Another part where Jefferson emphasizes the self reliance that the university intends to promote by making educated citizens who can fend for themselves and be able to keep track of their own personal business.

Jefferson's ideal america was an a republic where everyone was a farmer who could provide for themselves, so it makes sense that his university would promote harmony between all of these interests and promote well informed views so that everybody would be well informed about what was going on in the world and how they could affect it.

The writers clearly would like if the student population of this new University could come solely from the area around the school as mentioned in the previous sentences, but the writers mention that if a sparse population cannot supply the school with a sufficient amount of students then they would be forced to enlarge the district that they are drawing students from but do so competently so that they could draw a sufficient student body. The writers had no idea what would become of the institution of higher learning in the United State, but they are invariably supporting out-of-state students which there are now an abundance of.

Chemistry is explained in this context not as a natural science but for it's use to understand agriculture which was a practical skill at the time.