TRUE, ALFRED CHARLES ( 1853—) . An American educator and agriculturist, born at Middletown, Conn. He graduated at Wesleyan University in 1873, was principal of the high school at Essex, N. Y., in 1873-74, from 1875 to 1882 was an instructor in the State Normal School at Westfield, Mass., and in 1882-84 stud ied at Harvard. In 1884-88 he was an instructor in the Wesleyan University, in 1888 entered the office of Experiment Stations in the United States Department of Agriculture (q.v.), was editor there in 1889-90, vice-director in 1891-92, and became director in 1893. He was dean of the first graduate school of agriculture held in the United States (at Columbus, Ohio, 1902), and as chairman of the committee on methods of teaching agriculture of the Association of Ameri can Agricultural Colleges and Experiment Sta tions, was for years prominent in the movement for the improvement of college courses in agri culture, and the extension of agricultural in struction to the elementary and secondary schools. He organized agricultural investiga tions in Alaska, Hawaii, and Porto Rico, and the work of the Department of Agriculture relating to irrigation, agricultural engineering, and the farmers' institutes. Ile particularly studied the
organization and management of institutions for agricultural education and research, and pub lished several monographs on this subject. chief ly in the bulletins of the office, including: Edu cation- and Research in Agriculture in the United States (1894) ; Agricultural Experiment Sta tions: Their Objects and Work (1895) ; The Agricultural Experiment Stations in the United States ( with V. A. Clark, 1900) ; Agricultural Experiment Stations in Foreign Countries (with D. J. Crosby, 19021 : and Progress in Agrieul tura! Education (1902). For ten years he was chief editor of the Experiment Station Record. He contributed articles on agriculture and horti culture to the Yew International Eneyrlopecdia and Webster's International Dictionary.