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+*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 43200 ***
+
+[Transcriber's Note:
+
+Italicized text indicated by underscores.
+
+12-3/4 represents whole and fractional parts of numbers.]
+
+
+
+
+  CORNELL
+
+  NATURE-STUDY LEAFLETS
+
+  BEING A SELECTION, WITH REVISION, FROM THE
+  TEACHERS' LEAFLETS, HOME NATURE-STUDY
+  LESSONS, JUNIOR NATURALIST MONTHLIES AND
+  OTHER PUBLICATIONS FROM THE COLLEGE OF
+  AGRICULTURE, CORNELL UNIVERSITY, ITHACA, N.Y.,
+  1896-1904
+
+  STATE OF NEW YORK--DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
+
+  NATURE-STUDY BULLETIN NO. 1
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+  ALBANY
+  J. B. LYON COMPANY, PRINTERS
+  1904
+
+
+
+
+  LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL.
+
+
+  COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURE,
+  CORNELL UNIVERSITY,
+  ITHACA, N. Y.
+
+  Hon. C. A. WIETING,
+  _Commissioner of Agriculture_,
+  Albany, N. Y.:
+
+SIR.--I submit herewith as a part of the Annual Report of 1903 a number
+of the nature-study publications for reprinting. Most of these
+publications are out of print and the call for them still continues.
+These publications have practically all arisen under your supervision,
+and under the directorship of Professor I. P. Roberts.
+
+Nature-study work should begin in the primary grades. It is a
+fundamental educational process, because it begins with the concrete and
+simple, develops the power of observation, relates the child to its
+environment, develops sympathy for the common and the near-at-hand. By
+the time the child has arrived at the fifth or sixth grade he should be
+well prepared for specific work in the modern environmental geography,
+in the industries, or in other exacter common-life subjects.
+Nature-study is a necessary foundation for the best work in biology,
+physiography and agriculture. Since it is content work, it is also
+equally important as a preparation in all expression work, as in
+English, number and reading. In most present-day rural schools it may
+well continue through the eighth grade; and, if well taught, it may even
+take the place very profitably of some of the "science" of some of the
+higher schools. Its particular sphere, however, in a well-developed
+school, is below the sixth grade, possibly below the fifth. But even if
+the term nature-study ceases at the fifth or sixth grade, the
+nature-study method will persist throughout the school course,--the
+method of dealing first-hand and in their natural setting with objects,
+phenomena and affairs, and of proceeding from the simple and undissected
+to the complex and remote.
+
+The reader should bear in mind that the College of Agriculture has no
+organic connection with the public school system of New York State, and
+that its nature-study work is a propaganda. From first to last the
+College has been fortunate in having the sympathy, aid, and approval of
+the State Department of Public Instruction, and now of the new Education
+Department. The time is now near at hand when nature-study will be
+adequately recognized in the school system of the State, and then the
+nature-study work of the College of Agriculture may take new form.
+
+In these reprinted leaflets the reader will find many methods of
+presentation of a great variety of subject-matter. A wide range has
+purposely been included, in the hope that any interested teacher may
+find at least one or two leaflets that will be suggestive in his own
+work. Our own ideas as to what is a valuable leaflet have changed
+greatly since the work was begun; and it is to be expected that they
+will continue to change with the progress of the work and the
+development of the schools. It would be an interesting review if we were
+to summarize our own experiences with our own work. The leaflet that is
+most praised by the critics may be the least useful in practice. The
+greatest danger is that of making the work too complete, too rigid and
+too formidable.
+
+L. H. BAILEY,
+
+_Director College of Agriculture._
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS.
+
+
+  PART I. TEACHERS' LEAFLETS.
+
+  Leaflet.                                                        Page.
+
+  The Schoolhouse                                                     9
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  I. What is Nature-Study?                                           11
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  II. The Nature-Study Movement                                      21
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  III. An Appeal to the Teachers of New York State                   31
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  IV. What Is Agricultural Education?                                45
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  V. Suggestions for Nature Study Work                               55
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  VI. A Summer Shower                                                81
+  Ralph S. Tarr.
+
+  VII. A Snow Storm                                                  93
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  VIII. A Handful of Soil: What It Is                                99
+  Ralph S. Tarr.
+
+  IX. A Handful of Soil: What It Does                               115
+  L. A. Clinton.
+
+  X. The Brook                                                      125
+  J. O. Martin. Introduction by L. H. Bailey.
+
+  XI. Insect Life of a Brook                                        135
+  Mary Rogers Miller.
+
+  XII. Life in an Aquarium                                          141
+  Mary Rogers Miller.
+
+  XIII. A Study of Fishes                                           157
+  H. D. Reed.
+
+  XIV. The Opening of a Cocoon                                      167
+  Mary Rogers Miller.
+
+  XV. A Talk about Spiders                                          171
+  John Henry Comstock.
+
+  XVI. Life History of the Toad                                     185
+  Simon Henry Gage.
+
+  XVII. Life in a Terrarium                                         207
+  Alice I. Kent.
+
+  XVIII. Directions for Collecting and Preserving Insects           213
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XIX. Some Tent-Makers                                             227
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XX. Mosquitoes                                                    237
+  Mary Rogers Miller.
+
+  XXI. The Ways of the Ant                                          243
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XXII. The Birds and I                                             253
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  XXIII. The Early Birds                                            261
+  Louis Agassiz Fuertes.
+
+  XXIV. The Woodpeckers                                             269
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XXV. The Chickadee                                                279
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XXVI. The White-Breasted Nuthatch                                 283
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XXVII. About Crows                                                287
+  Mary Rogers Miller.
+
+  XXVIII. How a Squash Plant Gets Out of the Seed                   291
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  XXIX. How the Trees Look in Winter                                297
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  XXX. One Way of Drawing Trees in Their Winter Aspects             307
+  Charles W. Furlong.
+
+  XXXI. Four Apple Twigs                                            317
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  XXXII. The Burst of Spring                                        327
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  XXXIII. Evergreens and How They Shed Their Leaves                 333
+  H. P. Gould.
+
+  XXXIV. The Clovers and Their Kin                                  349
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XXXV. How Plants Live Together                                    361
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  XXXVI. Planting a Plant                                           367
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  XXXVII. Cuttings and Cuttings                                     369
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  XXXVIII. A Children's Garden                                      379
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  XXXIX. A Hill of Potatoes                                         385
+  I. P. Roberts.
+
+  XL. The Hepatica                                                  391
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XLI. Jack-in-the-Pulpit                                           395
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XLII. Indian Corn                                                 397
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XLIII. The Ripened Corn                                           401
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XLIV. The Uses of Food Stored in Seeds                            409
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XLV. The Life History of a Beet                                   415
+  Mary Rogers Miller.
+
+  XLVI. Pruning                                                     417
+  Mary Rogers Miller.
+
+  XLVII. Study of a Tree                                            423
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XLVIII. The Maple in February                                     431
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  XLIX. The Red Squirrel or Chickaree                               435
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  L. Improvement of School Grounds                                  437
+  John W. Spencer.
+
+
+  PART II. CHILDREN'S LEAFLETS.
+
+  The Child's Realm                                                 451
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  LI. A Snow Storm                                                  453
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LII. A Plant at School                                            455
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  LIII. An Apple Twig and an Apple                                  467
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  LIV. Twigs in Late Winter                                         473
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LV. Pruning                                                       475
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LVI. The Hepatica                                                 477
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LVII. Jack-in-the-Pulpit                                          479
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LVIII. Dandelion                                                  481
+  Alice G. McCloskey and L. H. Bailey.
+
+  LIX. Maple Trees in Autumn                                        483
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LX. A Corn Stalk                                                  485
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LXI. In the Corn Fields                                           487
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LXII. The Alfalfa Plant                                           489
+  L. H. Bailey and John W. Spencer.
+
+  LXIII. The Red Squirrel                                           495
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LXIV. Robin                                                       499
+  L. H. Bailey.
+
+  LXV. Crows                                                        501
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LXVI. A Friendly Little Chickadee                                 503
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LXVII. The Family of Woodpeckers                                  505
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LXVIII. Deserted Birds' Nests                                     515
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LXIX. The Poultry Yard: Some Thanksgiving Lessons                 517
+  Alice G. McCloskey and James E. Rice.
+
+  LXX. Little Hermit Brother                                        529
+  Anna Botsford Comstock.
+
+  LXXI. A Home for Friendly Little Neighbors                        537
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LXXII. Moths and Butterflies                                      545
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LXXIII. The Paper Makers                                          551
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LXXIV. Some Carpenter Ants and Their Kin                          555
+  Alice G. McCloskey.
+
+  LXXV. A Garden All Your Own                                       559
+  John W. Spencer.
+
+  LXXVI. The Gardens and the School Grounds                         569
+  John W. Spencer.
+
+  LXXVII. Something for Young Farmers                               573
+  John W. Spencer.
+
+  LXXVIII. Bulbs                                                    577
+  John W. Spencer.
+
+  LXXIX. A Talk About Bulbs by the Gardener                         581
+  C. E. Hunn.
+
+  LXXX. Horses                                                      589
+  Alice G. McCloskey and I. P. Roberts.
+
+
+
+
+PART I.
+
+TEACHERS' LEAFLETS.
+
+
+PUBLICATIONS DESIGNED TO AID THE TEACHER WITH SUBJECT-MATTER, TO
+INDICATE THE POINT OF VIEW, AND TO SUGGEST A METHOD OF PRESENTATION.
+
+
+
+
+THE SCHOOL HOUSE.
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+In the rural districts, the school must become a social and intellectual
+centre. It must stand in close relationship with the life and activities
+of its community. It must not be an institution apart, exotic to the
+common-day lives; it must teach the common things and put the pupil into
+sympathetic touch with his own environment. Then every school house will
+have a voice, and will say:
+
+          I teach
+
+  The earth and soil
+  To them that toil,
+  The hill and fen
+  To common men
+      That live right here;
+
+  The plants that grow,
+  The winds that blow,
+  The streams that run
+  In rain and sun
+      Throughout the year;
+
+  And then I lead,
+  Thro' wood and mead,
+  Thro' mold and sod,
+  Out unto God
+      With love and cheer.
+
+          I teach!
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET I.
+
+WHAT IS NATURE-STUDY?[1]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[1] Paragraphs adapted from Teachers' Leaflet, No. 6, May 1, 1897, and
+from subsequent publications.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Nature-study, as a process, is seeing the things that one looks at, and
+the drawing of proper conclusions from what one sees. Its purpose is to
+educate the child in terms of his environment, to the end that his life
+may be fuller and richer. Nature-study is not the study of a science, as
+of botany, entomology, geology, and the like. That is, it takes the
+things at hand and endeavors to understand them, without reference
+primarily to the systematic order or relationships of the objects. It is
+informal, as are the objects which one sees. It is entirely divorced
+from mere definitions, or from formal explanations in books. It is
+therefore supremely natural. It trains the eye and the mind to see and
+to comprehend the common things of life; and the result is not directly
+the acquiring of science but the establishing of a living sympathy with
+everything that is.
+
+The proper objects of nature-study are the things that one oftenest
+meets. Stones, flowers, twigs, birds, insects, are good and common
+subjects. The child, or even the high school pupil, is first interested
+in things that do not need to be analyzed or changed into unusual forms
+or problems. Therefore, problems of chemistry and of physics are for the
+most part unsuited to early lessons in nature-study. Moving things, as
+birds, insects and mammals, interest children most and therefore seem to
+be the proper objects for nature-study; but it is often difficult to
+secure such specimens when wanted, especially in liberal quantity, and
+still more difficult to see the objects in perfectly natural conditions.
+Plants are more easily had, and are therefore usually more practicable
+for the purpose, although animals and minerals should by no means be
+excluded.
+
+If the objects to be studied are informal, the methods of teaching
+should be the same. If nature-study were made a stated part of a rigid
+curriculum, its purpose might be defeated. One difficulty with our
+present school methods is the necessary formality of the courses and the
+hours. Tasks are set, and tasks are always hard. The best way to teach
+nature-study is, with no hard and fast course laid out, to bring in some
+object that may be at hand and to set the pupils to looking at it. The
+pupils do the work,--they see the thing and explain its structure and
+its meaning. The exercise should not be long, not to exceed fifteen
+minutes perhaps, and, above all things, the pupil should never look upon
+it as a "recitation," nor as a means of preparing for "examination." It
+may come as a rest exercise, whenever the pupils become listless. Ten
+minutes a day, for one term, of a short, sharp, and spicy observation
+lesson on plants, for example, is worth more than a whole text-book of
+botany.
+
+The teacher should studiously avoid definitions, and the setting of
+patterns. The old idea of the model flower is a pernicious one, because
+it does not exist in nature. The model flower, the complete leaf, and
+the like, are inferences, and pupils should always begin with things and
+phenomena, and not with abstract ideas. In other words, the ideas should
+be suggested by the things, and not the things by the ideas. "Here is a
+drawing of a model flower," the old method says; "go and find the
+nearest approach to it." "Go and find me a flower," is the true method,
+"and let us see what it is."
+
+Every child, and every grown person too, for that matter, is interested
+in nature-study, for it is the natural way of acquiring knowledge. The
+only difficulty lies in the teaching, for very few teachers have had
+experience in this informal method of drawing out the observing and
+reasoning powers of the pupil without the use of text-books. The teacher
+must first of all feel in natural objects the living interest which it
+is desired the pupils shall acquire. If the enthusiasm is not catching,
+better let such teaching alone.
+
+Primarily, nature-study, as the writer conceives it, is not knowledge.
+He would avoid the leaflet that gives nothing but information.
+Nature-study is not "method." Of necessity each teacher will develop a
+method; but this method is the need of the teacher, not of the subject.
+
+Nature-study is not to be taught for the purpose of making the youth a
+specialist or a scientist. Now and then a pupil will desire to pursue a
+science for the sake of the science, and he should be encouraged. But
+every pupil may be taught to be interested in plants and birds and
+insects and running brooks, and thereby his life will be the stronger.
+The crop of scientists will take care of itself.
+
+It is said that nature-study teaching is not thorough and therefore is
+undesirable. Much that is good in teaching has been sacrificed for what
+we call "thoroughness,"--which in many cases means only a perfunctory
+drill in mere facts. One cannot teach a pupil to be really interested in
+any natural object or phenomenon until the pupil sees accurately and
+reasons correctly. Accuracy is a prime requisite in any good
+nature-study teaching, for accuracy is truth and it develops power. It
+is better that a pupil see twenty things accurately, and see them
+himself, than that he be confined to one thing so long that he detests
+it. Different subjects demand different methods of teaching. The method
+of mathematics cannot be applied to dandelions and polliwogs.
+
+The first essential in nature-study is actually to see the thing or the
+phenomenon. It is positive, direct, discriminating, accurate
+observation. The second essential is to understand why the thing is so,
+or what it means. The third essential is the desire to know more, and
+this comes of itself and thereby is unlike much other effort of the
+schoolroom. The final result should be the development of a keen
+personal interest in every natural object and phenomenon.
+
+Real nature-study cannot pass away. We are children of nature, and we
+have never appreciated the fact so much as we do now. But the more
+closely we come into touch with nature, the less do we proclaim the fact
+abroad. We may hear less about it, but that will be because we are
+living nearer to it and have ceased to feel the necessity of advertising
+it.
+
+Much that is called nature-study is only diluted and sugar-coated
+science. This will pass. Some of it is mere sentimentalism. This also
+will pass. With the changes, the term nature-study may fall into disuse;
+but the name matters little so long as we hold to the essence.
+
+All new things must be unduly emphasized, else they cannot gain a
+foothold in competition with things that are established. For a day,
+some new movement is announced in the daily papers, and then, because we
+do not see the head lines, we think that the movement is dead; but
+usually when things are heralded they have only just appeared. So long
+as the sun shines and the fields are green, we shall need to go to
+nature for our inspiration and our respite; and our need is the greater
+with every increasing complexity of our lives.
+
+All this means that the teacher will need helps. He will need to inform
+himself before he attempts to inform the pupil. It is not necessary that
+he become a scientist in order to do this. He goes as far as he knows,
+and then says to the pupil that he cannot answer the questions that he
+cannot. This at once raises him in the estimation of the pupil, for the
+pupil is convinced of his truthfulness, and is made to feel--but how
+seldom is the sensation!--that knowledge is not the peculiar property of
+the teacher but is the right of any one who seeks it. Nature-study sets
+the pupil to investigating for himself. The teacher never needs to
+apologize for nature. He is teaching merely because he is an older and
+more experienced pupil than his pupil is. This is the spirit of the
+teacher in the universities to-day. The best teacher is the one whose
+pupils the farthest outrun him.
+
+In order to help the teacher in the rural schools of New York, we have
+conceived of a series of leaflets explaining how the common objects can
+be made interesting to children. Whilst these are intended for the
+teacher, there is no harm in giving them to the pupil; but the leaflets
+should never be used as texts from which to make recitations. Now and
+then, take the children for a ramble in the woods or fields, or go to
+the brook or lake. Call their attention to the interesting things that
+you meet--whether you yourself understand them or not--in order to teach
+them to see and to find some point of sympathy; for every one of them
+will some day need the solace and the rest which this nature-love can
+give them. It is not the mere information that is valuable; that may be
+had by asking someone wiser than they, but the inquiring and sympathetic
+spirit is one's own.
+
+The pupils will find their regular lessons easier to acquire for this
+respite of ten minutes with a leaf or an insect, and the school-going
+will come to be less perfunctory. If you must teach drawing, set the
+picture in a leaflet before the pupils for study, and then substitute
+the object. If you must teach composition, let the pupils write on what
+they have seen. After a time, give ten minutes now and then to asking
+the children what they saw on their way to school.
+
+Now, why is the College of Agriculture at Cornell University interesting
+itself in this work? It is trying to help the farmer, and it begins with
+the most teachable point--the child. The district school cannot teach
+technical professional agriculture any more than it can teach law or
+engineering or any other profession or trade, but it can interest the
+child in nature and in rural problems, and thereby join his sympathies
+to the country at the same time that his mind is trained to efficient
+thinking. The child will teach the parent. The coming generation will
+see the result. In the interest of humanity and country, we ask for
+help.
+
+How to make the rural school more efficient is one of the most difficult
+problems before our educators, but the problem is larger than mere
+courses of study. Social and economic questions are at the bottom of the
+difficulty, and these questions may be beyond the reach of the educator.
+A correspondent wrote us the other day that an old teacher in a rural
+school, who was receiving $20 a month, was underbid 50 cents by one of
+no experience, and the younger teacher was engaged for $19.50, thus
+saving the district for the three months' term the sum of $1.50. This is
+an extreme case, but it illustrates one of the rural school problems.
+
+One of the difficulties with the rural district school is the fact that
+the teachers tend to move to the villages and cities, where there is
+opportunity to associate with other teachers, where there are libraries,
+and where the wages are sometimes better. This movement is likely to
+leave the district school in the hands of younger teachers, and changes
+are very frequent. To all this there are many exceptions. Many teachers
+appreciate the advantages of living in the country. There they find
+compensations for the lack of association. They may reside at home. Some
+of the best work in our nature-study movement has come from the rural
+schools. We shall make a special effort to reach the country schools.
+Yet it is a fact that new movements usually take root in the city
+schools and gradually spread to the smaller places. This is not the
+fault of the country teacher; it comes largely from the fact that his
+time is occupied by so many various duties and that the rural schools do
+not have the advantage of the personal supervision which the city
+schools have.
+
+
+_Retrospect and Prospect after five years' work._[2]
+
+[2] From Bull. 206, Sixth Report of Extension Work, 1902.
+
+To create a larger public sentiment in favor of agriculture, to increase
+the farmer's respect for his own business,--these are the controlling
+purposes in the general movement that we are carrying forward under the
+title of nature-study. It is not by teaching agriculture directly that
+this movement can be started. The common schools in New York will not
+teach agriculture to any extent for the present, and the movement, if it
+is to arouse a public sentiment, must reach beyond the actual farmers
+themselves. The agricultural status is much more than an affair of mere
+farming. The first undertaking, as we conceive the problem, is to awaken
+an interest in the things with which the farmer lives and has to do, for
+a man is happy only when he is in sympathy with his environment. To
+teach observation of common things, therefore, has been the fundamental
+purpose. A name for the movement was necessary. We did not wish to
+invent a new name or phrase, as it would require too much effort in
+explanation. Therefore, we chose the current and significant phrase
+"nature-study," which, while it covers many methods and practices,
+stands everywhere for the opening of the mind directly to the common
+phenomena of nature.
+
+We have not tried to develop a system of nature-study nor to make a
+contribution to the pedagogics of the subject. We have merely
+endeavored, as best we could, to reach a certain specific result,--the
+enlarging of the agricultural horizon. We have had no pedagogical
+theories, or, if we have, they have been modified or upset by the actual
+conditions that have presented themselves. Neither do we contend that
+our own methods and means have always been the best. We are learning.
+Yet we are sure that the general results justify all the effort.
+
+Theoretical pedagogical ideals can be applied by the good teacher who
+comes into personal relations with the children, and they are almost
+certain to work out well. These ideals cannot always be applied,
+however, with persons who are to be reached by means of correspondence
+and in a great variety of conditions, and particularly when many of the
+subjects lie outside the customary work of the schools.
