Texas, and the Bureau of Plant Industry, undertook a series of soil studies looking to the establishment of some measure of control. An effort is being made to discover: 1. Difference in soil properties responsible for the occurrence of the disease; 2. The effect of suitable fertilizers upon the susceptibility of plants; 3. The extent to which deep tillage or subsoiling may help to control disease. It has been found that the disease rarely is of consequence on acid soils but its distribution cannot be explained solely by differences in soil reaction. Low organic matter content of the soil and exposed subsoil (eroded) are frequently correlated with serious development of the disease. Superior state of fertilization is generally associated with relative or absolute freedom from disease. Taken as a whole, the Bureau's results justify the conclusion that fertilizer usage offers a means for evading losses by root-rot disease. In severely infested fields the direct effect of fertilizers may not be apparent the first season, but as repeated applications become cumulative, the effect upon yield may become quite significant. However, where the severity of the disease has been decreased through rotation with nonsusceptible crops or through subsoiling, the direct effect of fertilizers has been obtained in 1 year. In 10 instances in 1930 and 1931, where cotton followed sorghums, the root-rot was significantly reduced on fertilized plots. On Houston clay and on Houston black clay the percentage of dead cotton late in August was reduced in one case from 40 percent on unsubsoiled to 5.5 percent on subsoiled ground, and in another instance from 67 percent to 8.8 percent. Increases in yield as high as 765 pounds of seed cotton were obtained as a result of subsoiling a naturally productive but highly infected field of Houston black clay. The work to date justifies the conclusion that the rational use of fertilizers, and a practice of modified tillage in conjunction with crop rotation and other fertility maintaining measures, offer promise as a means for directly or indirectly controlling cotton root-rot in the Blackland region of Texas, with the consequent saving of several million of dollars annually to the cotton farmers of Texas and adjacent States. SOIL EROSION INVESTIGATIONS The increase both in public and in private interest during the past few months upon the seriousness of soil erosion and its attendant evils throughout the United States has brought it rapidly into recognition as one of our important national problems. The service of the Bureau of Chemistry and Soils in bringing this important condition. to the attention of the Government and of the people is fully recorded in the voluminous literature that has appeared upon the subject. during the past three or four years. In widening its efforts to secure complete scientific information upon water conservation and soil erosion control, the Bureau in cooperation with the Bureau of Agricultural Engineering and the State Experiment stations has organized during the past year two additional experimental stations, which bring the total number established to date up to ten. The first of these new stations, near La Crosse, Wis., is to serve a great area of about 12,000,000 acres of rather rugged terrain which is located in the southwestern part of Wisconsin for the most part but which also extends well over into Minnesota, Iowa, and Illinois. The second station, at Zanesville, Ohio, is located in the northwest Appalachian region where it will serve as best it can an even more extensive area of 78,000,000 acres, extending from New York and Pennsylvania on the north down through Ohio, Virginia, West Virginia, Tennessee, and North Carolina into northern Georgia and Alabama. Of the 12,000,000 acre area represented by the La Crosse station, it has been estimated that the soil of 4,500,000 acres, or 37% percent of the total, was already severely eroded at the time the station was established, while that of 175,000 acres, or nearly 1.5 percent of the total, had been completely devastated by that time. In the larger 78,000,000 acre area represented by the Zanesville station, it has been estimated that the soil on 12,000,000 acres, or 15.4 percent of the entire section, was already severely eroded at the time the station was established while that of at least 3,000,000 acres, or 3.8 percent of the total area, had been completely devastated by that time. In neither of these instances does this include the entire story of erosion, for there are extensive areas in both sections which show slight to moderate losses from this cause. In reference to the areas served by the stations as a whole, the aggregate land surface amounts to 239,000,000 acres and as of the time of a general reconnaissance study in 1929 it was estimated that 60,000,000 acres or 27 percent of the total already had been severely eroded and 12,600,000 acres or 5.6 percent of the area had been completely devastated. Varying degrees of erosional losses which might be characterized as slight to moderate, of course, had been experienced over extensive sections of the balance of the area of 152,000,000 acres at the time of the study just as referred to above. Besides the total area of 226,000,000 acres which is being served by the 10 established stations, there is an additional aggregate area of about 139,000,000 acres which reconnaissance study shows has suffered an erosional loss that is to be characterized as "severe" upon 36,000,000 acres