt, and the machines mended and regulated.

Urgent Needs.

The constant expansion of the departments of physics, chemistry, geology, paleontology, and biology, will not allow a new scientific building to be long delayed, if the college is to continue its progress. The work done in these departments is of the highest character, and a credit to the State. Suitable encouragement in the way of proper facilities should be secured for such progressive work.

We have suffered somewhat, too, for the want of dormitories for young men and women. There are many deserving young people in this State who crave the education afforded by our institution, but cannot pay their living expenses in Laramie. Until some means are provided them, the influence of the highest educational institution in the State will not be strongly felt outside of the University site. If the State would build two dormitories, at the cost of a few thousand dollars, we could furnish these ambitious young people with board at cost. This year the president and some of the faculty have established a dormitory for young men largely at their own expense. This dormitory has done a great deal of good, but the price of board is not yet as low

as it should be, and the faculty cannot indefinitely con

tinue the expense.

Changes in the Faculty.

The faculty has been considerably strengthened by the acquisition of Professor Ridgaway and Mr. Gilkison. It is due to their efforts that such improvements have taken place in the physical laboratory and the mechanical shops. Each has given all his time to his department, and together they have saved the college more than $1,000 by manufacturing various sorts of apparatus and attending personally to repairs. Mr. Ridgaway had been professor of physics and dean at the University of the Pacific for nearly twelve years, and Mr. Gilkison was at the time of his election assistant in mechanical engineering at the Colorado Agricultural College. The high grade of instruction previously given by the other members of the faculty has been maintained during this year.

Discipline.

The discipline of the students has been excellent this year, and the quiet of the halls and rooms has been noticed by many visitors. One serious infraction only, that of hazing, occurred at the opening of the fall term, and this was promptly checked and punished by action of the faculty. The students have throughout the year shown the greatest interest in the welfare of the institution.

Increase in Numbers.

The numbers of the University as a whole have increased more than one-third over the highest previous record, and the indications for next year are still more promising. Students for the agricultural college are beginning to come in, and, although Wyoming has until recent

years been supposed not to be an agricultural State, it is certainly growing rapidly in this direction. The number

of young men taking work in the shops amounts to nearly one-sixth of the University, and the facilities afforded the students in mining by means of this branch are almost indispensable. This training is very popular and valuable for the youth of a new State rich in physical resources.

Account of Departments.

The following is a detailed report of each department of the Agricultural College:

POLITICAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCE.

This department includes civics, public law, political economy, and sociology. Its aim has been to cultivate independent thought and foster intelligent citizenship. After the origin and growth of each subject has been investigated, and the general principles have been acquired, the student is required to apply the principles thus obtained to leading problems of the present day. Debates, public and private, form an important feature of the courses. The following subjects have been taught in this department in 1896:

I. CIVIL GOVERNMENT. Fiske's Civil Government; Bryce's American Commonwealth; Macy's Civil Government. Lectures and practical illustrations. Required of preparatory students.

II. CONSTITUTIONAL LAW. Cooley; Black. Examination of cases lectures; debates. Elective for

seniors.

III. INTERNATIONAL LAW. Walker Gallaudet; Woolsey; Snow's Cases. Lectures; debates; theses. Required of seniors.