+
+Likewise, the subjects selected for our nature-study work must be
+governed by conditions and not wholly by ideals. We are sometimes asked
+why we do not take up topics more distinctly agricultural or economic.
+The answer is that we take subjects that teachers will use. We would
+like, for example, to give more attention to insect subjects, but it is
+difficult to induce teachers to work with them. If distinctly
+agricultural topics alone were used, the movement would have very little
+following and influence. Moreover, it is not our purpose to teach
+technical agriculture in the common schools, but to inculcate the habit
+of observing, to suggest work that has distinct application to the
+conditions in which the child lives, to inspire enthusiasm for country
+life, to aid in home-making, and to encourage a general movement towards
+the soil. These matters cannot be forced. In every effort by every
+member of the extension staff, the betterment of agricultural conditions
+has been the guiding impulse, however remote from that purpose it may
+have seemed to the casual observer.
+
+We have found by long experience that it is unwise to give too much
+condensed subject-matter. The individual teacher can give subject-matter
+in detail because personal knowledge and enthusiasm can be applied. But
+in general correspondence and propagandist work this cannot be done.
+With the Junior Naturalist, for example, the first impulse is to inspire
+enthusiasm for some bit of work which we hope to take up. This
+enthusiasm is inspired largely by the organization of clubs and by the
+personal correspondence that is conducted between the Bureau and these
+clubs and their members. It is the desire, however, to follow up this
+general movement with instruction in definite subject-matter with the
+teacher. Therefore, a course in Home Nature-study was formally
+established under the general direction of Mrs. Mary Rogers Miller. It
+was designed to carry on the experiment for one year, in order to
+determine whether such a course would be productive of good results and
+to discover the best means of prosecuting it. These experimental results
+were very gratifying. Nearly 2,000 New York teachers are now regularly
+enrolled in the Course, the larger part of whom are outside the
+metropolitan and distinctly urban conditions. Every effort is made to
+reach the rural teacher.
+
+In order that the work may reach the children, it must be greatly
+popularized and the children must be met on their own ground. The
+complete or ideal leaflet may have little influence. For example, I
+prepared a leaflet on "A Children's Garden" which several people were
+kind enough to praise. However, very little direct result was secured
+from the use of this leaflet until "Uncle John" began to popularize it
+and to make appeals to teachers and children by means of personal talks,
+letters and circulars. So far as possible, his appeal to children was
+made in their own phrase. The movement for the children's garden has now
+taken definite shape, and the result is that more than 26,000 children
+in New York State are raising plants during the present year. Another
+illustration of this kind may be taken from the effort to improve the
+rural school grounds. I wrote a bulletin on "The Improvement of Rural
+School Grounds," but the tangible results were very few. Now, however,
+through the work of "Uncle John" with the teachers and the children, a
+distinct movement has begun for the cleaning and improving of the school
+grounds of the State. This movement is yet in its infancy, but several
+hundred schools are now in process of renovation, largely through the
+efforts of the children.
+
+The idea of organizing children into clubs for the study of plants and
+animals, and other outdoor subjects, originated, so far as our work is
+concerned, with Mr. John W. Spencer himself an actual, practical farmer.
+His character as "Uncle John" has done much to supply the personality
+that ordinarily is lacking in correspondence work, and there has been
+developed amongst the children an amount of interest and enthusiasm
+which is surprising to those who have not watched its progress.
+
+The problems connected with the rural schools are probably the most
+difficult questions to solve in the whole field of education. We
+believe, however, that the solution cannot begin directly with the rural
+schools themselves. It must begin in educational centres and gradually
+spread to the country districts. We are making constant efforts to reach
+the actual rural schools and expect to utilize fully every means within
+our power, but it is work that is attended with many inherent
+difficulties. We sometimes feel that the agricultural status can be
+reached better through the hamlet, village, and some of the city schools
+than by means of the little red school house on the corner. By appeals
+to the school commissioners in the rural districts, by work through
+teachers' institutes, through farmers' clubs, granges and other means we
+believe that we are reaching farther and farther into the very
+agricultural regions. It is difficult to get consideration for purely
+agricultural subjects in the rural schools themselves. Often the school
+does not have facilities for teaching such subjects, often the teachers
+are employed only for a few months, and there is frequently a sentiment
+against innovation. It has been said that one reason why agricultural
+subjects are taught less in the rural schools of America than in those
+of some parts of Europe, is because of the few male teachers and the
+absence of school gardens.
+
+We have met with the greatest encouragement and help from very many of
+the teachers in the rural schools. Often under disadvantages and
+discouragements they are carrying forward their part of the educational
+work with great consecration and efficiency. In all the educational work
+we have been fortunate to have the sympathy and co-operation of the
+State Department of Public Instruction. We do not expect that all
+teachers nor even a majority will take up nature-study work. It is not
+desirable that they should. We are gratified, however, at the large
+number who are carrying it forward.
+
+This Cornell nature-study movement is one small part of a general
+awakening in educational circles, a movement which looks towards
+bringing the child into actual contact and sympathy with the things with
+which he has to do. This work is taking on many phases. One aspect of it
+is its relation to the teaching of agriculture and to the love of
+country life. This aspect is yet in its early experimental stage. The
+time will come when institutions in every State will carry on work along
+this line. It will be several years yet before this type of work will
+have reached what may be considered an established condition, or before
+even a satisfactory body of experience shall have been attained. Out of
+the varied and sometimes conflicting methods and aims that are now
+before the public, there will develop in time an institution-movement of
+extension agricultural teaching.
+
+The literature issued by the Bureau of Nature-Study is of two general
+types: that which is designed to be of more or less permanent value to
+the teacher and the school; and that which is of temporary use, mostly
+in the character of supplements and circulars designed to meet present
+conditions or to rally the teachers or the Junior Naturalists. The
+literature of the former type is now republished and is to be supplied
+gratis to teachers in New York State. The first publication of the
+Bureau of Nature-Study was a series of teachers' leaflets. This series
+ran to twenty-two numbers. It was discontinued in May, 1901, because it
+was thought that sufficient material had then been printed to supply
+teachers with subjects for a year's work. It was never intended to
+publish these leaflets indefinitely. Unfortunately, however, some
+persons have supposed that because these teachers' leaflets were
+discontinued we were lessening our efforts in the nature-study work. The
+fact is that later years have seen an intensification of the effort and
+also a strong conviction on the part of all those concerned that the
+work has permanent educative value. We never believed so fully in the
+efficiency of this kind of effort as at the present time.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET II.
+
+THE NATURE-STUDY MOVEMENT.[3]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[3] Reprinted from the Proceedings of the National Educational
+Association, 1903. Paper read in general session at Boston, July, 1903.
+
+The nature-study movement is the outgrowth of an effort to put the child
+into contact and sympathy with its own life.
+
+It is strange that such a movement is necessary. It would seem to be
+natural and almost inevitable that the education of the child should
+place it in intimate relation with the objects and events with which it
+lives. It is a fact, however, that our teaching has been largely exotic
+to the child; that it has begun by taking the child away from
+its natural environment; that it has concerned itself with the
+subject-matter rather than with the child. This is the marvel of marvels
+in education.
+
+Let me illustrate by a reference to the country school. If any man were
+to find himself in a country wholly devoid of schools, and were to be
+set the task of originating and organizing a school system, he would
+almost unconsciously introduce some subjects that would be related to
+the habits of the people and to the welfare of the community. Being
+freed from traditions, he would teach something of the plants and
+animals and fields and people. Yet, as a matter of fact, what do our
+rural schools teach? They usually teach the things that the academies
+and the colleges and the universities have taught--that old line of
+subjects that is supposed, in its higher phases, to lead to "learning."
+The teaching in the elementary school is a reflection of old academic
+methods. We really begin our system at the wrong end--with a
+popularizing and simplifying of methods and subjects that are the
+product of the so-called higher education. We should begin with the
+child. "The greatest achievement of modern education," writes Professor
+Payne, "is the gradation and correlation of schools, whereby the ladder
+of learning is let down from the university to secondary schools, and
+from these to the schools of the people." It is historically true that
+the common schools are the products of the higher or special schools,
+and this explains why it is that so much of the common-school
+work is unadapted to the child. The kindergarten and some of the
+manual-training, are successful revolts against all this. It seems a
+pity that it were ever necessary that the ladder of learning be "let
+down;" it should be stood on the ground.
+
+The crux of the whole subject lies in the conception of what education
+is. We all define it in theory to be a drawing out and a developing of
+the powers of the mind; but in practice we define it in the terms of the
+means that we employ. We have come to associate education with certain
+definite subjects, as if no other sets of subjects could be made the
+means of educating a mind. One by one, new subjects have forced
+themselves in as being proper means for educating. All the professions,
+natural science, mechanic arts, politics, and last of all agriculture,
+have contended for a place in educational systems and have established
+themselves under protest. Now, any subject, when put into pedagogic
+form, is capable of being the means of educating a man. The study of
+Greek is no more a proper means of education than the study of Indian
+corn is. The mind may be developed by means of either one. Classics and
+calculus are no more divine than machines and potatoes are. We are much
+in the habit of speaking of certain subjects as leading to "culture;"
+but this is really factitious, for "culture" is the product only of
+efficient teaching, whatever the subject-matter may be. So insistent
+have we been on the employing of "culture studies" that we seem to have
+mistaken the means of education for the object or result of education.
+What a man is, is more important than what he knows. Anything that
+appeals to a man's mind is capable of drawing out and training that
+mind; and is there any subject that does not appeal to some man's mind?
+The subject may be Sanskrit literature, hydraulics, physics,
+electricity, or agriculture--all may be made the means whereby men and
+women are educated, all may lead to what we ought to know as culture.
+The particular subject with which the person deals is incidental, for
+
+"A man's a man for a' that and a' that."
+
+Is there, then, to be no choice of subjects? There certainly is. It is
+the end of education to prepare the man or woman better to live. The
+person must live with his surroundings. He must live with common things.
+The most important means with which to begin the educational process,
+therefore, are those subjects that are nearest the man. Educating by
+means of these subjects puts the child into first-hand relation with his
+own life. It expands the child's spontaneous interest in his environment
+into a permanent and abiding sympathy and philosophy of life. I never
+knew an exclusive student of classics or philosophy who did not deplore
+his lack of touch with his own world. These common subjects are the
+natural, primary, fundamental, necessary subjects. Only as the
+child-mind develops should it be taken on long flights to extrinsic
+subjects, distant lands, to things far beyond its own realm; and yet,
+does not our geography teaching still frequently begin with the universe
+or with the solar system?
+
+In the good time coming, geography will not begin with a book at all,
+as, in fact, it does not now with many teachers. It may end with one. It
+will begin with physical features in the very neighborhood in which the
+child lives--with brooks and lakes and hills and fields. Education
+should begin always with objects and phenomena. We are living in a
+text-book and museum age. First of all, we put our children into books,
+sometimes even into books that tell about the very things at the child's
+door, as if a book about a thing were better than the thing itself. So
+accustomed are we to the book-route that we regard any other route as
+unsystematic, unmethodical, disconnected. Books are only secondary means
+of education. We have made the mistake of considering them primary. This
+mistake we are rapidly correcting. As the book is relegated to its
+proper sphere, we shall find ourselves free to begin with the familiar
+end of familiar things.
+
+Not only are we to begin with common objects and events, but with the
+child's natural point of contact with them. Start with the child's
+sympathies; lead him on and out. We are to develop the child, not the
+subject. The specialists may be trusted to develop the subject-matter
+and to give us new truth. The child is first interested in the whole
+plant, the whole bug, the whole bird, as a living, grooving object. It
+is a most significant fact that most young children like plants, but
+that most youths dislike botany. The fault lies neither in the plants
+nor in the youths. A youth may study cells until he hates the plant that
+bears the cells. He may acquire a technical training in cells, but he
+may be divorced from objects with which he must live, and his life
+becomes poorer rather than richer. I have no objection to minute
+dissection and analysis, but we must be very careful not to begin it too
+early nor to push it too far, for we are not training specialists: we
+are developing the power that will enable the pupil to get the most from
+his own life. As soon as the pupil begins to lose interest in the plant
+or the animal itself, stop!
+
+There is still another reason for the study of the common things in
+variety: it develops the power to grasp the problems of the day and to
+make the man resourceful. A young man who has spent all his time in the
+schoolroom is usually hopelessly helpless when he encounters a real
+circumstance. I see this remarkably illustrated in my own teaching, for
+I have young men from the city and from farms. The farm boy will turn
+his hand to twenty things where the city boy will turn his to one. The
+farm boy has had to meet problems and to solve them for himself: this is
+sometimes worth more than his entire school training. Why does the farm
+boy make his way when he goes to the city?
+
+It is no mere incident to one's life that he be able to think in the
+thought of his own time. Even though one expect to devote himself wholly
+to a dead language, in school he should study enough natural science and
+enough technology to enable him to grasp living problems. I fear that
+some institutions are still turning out men with mediæval types of mind.
+
+Now, therefore, I come again to my thesis,--to the statement that the
+end and purpose of nature-study is to educate the young mind by means of
+the subjects within its own sphere, by appealing to its own sympathetic
+interest in them, in order that the person's life may be sweeter,
+deeper, and more resourceful. Nature-study would not necessarily drive
+any subject from the curriculum; least of all would it depreciate the
+value of the "humanities;" but it would restore to their natural and
+proper place the subjects that are related to the man. It would begin
+with things within the person's realm. If we are to interest
+children--or grown-ups, either, for that matter--we must begin by
+teaching the things that touch their lives. Where there is one person
+that is interested in philology, there are hundreds that are interested
+in engines and in wheat. From the educational point of view, neither the
+engine nor the wheat is of much consequence, but the men who like the
+engines and who grow the wheat are immeasurably important and must be
+reached. There are five millions of farms in the United States on which
+chickens are raised, and also thousands of city and village lots where
+they are grown. I would teach chickens. I would reach Men by means of
+the Old Hen.
+
+How unrelated much of our teaching is to the daily life is well shown by
+inquiries recently made of the children of New Jersey by Professor Earl
+Barnes. Inquiries were made of the country school children in two
+agricultural counties of the State as to what vocation they hoped to
+follow. As I recall the figures, of the children at seven years of age
+26 per cent desired to follow some occupation connected with country
+life. Of those at fourteen years, only 2 per cent desired such
+occupation. This remarkable falling off Professor Barnes ascribes in
+part to the influence of the teacher in the country schools, who is
+usually a town or city girl. The teacher measures everything in terms of
+the city. She talks of the city. She returns to the city at the end of
+the week. In the meantime, all the beauty and attractiveness and
+opportunity of the country may be unsuggested. Unconsciously both to
+teacher and pupil, the minds of the children are turned toward the city.
+There results a constant migration to the city, bringing about serious
+social and economic problems; but from the educational point of view the
+serious part of it is the fact that the school training may unfit the
+child to live in its normal and natural environment. It is often said
+that the agricultural college trains the youth away from the farm; the
+fact is that the mischief is done long before the youth enters college.
+
+Let me give another illustration of the fact that dislike of country
+life is bred very early in the life of the child. In a certain rural
+school in New York State, of say forty-five pupils, I asked all those
+children that lived on farms to raise their hands; all hands but one
+went up. I then asked those who wanted to live on the farm to raise
+their hands; only that one hand went up. Now, these children were too
+young to feel the appeal of more bushels of potatoes or more pounds of
+wool, yet they had thus early formed their dislike of the farm. Some of
+this dislike is probably only an ill-defined desire for a mere change,
+such as one finds in all occupations, but I am convinced that the larger
+part of it was a genuine dissatisfaction with farm life. These children
+felt that their lot was less attractive than that of other children; I
+concluded that a flower garden and a pleasant yard would do more to
+content them with living on the farm than ten more bushels of wheat to
+the acre. Of course, it is the greater and better yield that will enable
+the farmer to supply these amenities; but at the same time it must be
+remembered that the increased yield itself does not arouse a desire for
+them. I should make farm life interesting before I make it profitable.
+
+Of course, nature-study is not proposed merely as a means of keeping
+youth in the country; I have given these examples only to illustrate the
+fact that much of our teaching is unrelated to the circumstances in
+which the child lives--and this is particularly true of teaching in the
+rural schools. Nature-study applies to city and country conditions
+alike, acquiring additional emphasis in the country from the fact that
+what we call "nature" forms the greater part of the environment there.
+But the need to connect the child with itself is fundamental to all
+efficient teaching. To the city child the problems associated with the
+city are all-important; but even then I should give much attention to
+the so-called "nature subjects;" for these are clean, inspiring,
+universal. "Back to nature" is an all-pervading tendency of the time.
+
+We must distinguish sharply between the purposes of nature-study and its
+methods. Its purposes are best expressed in the one word "sympathy." By
+this I do not mean sentimentalism or superficiality or desultoriness.
+The acquiring of sympathy with the things and events amongst which one
+lives is the result of a real educational process--a process as vital
+and logical and efficient as that concerned in educating the older pupil
+in terms of fact and "science." Nature-study is not "natural history,"
+nor "biology," nor even elementary science. It is an attitude, a point
+of view, a means of contact.
+
+Nature-study is not merely the adding of one more thing to a curriculum.
+It is not co-ordinate with geography, or reading, or arithmetic. Neither
+is it a mere accessory, or a sentiment, or an entertainment, or a
+tickler of the senses. It is not a "study." It is not the addition of
+more "work." It has to do with the whole point of view of elementary
+education, and therefore is fundamental. It is the full expression of
+personality. It is the practical working out of the extension idea that
+has become so much a part of our time. More than any other recent
+movement, it will reach the masses and revive them. In time it will
+transform our ideals and then transform our methods.
+
+The result of all this changing point of view I like to speak of as a
+new thing. Of course, there is no education that is wholly new in kind;
+and it is equally true that education is always new, else it is dead and
+meaningless. But this determination to cast off academic methods, to put
+ourselves at the child's point of view, to begin with the objects and
+phenomena that are near and dear to the child, is just now so marked,
+and is sure to be so far-reaching in its effects, that I cannot resist
+the temptation to collect these various movements, for emphasis, under
+the title of the "new education."
+
+"Nature-study" is another name for this new education. It is a revolt
+from the too exclusive science-teaching and book-teaching point of view,
+a protest against taking the child first of all out of its own
+environment. It is a product of the teaching of children in the
+elementary schools. The means and methods in nature-study are as varied
+as the persons who teach it. Most of the criticism of the movement--even
+among nature-study folk themselves--has to do with means and methods
+rather than with real ideals. We are now in the epoch when we should
+overlook minor differences and all work together for the good of a
+common cause. There is no one subject and no one method that is best.
+
+While it is not my purpose to enter into any discussion of the methods
+of teaching nature-study, I cannot refrain from calling attention to
+what I believe to be some of the most serious dangers, (1) I would first
+mention the danger of giving relatively too much attention to mere
+subject-matter or fact. Nowhere should the acquiring of mere information
+be the end of an educational process, and least of all in nature-study,
+for the very essence of nature-study is spirit, sympathy, enthusiasm,
+attitude toward life. These results the youth gains naturally when he
+associates in a perfectly free and natural way with objects in the wild.
+Science-teaching has fallen short of its goal in the elementary
+schools--and even in the colleges and universities--by insisting so much
+on the subject-matter that the pupil is overlooked. In standing so
+rigidly for the letter, we have missed the spirit. President Eliot has
+recently called attention to this danger: "College professors heretofore
+have been apt to think that knowledge of the subject to be taught was
+the sufficient qualification of a teacher; but all colleges have
+suffered immeasurable losses as a result of this delusion." (2) A second
+danger is the tendency to make the instruction too long and too
+laborious. As soon as the child becomes weary of giving attention, the
+danger-point is reached; for thereafter there is loss in the spirit and
+enthusiasm, however much may be gained in dry subject-matter. I believe
+that even in high schools and colleges we make mistakes by demanding too
+long-continued application to one subject. Short, sharp, enthusiastic
+exercises, with pith and point, of five to ten minutes' duration, are
+efficient and sufficient for most purposes, particularly with beginners.
+(3) A third danger is the practice of merely telling or explaining. Set
+the child to work, and let the work be within his own realm. Pollen,
+lichens, capsules, lymphatics, integuments--these are not within the
+child's range; they smack of the museum and the text-book. Yet it
+appears to be the commonest thing to put mere children at the subject of
+cross-fertilization; they should first be put, perhaps, at flowers and
+insects. I wish that in every schoolroom might be hung the motto,
+"Teaching, not telling." (4) A fourth point I ought to mention is the
+danger of clinging too closely to the book habit; this I have already
+touched on. We are gradually growing out of the book slavery, even in
+arithmetic and grammar and history. This means a distinct advance in the
+abilities of the teacher. Of all subjects that should not be taught by
+the book, nature-study is chief. Its very essence is freedom from
+tradition and "method." I wish that there were more nature-study books;
+but they are most useful as sources of fact and inspiration, not as
+class texts. The good teacher of nature-study must greatly modify the
+old idea of "recitations." I wish to quote again from President Eliot:
+"Arithmetic is a very cheap subject to teach; so are spelling and the
+old-fashioned geography. As to teaching history in the old-fashioned
+way, anybody could do that who could hear a lesson recited. To teach
+nature-studies, geometry, literature, physiography, and the modern sort
+of history requires well-informed and skillful teachers, and these cost
+more than the lesson-hearers did." (5) Finally, we must come into
+contact with the actual things, not with museums and collections.