or 26 percent of the whole. Of this same aggregate area, furthermore, of all sections surveyed upon which detailed observation and study have not been initiated up to the present time, 8.2 percent or 11,350,000 acres have been more or less completely devastated by this same progressive force. There is thus indicated a great need for an early extension of our present studies into these areas and, also, perhaps, the division of some of the larger sections referred to above, which really are covering too great variety of conditions as relating to type of soil, topography, and even climate to make the results of an additional station in a given locality as applicable as they should be over the entire region involved. The work at all stations has made remarkable progress to date, especially in connection with studies upon the effectiveness of vegetative covers in slowing down surface run-off and controlling soil losses. It has been a common experience among all the stations that no other phase of the results of the work has commanded so much public interest as those demonstrating in a definitely quantitative and visual way the tremendous effectiveness of vegetation of various types in slowing down both sheet and gully erosion. The spontaneous character of this interest is associated with the fact that it is a type of demonstration which is entirely practical and which the individual farmer can apply upon his own farm, in many cases without any additional expense over his ordinary routine of farming and always with the assurance of a striking benefit both in increased yields of crops and in conservation of soil and water. GENERAL ADMINISTRATIVE EXPENSES Mr. SANDLIN. For general administrative expenses, the estimate for 1935 is $84,402. Dr. KNIGHT. That is for the general administration of the bureau, Mr. Chairman. We have cut that down to the very minimum. Mr. SANDLIN. The increase which is included is to take care of the 5 percent increase in salaries? Dr. KNIGHT. Yes, sir. I submit the following statement in explanation of this item, Mr. Chairman. Increase, Budget 1935, compared with estimated obligations, 1934. $97, 600 96, 720 89, 903 80, 305 84, 402 4, 097 The reduction of $5,501 in the 1935 estimate of $84,402 below the appropriation of $89,903 for 1934 consists of: Impoundment of 63% percent of 15 percent pay cut.. 5 percent salary restoration__. -$5,394 -4, 204 +4, 097 -5, 501 WORK DONE UNDER THIS APPROPRIATION This appropriation provides for the salaries and expenses of the office of the Chief of Bureau and the business organization units such as accounting, personnel, editorial, supplies, etc. It is for the purpose of maintaining general administration and direction of the Bureau. EMERGENCY FUNDS APPLICABLE UNDER THIS HEADING Under Civil Works allotment, $2,382 has been made available for office assistance in connection with Civil Works projects. ALLOTMENT OF C.W.A. FUNDS Mr. SANDLIN. I notice you had an allotment of $2,382 from the Civil Works Administration for office assistance in connection with Civil Works projects. Dr. KNIGHT. Yes; that was really for bringing our records up to date, and also for making work for some of the unemployed people. AGRICULTURAL CHEMICAL INVESTIGATIONS Mr. SANDLIN. The next item is for agricultural chemical investigations. You have this year $330,500, and the estimate for 1935 is $304,870. That is a reduction of $105,130. Dr. KNIGHT. Yes, sir. I submit the following statement, Mr. Chairman, in connection with this item: Decrease, Budget 1935, compared with estimated obligations, 1934. $501, 075 453, 699 410, 000 330, 500 304, 870 25, 630 The reduction of $105,130 in the 1935 estimate of $304,870 below the appropriation of $410,000 for 1934 consists of: Impoundirent of 6% percent of 15 percent pay cut. Further reduction in working funds for 1935 ($6,505 for carbohy- 5 percent salary restoration. $21, 518 - 57,982 -40, 301 +14, 671 - 105, 130 The reduction of $40,301 in the working funds under this item for 1935 will make necessary discontinuance and suspension of investigative work as follows: (a) A decrease of $6,505 for carbohydrate investigations will make necessary discontinuance of research on the clarification of honey. (b) A decrease of $11,164 for food research will necessitate the suspension of phases of work on plant pigments, which require a large amount of fundamental chemical work before a real start can be made on the practical application of this type of work to the production and preservation of food products where the naturally occurring plant pigment is of prime commercial importance; suspension of studies on fermentation flavors in sirups and molasses; discontinuance of the study of the ash constituents in foods and feeds, because the magnitude of the problem, due to varying conditions of production, will require many years of research to produce results of real value. (c) A decrease of $5,730 for fruit and vegetable utilization will make necessary the closing of the Citrus Products Station at Weslaco, Tex. This laboratory has been in active operation slightly more than one season, and it has not been possible in this short time to develop results of value to the Texas citrus industry. (d) A decrease of $11,602 for industrial farm products will make necessary the discontinuance of the field work on the curing and handling of hides and skins, which has been under way since 1928; curtailment of investigations of the causes of deterioration of permanent record papers and of