+Museums are little better than books unless they are regarded as
+secondary means. The museum has now become a laboratory. The living
+museum must come more and more into vogue,--living birds, living plants,
+living insects. The ideal laboratory is the out-of-doors itself; but for
+practical school purposes this must be supplemented. The most workable
+living laboratory of any dimensions is the school garden. The true
+school garden is a laboratory plat; time is coming when such a
+laboratory will be as much a part of a good school equipment as
+blackboards and charts and books now are. It will be like an additional
+room to the school building. Aside from the real school garden, every
+school premises should be embellished and improved as a matter of
+neighborhood and civic pride; for one cannot expect the child to rise
+above the conditions in which he is placed. All these dangers cannot be
+overcome by any "system" or "method;" they must be solved one by one,
+place by place, each teacher for himself. Whenever nature-study comes to
+be rigidly graded and dressed and ordered, the breath of life will be
+crushed from it. It is significant that everywhere mere "method" is
+giving way to individualism.
+
+In time, the methods of teaching nature-study will crystallize and
+consolidate around a few central points. The movement itself is well
+under way. It will persist because it is vital and fundamental. It will
+add new value and significance to all the accustomed work of the
+schools; for it is not revolutionary, but evolutionary. It stands for
+naturalness, resourcefulness, and for quickened interest in the common
+and essential things of life. We talk much about the ideals of
+education; but the true philosophy of life is to idealize everything
+with which we have to do.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET III.
+
+AN APPEAL TO THE TEACHERS OF NEW YORK STATE.[4]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[4] Supplement to Home Nature-Study Course, March, 1904. (Vol. V, No.
+6.)
+
+[Illustration]
+
+The kernel of modern educational development is to relate the
+school-training to the daily life. Much of our education is not
+connected with the conditions in which the pupils live and is extraneous
+to the lives that they must lead. The free common schools are more
+recent in development than universities, colleges and academies and they
+are even yet essentially academic and in many ways undemocratic. They
+teach largely out of books and of subjects that have little vital
+relation with things that are real to the child. The school work is
+likely to be exotic to the pupil. The child lives in one world, and goes
+to school in another world.
+
+Every subject has teaching-power when put into pedagogic form. The
+nearer this subject is to the child, the greater is its teaching power,
+other conditions being comparable; and the more completely does it put
+him into touch with his environment and make him efficient and happy
+therein. In time, all subjects in which men engage will be put in form
+for teaching and be made the means of training the mind. The old
+subjects will not be banished, but rather extended; but the range of
+subjects will be immensely increased because we must reach all people in
+terms of their daily experience. How all these subjects are to be
+handled as school agencies, we cannot yet foresee, nor is it my purpose
+now to discuss the question; but it is certain that the common things
+must be taught. And the common subjects are as capable of being made
+the means of developing the imagination and the higher ideals as are
+many of the traditional subjects.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 1. Junior Gardeners beginning the work of cleaning
+up a New York school ground._]
+
+Great numbers of our people are in industrial and agricultural
+environments. By means of the industrial and agricultural trades they
+must live. These trades must be made more efficient; and the youth must
+be educated to see in them more than a mere livelihood. These industrial
+and agricultural subjects must be put more and more into schools. My own
+interest lies at present more with the agricultural subjects, and these
+are the occasion for this appeal. The so-called "industrial" and
+commercial subjects have already been put into schools with good effect:
+the agricultural subjects now must come within the school horizon.
+
+Probably one million and more of the people of New York State live on
+farms. This is approximately one in seven of our entire population.
+Moreover, every person is interested in the out-of-doors and in the
+things that grow therein. The future agricultural efficiency of New York
+State will depend on the school training more than on any other single
+factor; and on the agricultural efficiency of the State will depend, to
+an important extent, its economic supremacy. New York is the fourth
+State in total agricultural wealth, being exceeded only by Illinois,
+Iowa and Ohio. All the country children should be reached in terms of
+the country. Most of our school books are made for the city and town
+rather than for the country. The problem of the development of the rural
+school is the most important single educational problem now before us;
+and it is essentially an agricultural problem.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 2. Junior Gardeners at work in a New York school
+ground. The grounds are now ready for planting. The mail carrier now
+calls and the pupils take the mail home._]
+
+My appeal, therefore, is to every teacher in New York State, whether in
+country or city--for the city teacher makes public opinion, helps to set
+educational standards, and many of the country children go to school in
+the cities. I do not wish to press agriculture into the schools as a
+mere professional subject, but I would teach--along with the customary
+school work--the objects and phenomena and affairs of the country as
+well as of the city. The schools lead away from the country rather than
+towards it. All this I do not regard as a fault of the schools, but
+merely as a limitation due to the fact that the schools are still in
+process of evolution. It requires time to adapt a means to an end, and
+the schools are not to be criticised. But we must do our best to hasten
+the evolution. Schools, colleges and universities have only begun to
+reach the people effectively: these institutions must eventually touch
+every vital and homely problem, for they are to be the controlling
+factors in our civilization. Any subject that is worthy a person's
+attention out of school is also worthy his attention in school.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 3. Sugar beets and a fourteen-year-old
+experimenter. (Supt. Kern, Illinois.)_]
+
+I heard a good story the other day of an occurrence of many years ago
+illustrating the fact that school training may be wholly exotic to the
+pupil. The story was told in Ogdensburg, and Heuvelton is near by. The
+class in geography was on exhibition, for there were visitors. The
+questions were answered quickly: "How far is it from Rome to Corinth?"
+"From Rome to Constantinople?" "From Paris to Rome?" A visitor was
+asked whether he had any questions to propound. He had one: "How far is
+it from Heuvelton to Ogdensburg?" No one answered; yet the visitor
+said that none of the pupils would be likely to go from Rome to
+Constantinople, but that every one of them would go from Heuvelton to
+Ogdensburg.
+
+Not only must the school teach in terms of its own environment, but more
+and more it must become the intellectual and social center of the
+neighborhood or district. Every modern rural school building should be
+attractive enough to induce clubs of many kinds to hold meetings in it.
+In the old "lyceum" days the school house was an important gathering
+place. These days are mostly past, but better days should be coming: the
+school should connect at every point with the life of the community. Any
+event, however small, that centers the attention of the people at the
+school house is a beginning and is worth while. A year ago the children
+and teacher in one of our district schools began the work of "cleaning
+up" the premises. The picture (Fig. 1) shows them at work. Later, when
+the grounds were renovated and ready for the planting, boxes were placed
+for the reception of the mail for those who do not live on the carrier's
+route: this is the beginning of a centering of attention at the school
+house. I think that the boxes might have been more attractive and
+perhaps better placed, but this will come in time: a beginning has been
+made. When once the people of any community come to think of the school
+house as a meeting-place for old folks as well as for children, what may
+we not expect of the rural school? We need adult education as well as
+juvenile education.
+
+I have now no course of study to propose for agricultural or
+country-life subjects in the schools, but I would like to know how many
+teachers in the State desire to take up certain work of this nature as
+an experiment. The College of Agriculture will be glad to suggest the
+kind of work, if need be. The western states are undertaking this work:
+we must not be behind. It is endorsed by Superintendent Skinner, as will
+be seen from the letter published at the close of this pamphlet.
+
+To be effective and meaningful, this work should deal directly with the
+things,--handling the things, studying the things, learning from the
+things. This is nature-study. To commit to memory something about things
+is of little consequence. We are too closely committed to books. We are
+often slaves to books. Books are only secondary or incidental means of
+educating, particularly in nature-study subjects. We have known the
+book-way of educating for so long a time that many of us have come to
+accept it as a matter of course and as the only way. A New York school
+man recently told me an incident that illustrates this fact singularly
+well. In the Cattaraugus Indian Reservation he opened a school in which
+at first he employed only manual-training and nature-study work. Soon
+one of the children left school. The teacher sought the mother and asked
+why. The mother replied that there was no use in sending the child to
+school because the teacher had given it no books to study. So slavishly
+have we followed the book-route that even the Indian accepts it as the
+only road to schooling!
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 4. Prize corn and a ten-year-old experimenter in
+one of Supt. Kern's districts, Illinois.]_
+
+
+SCHOOL-GARDENS.
+
+Many lines of work might be suggested for an occasional period. Perhaps
+the best one for spring is a school-garden. In time, every good school
+will have its garden, as it now has charts and blackboards and books. A
+school-garden is a laboratory-room added to the school house. It may be
+five feet square or ten times that much. The children prepare the
+land,--lessons in soils, soil physics; sow the seed,--lessons in
+planting, germination, and the like; care for the plants,--lessons in
+transplanting, struggle for existence, natural enemies, conditions that
+make for the welfare of the plants. The older pupils may be organized
+into experiment clubs, as they are being organized in parts of Illinois
+(see article on "Learning by Doing," by Supt. O. J. Kern, Review of
+Reviews, Oct., 1903, p. 456). We can help you in this school-gardening
+work.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 5. "Learning by doing." A new kind of school work
+in Illinois, under the direction of Supt. Kern._]
+
+
+OTHER WORK.
+
+If not school-gardens, take up other lines of work,--study the school
+premises, the nearby brook or field, an apple tree, or any other common
+object or phenomenon. If there is any special agricultural industry in
+the neighborhood, discuss it and set the pupils at work on it. Any of
+these common-day subjects will interest the children and brighten up the
+school work; and the pursuit of them will teach the children the
+all-important fact that so few of us ever learn,--the fact that the
+commonest and homeliest things are worthy the best attention of the best
+men and women.
+
+
+IMPROVING THE SCHOOL GROUNDS.
+
+Just now, the improving of school grounds is a pressing subject. As a
+preliminary to the actual improving of the grounds, suppose that the
+following problems were set before the pupils:
+
+1. _Exercises on the Grounds._
+
+1. _Area._--Measure the school grounds, to determine the lengths and
+widths. Draw an outline map showing the shape. The older pupils may
+compute the square surface area. The distances may be compared, for
+practice, in feet, yards and rods. (Arithmetic.)
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 6. Using the Babcock milk test at Professor
+Hollister's School, Corinth, N. Y._]
+
+2. _Contour._--Is the area level, or rough, or sloping? Determine how
+great the slope is by sighting across a carpenter's level. In what
+direction does the ground slope? Is the slope natural, or was it made by
+grading? The older pupils may draw a cross-section line, to a scale, to
+show what the slope is. (Geography.)
+
+3. _Fences._--What parts of the area are fenced? What kind of fence?
+Total length of fence? Give opinion whether this fence is needed, with
+reasons. Is the fence in good repair? If not, what should be done to
+remedy it? (Arithmetic, language.)
+
+4. _Soil._--What is the nature of the soil--clay, sand, gravel, field
+loam? Was subsoil spread on the surface when the grounds were graded? Is
+the soil poor or rich, and why do you think so? Is it stony? What can
+be done to improve the soil? (Geography, language.)
+
+5. _Ground cover._--What is on the ground--sod or weeds, or is it bare?
+What do you think would be the best ground cover, and why? (Geography,
+language.)
+
+6. _Trees and bushes._--How many trees and bushes are there on the
+ground? Were they planted, or did they come up of themselves? Make a map
+showing where the principal ones are. Name all the kinds, putting the
+trees in one list and the bushes in another. Do any of the trees need
+pruning, and why? State whether any of them have been injured or are
+unhealthy. (Geography, language.)
+
+7. _Tenants._--What animals live or have lived on the school premises?
+What birds' nests do you find (these may be found in winter)? Hornets'
+nests? Perhaps you can find cocoons or egg-masses of insects in winter,
+and the active insects themselves in spring and fall. What birds visit
+the place? Do rabbits or mice or moles or frogs inhabit the premises?
+(Geography, language.)
+
+8. _Natural features._--Describe any strong natural features, as rocks,
+ponds, streams, groves. What views do you get from the school grounds?
+(Geography, language.)
+
+
+2. _Exercises on the School Structures._
+
+9. _Buildings._--How many buildings are on the grounds, including sheds,
+etc.? Give the sizes in lengths and widths. Brick or wood? Color? Make a
+map or chart showing the position of these structures, being careful to
+have the buildings properly proportioned with reference to the entire
+area. (Language, geography.)
+
+10. _Repairs needed._--Describe what condition the structures are in.
+Tell whether repairs are needed on foundations, side walls, roof,
+belfry, chimney, steps, doors, windows, paint. (Language.)
+
+11. _Flag pole._--Where is your flag pole? Could it be in a better
+place? How tall is it above ground? How much in diameter at the base?
+What kind of wood? Painted? How deep in the ground? When was it put up?
+What repairs does it need? (Language.)
+
+
+3. _General Exercises._
+
+12. _History._--When was the land set aside for a school? When was the
+school house built? Who built it? (History, language.)
+
+13. _Cost._--Try to find out what the land cost. What the building cost.
+Are they worth as much now? (History, language.)
+
+14. _Government._--Determine what officers have general control of the
+school. How did they come to be officers? How long do they hold office?
+What are the duties of each? Determine whether your school receives any
+aid from the State. (Government.)
+
+15. _Improvement._--Tell what you think should be done to improve the
+school grounds and the school structures. (Language.)
+
+16. _Photographs._--The teacher or some pupil should photograph the
+school premises, and send the picture to us. We want at least one
+picture of every rural school house and grounds in the State. Even a
+very poor photograph is better than none.
+
+_Experiment Garden._--Every school ground should have at least one small
+plat on which the children can grow some plant that is useful in that
+community. Just now alfalfa is demanding much attention from farmers,
+and it is certain soon to become a very important farm crop in New York
+State. It is used for pasturage and for hay. When once established, it
+lives for years. It is allied to clover and is a handsome plant for any
+school grounds. Will not the teacher suggest to the children that they
+make an alfalfa bed along one side of the school grounds? It will be
+attractive and will teach many lessons to pupils and parents even if it
+is only a few square feet in size. We want to put an alfalfa plat on
+every rural school ground in the State. _We will supply the seed free._
+Alfalfa is easy to grow if only a few essential principles are kept in
+mind. We will send full directions to any one who applies. From year to
+year we will give nature-study lessons on these alfalfa plats.
+
+We are anxious to start work of the above kind. It can be done at any
+time of the year. We are already in touch with more than 400 school
+grounds, but we want to reach every rural school ground in the State.
+_Will not the teacher send to us the best piece of work done by any
+pupil in any of the foregoing sixteen problems?_ These papers we will
+file, as showing the conditions of the premises of the particular
+school. They will enable us to see the progress that is being made from
+year to year in the improvement of your school premises. They will also
+enable us better to give advice, when called upon to do so. Sometimes we
+can send to the particular school a man to give advice on the spot.
+Sending the best reports to the University will be a reward to the most
+diligent pupils. Send all reports to John W. Spencer, Nature-Study
+Bureau, Ithaca, N. Y.
+
+We desire to put in the rural school houses of the State some good
+pictures of country and farm scenes. These pictures will be artistic
+reproductions of meritorious photographs, and large enough to hang on
+the walls of the school room. With each picture will be sent
+instructions for framing in order to make the picture more attractive.
+We shall choose eight such pictures for distribution the present school
+year. _We will send one of these pictures free to any rural school in
+the State that takes up two of the problems given above; and all of them
+to schools that take up the sixteen problems._ We expect to publish
+lists of all schools, with teachers' names, that take up this work in
+improving the premises of rural schools.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 7. Junior Naturalists making ready for planting.
+Tompkins Co., N. Y._]
+
+To one who is not teaching in the public schools, all this work seems to
+be simple enough. Such persons are likely to be impatient that more
+rapid progress is not made in introducing agricultural and common-life
+subjects into the schools. But the teacher knows that all this work
+requires patience and skill. It cannot as yet be forced into the schools
+and still retain spontaneity and vitality. It must come gradually, and
+prove itself as it goes. Probably all public school teachers are now
+agreed that the schools should be put closely in line with the life of
+their various communities. The questions now to be solved are chiefly
+those of means and methods, and of arousing the school constituencies to
+the new points of view. A full and free discussion of the whole subject
+is now needed. The time is hardly yet ripe for very definite courses of
+study in these new fields. Many schools are already teaching these new
+subjects with entire success: these schools can serve the cause by
+making their experience public.
+
+
+LETTERS ON THE SUBJECT.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 8. Junior Gardeners at work in one of the New York
+Schools._]
+
+However, this circular is merely an appeal. It is an inquiry for
+suggestions and co-operation. I desire to know what can be accomplished
+in the schools of New York State in the direction of inspiring and
+useful work for children that live in the country or are interested in
+the country. I am sure that something needs to be done: just what is
+most feasible and best the teachers must largely determine. As further
+suggestions, I append two letters from New York teachers:
+
+_From A. M. Hollister, Principal of the Corinth Public Schools, Saratoga
+Co., N. Y._
+
+    "I am sending you under separate cover a picture of my class at
+    work with the Babcock test machine (Fig. 6). We have used the
+    machine both as a means of instruction in physics and chemistry
+    and as a general demonstration before the different classes in the
+    school. It beautifully illustrates some very important principles
+    of physics and chemistry. The most marvellous effect, however, has
+    been shown in the quality of the milk sold in the village. Milk
+    was sold showing a test as low as 2.9 per cent butter fat. Almost
+    as soon as the first testing was reported, the milk showed 3.8 per
+    cent butter fat. Milk has been sent to the school from a number
+    of dairymen with request for a test on particular cows that the
+    parties might base their purchases of cows on the results of the
+    test.
+
+    "In regard to the gardening with some of our boys, I would say
+    that both boys and parents are much interested in the subject. We
+    shall doubtless start about forty gardens of one-tenth acre each.
+    The boys are to keep an exact account of all expenses to study
+    methods, and to do all the work. I am anticipating results in a
+    number of directions. The boys will be given something to do and
+    to interest themselves in, which of itself is an important thing
+    for a village boy. It will also develop a power of observation and
+    ingenuity. We wish to get all the information we can on potato,
+    tomato and squash culture. Other things will be suggested during
+    the winter."
+
+
+    _Approval of the Superintendent of Public Instruction._
+
+    (_Published by permission._)
+
+    "For many years I have been making earnest efforts to induce
+    teachers, pupils and patrons to improve and beautify the school
+    buildings and school surroundings of our State. Some progress has
+    been made, but much remains to be done.
+
+    "I heartily welcome the coöperation of every agency which can
+    contribute to this result. We must interest parents and teachers
+    in this work, but to obtain the best results I have always found
+    that we must first interest the children. Once a spirit of
+    enthusiasm is awakened in the children, it is easy to keep them
+    interested and busy.
+
+    "I have long appreciated the earnest assistance of representatives
+    of Cornell University in arousing the interest of pupils, and I
+    heartily commend the plan outlined by the College of Agriculture
+    to make a study of the schoolhouse and school grounds a practical
+    part of the daily education of the child. A child's surroundings
+    have much to do with his education. The result of such systematic
+    study as is suggested must surely be a steadily increasing
+    determination to remedy defects and correct any evil which may
+    exist. When the attention of children is directed to existing
+    conditions which bring discomfort, it will not be difficult to
+    induce them to devise ways and means to improve matters.
+
+    "I shall watch the result of your efforts with deep interest, and
+    stand ready to coöperate with you in every way.
+
+    "Very sincerely yours,
+
+    "CHARLES R. SKINNER,
+
+    "ALBANY, _Dec._ 17, 1903.
+
+    _State Superintendent._"
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET IV.
+
+WHAT IS AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION?[5]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[5] Cornell Countryman, June, 1904.
+
+Agricultural education has made great progress within the past few
+years. Methods are crystallizing and at the same time the field is
+enlarging. We once thought of agricultural education as wholly special
+or professional, but we now conceive of it as an integral part of
+general and fundamental educational policy. As a college or university
+subject it is necessarily technical and semi-professional; but college
+work must articulate with the common-school work, as language and
+science now articulate with the schools. That is, agricultural subjects
+are now to be considered as a part of primary and secondary school work,
+leading naturally to special work in the same subjects for those who
+desire technical training. In the schools the subjects are to be treated
+non-professionally, as primary means of educating the child. The reason
+for using these subjects as means of educating lies in the principle
+that the child should be educated in terms of its own life rather than
+wholly in subjects that are foreign to its horizon and experience. It is
+most surprising that, while the theory of education is that the person
+shall be trained into efficiency, we nevertheless have employed subjects
+that have little relation to the individual child's effectiveness.
+
+Not long since my father showed me a letter that he received from a
+school girl in 1851. It read as follows: "I seat myself expressly for
+the purpose to finish this letter which has been long begun. I go to
+school room to Mr. Wells and study parsing mental Philosophy grammar and
+penciling." This sounds as if it came from "The Complete Letter-Writer."
+This person lived on a farm. She lives on a farm to this day. Her
+parents and grandparents lived on a farm. The family had no expectation
+of living elsewhere than on a farm. Yet, in her entire school life, I
+presume there was not a single hour devoted to any subject directly
+connected with the farm or with the country. If her studies touched life
+in any way that she could comprehend, it was probably in habits of
+thought of the city and of the academician rather than in anything that
+appealed to her as related to the life she was to lead. It is small
+wonder that the farm has been devoid of ideals, and that the attraction
+has been to leave it. The direction of the stream determines the course
+of the river.
+
+The future course of education will develop many means of training the
+child mind. Heretofore these means have been few and the result has been
+narrow. We shall see agricultural, commercial, social subjects put into
+pedagogic form and be made the agencies whereby minds are drawn out.
+These will be at least as efficient as the customary methods that we
+happen thus far to have employed. How much of one or how much of another
+is a detail that must be left to the future. Nor does it follow that the
+old-time subjects are to pass away. They will be an important part of
+the system, but not the whole system. These new subjects are now coming
+into the schools as rapidly, perhaps, as they can be assimilated. It is
+a general feeling that our schools already are overcrowded with
+subjects; and this may be true. The trouble is that while we are
+introducing new ideas as to subjects, we are still holding to old ideas
+as to curriculums and courses of study. We will break up our schools
+into different kinds; we will employ more teachers; we will not endeavor
+to train all children alike; we will find that we may secure equal
+results from many kinds of training; we will consider the effect on the
+pupil to be of much greater importance than the developing of the
+particular subject that he pursues; there are many men of many minds;
+some system will be evolved whereby individual capabilities will be
+developed to the full; the means will be related to the pupil: one of
+the factors will be subjects making up the environment of the pupil that
+lives in the country.
+
+My plea, therefore, is that agricultural and country life subjects
+become the means of educating some of the pupils of at least some of the
+schools. To be sure, we have already introduced "natural science" into
+many of the schools, but, for the most, part, this has worked down from
+the college and, necessarily, it usually stops at the high school. We
+need something much more vital for the secondary schools than science as
+commonly taught. The great nature-study movement is an expression, as
+yet imperfect, of the feeling that there should be some living
+connection between the school life and the real life.
+
+A college of agriculture, therefore, is as much interested in the common
+schools as a college of arts and sciences is. It should be a part of a
+system, however informal that system may be, not an establishment
+isolated from other educational agencies. But even as a college it will
+reach more persons than it has ever reached in the past. In any
+self-sustaining commonwealth it is probable that one-third of the people
+must be intimately associated with the soil. These people need to be as
+well-trained as those who follow the mechanic trades or the professions.
+It is immensely difficult to put these agricultural subjects into
+teachable form and to reach the agricultural people in a way that will
+mean much to them, because agriculture is a compound of many wonderfully
+diverse trades in every conceivable kind of natural conditions. Nor can
+one institution in each large state or province hope eventually to reach
+all these people, any more than one institution can reach all those who
+would best be taught in terms of books. But there must be at least one
+institution that is well equipped for the very highest kind of effort
+in these fields; Congress long ago recognized this fact in the
+establishment of the land-grant colleges, and all persons who are
+informed on agricultural education also now recognize it. The
+agricultural colleges have been handicapped from the first for lack of
+funds. It is now coming to be recognized that the highest kind of effort
+in these colleges cannot be sustained on a farm that pays for itself nor
+by means that are copied from the customary college work in "humanities"
+and "science." If it is to be efficient, agricultural education of a
+university grade is probably more expensive to equip and maintain than
+any other kind of education.
+
+Once it was thought that the agricultural college should be wholly
+separate from any "classical" institution. The oldest of the existing
+American agricultural colleges, the Michigan institution, is established
+on this principle. So are the Massachusetts, Iowa and Pennsylvania
+colleges and a number of others. It is natural that this should have
+been the feeling in the original movement for the establishment of these
+colleges, for the movement was itself a protest and revolt from the
+existing education. Time, however, has put agricultural subjects on an
+equal pedagogical plane with other subjects, and there is no more
+reason why the agriculture should be segregated by itself than that the
+architecture or law or fine arts should be. The agricultural colleges
+connected with universities are now beginning to grow rapidly. This is
+illustrated in the great development of the agricultural colleges at the
+universities in Illinois, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Nebraska, Missouri,
+Ohio, and elsewhere. It was once thought that the agricultural student
+would be "looked down upon" in a university or in a college with other
+departments. This was once true. It was true once, also, of the student
+in natural science and mechanic arts. Pioneers are always marked men.
+The only way to place agricultural students on an equality with other
+students is to place them on an equality.
+
+These remarks are made in no disparagement of the separate agricultural
+colleges, but only to illustrate the character of the growth of
+agricultural education. No doubt the separate colleges blazed the way.
+They stand for an idea that we would not like to dispense with. Every
+state and territory has one college founded on the land grant, and in
+the Southern states there are two, one for the whites and one for the
+blacks; in nearly half of the states these colleges are separate
+institutions. But the fact remains that the college connected with the
+university is to have the broader field in the future. Its very
+connection dignifies it and gives it parity. It draws on many resources
+that the separate college knows not of, unless, indeed, the separate
+college develops these resources for itself. The tendency, therefore, is
+for every ambitious separate college to develop the accessory resources,
+in the way of equipment in general science, literature, the arts; for
+agricultural education is constantly coming to be of a higher grade. The
+separate agricultural and mechanical colleges are rapidly becoming
+essentially industrial universities, giving general training but with
+the emphasis on the technical subjects.
+
+It is strange how far this principle of education by isolation has been
+carried in the development of the agricultural colleges. Not only have
+the colleges been separated from other educational enterprises, but in
+many cases they have been planted far in the open country, partly on the
+theory that the farm boy, of all others, should be removed from
+temptation and from the allurements of other occupations. It was the
+early theory, also, that the agricultural student must be compelled to
+do manual labor in order that he be put in sympathy with it and that his
+attention be isolated from tendencies that might divert him from
+farming. These methods seem to have rested on the general theory that
+if you would make a man a farmer you must deprive him of everything but
+farming. It would be interesting to try to estimate how much this
+general attitude on the part of the agricultural colleges was itself
+responsible for the very inferiority of position that the agricultural
+student was supposed to occupy. This attitude tended to maintain a
+traditional class distinction or even to create such a distinction.
+Agricultural education must be adapted to its ends; but it must also be
+able to stand alone in competition with all other education without
+artificial props. It is no longer necessary that the agricultural
+student wear blinders.
+
+On the other hand, the farm point of view must be kept constantly before
+the student, as the engineering point of view is kept before the student
+in a college of civil engineering; but we are coming to a new way of
+accomplishing this. Mere teaching of the sciences that underlie
+agricultural practice will not accomplish it; nor, on the other hand,
+will drill in mere farm practice accomplish it. It is not the purpose of
+an agricultural college to make men farmers, but to educate farmers. We
+are not to limit the student's vision to any one occupation, but to make
+one occupation more meaningful and attractive than it has ever been
+before. From the farmer's point of view a leading difficulty with the
+college course is that it sometimes tends to slacken a man's business
+energy. One cannot at the same time pursue college studies and
+commercial business; and yet farming is a business. In a four years'
+course some students are likely to incur certain habits of ease that are
+difficult to overcome upon their return to the farm. How much this is a
+fault of the courses of instruction and how much a personal equation of
+the student is always worth considering. But if this is a fault of
+college work it is generic and not peculiar to colleges of agriculture.
+Experience has now shown that a compulsory labor system is no preventive
+of this tendency, at least not with students of college and university
+age. Student labor is now a laboratory effort, comparable with
+laboratory work in medicine or mechanic arts. The mature student must
+have some other reason for laboring than merely a rule that labor is
+required. However, it is yet largely an unsolved problem with the
+agricultural colleges as to just how the stirring business side of
+farming can be sufficiently correlated with the courses of study to keep
+the student in touch and sympathy with affairs. With the passing of
+compulsory student labor there has no doubt been a reaction in the
+direction of too little utilization of the college farm in schemes of
+education; but we shall now get back to the farm again, but this time on
+a true educational basis.
+
+Nothing is more significant of the development of the agricultural
+colleges than the recent splitting up of the professorships. From
+agricultural chemistry as a beginning, in one form or another, there
+have issued a dozen chairs, first one subject and then another being
+separated as a teachable and administrative entity. Even the word
+"agriculture" is now being dropped from the professorships, for this is
+a term for a multitude of enterprises, not for a concrete subject.
+Horticulture was one of the first protuberances to be lopped off; and
+even this must very soon be divided into its component parts, for there
+is little relationship between the effort that grows apples and that
+grows orchids or between the market garden and landscape gardening. Even
+the chair of agronomy, the newest department of the colleges, must soon
+be separated into its units. Forty years ago mechanic arts was
+undivided. Who then would have prophesied such professorships as
+experimental engineering, electrical engineering, marine engineering,
+railroad engineering, naval architecture, machine design? The progress
+of the dividing up of the mechanic arts and civil engineering marks the
+rate of our progress, in the terms of the Land Grant Act, "to promote
+the liberal and practical education of the industrial classes in the
+several pursuits and professions in life." All trades, classes and
+professions are to be reached with a kind of education that is related
+to their work. One by one we are reaching persons in all walks and all
+places. Socially, there are centuries of prejudice against the farmer.
+When education is finally allowed to reach him in such a way as to be
+indispensable to him, it will at last have become truly democratic.
+
+In this spirit agriculture is divided into its teachable units. The
+lists of divisions of the teaching force or curriculum in the larger
+agricultural colleges illustrate this admirably. In Illinois, for
+example, the title of professors and instructors are associated with
+such divisions as thremmatology, agronomy, pomology, olericulture,
+floriculture, soil physics, dairy husbandry, dairy manufacture, horses,
+beef cattle, swine husbandry, farm crops. At Cornell the coördinate
+departments of instruction in the College of Agriculture are classified
+as agricultural chemistry, economic entomology, soils, agronomy,
+horticulture, animal husbandry with its sub-department of poultry
+husbandry, dairy industry, agricultural engineering and architecture,
+the farm home, rural economy and sociology, out-door art (including
+landscape gardening), nature-study for teachers, besides miscellaneous
+courses--making altogether thirteen divisions. The courses now offered
+in the Cornell College of Agriculture, not including the winter-courses,
+are 76, of which 71 are to be given in the next academic year. Nearly
+all these courses comprise a half-year's work.
+
+While all this subdividing represents progress there are disadvantages
+attending it, because it tends to give a partial view of the subject.
+The larger number of farmers must engage in general "mixed husbandry"
+rather than in specialties. Farming is a philosophy, not a mere process.
+The tendency of the inevitable subdividing of the subjects is to force
+the special view rather than the general view, as if, in medicine,
+students were to become specialists rather than general practitioners.
+The farm-philosophy idea was represented by the older teachers of
+agriculture. Of these men Professor Roberts is a typical example, and
+his work in making students to be successful, all-around farmers is not
+yet sufficiently appreciated. Much of this farm philosophy is now coming
+into the courses of instruction under the titles of rural economy, rural
+economics, rural sociology and the like. I have sometimes thought that
+the time may come when we will again have professors of "agriculture"
+who will coördinate and synthesize the work of the agronomist, soil
+physicist, chemist, dairyman and others. However, the dividing has not
+yet worked any harm, and perhaps my fears are ungrounded; and it is
+certain that with increasing knowledge and specialization the courses of
+instruction must still further divide.
+
+Another most significant development in agricultural education is the
+change in attitude towards the college farm. Once it was thought that
+the college estate should be run as a "model farm." However, a farm that
+sets a pattern to the farmer must be conducted on a commercial basis;
+yet it is manifest that it is the province of a college to devote itself
+to education, not primarily to business. A farm cannot be a "model" for
+all the kinds of farming of the commonwealth; and if it does not
+represent fairly completely the agriculture of the state, it misses its
+value as a pattern. At all events the pattern-farm idea is practically
+given up. It is then a question whether the farm shall be used merely to
+"illustrate,"--to display kinds of tools, examples of fences and
+fields, breeds of stock. This conception of the college farm is
+comparable with the old idea of "experiments" in agricultural chemistry:
+the teacher performed the experiments for the students to see. The
+prevailing idea of the college farm is now (or at least, I think, soon
+must be) that it shall be used as a true laboratory, as the student in
+chemistry now works first-hand with his materials instead alone of
+receiving lectures and committing books. Is a student studying cattle?
+The herds are his for measurements, testing as to efficiency, studying
+in respect to heredity, their response to feeding, their adaptability to
+specific purposes, and a hundred other problems. Cattle are as much
+laboratory material for the agricultural student as rocks are for the
+geological student or plants for the botanical student. Technical books
+were once kept only in libraries; now they are kept also in laboratories
+and are laboratory equipment. College museums were once only for
+display; now they are also for actual use by the student. Barns are
+laboratories, to be as much a part of the equipment of a college of
+agriculture as shops are of mechanic arts. They should be in close
+connection with the main buildings, not removed to some remote part of
+the premises. Modern ideas of cleanliness and sanitation are bound to
+revolutionize the construction and care of barns. There is no reason why
+these buildings should be offensive. It was once thought that dissecting
+rooms and hospitals should be removed from proximity to other buildings;
+but we have now worked these laboratories integrally into the plans of
+colleges. Time has now come for a closer assembling of the college barns
+with the college classrooms. Likewise the entire farm is no doubt to be
+used in the future as a laboratory, at least in the institutions of
+university grade--except such part as is used for pure investigation and
+research. Where, then, shall the student go to see his model barn? To
+these farms themselves; here a stock farm; there a fruit farm; elsewhere
+a dairy farm. The shops in the colleges of mechanic arts have long since
+come to be true laboratories; they do not engage in railroading or
+manufacturing. They do not try to "pay their way;" if they do pay their
+way this fact is only an incidental or secondary consideration. A
+college of agriculture is a teaching institution: it must have equipment
+and laboratories.
+
+It will be seen that the word "agriculture" has taken on a new and
+enlarged meaning. The farmer is not only a producer of commodities: he
+is a citizen, a member of the commonwealth, and his efficiency to
+society and the state depends on his whole outlook. Also his personal
+happiness depends on his outlook. He must concern himself not alone with
+technical farming, but also with all the affairs that make up an
+agricultural community: good roads, organizations, schools, mail routes,
+labor movements, rural architecture, sanitation, the æsthetic aspect of
+the country. One will be struck with the new signification of
+"agriculture" if he scan the titles of publications that issue from
+governmental agricultural departments, agricultural experiment stations,
+agricultural nature-study bureaus, agricultural colleges.
+
+I cannot close this sketch without calling attention to the fact that
+the college of agriculture has obligations to the farmers of its
+commonwealth. The very fact that every college of agriculture in North
+America is supported by public funds imposes this obligation. Moreover,
+the colleges of agriculture and mechanic arts stand for true democratic
+effort, for they have a definite constituency that they are called upon
+to aid. It is desirable that as many persons as possible shall assemble
+at the college itself, but those who cannot go to college still have the
+right to ask for help. This is particularly true in agriculture, in
+which the interests are widely separated and incapable of being combined
+and syndicated. Thereupon has arisen the great "extension" movement
+that, in one way or another, is now a part of the work of every
+agricultural college. Education was once exclusive; it is now in spirit
+inclusive. The agencies that have brought about this change of attitude
+are those associated with so-called industrial education, growing
+chiefly out of the forces set in motion by the Land Grant Act of 1862.
+This Land Grant is the Magna Charta of education: from it in this
+country we shall date our liberties.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET V.
+
+SUGGESTIONS FOR NATURE-STUDY WORK.[6]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[6] Syllabus of Lectures: Nature-Study (Animal and Plant Life), Mrs. A.
+B. Comstock.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Suggestions for nature-study must necessarily be more or less general.
+Nature-study should be a matter of observation on the part of the
+pupils. The teacher's part is to indicate points for observation and not
+to tell what is to be seen.
+
+After the child has observed all that it is possible for him to see, the
+remainder of the story may be told him or may be read.
+
+The objects of nature-study should be always in the teacher's mind.
+These are, primarily, to cultivate the child's power of observation and
+to put him in sympathy with out-of-door life.
+
+Having these objects clearly in mind, the teacher will see that the
+spending of a certain amount of time each day giving lessons is not the
+most important part of the work. A great amount of nature-study may be
+done without spending a moment in a regular lesson. In the case of all
+the things kept in the schoolroom--_i. e._, growing plants, insects in
+cages and aquaria, tame birds and domestic animals--the children will
+study the problems for themselves. The privilege of watching these
+things should be made a reward of merit.
+
+The use of nature-study readers should be restricted. The stories in
+these should not be read until after the pupils have completed their own
+observations on the subjects of the stories.
+
+Stories about adventures of animals and adventures with animals may
+always be read with safety, as these do not, strictly speaking, belong
+to nature-study. They belong rather to literature and may be used most
+successfully to interest the child in nature.
+
+Blackboard drawings and charts should be used only to illustrate objects
+too small for the pupil to see with the naked eye. The pupil must also
+be made to understand that the object drawn on the board is a real
+enlargement of the object he has studied with his unaided eye.
+
+The use of a simple lens often contributes much interest to the work of
+observation. The compound microscope may be used to show some
+exceptionally interesting point, as the compound eyes of insects, the
+scales on the butterfly's wing, or the viscid thread of the spider. But
+this is by no means necessary. Nature-study work does not actually
+require the use of either microscope or lens, although the latter is a
+desirable adjunct.
+
+The great danger that besets the teacher just beginning nature-study is
+too much teaching, and too many subjects. In my own work I would rather
+a child spent one term finding out how one spider builds its orb web
+than that he should study a dozen different species of spiders.
+
+If the teacher at the end of the year has opened the child's mind and
+heart in two or three directions nature-ward, she has done enough.
+
+In teaching about animals, teach no more of the anatomy than is
+obviously connected with the distinctive habits of each one; _i. e._,
+the hind legs of a grasshopper are long so that it can jump, and the
+ears of a rabbit are long so that it can hear the approach of its foes.
+
+While it is desirable for the teacher to know more than she teaches, in
+nature-study she may well be a learner with her pupils since they are
+likely any day to read some page of nature's book never before read by
+human eyes. This attitude of companionship in studying with her pupils
+will have a great value in enabling her to maintain happy and pleasant
+relations with them. It has also great disciplinary value.
+
+
+_Reasons for and against graded courses in nature-study._
+
+The question whether there should be a graded course in nature-study is
+decidedly a query with two answers.
+
+The reasons why there should not be a graded course, are:
+
+1st. The work should be spontaneous and should be suggested each day by
+the material at hand. Mother Nature follows no schedule. She refuses to
+produce a violet one day, an oriole the next, and a blue butterfly on
+the third.
+
+2d. A graded course means a hard and fast course which each teacher must
+follow whether or not her tastes and training coincide with it.
+
+3d. There is no natural grading of nature-study work. A subject suited
+for nature-study may be given just as successfully in the first as in
+the fifth grade.
+
+There is only one reason why a nature-study course should be graded, and
+that is so cogent that it outweighs all the reasons on the other side:
+the training of the grade teacher in nature-study is at present so
+limited in subject-matter that if the course were ungraded the same work
+would be given over and over in the successive grades until the pupils
+became utterly weary of it. To many a pupil in the lower grades to-day,
+nature-study means the sprouting of beans and peas and nothing more. As
+a matter of experience, we believe that after a nature-study subject is
+once studied it should be dropped entirely, the pupil should not again
+meet it in the schoolroom until he finds it in its respective science in
+the high school or college. On this account, we have been persuaded that
+a graded course, or at least a consecutive course, is necessary.
+
+The following suggestions about grading the course are given with a hope
+of being helpful, and not because we believe that the courses indicated
+are necessarily the best courses possible. We have graded each subject
+so that a teacher may follow her own tastes and inclinations, and may
+not be forced to teach zoology when her interests are entirely with
+botany, or vice versa.
+
+We have tried to give a distinctive trend to the observations for each
+year, and have suggested a line along which the work may be done.
+
+As a matter of fact, however, the time to study any living thing is when
+you chance to find it. If you find an interesting caterpillar or cricket
+or bird, study it, whatever your grade of work. The probabilities are
+that it may be long before you chance upon these same species again.
+
+It has been the experience of most teachers that the lower grades are
+much more interested in nature-study than are the higher. Especially are
+the seventh and eighth grades difficult to interest. Therefore, we have
+made this part of the course economic in its bearing, hoping that this
+may appeal to the grown-up feeling of pupils of these grades.
+
+
+INSECTS.
+
+FIRST GRADE.
+
+The first year of work with insects may well be restricted to
+familiarizing the pupils with the three most striking phases in the life
+of insects with complete metamorphosis, _i. e._, the larvæ, the pupæ,
+and the winged insects. Moths and butterflies are especially adapted for
+this work with the small children.
+
+_Fall work._--In September there are still many caterpillars feeding.
+Bring them in the schoolroom and feed them in breeding cages. For
+different forms of cheap breeding cages, see Insect Life, pp. 326-330;
+Cornell Teachers' Leaflet, No. 5 (No. XIX, this volume); Lessons in
+Nature-Study, p. 45.
+
+During October many of the hairy caterpillars will be found hurrying
+along in quest of suitable winter quarters. These should be brought in
+and put in box cages having sand or dirt in the bottom. They are seeking
+secluded corners in which to curl up and hide during the cold weather.
+Some of them pass the winter in their cocoons, and some do not. Insect
+Life, pp. 239-241; Manual for Study of Insects, pp. 317-324; Moths and
+Butterflies, (_b_), pp. 191-198.
+
+Bring in as many cocoons as possible. November or December, after the
+leaves have fallen from the trees, is the best time in which to hunt for
+the cocoons of _Cecropia_, _Promethea_, and _Cynthia_. Insect Life, pp.
+194-196; Moths and Butterflies, (_b_), pp. 119-180.