work on paper specifications for the Joint Committee on Printing (this work has been conducted in cooperation with the paper specifications committee designated by the Joint Committee on Printing); discontinuance of work on preservative treatment of tobacco shade cloth and on the weather-resistant fire-proofing treatment of farm fabrics and awning duck; discontinuance of furnishing information on miscellaneous subjects in chemical technology including the furnishing of information to farmers on the painting of farm buildings. (e) A decrease of $1,265 for lignin investigations will necessitate the curtailment of research on the economic utilization of numerous types of farm wastes and wastes from paper mills and wood-working industries. (f) A decrease of $305 for oil, fat, and wax investigations will necessitate reduction in operating expenses by that amount. (g) A decrease of $2,865 for protein and nutrition investigations will necessitate curtailment on protein analyses of feedstuffs; of investigations on vitamins in foods and feeds, and on the effect upon vitamins of certain commercial processes used in food production; of cooperative work with the Food and Drug Administration in developing information on vitamins to aid officials in enforcing the Federal food and drugs act, and of investigations on the nature, isolation and identification of the toxic principle in osteodemic wheat. (h) A decrease of $565 for farm-fires investigations will necessitate curtailment of research on methods for the prevention of self-heating of agricultural products. WORK DONE UNDER THIS APPROPRIATION The work under this appropriation comprises a broad program of agricultural chemical and technological research with the objectives of widening markets for farm products through the development of more extensive industrial uses; improvement in quality and better adaptation of products to market requirements; profitable utilization of farm by-products, wastes, and surpluses; discovery of uses for hitherto unutilized plants and new uses for minor crops in order to substitute these for overproduced crops; development and substitution of domestic for imported products; and reduction of losses from spoilage, deterioration, and from destruction by fire. This work involves fundamental research on the chemical nature of the numerous organic and inorganic constituents of agricultural products, and technological application of the knowledge thus acquired to the solution of practical problems. The work includes studies of carbohydrate crops and products, such as sugarcane, sugar beets, farm-made sirups, honey, starchy plants, and plants containing miscellaneous carbohydrates; chemical, biochemical and bacteriological investigations of foods, the biological changes in raw and manufactured foods, causes of deterioration, and improved methods of preservation; fruit and vegetable utilization studies concerned with profitable uses of fruit and vegetable culls and surpluses; investigations relating to the conservation of hides and skins, serviceability of leather, development of new sources of tanning materials, durability of papers, waterproofing and fireproofing farm fabrics, and industrial utilization of straw, cornstalks, hulls, etc.; research in the chemistry of lignin; studies of oils, fats, and waxes; chemical and biological investigations of the nutritive value of foods and feeds with reference to their protein and vitamin content; and studies of the spontaneous heating of agricultural products and the prevention of farm fires. Field laboratories for fruit and vegetable utilization studies are maintained at Los Angeles, Calif., Winter Haven, Fla., and Weslaco, Tex., where abundant raw materials are readily available and where the problems can be studied in relation to regional conditions. Investigations on the economic utilization of farm byproducts, such as straw, corn stalk, bagasse, and grain hulls are conducted at Ames, Iowa, in cooperation with the Iowa State College. P.W.A. AND C.W.A. FUNDS APPLICABLE UNDER THIS HEADING Under the National Industrial Recovery Act, allotments have been made as follows: For physical improvements at the citrus byproduct laboratory, Weslaco, Tex., $250; for construction of an agricultural byproduct laboratory at Ames, Iowa, $70,000, of which it is estimated that $45,000 will be expended in the fiscal year 1934, and $25,000 in 1935. Civil Works allotments totaling $2.008 have been made for maintenance work at the Winter Haven, Fla., and Weslaco, Tex. stations, and for general cleaning work, etc., in the Washington laboratories and offices. Mr. SANDLIN. Will you give us a statement in connection with this item showing the manner of the expenditure of this money? SUGARCANE AND SORGHUM SIRUPS Dr. KNIGHT. The first item listed here, Mr. Chairman, is the project in connection with carbohydrates. I would like to have Dr. Browne, who is probably more familiar with this work than anyone else, explain it to you. Dr. BROWNE. I would like to submit first, a summary of our work in Louisiana and other Southern States upon improvement of the quality of cane sirups. About 40,000,000 gallons of farm-made sugarcane and sorghum sirups, with a farm value of about $15,000,000, are produced annually on many thousands of farms in a large number of States. These are important cash crops on thousands of small farms. The purpose of this work is to provide means whereby sugarcane and sorghum sirups of better avearge quality can be produced on the |