+
+Teach the pupils the difference between the cocoon and the pupa. The
+pupa is the quiescent form of the insect. The cocoon is the silken bag
+covering it, and is always made by the caterpillar before it changes to
+a pupa.
+
+If possible bring in some butterfly larvæ. In September many may be
+found. The cabbage butterfly especially is always with us. Insect Life,
+p. 245. Also the larvæ of the black swallow-tail may be easily found.
+Insect Life, p. 243; Everyday Butterflies, p. 130; Moths and
+Butterflies, (_b_), p. 39.
+
+Show the children (do not tell them) that the butterfly caterpillars do
+not make cocoons, but that the naked pupa is suspended by a silk button,
+and in some cases also by a silk thread.
+
+Many teachers complain that but few of the moths are able to get out of
+the cocoons. The usual reason for this is that in the heated atmosphere
+of the schoolroom the cocoons become too dry. To obviate this, the
+cocoons should be dipped in water every week or two.
+
+_Spring work._--During the spring term use the apple-tree
+tent-caterpillars. Cornell Teachers' Leaflet, No. 5 (No. XIX, this
+volume); Moths and Butterflies, (_b_) p. 201. Show the four stages of
+the insect: egg, caterpillar, pupa, and moth. Pay especial attention to
+the way in which the caterpillars grow.
+
+_Summary of methods._--This whole year's work may be done with no
+regular "lessons," and all the time required will be the care of the
+breeding cages and the time given to hunting for the caterpillars and
+cocoons. The child's reading may be selected from the many stories of
+the caterpillars, moths and butterflies. Yet be very careful to make
+each child understand that he himself is studying out the especial story
+of each caterpillar and cocoon in the schoolroom.
+
+
+SECOND GRADE.
+
+The plan for the second year is to continue the study of the
+life-histories of insects. The pupil, having learned the different
+stages of the moths and butterflies, should learn that all insects do
+not experience such marvelous changes of form.
+
+_Fall work._--Arrange a breeding cage like figs. 288, 289, Insect Life,
+p. 329, placing fresh sod in the flower pot and covering the lamp
+chimney with a square of wire netting. Push the glass chimney down into
+the earth so as to allow no crevices through which the insects may
+escape. In such a cage, place grasshoppers and crickets of all sizes,
+and study their growth. Insect Life, pp. 33-37.
+
+Show the pupils that the young grasshopper looks like the old one except
+that the wings are shorter; the same is true of crickets. Keep the sod
+damp so the grass will not become dry; and when it gets too old replace
+it with other sod. A good way to keep these insects alive and to keep
+the children interested in them is to plant wheat and grass seed in
+several flower pots, and then to move the glass chimney from pot to pot,
+giving the insects fresh pasturage when needed.
+
+As early as possible start some aquaria. Cornell Teachers' Leaflet, No.
+11 (No. XII, this volume); Insect Life, pp. 330-332.
+
+The mosquito is one of the most available insects for study in the
+aquarium. Insect Life, pp. 131-136; Lessons in Nature-Study, p. 12.
+
+The nymphs of dragon flies and damsel flies and many others may be
+studied during the entire winter. Insect Life, pp. 140-142; Cornell
+Teachers' Leaflet, No. 11 (No. XII, this volume); Outdoor Studies, p.
+54. Those that have cannibalistic habits should be kept apart, each one
+in a separate jar. They may be fed by dropping into the jar a bit of raw
+beefsteak tied to the end of a string. The purpose of the string is that
+the uneaten meat may be withdrawn before it decays. It should not be
+left in the water more than twenty-four hours. The insects do not need
+feeding more than twice a week.
+
+_Spring work._--In the spring get new material for the aquaria. In pools
+where there are many dead leaves look for the caddice worms that build
+the log cabin cases, for these may be kept in aquaria that have no
+running water. Insect Life, p. 149.
+
+While we advise the introduction of the aquaria during the second year,
+their use should be continued during the following four grades; there
+are always new things to study in ponds and streams, and nothing so
+fascinates a child as watching the movements of these little denizens of
+the water.
+
+_Summary of methods._--There need be no set lessons in the work of the
+second year, unless the teacher in a few words, now and then, chooses to
+call attention to certain things as the occasion seems to demand. The
+object of the year's work is to teach the pupil the life histories of
+insects which have no quiescent or pupa stage, and this should be
+accomplished by simple observation of specimens bred in the schoolroom.
+
+
+THIRD GRADE.
+
+The general subject of this year's work may well be the Homes of
+Insects. This is a most interesting topic, and if well taught will
+inspire the pupils to much individual observation and collecting.
+
+The questions to be asked concerning insect homes are:
+
+Of what material are they made? How are they made? What is the purpose
+of the home? Is it made by the insect for itself to live in, or is it
+made by the mother for the protection of her young? Is it made as a
+protection for the insects while they are eating, or do they go out to
+feed and come back only to rest and spend the night or day?
+
+_Fall work._--Leaf rollers: Insect Life, p. 206; Ways of the Six-Footed,
+p. 119.
+
+Leaf miners: Insect Life, p. 208; Ways of the Six-Footed, p. 29.
+
+Galls: Insect Life, p. 210; Outdoor Studies, pp. 18, 38-39.
+
+Fall web worm: Insect Life, p. 200.
+
+Scallop shell moth: Insect Life, p. 201.
+
+Nests of silver spotted skipper: Insect Life, p. 203; Everyday
+Butterflies, p. 190.
+
+Bag worms: Insect Life, p. 204. Ant lions: Outdoor Studies, p. 81.
+
+Carpenter bees: Ways of the Six-Footed, p. 108.
+
+Tiger beetle larvæ: Insect Life, pp. 270-272.
+
+All kinds of cocoons are found by the children. Ask concerning the
+cocoons: Where did you find them? Were they in protected places? Why?
+
+Of these nests there are many more than those mentioned above. In fact,
+to one who sees what he looks at, every plant, every tree, every fence
+corner and every foot along the country path contains many most
+interesting homes. The leaf rollers and leaf miners are the most common
+and most easily found of all.
+
+_Spring work._--The spring work in this subject may be to study the way
+in which caddice worms make their houses; take a caddice worm out of its
+house and watch it build another. This is a new phase of the study of
+caddice worms. Ways of the Six-Footed, p. 133.
+
+Study the homes of beetles under sticks and stones, and find the homes
+of the engraver beetles under bark. Insect Life, p. 216. This work must
+necessarily be done by the pupils out of school hours, and their
+discoveries and specimens of homes should be made topics for lessons for
+the whole school.
+
+During this term begin a butterfly calendar, made on the same plan as
+the bird calendar. A collection of butterflies might be started for the
+schoolroom in connection with the calendar. Study the specimens caught
+and determine whether they hibernated as adults or chrysalids. If their
+wings are battered and torn, they spent the winter as adults. If they
+are bright in colors and their wings perfect, they spent the winter in
+the chrysalis state.
+
+Hints for collecting insects: Cornell Teachers' Leaflet, No. 7 (No.
+XVIII, this volume); Insect Life, pp. 283-314 and pp. 48-49. How to Know
+the Butterflies.
+
+_Summary of methods._--The work in the third grade, as outlined,
+requires a lesson period now and then when single specimens are brought
+in by individual pupils. Each pupil should examine the specimen, and
+after that the lesson may be given.
+
+
+FOURTH GRADE.
+
+After having studied Insect Homes, the pupils will be ready to take up
+the broader subject, How Insects Live. The work of this year may be
+given on this subject.
+
+In order to study the life-histories of insects, the pupils should know
+some things about insect anatomy. If the work as indicated in the
+previous grades has been followed, the pupils know the number of legs,
+wings, and compound eyes most insects have, without ever having killed a
+specimen or having received a special lesson in insect anatomy. Now
+teach the children how insects breathe and how they eat. Show the
+spiracles on the body of any caterpillar which is not hairy; they may be
+seen on the abdomen of a grasshopper or of a butterfly that has not too
+many large scales to cover them.
+
+After they have seen these spiracles or breathing pores, give a lesson,
+illustrated by chart or blackboard, showing that these holes lead to the
+breathing tubes of the body. Manual for the Study of Insects, pp. 73-75.
+
+To show how insects eat, allow the pupils to watch the following insects
+in the breeding cages while feeding: a grasshopper; a leaf beetle
+(potato beetle is a good example); any caterpillar; an ant; and a wasp.
+Show that all these have mouth parts made for biting. Let the pupils see
+an aphid sucking the juice of a plant; this may be done by bringing in a
+twig infested by aphids. Let the pupils see the water bugs in the
+aquarium eat. Insect Life, pp. 123-131, and pp. 137-140. Let them watch
+a fly, a honey bee, and, if possible, a butterfly or moth, eat. All
+these have mouth parts made for sucking. All this work should be
+original investigation on the part of the pupils.
+
+After the pupils find out how insects breathe and eat, let them see how
+each insect lives a life adapted to its own peculiar needs. Try to feed
+some cabbage worms on clover or grass. Then try turnip or mustard
+leaves, and watch the result. Change the potato beetle larvæ to some
+other plant, and watch the result.
+
+Let the pupils first find out how the insects breathe in the water. Each
+insect in the aquarium tells a different story as to its way of getting
+air. The teacher will find all these stories indicated in the chapters
+in Insect Life devoted to pond and brook insects.
+
+Call especial attention to protective coloring of insects. Show that
+when an insect resembles its surroundings in color it is thereby
+enabled to escape its enemies; or, if need be, is enabled to creep upon
+its prey unobserved.
+
+Note the color of the grasshopper in the road; color of meadow
+grasshopper; color of the caterpillars of the cabbage butterfly (green
+and hard to find). Notice the shape and color of walking sticks; color
+of the katydids. Note the bright color of the larvæ of potato beetle.
+Why? (They are distasteful to birds, and their colors advertise the
+fact.) Study the Monarch butterfly and the Viceroy. Everyday
+Butterflies, p. 95 and p. 297; Ways of the Six-Footed, p. 39. Bring out
+strongly in all this work that the insect in order to live must have its
+special food plant and must escape notice of its enemies. This is the
+proper place to begin the study of the valuable work done by birds in
+destroying insects.
+
+In addition to this general work, study especially the wasps.
+
+Solitary Wasps: Mud daubers. Bring in their nests and examine them. Ways
+of the Six-Footed, p. 96. How are the nests provisioned, and for what
+purpose were they made? Find, if possible, nests of other solitary
+wasps. Insect Life, p. 218, p. 262, p. 264.
+
+Social Wasps: Bring in a deserted nest of yellow-jackets. Of what is it
+made? How? What for? Do the wasps store honey? Do they live as a colony
+during the winter? All these questions may be answered by a pupil who
+knows of a yellow-jackets' nest in the fall and watches it during the
+winter. For the teacher there are discussions of these insects in Manual
+for Study of Insects, pp. 660-664. Wasps and their Ways.
+
+Continue the butterfly collection and the butterfly calendar.
+
+_Spring work._--In the spring, begin a collection of moths for the
+schoolroom. Insect Life, p. 50. Caterpillars and Moths.
+
+In the spring, notice when the first house-flies appear. What happens to
+the house-fly in winter? (Send for Circular No. 35, second series, Div.
+of Entomology of Department of Agriculture, Washington, D. C., for the
+life-history of the house-fly.) Explain that one female destroyed early
+in the season means thousands fewer late in the season.
+
+Encourage the children to bring to the schoolroom all sorts of flies
+and compare them with the house-fly. The object of this is to
+teach something of the wonderful variety of forms among small and
+inconspicuous insects. Make a collection of flies for the schoolroom.
+For description of flies, see Insect Life, pp. 83-84.
+
+A good plan for the spring work is to keep the pupils interested in the
+first appearance, after the vicissitudes of winter, of each insect which
+it is possible for them to find. Note that insects do not appear before
+their food plants appear.
+
+_Summary of objects and methods._--The questions to be answered during
+the whole year's work are: How do the Insects live,--on what do they
+feed? How do they escape their enemies? What happens to them in winter?
+How are the new broods started in the spring? The work is chiefly
+observation, but occasional lessons may be given and stories may be told
+to keep the interest in the work from flagging.
+
+
+FIFTH GRADE.
+
+_Fall work._--Study the Bees and Ants.
+
+Fit up ants' nests. Insect Life, p. 278.
+
+Teach the whole life-history by allowing the pupils to colonize the
+nests. Manual for Study of Insects, pp. 633-639; Insect Life, p. 271.
+Make observations upon the _eggs, pupæ, workers, males, females_. What
+are the winged forms that appear in swarms in June and July.
+
+Let the pupils observe the relation of ants to aphids. This may be done
+on almost any shrub or roadside plant. Home Nature-Study Lesson 1904,
+No. 8.
+
+The teacher should read Sir John Lubbock's "Ants, Bees and Wasps."
+
+Many stories on these subjects may be told and read, especially those
+concerning the habits of exotic ants and ant wars which the children are
+not likely to see; also of the slave-making ants. These slave-making
+ants are quite common in New York State; their nests may be found under
+stones. They resemble the brown mound-builder ant; the slaves are black.
+
+_Spring work._--In the spring work in this grade, study the habits of
+the honey bee. An observation hive is desirable but not necessary. Bring
+in the honeycomb filled with honey. If there are apiarists in your
+neighborhood, they will gladly give you specimens of brood in the comb.
+Read The Bee People and the Manual for Study of Insects, p. 673.
+
+Develop all the facts of the wonderful life in the hive by letting the
+pupils observe them as far as possible. Then give them the many
+interesting stories:
+
+Story of the Workers.
+
+Story of the Queen.
+
+Story of the Drone.
+
+Story of the Bee Larva.
+
+Story of Honey Making.
+
+Story of Wax and Comb Making.
+
+Story of the Swarm.
+
+In connection with the study of the honey bee, study the bumble bee.
+Manual for Study of Insects, pp. 672-673; Insect Life, p. 256. Begin
+with the study of the big queen that appears in May or June. Show that
+she is of great benefit to us and must not be harmed or frightened. Let
+the bumble bee's nest be a problem for summer observation, and finish
+the study in the next grade in the fall.
+
+_Summary of objects and methods._--The work of this year should have for
+its objects the harmonious life of social insects; their unselfish work
+for each other; their devotion to their respective colonies; their ways
+of building and of defending their habitations.
+
+The work should be based upon observations made by the pupils in and out
+of the schoolroom. Many lessons should be given, mostly in the form of
+stories. Ways of the Six-Footed, pp. 55-94.
+
+
+SIXTH GRADE.
+
+_Fall work._--Study the spiders. Lessons in Nature-Study, p. 103; Insect
+Life, pp. 223-232. Cornell Teachers' Quarterly, final number (No. XV,
+this volume).
+
+In order to study spiders, they need not be handled with bare hands.
+While all spiders are venomous to the same extent, perhaps, that a
+mosquito or a bee is venomous, there is only one species in the eastern
+United States (and that is very rare) the bite of which need be feared
+by human beings.
+
+The use of spiders in nature-study does not have to do with handling
+living specimens, but rather with the habits of the different species
+and the building of the webs. In catching spiders to bring into the
+schoolroom, use the method indicated by Professor Kellogg in
+Nature-Study Lessons. Capture the specimen by the use of a pill box:
+take the box in one hand and the cover in the other, and catch the
+spider by suddenly closing the box over it.
+
+The pupils should be made to observe the chief differences between
+spiders and insects; _i. e._, spiders have two regions of the body
+instead of three as in insects; eight legs instead of six, simple eyes
+instead of compound. Compare spiders with daddy-long-legs.
+
+If the teacher chooses to kill a specimen and show the arrangement of
+the eyes and the spinnerets under the microscope, she may do so. This is
+not necessary, although I have seen it done successfully in the sixth
+grade. Diagrams and blackboard drawings may be used instead of the
+microscope.
+
+Let the pupils observe the uses of silk by the spider:
+
+1. Snare for prey. 2. To enwrap prey when first entangled. 3. Nests for
+eggs. 4. Lining for habitations. 5. Means of locomotion.
+
+Introduce the grass spider into the schoolroom in glass jars containing
+grass sod, and let the pupils observe it at work.
+
+Encourage a study of cobwebs. Capture the owner of an orb web, and bring
+it in a glass jar to the schoolroom. Try to give it its natural
+environment; _i. e._, some sort of frame or branch of tree on which it
+may fasten its web.
+
+The orb web: 1. How is it made? 2. Of how many kinds of silk? 3. The way
+the spiral thread is arranged as shown by drawings. 4. The position of
+the spider on the web. 5. The way the spider passes from one side of the
+web to the other. 6. The way it treats its prey when the victim is once
+entangled.
+
+The engineering ability shown in making this web is one of the most
+marvelous things in all the realm of animal life. These observations may
+well cover two months of this term.
+
+Study the ballooning spiders, the jumping spiders, the running spiders,
+and the crab spiders. Study as many egg-sacs of spiders as possible.
+
+Another topic for study during the fall term is the Songs of Insects.
+Insect Life, p. 235. Bring in the katydids, crickets, and meadow
+grasshoppers, place them in cages containing green sod, and observe them
+while they are singing. Note that only the males sing. Show the ears of
+the crickets, katydids, and meadow grasshoppers in the elbows of their
+front legs. The ear of the grasshopper is on the side of the segment of
+the abdomen next to the thorax. Ways of the Six-Footed, pp. 3-27.
+
+Study snowy tree cricket. Manual for Study of Insects, p. 118.
+
+If possible, get a cicada as these insects continue to sing through the
+warm days of September. Show the cover to the drums on the lower side of
+the common cicada. Cornell Nature-Study Bulletin, No. 1, p. 24 (No. VI,
+this volume). This can be made a most interesting subject, and pupils
+should be encouraged to do observation work outside of school.
+
+Begin a general collection for schoolroom.
+
+_Spring work._--Continue making a general collection for the schoolroom,
+and specialize in this direction. When an insect is brought in and added
+to the collection, if the teacher knows the insect, a lesson should be
+given on its life and habits. This connecting of the life and habits of
+the insects with the collection of dead specimens is of greater value
+from a nature-study point of view than the collection itself.
+
+_Summary of methods._--While this year's work must be based on the
+observations of the pupils in the schoolroom and out-of-doors, yet many
+interesting lessons may be given by the teacher.
+
+
+SEVENTH GRADE.
+
+The study of this entire year may be the relation of insects to flowers.
+Most of the references are given in the Plant-life work for this grade.
+
+The insect work may be limited to: What insects visit flowers? How do
+they carry pollen? How does each kind of insect reach the nectar? Which
+insects are robbers, and which are true pollen carriers? The use of
+pollen by insects. Outdoor Studies, pp. 7-12.
+
+Take up the study of golden rod and its insect visitors, _i. e._, let
+the pupils watch a bunch of golden rod and note all the insect visitors.
+For directions concerning this work see Outdoor Studies, pp. 29-46.
+
+In the same way take up the study of asters and the late flowers, and
+their insect visitors. Describe the visitor; what it does; what part of
+the plant it visits.
+
+_Summary of objects and methods._--The object of this whole year's work
+is to show the beautiful inter-relation between insects and flowers. The
+studies must necessarily be made in the field. But many delightful
+lessons may be given on the structure of flowers, that make of greatest
+use to the flowers the work of insect visitors.
+
+
+EIGHTH GRADE.
+
+The object of this year's work is the economic side of insect-study.
+Many pupils do not continue these studies to high school or college. Yet
+if they have homes with gardens or trees in city or country, they must
+learn to cope with the many insect enemies that feed upon cultivated
+plants. They should also learn to discriminate between insect friends
+and foes. They should learn the best methods of combating the foes and
+preserving the friends.
+
+Explain first that in fighting an insect enemy we must know how it eats.
+If it inserts its beak in the stem of the plant there is no use trying
+to kill it by putting poison on the leaves.
+
+
+COMMON INSECT FOES.
+
+To be studied in the schoolroom:
+
+_Fall work._--Codlin-moth. Insect Life, p. 180. Show work on an apple,
+and give methods of destroying it.
+
+Plum curculio. Insect Life, p. 182.
+
+The pomace flies. Insect Life, p. 184.
+
+Scale insects. Manual for Study of Insects, pp. 165-174.
+
+Potato beetle. Manual for Study of Insects, p. 176.
+
+_Spring work._--Tussock moths and canker worms. Circular No. 9, 2d
+Series, Dept. Agr., Div. of Ent., Washington, D. C.; Cornell Teachers'
+Circular, No. 1.
+
+Cabbage worms. How to Know the Butterflies.
+
+Currant worms. Manual for Study of Insects, pp. 613-614.
+
+Plant lice or aphids. Insect Life, pp. 177-178.
+
+Carpet beetle. Circular No. 5, 2d Series, Dept. Agr., Washington, D. C.;
+Manual for Study of Insects, p. 539.
+
+Clothes moth. Manual for Study of Insects, pp. 257-258; Circular No. 36,
+2d Series, Dept. Agr., Washington, D. C.
+
+Tent caterpillar. Cornell Teachers' Leaflet, No. 5 (No. XIX, this
+volume).
+
+A study of spraying should be made. Insects and Insecticides, pp. 39-56.
+Spray Calendar, distributed free by the Cornell Agricultural Experiment
+Station.
+
+Important Insecticides. Farmers' Bulletin No. 127, Dept. Agr.,
+Washington, D. C.
+
+
+INSECT FRIENDS.
+
+_Fall work._--Lady bugs. Insect Life, p. 179.
+
+Aphis lions. Insect Life, p. 178; Ways of the Six-Footed, p. 125.
+
+Red clover and the bumble bee.
+
+Parasitic insects. Manual for Study of Insects, pp. 621-630.
+
+_Spring work._--Bees and orchard in blossom.
+
+_Summary of methods._--The observations may be made in the schoolroom or
+out-of-doors. There should be observations of experiments in spraying.
+This may be accomplished in most localities by encouraging the pupils to
+visit orchards undergoing the operation of spraying. However, by means
+of syringe or watering pot, the infested plants brought into the
+schoolroom may be sprayed and the results noted. Lessons should be given
+on the importance of preserving insect friends while we are destroying
+insect enemies.
+
+
+OTHER ANIMALS ADAPTED FOR NATURE-STUDY.
+
+_The Toad and Frog._ The study of either of these two species is
+delightful spring work for any grade. Cornell Teachers' Leaflet, No. 9
+(No. XVI, this volume); Wilderness Ways, p. 25.
+
+_Salamanders or Efts._ Familiar Life of the Roadside.
+
+_Fishes._ Observations upon goldfish or minnows kept in an aquarium
+should be made the basis of lessons upon the life of fishes. Study: (1)
+The shape of the body; see how it is especially adapted to rapid
+movement through the water. (2) The shape and arrangement of the fins,
+and their uses. (3) How the fish propels itself through the water. (4)
+How the fish breathes. (5) The shape of the fish's mouth, and how and
+what it eats. (6) Experiment to ascertain the ability of the fish to see
+and hear. Cornell Teachers' Leaflet, No. 21 (Nos. XIII and XXXVI, this
+volume).
+
+Encourage observations of habits of different species of fish common in
+our ponds and streams. Study their eggs and the places where they are
+found. Teach the children the reason for the game laws, and impress upon
+them a true respect for those laws. Food and Game Fishes.
+
+_Mice._ Some house mice in an improvised cage may be placed in the
+schoolroom, and the habits of the little creatures observed. Give them
+paper to see how they make their nests. Note how and what they eat, and
+how they clean themselves. Note shape of teeth and their use. If
+possible, study the wild mice. Squirrels and Other Fur Bearers, p. 111;
+Wild Life, p. 171.
+
+_Squirrels and Chipmunks._ The work on these animals must be based on
+out-of-door observations. Try to get the pupils to discover for
+themselves answers to the following questions: How and where do they
+travel? What do they eat? Where and how do they carry their food? Do
+they store it for winter? If so, where? What do they do in winter?
+Squirrels and Other Fur Bearers, p. 15, p. 134; Wild Neighbors, p. 1.
+
+_Rabbits._--A domesticated rabbit should, if possible, be kept in the
+schoolyard so that the pupils may make their own observations upon its
+habits. Let them study: How and what it eats. The shape of its teeth.
+The form and use of the ears. How does it travel? What sort of tracks
+does it make, and why? From these observations lead the pupils to think
+of the life of the wild rabbit, how it is adapted to escape from its
+enemies and to get its food. Ways of Wood Folk, p. 41; Story of
+Raggylug.
+
+_Guinea pigs._--These little animals are easily kept in the schoolroom,
+and, though not particularly interesting in their habits, they prove
+attractive to the smaller children and may be studied in the same way as
+the other animals.
+
+_Domestic animals._--These need not be studied in the schoolroom, as the
+pupils, if they have opportunity, can make the observations at home.
+Studies of the horse, cow, pig, sheep, and goat, and also the cat and
+dog may be made most interesting. Such questions as these may be asked
+concerning each: What is the characteristic form of the animal? What is
+its clothing? What does it eat? How are its teeth adapted to its food?
+What is its chief use to man? How does it travel, slow or fast? How are
+its feet adapted to its way of running or walking? Has it a language?
+How many emotions can it express by sound? How many can it express by
+action? How does it fight, and what are its weapons? What sort of life
+did its wild ancestors live? How did they get their food, and how did
+they escape from their enemies?
+
+_Summary of methods of nature-study of animals._--Study only so much
+anatomy as is clearly adapted to the animal's ways of living.
+Observations made by the pupils should be arranged into lessons by
+either pupil or teacher. Such lessons make excellent English themes, and
+they may be adapted to any grade.
+
+
+BIRDS.
+
+Begin the study of birds by the careful study of some domesticated
+species that may be observed closely and for a long period. The hen is
+perhaps the best for this purpose. Study carefully all of the
+adaptations of her anatomy to her life necessities. Study shape of her
+body; the feathers; the bill; her food; how she eats; drinks; the shape
+of her feet; their covering; how she sees; hears; smells; sleeps; study
+the life of a chick; study the language of chick, hen and cock;
+embryology of a chick. Study a robin or some bird that builds near
+houses. Note all its habits from the time it appears in spring until
+autumn.
+
+Bird houses and bird protection. Usefulness of birds. Our Native Birds,
+Lange. Publications of U. S. Dept. Agr.
+
+_Summary of methods._--It is much more important that the pupil know the
+habits of one species than that he should know by name many species.
+Therefore encourage patient watching and careful observation concerning
+the things which birds do. Such observations may be made into lessons by
+pupil or by teacher for the benefit of all the pupils. First Book of
+Birds, and Second Book of Birds; Bird Lore; The Story of the Birds; Bird
+Neighbors.
+
+
+PLANTS.
+
+FIRST GRADE.
+
+_Fall term._--Let the children study the different forms and the
+colors of leaves. By no means teach the botanical terms for all the
+shapes of leaves; simply let the children gather and bring in all
+the different kinds of leaves they can find. Let them draw the
+different forms in their blank books. Press leaves and mount
+them.
+
+The object of this work is to give the child an idea of the great
+number of leaf forms and colors, and to get him interested in
+observing them. References: Botany, Bailey, pp. 90-100; Lessons
+with Plants, pp. 79-90; Gray's How Plants Grow, chapter on
+Leaves and Forms of Leaves; Elements of Botany, pp. 89-93.
+
+_Winter and spring terms._--Let the children study vegetables.
+The following questions should be answered concerning a vegetable.
+What part of the plant is it? Does it grow below or above ground?
+What sort of leaf has it? What sort of flower? What sort of fruit
+or seed? Lessons with Plants, pp. 353, 356, 364; First Studies,
+pp. 50, 51, 174; Botany, Bailey, pp. 31-37; Cornell Teachers' Quarterly,
+No. 7 (No. XXXIX, this volume).
+
+
+SECOND GRADE.
+
+Teach the use of the flower. Do this by bringing in all flowers
+possible, and show that as the flower fades the fruit becomes evident.
+Let the pupils observe for themselves the fact that the flower
+exists for the sake of the fruit. Interest the pupils in all kinds of
+fruits and seeds. This is not the place to teach seed dispersion,
+but simply the forms and colors of fruits and seeds. Let the
+pupils also observe that insects carry pollen from flower to flower.
+Do not give the explanation of this to children of this age, but let
+them see the bees at work.
+
+For this work see Plant World, by Mrs. Bergen, pp. 80-107.
+
+Let the pupils observe the following things in plant physiology:
+
+Flowers sleep: Botany, Bailey, p. 50; Lessons with Plants, p. 402;
+Plants, Coulter, pp. 9, 10, 48; Elements of Botany, p. 98.
+
+Plants turn toward the light: Elements of Botany, p. 100; Botany,
+Bailey, p. 50; First Studies, p. 136.
+
+Effect of frost on flowers and leaves.
+
+_Winter and spring work._--Seed germination: First Studies, pp. 1-24;
+Lessons with Plants, pp. 316-331; Botany, Bailey, pp. 164-171; Cornell
+Teachers' Leaflet, No. 1 (No. XXVIII, this volume); Plants, p. 307;
+Lessons in Nature-Study, p. 22.
+
+Let the pupils observe in the field: Position of leaves when first open.
+A Reader in Botany, by Newell, Part I, p. 84.
+
+Position of leaves and flowers in the rain. First Studies, p. 135;
+Elements of Botany, pp. 175-176; Plants, p. 51.
+
+
+THIRD GRADE.
+
+_Fall work._--The fall work of this grade may be (1) The way flowers
+make fruit, _i. e._, the way the fruit is formed from the flower. (2)
+The dispersion of seeds.
+
+Fruits. First Studies, pp. 168-171; Lessons with Plants, pp. 251-310;
+Botany, Bailey, pp. 147-157.
+
+Seed dispersion. First Studies, p. 176; Plant World, pp. 133-156; Little
+Wanderers, by Morley; Seed Dispersal, by Beal; Cornell Teachers'
+Quarterly, No. 2 (No. VIII, this volume); Seed Travelers, by Weed;
+Botany, Bailey, p. 158.
+
+Let the pupils observe: "How some plants get up in the world." First
+Studies, p. 150; Lessons with Plants, p. 396; Botany, Bailey, p. 108.
+
+_Spring work._--Opening of the buds. Lessons with Plants, pp. 48-63;
+First Studies, p. 33.
+
+Arrangement of buds. Lessons with Plants, pp. 63-69.
+
+Expansion of bark. Lessons with Plants, pp. 69-72.
+
+
+FOURTH GRADE.
+
+The object of this year's work may be the teaching of the value of
+earth, air, light, and water upon plants.
+
+_Fall work._--Experiments to show these to be carried on in schoolroom.
+Experiments to show value of earth to plants:
+
+(1) Plant seeds in fertile earth; poor earth; clean sand or sawdust.
+
+(2) Plant seeds in sawdust and on cotton batting placed on water in a
+jar.
+
+Experiments to show use of light to plants:
+
+(1) Sow seeds in two boxes of earth prepared just alike. Place one in
+the window, one in a dark closet, and note results.
+
+(2) Place house plants from greenhouse in a window, and note change of
+position of leaves.
+
+(3) The story of the sunflower.
+
+Experiments showing use of water to plants:
+
+(1) Place a very much wilted cut plant in water, and note result.
+
+(2) Place seeds in earth which is dry, and in earth which is
+kept moist.
+
+(3) Plant seeds on batting floating on a tumbler of water, and note
+results.
+
+These experiments should extend over several weeks.
+
+_Winter and spring work._--Begin the study of trees. Choose some tree in
+the schoolyard, if possible, and make this the basis of the work. The
+following is an outline for the study of a maple tree: Begin
+observations in January. Make drawings of the tree, showing the
+relations of branches to trunk and general outline. Note the following
+details: The color of trunk and branches in January, and the color in
+February and March; when the buds begin to swell; the arrangement of
+buds; watch closely to determine whether a bud develops into a blossom
+or a leaf; the peculiarities of bark on trunk and branches; do the
+leaves or the blossoms appear first; the shape and color of the
+blossoms; draw them and study them thoroughly; the color and position of
+the leaves when they first appear; draw the different stages of the
+unfolding of the leaves; keep a calendar of all the year's history of
+the tree; when in full leaf make another drawing of the whole tree;
+study the tree from below, and if possible from above, to show
+arrangement of leaves in reference to light; make drawings of the fruit
+when it is formed; study how it travels; when the first autumn tints
+appear; make colored drawings of the tree in its autumn foliage, and
+note when leaves begin to fall and when the branches are finally bare;
+note different form of maple in the open and maple in the forest.
+
+In connection with the year's history of the tree, study the tree from
+an economic point of view. Make a special study of sugar-making in
+connection with the maple tree. Study maple wood. To do this get a
+quarter section of a piece of maple log and study the grain lengthwise
+and in cross sections. Study all the industries possible in which maple
+is used. Devote one notebook to all the work on the maple tree, and at
+the end summarize the observations. For drawing of trees, see Cornell
+Teachers' Leaflet, No. 12 (Nos. XXIX and XXX, this volume). Home
+Nature-Study, Vol. V, Nos. 2, 5.
+
+
+FIFTH GRADE.
+
+The work during this grade may be devoted to plant physiology. For this
+work use First Studies of Plant Life, Atkinson. The experiments
+described in this book are simple and excellent; they give the pupil
+definite knowledge of the life processes of plants, and the use to the
+plant of roots, stems, leaves, flowers, and fruit.
+
+Continue studies of trees. Select some other species than the one
+studied during the last grade. Study it in the same way. Note the
+differences between the two. Two or three contrasting species may thus
+be studied.
+
+
+SIXTH GRADE.
+
+Having studied in the previous year the uses of different parts of the
+plant, the pupil will be fitted now to take up the general subject of
+weeds.
+
+Take some common forms and let the pupils observe that they grow where
+other plants do not grow, or that they drive out other plants; then
+study the special reasons why each kind of weed is able to do these
+things. Botany, Bailey, pp. 214-222; Elements of Botany, pp. 196-205.
+
+During the autumn another subject for study in this grade is
+_Mushrooms_. Lead the pupils to see how these flowerless plants produce
+seed, and let them bring in as many forms as possible. Do not try to
+teach which mushrooms are poisonous. Lessons with Plants, p. 347;
+Mushrooms, by Atkinson.
+
+_Winter work._--Evergreen trees. Cornell Teachers' Leaflet, No. 13 (No.
+XXXIII, this volume).
+
+_Spring work._--The spring work may well be the making of a calendar for
+trees and plants. Keep a record each day of the leafage of plants, the
+appearance of weeds, and the appearance of blossoms of fruit trees and
+all common flowers. Record which appear first, leaves or blossoms.
+
+This work will be good preparation for the study of the "struggle for
+existence," which comes in the next grade.
+
+
+SEVENTH GRADE.
+
+The work for this year, both fall and spring, may be the study of the
+cross fertilization of flowers. Choose a few of the common flowers, and
+let the pupils study the means by which pollen is carried from flower to
+flower.
+
+In studying any flower fertilized by insects always ask: Where is the
+nectary? Where in relation to the nectary are the stigma and the
+anthers? What path must the insect follow in order to get the nectar? Do
+the flowers attract insects by color? By fragrance? What insects do you
+find visiting the flowers studied? Lessons with Plants, pp. 224-245;
+Plants, Coulter, pp. 109-137; Elements of Botany, pp. 182-196; Readers
+in Botany, Newell, Part II, p. 86; Plant World, Bergen, pp. 57-127; Ten
+New England Blossoms, Weed.
+
+The cross fertilization of flowers is only one adaptation for succeeding
+in the struggle for existence.
+
+Study as many other ways of insuring the continuance of a plant as is
+possible. Botany, Bailey, pp. 197-217; Lessons with Plants, pp. 15-20;
+Elements of Botany, pp. 199-212.
+
+Study plant communities. Botany, Bailey, pp. 219-227; Plant Relations,
+pp. 146, 162, 168; Plant Structures, p. 313; Cornell Teachers' Leaflet,
+No. 19 (No. XXXV, this volume).
+
+
+EIGHTH GRADE.
+
+It seems to be the experience of most teachers that pupils of the
+seventh and eighth grades are with difficulty kept interested in
+nature-study. This is probably due to the fact that the methods suited
+to earlier grades are not suited to these. Pupils of this age, now
+feeling "grown up," are attracted only by more mature work. They may be
+interested in some of the following subjects:
+
+_Horticulture and Gardening._--Cornell Teachers' Leaflets.
+Garden-Making; The Pruning-Book; The Principles of Fruit-Growing; The
+Principles of Vegetable-Gardening, all by Bailey. Plant Culture, by
+Goff.
+
+_Forestry._--Relations of forests to preservation of rain-fall and
+streams. Preservation of Forests. Use of Forests. Reforesting waste
+lands, etc. A Primer of Forestry by Pinchot, United States Department
+Agriculture. A First Book of Forestry, Roth.
+
+_Ferns._--Study and make collections of all the ferns of the locality.
+Make drawings of each fern and its fruiting organs, and press and mount
+the specimens with full accounts of habits and locality of the plant.
+How to Know the Ferns, Mrs. Parsons; Gray's Botany; Our Ferns, Clute.
+
+
+BIBLIOGRAPHY.[7]
+
+[7] This list comprises some of the books that have been helpful to me.
+It is not intended to be complete. Good new books are constantly
+appearing. The teacher should endeavor to keep up with the new books.
+
+INSECTS.
+
+Every Day Butterflies. S. H. Scudder. Houghton, Mifflin & Co. $2.00.
+
+Insect Life. J. H. Comstock. D. Appleton & Co. $1.25.
+
+Lessons in Nature-Study. Jenkins & Kellogg. W. B. Harrison, $1.00.
+
+Manual for Study of Insects. J. H. Comstock. Comstock Pub. Co. $3.75.
+
+Moths and Butterflies. (a) Julia P. Ballard. Putnam's Sons. $1.50.
+
+Moths and Butterflies. (b) Mary C. Dickerson. Ginn & Co. $2.50.
+
+Stories of Insect Life. Weed & Murtfeldt. Ginn & Co. 35 cents.
+
+Outdoor Studies. James B. Needham. American Book Co. 40 cents.
+
+Bee People. Margaret W. Morley. A. C. McClurg. $1.25.
+
+The Butterfly Book. W. J. Holland. Doubleday, Page & Co. $3.00.
+
+Caterpillars and Their Moths. Eliot and Soule. The Century Co. $2.00.
+
+Wasps and Their Ways. Margaret W. Morley. Dodd, Mead & Co. $1.50.
+
+The Ways of the Six-Footed. Anna Botsford Comstock. Ginn & Co. 40 cents.
+
+How to Know the Butterflies. J. H. and Anna Botsford Comstock. D.
+Appleton & Co. $2.25.
+
+
+ANIMALS OTHER THAN INSECTS.
+
+Animal Life. Jordan & Kellogg. D. Appleton & Co. $1.25.
+
+Familiar Fish. Eugene McCarthy. D. Appleton & Co. $1.50.
+
+Story of the Fishes. James N. Baskett. D. Appleton & Co. 65 cents.
+
+Familiar Life of the Roadside. Schuyler Mathews. D. Appleton & Co.
+$1.75.
+
+Squirrels and Other Fur Bearers. John Burroughs. Houghton, Mifflin & Co.
+$1.00.
+
+Wild Life in Orchard and Field. Harper & Bros. Wild Neighbors. The
+Macmillan Co. Ernest Ingersoll. $1.50 each.
+
+Kindred of the Wild. Roberts. L. C. Page. $2.00.
+
+Wild Life Near Home. Dallas Lore Sharp. The Century Co. $2.00.
+
+Four Footed Americans. Wright. The Macmillan Co. $1.50.
+
+American Animals. Stone & Cram. Doubleday, Page & Co.
+$4.00.
+
+Food and Game Fishes. Jordan & Evermann. Doubleday, Page & Co. $4.00.
+
+Various books that deal with animals from the story or narrative point
+of view will be found to be interesting and helpful. They are often
+useful in arousing an interest in the subject. There are many good
+animal books not mentioned in the above list.
+
+
+Birds.
+
+Bird Homes. A. R. Dugmore. Doubleday, Page & Co. $2.00.
+
+Bird Life (with colored plates). Frank M. Chapman. D. Appleton & Co.
+$5.00.
+
+Bird Neighbors. Neltje Blanchan. Doubleday, Page & Co. $2.00.
+
+Birds of Village and Field. Florence Merriam. Houghton, Mifflin & Co.
+$2.00.
+
+First Book of Birds. Olive Thorne Miller. Houghton, Mifflin & Co. $1.00.
+
+Second Book of Birds. Olive Thorne Miller. Houghton, Mifflin & Co.
+$1.00.
+
+Our Native Birds. D. Lange. The Macmillan Co. $1.00.
+
+Story of the Birds. James N. Baskett. D. Appleton & Co. 65 cents.
+
+How to Attract the Birds. Neltje Blanchan. Doubleday, Page & Co. $1.35.
+
+The Bird Book. Eckstorm. D. C. Heath & Co. 80 cents.
+
+The Relations of Birds to Man. Weed & Dearborn. Lippincott. $2.50.
+
+The Woodpeckers. F. H. Eckstorm. Houghton, Mifflin & Co. $1.00.
+
+Bird Lore. A magazine. The Macmillans. Houghton, Mifflin & Co. $1.00.
+
+
+PLANT LIFE.
+
+Botany; an Elementary Text for Schools. L. H. Bailey. The Macmillan Co.
+$1.00.
+
+Corn Plants. F. L. Sargent. Houghton, Mifflin & Co. 60 cents.
+
+Elements of Botany. J. Y. Bergen. Ginn & Co. $1.10.
+
+Familiar Flowers of Field and Garden. S. Mathews. D. Appleton & Co.
+$1.75.
+
+First Studies in Plant Life. George F. Atkinson. Ginn & Co. 70 cents.
+
+Flowers and Their Friends. Margaret W. Morley. Ginn & Co. 60 cents.
+
+Flowers of Field, Hill and Swamp. C. Creevey. Harper & Bros. $2.50.
+
+Glimpses at the Plant World. Fanny D. Bergen. Ginn & Co. 35 cents.
+
+A Guide to the Wild Flowers. Alice Lounsberry. Frederick A. Stokes Co.
+$2.50.
+
+How Plants Grow. Asa Gray. American Book Co. 80 cents.
+
+How to Know the Ferns. Mrs. Frances Theodore Parsons. Chas. Scribner's
+Sons. $1.50.
+
+Our Ferns in Their Haunts. Clute. Stokes Co. $2.00.
+
+How to Know the Wild Flowers. Mrs. Wm. Starr Dana. Chas. Scribner's
+Sons. $2.00.
+
+Lessons With Plants. L. H. Bailey. The Macmillan Co. $1.10.
+
+Little Wanderers. Margaret W. Morley. Ginn & Co. 35 cents.
+
+Mushrooms. George F. Atkinson. Andrus & Church, Ithaca, N. Y. $3.00.
+
+Plants; a text-book of botany. J. M. Coulter. D. Appleton & Co. $2.00.
+
+Plants and Their Children. Mrs. Wm. Starr Dana. American Book Co. 65
+cents.
+
+Reader in Botany. J. H. Newell. 2 vols. Ginn & Co. 70 cents.
+
+Seed Dispersal. W. J. Beal. Ginn & Co. 40 cents.
+
+Ten New England Blossoms. Clarence M. Weed. Houghton, Mifflin & Co.
+$1.25.
+
+With the Wild Flowers, $1.00; Field, Forest and Wayside Flowers, $1.50.
+Maud Going. Baker, Taylor & Co.
+
+Flowers and Their Insect Visitors. Gibson. Newson & Co. $1.00.
+
+
+TREES.
+
+A Guide to the Trees. Alice Lounsberry. Frederick A. Stokes Co. $2.50.
+
+Familiar Trees and Their Leaves. S. Mathews. D. Appleton & Co. $1.75.
+
+Our Native Trees. Our Native Shrubs. Harriet Keeler. Chas. Scribner's
+Sons. $2.00 each.
+
+A Primer of Forestry. Pinchot. U. S. Dept. Agri.
+
+Getting Acquainted with the Trees. J. H. McFarland. Outlook Co. $1.75.
+
+The First Book of Forestry. Roth. Ginn & Co. $1.00.
+
+Among Green Trees. Julia E. Rogers. Mumford. $3.00.
+
+Trees, Shrubs and Vines. Parkhurst. Chas. Scribner's Sons. $1.50.
+
+Practical Forestry. John Gifford. D. Appleton & Co. $1.20.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The Nature-Study Idea. L. H. Bailey. Doubleday, Page & Co. $1.00.
+
+Science Sketches. David Starr Jordan. McClurg & Co. $1.50.
+
+Poetry of the Seasons. Mary I. Lovejoy. Silver, Burdette & Co. 60 cents.
+
+Nature in Verse. Mary I. Lovejoy. Silver, Burdette & Co. 60 cents.
+
+Nature Pictures by American Poets. The Macmillan Co. $1.25.
+
+Arbor Day Manual. Charles Skinner. Bardeen & Co. $2.50.
+
+Songs of Nature. John Burroughs. McClure, Phillips & Co. $1.50.
+
+Among Flowers and Trees. Wait & Leonard. Lee & Shepherd. $2.00.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET VI.
+
+A SUMMER SHOWER.[8]
+
+BY R. S. TARR.
+
+
+[8] Teachers' Leaflet, No. 14: Cornell Nature-Study Bulletin, June,
+1899.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+A Rainstorm comes, the walks are wet, the roads are muddy. Then the sun
+breaks through the clouds and soon the walks are no longer damp and the
+mud of the road is dried. Where did the water come from and where has it
+gone? Let us answer these questions.
+
+A kettle on the stove is forgotten and soon a cracking is heard; the
+housewife jumps to her feet for the kettle is dry. The kettle was filled
+with water, but it has all boiled away; and where has it gone? Surely
+into the air of the room, for it can be seen issuing as "steam" and then
+disappearing from view, as if by magic. The heat of the fire has changed
+the liquid water to a gas as invisible as the air itself. This gas is
+_water vapor_.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 9. A glass of cold water on which vapor has
+condensed in drops._]
+
+Do you wish to prove that the water vapor is there, although unseen?
+Then, if the day is cool, watch the window and notice the drops of water
+collect upon it. Or, if the day is warm, bring an ice-cold glass or
+pitcher into the room and see the drops collect upon it (Fig. 9). People
+sometimes say, when drops of water collect on a glass of cold water,
+that the glass is "sweating;" but see whether the same thing will not
+happen with a cold glass that does not contain water.
+
+These two simple observations teach us two very important facts: (1)
+That heat will change liquid water to an invisible vapor, or gas, which
+will float about in the air of a room; and (2) that cold will cause some
+of the vapor to change back to liquid water.
+
+Let us observe a little further. The clothes upon the line on wash day
+are hung out wet and brought in dry. If the sun is shining they probably
+dry quickly; but will they not dry even if the sun is not shining? They
+will, indeed; so here is another fact to add to our other two, namely
+(3) that the production of vapor from water will proceed even when the
+water is not heated.
+
+This change of water to vapor is called _evaporation_. The water
+evaporates from the clothes; it also evaporates from the walks after a
+rain, from the mud of the road, from the brooks, creeks and rivers, and
+from ponds, lakes, and the great ocean itself. Indeed, wherever water is
+exposed to the air some evaporation is taking place. Yet heat aids
+evaporation, as you can prove by taking three dishes of the same kind
+and pouring the same amount of water into each, then placing one on the
+stove, a second in the sun, and a third in a cool, shady place, as a
+cellar, and watching to see which is the last to become dry.
+
+About three-fourths of the earth's surface is covered by water, so that
+the air is receiving vapor all the time. In fact, every minute thousands
+of barrels of water-vapor are rising into the atmosphere from the
+surface of the ocean. The air is constantly moving about, forming winds,
+and this load of vapor is, therefore, drifted about by the winds, so
+that the air you are breathing may have in it vapor that came from the
+ocean hundreds or even thousands of miles away. You do not see the
+vapor, you are perhaps not even aware that it is there; yet in a room 10
+feet high and 20 feet square there is often enough vapor, if it could
+all be changed back to water to fill a two-quart measure.
+
+There is a difference in the amount of vapor from time to time. Some
+days the air is quite free from it, and then clothes will dry rapidly.
+On other days the air is damp and humid; then people say it is "muggy,"
+or that the "humidity is high." On these muggy days in summer the air is
+oppressive because there is so much vapor in it. Near the sea, where
+there is so much water to evaporate, the air is commonly more humid or
+moist than in the interior, away from the sea, where there is less water
+to evaporate.
+
+We have seen that there is some vapor in all air, and that there is more
+at some times than at others. We have also seen how it has come into the
+air, and that cold will cause it to condense to liquid water on cold
+window panes and on water glasses. There are other ways in which the
+vapor may be changed to liquid.
+
+After a summer day, even when there has been no rain, soon after the
+sun sinks behind the western horizon the grass becomes so damp that
+one's feet are wet in walking through it. The dew is "falling." During
+the daytime the grass is warmed by the sun; but when the sun is gone it
+grows cooler, much as a stove becomes cool when the fire is out. This
+cool grass chills the air near it and changes some of the vapor to
+liquid, which collects in drops on the grass, as the vapor condenses on
+the outside of a glass of ice water.
+
+In the opposite season of the year, on a cold winter's day, when you
+step out of a warm house into the chilly air, a thin cloud, or fog,
+forms as you expel the air from your lungs, and you say that you can
+"see your breath." What you really see are the little drops of water
+formed as the vapor-laden breath is chilled on passing from the warm
+body to the cold air. The vapor is condensed to form a tiny mist.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 10. A wreath of fog settled in a valley with the
+hilltops rising above it._]
+
+Doubtless you have seen a wreath of fog settling in a valley at night;
+or in the morning you may have looked out upon a fog that has gathered
+there during the night (Fig. 10). If your home happens to be upon a
+hillside, perhaps you have been able to look down upon the fog nestled
+there like a cloud on the land, which it really is. Such a fog is caused
+in very nearly the same way as the tiny fog made by breathing. The damp
+air in the valley has been chilled until the vapor has condensed to form
+tiny mist or fog particles. Without doubt you can tell why this fog
+disappears when the sun rises and the warm rays fall upon it.
+
+On the ocean there are great fogs, covering the sea for hundreds of
+miles; they make sailing dangerous, because the sailors cannot see
+through the mist, so that two vessels may run together, or a ship may be
+driven upon the coast before the captain knows it. Once more, this is
+merely condensed vapor caused by chilling air that has become laden with
+vapor. This chilling is often caused when warm, damp winds blow over the
+cold parts of the ocean.
+
+This leads the way to an understanding of a rain storm; but first we
+must learn something about the temperature of the air. The air near the
+ground where we live is commonly warmer than that above the ground where
+the clouds are. People who have gone up in balloons tell us so; and now
+scientific men who are studying this question are in the habit of
+sending up great kites, carrying thermometers and other instruments, in
+order to find out about the air far above the ground.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 11. Fog clouds among the valleys in the mountains,
+only the mountain peaks projecting above them._]
+
+It is not necessary, however, to send up a kite or a balloon to prove
+this. If your home is among mountains, or even among high hills, you can
+prove it for yourself; for often, in the late autumn, when it rains on
+the lower ground, it snows upon the mountain tops, so that when the
+clouds have cleared away the surface of the uplands is robed in white
+(Fig. 12). In the springtime, or in the winter during a thaw, people
+living among these highlands often start out in sleighs on a journey to
+a town, which is in the valley, and before they reach the valley their
+horses are obliged to drag the sleigh over bare ground. It is so much
+warmer on the lower ground that the snow melts away much more quickly
+than it does among the hills.
+
+The difference in temperature is, on the average, about one degree for
+every three hundred feet, so that a hill top rising twelve hundred feet
+above a valley would have an average temperature about four degrees
+lower than the valley. Now some mountains, even in New York, rise
+thousands of feet above the surrounding country. They rise high into the
+regions of cold air, so that they are often covered with snow long
+before any snow has fallen on the lowlands; and the snow remains upon
+them long after it has disappeared from the lower country (Fig. 12).
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 12. A mountain whitened by snow on the top, while
+there is no snow at the base._]
+
+Some mountains are so lofty that it never rains upon them, but snows
+instead; and they are never free from snow, even in mid-summer. If one
+climbs to the top of such peaks he finds it always very cold there.
+While he is shivering from the cold he can look down upon the green
+fields where the birds are singing, the flowers blossoming and the men,
+working in the fields, are complaining of the heat.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 13. A mountain peak snow capped, and covered on the
+very crest by a cloud._]
+
+One who watches such a mountain as this, or in fact any mountain peak,
+will notice that it is frequently wrapped in clouds (Fig. 13). Damp
+winds blowing against the cold mountains are chilled and the vapor is
+condensed. If one climbs through such a cloud, as thousands of people
+have done when climbing mountains, he often seems to pass through
+nothing but a fog, for really many clouds are only fogs high in the air.
+(Fig. 14).
+
+But very often rain falls from these clouds that cling to the mountain
+sides. The reason for this is easy to understand. As the air comes
+against the cold mountains so much vapor is condensed that some of the
+tiny fog particles grow larger and larger until they become mist
+particles, which are too heavy to float in the air. They then begin to
+settle; and as one particle strikes against another, the two unite, and
+this continues until perhaps a dozen have joined together so as to form
+a good-sized drop, which is so heavy that it is obliged to fall to the
+ground as rain.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 14. Clouds clinging to the mountain sides. If one
+were climbing these mountains he would find himself, in passing through
+the clouds, either in a fog or a mist._]
+
+Let us now look at our summer storms. These do not form about mountain
+peaks; yet what has been said about the mountains will help us to
+understand such showers.
+
+It is a hot summer day. The air is muggy and oppressive, so that the
+least exertion causes a perspiration, and even in the shade one is
+uncomfortably hot. Soon great banks of clouds appear (Fig. 15),--the
+"thunder heads,"--and people say "a thunder shower is coming, so that we
+will soon have relief from this oppressive heat." The clouds draw near,
+lightning is seen and thunder heard, and from the black base of the
+cloud, torrents of water fall upon the earth. If we could have watched
+this cloud from the beginning, and followed it on its course, we would
+have seen some facts that would help explain it. Similar clouds perhaps
+began to form over your head in the early afternoon and drifted away
+toward the east, developing into thunder storms many miles to the east
+of you.
+
+On such a day as this, the air near the ground is so damp that it gives
+up vapor easily, as you can prove by allowing a glass of ice water to
+stand on a table and watching the drops of water gather there, causing
+the glass to "sweat" (Fig. 9). The sun beats down upon the heated ground
+and the surface becomes like a furnace, so that the air near the ground
+is warmed.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 15. A "thunder head," or cumulus cloud._]
+
+Air that is warm is lighter than cool air, and, being lighter, will
+rise, for the heavy cool air will settle and push it up, as a chip of
+wood will rise in a pail of water, because it is lighter than the water
+which pushes it to the top. This is why the warm air rises from a
+furnace, or a stove, or a lamp. It is the reason why the hot air rises
+through a house chimney; undoubtedly you can find other illustrations,
+as ventilation, and can find abundant opportunity to prove that warm air
+will rise.
+
+The warm, moist air near the ground becomes so light that the
+heavy air above settles down and pushes it up, so that an uprising
+current of air is formed above the heated ground, much as an
+uprising current of hot air rises through the chimney when the
+stove is lighted. Rising thousands of feet into the sky the warm
+air reaches such a height, and finally comes to a place so cool, that
+some of the vapor must be condensed, forming fog particles, which
+in turn form a cloud.
+
+On such a day, if you will watch a cloud, you will notice that its base
+is flat (Fig. 15); and this flat base marks the height above ground
+where the temperature of the atmosphere is low enough to change the
+vapor to fog particles. Of course the air still rises somewhat above
+this base and continues to get cooler, and to have more and more vapor
+condensed. This makes a pile of clouds resting on a level base, but with
+rounded tops (Fig. 15). Sometimes the base of these summer clouds,
+called cumulus clouds, is a mile above the ground and their tops fully a
+mile higher than this.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 16. Photograph of a lightning flash._]
+
+Just as on the mountain side, where the drops grow larger until they
+must fall, so here, fog particles grow to drops of such a size that they
+are too heavy to float. This growth is often aided by the violent
+currents of air, which sometimes tumble and toss the clouds about so
+that you can see the commotion from the ground. These currents blow one
+particle against another, forming a single drop from the collision of
+two; then still others are added until the rain drop is so heavy that it
+must fall.
+
+But sometimes the air currents are so rapid that the drops are carried
+on up, higher and higher, notwithstanding the fact that they are heavy.
+Then they may be carried so high, and into air so cold, that they are
+frozen, forming hail. These "hailstones" cannot sink to the ground until
+they are thrown out of the violent currents, when they fall to the
+ground, often near the edge of the storm.
+
+Some hailstones are of great size; you will find it interesting to
+examine them. If you do this, notice the rings of clear and clouded ice
+that are often to be seen. These are caused when the hail, after
+forming, settles to a place where it melts a little, then is lifted
+again by another current, growing larger by the addition of more vapor.
+This continues until finally the ice ball sinks to the ground.
+
+There is thunder and lightning in such storms. Few things in nature are
+grander than these, and those who will watch the lightning flash will
+see many beautiful and interesting sights (Fig. 16). Sometimes the flash
+goes from cloud to cloud, again from the cloud to the ground. No one
+knows exactly why the lightning comes; but we do know that it is an
+electric spark, something like that which one can often see pass from
+the trolley to the wire of an electric car line. The main difference is
+that the spark in a thunder storm is a powerful lightning bolt that
+passes over a space of thousands of feet and often does great damage
+where it strikes.
+
+The thunder is a sound which may be compared to the crack heard when a
+spark passes from the trolley, though of course the noise is very much
+louder. The crack of the lightning echoes and reverberates among the
+clouds, often changing to a great rumble; but this rumbling is mainly
+caused by the echo, the sound from the lightning being a loud crack or
+crash like that which we sometimes hear when the lightning strikes near
+by.
+
+Some of the vapor of the air, on condensing, gathers on solid objects
+like grass, or glass; but some, as fog, floats about in the air. Really
+this, too, is often gathered around solid objects. Floating about in the
+air are innumerable bits of "dust" which you can see dancing about in
+the sunlight when a sunbeam enters a dark room. Some of these "dust"
+particles are actual dust from the road, but much of it is something
+else, as the pollen of plants, microbes, and the solid bits produced by
+the burning of wood or coal.
+
+Each bit serves as a tiny nucleus on which the vapor condenses; and so
+the very "dust" in the air aids in the formation of rain by giving
+something solid around which the liquid can gather. The great amount of
+dust in the air near the great city of London is believed to be one of
+the causes for the frequent fogs of that city.
+
+That there is dust in the air, and that the rain removes it, is often
+proved when a dull hazy air is changed to a clear, bright air by a
+summer shower. Watch to find instances of this. Indeed, after such a
+hazy day, when the rain drops first begin to fall, if you will let a few
+drops fall upon a sheet of clean white paper, and then dry it, you will
+find the paper discolored by the dust that the rain brought with it. So
+the rain purifies the air by removing from it the solids that are
+floating in it.
+
+These are only a few of the things of interest that you can see for
+yourself by studying the air. Watch the sky; it is full of interest. See
+what you can observe for yourself. Watch especially the clouds, for they
+are not only interesting but beautiful (Fig. 17). Their forms are often
+graceful, and they change with such rapidity that you can notice it as
+you watch them. Even in the daytime the colors and shadows are
+beautiful; but at sunrise and at sunset the clouds are often changed to
+gorgeous banks of color.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 17. A sky flecked with clouds high in the air._]
+
+Watch the clouds and you will be repaid; look especially for the great
+piles of clouds in the east during the summer when the sun is setting
+(Fig. 18). Those lofty banks, tinged with silver and gold, and rising
+like mountains thousands of feet into the air, are really made of bits
+of fog and mist. Among them vapor is still changing to water and rain
+drops are forming, while violent currents are whirling the drops about,
+and perhaps lifting them to such a height that they are being frozen
+into hailstones. Far off to the east, beneath that cloud, rain is
+falling in torrents, lightning is flashing and thunder crashing, though
+you cannot hear it because it is so far away.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 18. The cloud banks of a thunder storm on the
+horizon._]
+
+You see the storm merely as a brightly lighted and beautifully colored
+cloud mass in the sky; but the people over whom it is hanging find it a
+threatening black cloud, the source of a furious wind, a heavy rain, and
+the awe-inspiring lightning. To them it may not be beautiful, though
+grand in the extreme; and so, too, when the summer thunder shower visits
+you in the early evening, you may know that people to the west of you
+are probably looking at its side and top and admiring its beauty of form
+and color.
+
+The storm passes on, still to the eastward, and finally the cloud mass
+entirely disappears beneath the eastern horizon; but if you watch, you
+will see signs that it is still there, though out of sight; for in the
+darkness of the night you can see the eastern horizon lighted by little
+flashes, the source of which cannot be seen. You call it "heat
+lightning," but it is really the last signal that we can see of the
+vanishing thunder storm, so far away that the sound of the crashing
+thunder cannot be heard.
+
+You watch the mysterious flashes; they grow dimmer and dimmer and
+finally you see them no more. Our summer shower is gone. It has done
+what thousands of others have done before, and what thousands of others
+will do in the future. It has started, moved off, and finally
+disappeared from sight; and as it has gone it has told us a story. You
+can read a part of this story if you will; and in reading it will find
+much that interests.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET VII.
+
+A SNOW STORM.[9]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+  The snow had begun in the gloaming,
+  And busily all the night
+  Had been heaping field and highway
+  With a silence deep and white.
+  Every pine and fir and hemlock
+  Wore ermine too dear for an earl,
+  And the poorest twig on the elm-tree
+  Was ridged inch deep with pearl.
+  From sheds new-roofed with Carrara
+  Came Chanticleer's muffled crow
+  The stiff rails were softened to swan's-down
+  And still fluttered down the snow.
+  --_Lowell._
+
+[9] Home Nature-Study Course, December, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+The storm which Lowell describes so delightfully is the first soft,
+gentle snow fall that comes in November or early December. "The silence
+deep and white" settles like a benediction over the brown, uneven
+landscape, and makes of it a scene of enchantment. Very different from
+this is the storm that comes when the winter cold is most severe and
+winter winds most terrific. Then the skies are as white as the fields,
+with never a sign of blue; if the sun appears at all, it shines cold
+instead of warm, and seems but a vague white spot behind the veil of
+upward, downward whirling snowflakes; the wild wind takes the "snow
+dust" in eddies across the fields and piles it at the fences in great
+drift billows with overhanging crests. On such a day the snow is so cold
+and dry, the clouds so low and oppressive, the bare trees so brown and
+bleak, that we shiver even though we gaze on the dreary scene from the
+window of a warm and comfortable room.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 19. Snow crystals enlarged._]
+
+But another change is sure to come. Some February day the wind will veer
+suddenly to the south and breathe warm thawing breaths over the white
+frozen world. Then will the forests appear in robes of vivid blue-purple
+against the shining hills; and in the mornings the soft blue of the
+horizon will shade upward into rose-color and still upward into yellow
+and beryl green; these hues are never seen on the forest or in the sky
+except when the snow covers the earth to the horizon line. The eye that
+loves color could ill afford to lose from the world the purples and
+blues which bring contrast into the winter landscape.
+
+The snow storm to our limited understanding, begins with a miracle--the
+miracle of crystallization. Why should water freezing freely in the air
+be a part of geometry, the six rays of the snow crystal growing at an
+angle one to another, of sixty degrees? Or as if to prove geometry
+divine beyond cavil, sometimes the rays include angles of twice sixty
+degrees. Then why should the decorations of the rays assume thousands of
+intricate, beautiful forms, each ray of a flake ornamented exactly like
+its five sisters? And why should the snowflake formed in the higher
+clouds of the upper air be tabular in shape but still, in cross section,
+show that it is built on the plan of six radii? Look at it as we will,
+the formation of a crystal is a beautiful mystery and is as unfathomable
+as is the mystery of life.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 20. Snow crystals enlarged._]
+
+I am indebted to the courtesy of Mr. R. G. Allen, Section Director for
+New York of the U. S. Weather Bureau, for suggestions in making out the
+following questions. The beautiful pictures of snow crystals
+illustrating this lesson were made from photographs taken by Mr. W. A.
+Bentley of Jericho, Vt. It is our desire to interest all teachers in
+the natural history of a snow storm, to the end that "they may love the
+country better and be content to live therein."
+
+A thermometer hung in a sheltered, open place away from the warmth of
+the house is a necessary preliminary to the proper observation of the
+phenomena of a snow storm.
+
+Dark woolen cloth is the best medium on which to catch and observe snow
+crystals.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 21. "With a silence deep and white."_]
+
+QUESTIONS ON A SNOW STORM.
+
+1. What causes snow?
+
+2. At what temperature do snow crystals form?
+
+3. How do the clouds appear before a snow storm?
+
+4. What is the temperature of the air before the storm?
+
+5. What is the direction of the wind before the storm?
+
+6. Does the storm come from the same direction as the wind?
+
+7. What are the conditions of the wind and temperature when the snow
+crystals are most perfect in form?
+
+8. What are these conditions when the snow crystals are matted together
+in great flakes?
+
+9. What are these conditions when the snow crystals appear sharp and
+needle-like?
+
+10. Are the snow crystals of the same storm similar in structure and
+decoration?
+
+11. What is the difference in structure between a snowflake and a hail
+stone?
+
+12. What is sleet?
+
+13. What is the difference between hoar frost and snow?
+
+14. Does the temperature rise or fall during a snow storm?
+
+15. Is it colder or warmer after a snow storm has passed than it was
+before it began?
+
+16. What are the conditions of weather which cause a blizzard?
+
+17. Why does a covering of snow prevent the ground from freezing so
+severely as it would if bare?
+
+18. Why is snow a bad conductor of heat?
+
+19. Pack snow in a quart cup until it is full and let it melt; then tell
+how full the cup is of water. What do you infer from this?
+
+20. Have you ever observed the grass to be green beneath snow drifts?
+Tell why.
+
+21. Does snow evaporate as well as melt?
+
+22. How does snow benefit the farmer and the fruit grower?
+
+23. Do the snow storms in your locality come from one general direction
+all winter?
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET VIII.
+
+A HANDFUL OF SOIL: WHAT IT IS.[10]
+
+BY R. S. TARR.
+
+
+[10] Nature-Study Quarterly, No. 2: Leaflet 15.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Wind drifts a seed from the parent plant until it settles to the ground,
+perhaps in a field or by the roadside, or even in the schoolyard. There
+it remains through the long winter; but with the return of spring,
+encouraged by the warm sunlight, the seed awakens from its dormant
+condition, breaks open the seed-cover and sends leaves into the air and
+roots into the ground. No one planted the seed; yet the plant has made
+its way in the world and it thrives until it has given to other seeds
+the same opportunity to start in life.
+
+Had the seed fallen upon a board or a stone it might have sent out
+leaves and roots; but it could never have developed into a plant, for
+something necessary would have been lacking. What is there in the soil
+that is so necessary to the success of plant life? How has it come to be
+there? What is this soil that the plants need so much? These are some of
+the questions which we will try to answer.
+
+One readily sees that the soil furnishes a place in which the plants may
+fix themselves,--an anchorage, as it were. It is also easy to see that
+from the soil the plants obtain a supply of water; and, moreover, that
+this water is very necessary, for the vegetation in a moist country
+suffers greatly in time of drought, and few plants are able to grow in a
+desert region because there is so little water. You can make a desert in
+the schoolroom and contrast it with moist soil by planting seeds in two
+dishes of soil, watering one, but furnishing no water to the other.
+
+That water is necessary to plants is also proved by the plant itself.
+The sap and the moisture which may be pressed out of a grass stem or an
+apple are principally water taken from the soil by the roots. But there
+is more than water, for the juice of an apple is sweet or sour, while
+the sap and juice of other plants may be sweet or bitter. There are
+substances dissolved in the water.
+
+It is these dissolved substances that the plants need for their growth,
+and they find them ready for use in the soil. There is a plant-food
+which the roots seek and find, so that every plant which sends roots
+into the soil takes something from it to build up the plant tissue. The
+sharp edges of some sedges, which will cut the hand like a dull knife,
+and the wood ashes left when a wood fire is burned, represent in part
+this plant-food obtained from the soil.
+
+Let us take a handful of soil from the field, the schoolyard, or the
+street and examine it. We find it to be dirt that "soils" the hands; and
+when we try to brush off the dirt, we notice a gritty feeling that is
+quite disagreeable. This is due to the bits of mineral in the soil; and
+that these are hard, often harder than a pin, may often be proved by
+rubbing soil against a piece of glass, which the hard bits will often
+scratch, while a pin will not.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 21. A boulder-strewn soil of glacial origin with
+one of the large erratics on the right similar to those which early
+attracted attention to the drift. See page 105._]
+
+Study this soil with the eye and you may not see the tiny bits, though
+in sandy soils one may easily notice that there are bits of mineral.
+Even fine loamy and clay soils, when examined with a pocket lens or a
+microscope, will be found to be composed of tiny fragments of mineral.
+It is evident that in some way mineral has been powdered up to form the
+soil; and since the minerals come from rocks, it is the rocks that have
+been ground up. That powdered rock will make just such a substance as
+soil may be proved by pounding a pebble to bits, or by collecting some
+of the rock dust that is made when a hole is drilled in a rock. Much the
+same substance is ground from a grindstone when a knife is sharpened on
+it, making the water muddy like that in a mud hole.
+
+It will be an interesting experiment to reduce a pebble to powder and
+plant seeds in it to see whether they will grow as well as in soil; but
+in preparing it try to avoid using a sandstone pebble, because sandy
+soils are never very fertile.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 22. A glacial soil, containing numerous transported
+pebbles and boulders, resting on the bed rock._]
+
+Not only is soil made up of bits of powdered rock, but it everywhere
+rests upon rock (Fig. 25). Some consider soil to be only the surface
+layers in which plants grow; but really this is, in most places,
+essentially the same as the layers below, down even to the very rock, so
+that we might call it all soil; though, since a special name, _regolith_
+(meaning stone blanket), has been proposed for all the soft, soil-like
+rock-cover, we may speak of it as regolith and reserve the word soil for
+the surface layers only.
+
+In some places there is no soil on the bare rocks; elsewhere the
+soil-cover is a foot or two in depth; but there are places where the
+regolith is several hundred feet deep. In such places, even the wells do
+not reach the bed rock; nor do the streams cut down to it; but even
+there, if one should dig deep enough, he would reach the solid rock
+beneath.
+
+How has the hard rock been changed to loose soil? One of the ways, of
+which there are several, may be easily studied whenever a rock has been
+exposed to the air. Let us go to a stone wall or among the pebbles in a
+field, for instance, and, chipping off the surface, notice how different
+the inside is from the outside. The outer crust is rusted and possibly
+quite soft, while the interior is harder and fresher. Many excellent
+examples of this may be found in any stony field or stone wall.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 23. The bed of a stream at low water, revealing the
+rounded pebbles that have been worn and smoothed by being rolled about,
+thus grinding off tiny bits which later are built into the
+flood-plains._]
+
+As hard iron rusts and crumbles to powder when exposed to the weather;
+so will the minerals and the rocks decay and fall to bits; but rocks
+require a very much greater time for this than does iron. It happens
+that the soil of New York has not been produced by the decay of rock;
+and, therefore, although the soils in many parts of the world have been
+formed in this way, we will not delay longer in studying this subject
+now, nor in considering the exact way in which rocks are enabled to
+crumble.
+
+Another way in which rocks may be powdered may be seen in most parts of
+New York. The rains wash soil from the hillsides causing the streams to
+become muddy. In the streams there are also many pebbles, possibly the
+larger fragments that have fallen into the stream after having been
+broken from the ledges. The current carries these all along down the
+stream, and, as they go, one piece striking against another, or being
+dragged over the rocks in the stream bed, the pebbles are ground down
+and smoothed (Fig. 23), which means, of course, that more mud is
+supplied to the stream, as mud is furnished from a grindstone when a
+knife or scythe is being sharpened on it. On the pebbly beaches of the
+sea or lakeshore much the same thing may be seen; and here also the
+constant grinding of the rocks wears off the edges until the pebbles
+become smooth and round.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 24. Near view of a cut in glacial soil, gullied by
+the rains, and with numerous transported pebbles embedded in the rock
+flour._]
+
+Supplied with bits of rock from the soil, or from the grinding up of
+pebbles and rocks along its course, the stream carries its load onward,
+perhaps to a lake, which it commences to fill, forming a broad delta of
+level and fertile land, near where the stream enters the lake. Or,
+possibly, the stream enters the sea and builds a delta there, as the
+Mississippi river has done.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 25. A scratched limestone pebble taken from a
+glacial soil._]
+
+But much of the mud does not reach the sea. The greatest supply comes
+when the streams are so flooded by heavy rains or melting snows that the
+river channel is no longer able to hold the water, which then rises
+above the banks, overflowing the surrounding country. Then, since its
+current is checked where it is so shallow, the water drops some of its
+load of rock bits on the flood-plain, much as the muddy water in a
+gutter drops sand or mud on the sidewalk when, in time of heavy rains,
+it overflows the walk.
+
+Many of the most fertile lands of the world are flood-plains of this
+kind, where sediment, gathered by the streams farther up their courses,
+is dropped upon the flood-plains, enriching them by new layers of
+fertile soil. One does not need to go to the Nile, the Yellow, or the
+Mississippi for illustrations of this; they abound on every hand, and
+many thousands of illustrations, great and small, may be found in the
+State of New York. Doubtless you can find one.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 26. The grooved bed rock scratched by the movement
+of the ice sheet over it._]
+
+There are other ways in which soils may be formed; but only one more
+will be considered, and that is the way in which most of the soils of
+New York have been made. To study this let us go to a cut in the earth,
+such as a well or a stream bank (Figs. 22 and 24). Scattered through the
+soil numerous pebbles and boulders will doubtless be found; and if these
+are compared with the bed rock of the country, which underlies the soil
+(Fig. 22), some of them will be found to be quite different from it. For
+instance, where the bed rock is shale or limestone, some of the pebbles
+will no doubt be granite, sandstone, etc. If you could explore far
+enough, you would find just such rocks to the north of you, perhaps one
+or two hundred miles away in Canada; or, if your home is south of the
+Adirondacks, you might trace the pebbles to those mountains.
+
+On some of these pebbles, especially the softer ones, such as limestone,
+you will find scratches, as if they had been ground forcibly together
+(Fig. 25). Looking now at the bed rock in some place from which the soil
+has been recently removed, you will find it also scratched and grooved
+(Fig. 26); and if you take the direction of these scratches with the
+compass, you will find that they extend in a general north and south
+direction, pointing, in fact, in the same direction from which the
+pebbles have come.
+
+All over northeastern North America and northwestern Europe the soil is
+of the same nature as that just described. In our own country this kind
+of soil reaches down as far as the edge of the shaded area in the map
+(Fig. 27), and it will be noticed that all of New York is within that
+area excepting the extreme southwestern part near the southern end of
+Chautauqua lake.
+
+Not only is the soil peculiar within this district, but there are many
+small hills of clay or sand, or sometimes of both together (Figs. 33
+and 34). They rise in hummocky form and often have deep pits or
+kettle-shaped basins between, sometimes, when the soil is clayey enough
+to hold water, containing tiny pools. These hills extend in somewhat
+irregular ranges stretching across the country from the east toward the
+west. The position of some of these ranges is indicated on the map (Fig.
+27).
+
+For a long time people wondered how this soil with its foreign pebbles
+and boulders, altogether called "drift," came to be placed where it is;
+they were especially puzzled to tell how the large boulders, called
+erratics (Fig. 21), should have been carried from one place to another.
+It was suggested that they came from the bursting of planets, from
+comets, from the explosion of mountains, from floods, and in other ways
+equally unlikely; but Louis Agassiz, studying the glaciers of the Alps
+and the country round about, was impressed by the resemblance between
+the "drift" and the materials carried by living glaciers.
+
+Agassiz, therefore, proposed the hypothesis that glaciers had carried
+the drift and left it where we now find it; but for many years his
+glacial hypothesis met with a great deal of opposition because it seemed
+impossible that the climate could have changed so greatly as to cover
+what is now a temperate land with a great sheet of ice. Indeed, even
+now, although all who have especially studied the subject are convinced,
+many people have not accepted Agassiz's explanation, just as years ago,
+long after it was proved that the earth rotated each day, many people
+still believed that it was the sun, not the earth, that was moving.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 27. Map showing the extent of the ice sheet in the
+United States. Position of some of the moraines indicated by the heavily
+shaded lines._ (_After Chamberlain._)]
+
+The glacial explanation is as certain as that the earth rotates. For
+some reason, which we do not know, the climate changed and allowed ice
+to cover temperate lands, as before that time the climate had changed so
+as to allow plants like those now growing as far south as Virginia to
+live in Greenland, now ice covered. When the ice of the glacier melted
+away it left many signs of its presence; and when the temperate latitude
+plants grew in Greenland they left seeds, leaves and tree trunks which
+have been imbedded in the rocks as fossils. One may now pick the leaves
+of temperate climate trees from the rocks beneath a great icecap.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 28. A view over the great ice plateau of Greenland,
+with a mountain peak projecting above it._]
+
+To one who studies them, the signs left by the glacier are as clear
+proof as the leaves and seeds. From these signs we know that the climate
+has changed slowly, but we have not yet learned why it changed.
+
+There are now two places on the earth where vast glaciers, or ice
+sheets, cover immense areas of land, one in the Antarctic, a region very
+little known, the other in Greenland, where there is an ice sheet
+covering land having an area more than ten times that of the State of
+New York. Let us study this region to see what is being done there, in
+order to compare it with what has been done in New York.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 29. The edge of a part of the great Greenland ice
+sheet (on the left) resting on the land, over which are strewn many
+boulders brought by the ice and left there when it melted._]
+
+In the interior is a vast plateau of ice, in places over 10,000 feet
+high, a great icy desert (Fig. 28), where absolutely no life of any
+kind, either animal or plant, can exist, and where it never rains, but
+where the storms bring snow even in the middle of summer. Such must have
+been the condition in northeastern America during the glacial period.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 30. A scratched pebble taken from the ice of the
+Greenland glacier._]
+
+This vast ice sheet is slowly moving outward in all directions from the
+elevated center, much as a pile of wax may be made to flow outward by
+placing a heavy weight upon the middle. Moving toward the north, east,
+south and west, this glacier must of course come to an end somewhere. In
+places, usually at the heads of bays, the end is in the sea, as the end
+of our glacier must have been off the shores of New England. From these
+sea-ends, icebergs constantly break off; these floating away toward the
+south, often reach, before they melt, as far as the path followed by the
+steamers from the United States to Europe. Between the bays where the
+glacier ends in the sea, the ice front rests on the land (Fig. 29), as
+it did over the greater part of New York and the states further west.
+There it melts in the summer, supplying streams with water and filling
+many small ponds and lakes. The front stands there year after year,
+sometimes moving a little ahead, again melting further back so as to
+reveal the rocks on which it formerly rested.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 31. A part of the edge of the Greenland glacier,
+with clean white ice above, and dark discolored bands below where laden
+with rock fragments. In the foreground is a boulder-strewn moraine._]
+
+The bed rock here is found to be polished, scratched and grooved just
+like the bed-rock in New York; and the scratches extend in the direction
+from which the ice moves. Resting on the rock are boulders and pebbles
+(Fig. 22), sometimes on the bare rock, sometimes imbedded in a clay as
+they are in the drift. As we found when studying the soil in our own
+region, so here the pebbles are often scratched, and many of them are
+quite different from the rock on which they rest.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 32. Hummocky surface of the boulder-strewn moraine
+of Greenland._]
+
+Going nearer to the ice we find the lower part loaded with pebbles,
+boulders and bits of clay very like those on the rocks near by. Fig. 30
+shows one of these, scratched and grooved, which I once dug from the ice
+of this very glacier. The bottom of the ice is like a huge sandpaper,
+being dragged over the bed rock with tremendous force. It carries a
+load of rock fragments, and as it moves secures more by grinding or
+prying them from the rocks beneath. These all travel on toward the edge
+of the ice, being constantly ground finer and finer as wheat is ground
+when it goes through the mill. Indeed the resemblance is so close that
+the clay produced by this grinding action is often called _rock flour_.
+
+Dragged to the front of the ice, the rock bits, great and small, roll
+out as the ice melts, some, especially the finest, being carried away in
+the water, which is always muddy with the rock flour it carries; but
+much remains near the edge of the ice, forming a _moraine_ (Figs. 31 and
+32). This moraine, dumped at the edge of the glacier, very closely
+resembles the hummocky hills of New York (Figs. 33 and 34), mentioned
+above, which are really moraines formed at the ice-edge during the
+glacial period. While their form is quite alike, the New York moraines
+are generally less pebbly than the Greenland moraines, because the
+Greenland glacier carries less rock flour than did the glacier which
+covered New York.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 33. A view over the hummocky surface of a part of
+the moraine of the great American ice sheet in Central New York._]
+
+In the Greenland glacier, as you can see in Fig. 31, there is much dirt
+and rock; in the glacier of the glacial period there was even more. When
+it melted away the ice disappeared as water, but the rock fragments of
+course fell down upon the rock beneath and formed soil. If over a
+certain region, as for instance over your home, the ice carried a great
+load of drift, when this gradually settled down, as the ice melted, it
+formed a deep layer of soil; but if the glacier had only a small load a
+shallow soil was left. Again, if the ice front remained for a long time
+near a certain place, as near your home, it kept bringing and dumping
+rock fragments to form moraines, which, of course, would continue to
+grow higher so long as the ice dumped the rock fragments, much as a sand
+pile will continue to grow higher so long as fresh loads are brought and
+dumped.
+
+There are other causes for differences in the glacial soils, but most of
+them cannot be considered here. One of them is so important, however,
+that it must be mentioned. With the melting of so much ice, vast floods
+of water were caused, and these came from the ice, perhaps in places
+where there are now no streams, or at best only small ones. These rapid
+currents carried off much of the rock flour and left the coarser and
+heavier sand, gravel, or pebbles, the latter often well rounded, with
+the scratches removed by the long-continued rolling about in the glacial
+stream bed.
+
+One often finds such beds of sand or gravel in different parts of the
+State, telling not only of ice where it is now absent, but of water
+currents where is now dry land. The rock flour was in some cases carried
+to the sea, elsewhere to lakes, or in still other places deposited in
+the flood-plains of the glacier-fed rivers. Now some of this rock flour
+is dug out to make into bricks.
+
+Enough has been said to show that the soils of New York were brought by
+a glacier, and to point out that there are many differences in thickness
+as well as in kind and condition of the soil. The agriculture of the
+State is greatly influenced by these differences. In some cases one part
+of a farm has a deep, rich soil, another part a barren, sandy, pebbly or
+boulder-covered soil (Fig. 21), while in still another part the bed rock
+may be so near the surface that it does not pay to clear the forest from
+it. Moreover, some farms are in hummocky moraines, while others, near
+by, are on level plains (Fig. 34), where a broad glacial stream built up
+a flood-plain in a place where now the stream is so small that it never
+rises high enough to overflow the plain.
+
+There are even other differences than these, and one who is familiar
+with a region is often puzzled to explain them; but they are all due to
+the glacier or to the water furnished by its melting, and a careful
+study by a student of the subject of Glacial Geology will serve to
+explain them. Each place has had peculiar conditions and it would be
+necessary to study each place much more carefully than has been done
+here in order to explain all the differences.
+
+Not only is agriculture influenced greatly by the differences in the
+soil from place to place, but also by the very fact that they are
+glacial soils. Being made up of partly ground-up rock fragments the
+soils are often stony and difficult to till. Unlike the soil of rock
+decay, the particles of which the glacial soil is made have been derived
+by mechanical grinding, not by chemical decay and disintegration. There
+has been less leaching out of the soluble compounds which make plant
+foods. These are stored up in the rock fragments ready for use when
+decay causes the proper changes to produce the soluble compounds which
+plants require.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 34. Hummocky moraine hills in the background and a
+level gravel plain--an ancient glacial-stream flood-plain--in
+foreground._]
+
+Slowly the glacial soils are decaying, and, as they do so, are
+furnishing plant-food to the water which the roots greedily draw in. So
+the glacial soil is not a mere store house of plant-food, but a
+manufactory of it as well, and glacial soils are therefore "strong" and
+last for a long time. That decay is going on, especially near the
+surface, may often be seen in a cut in the soil, where the natural blue
+color of the drift is seen below, while near the surface the soil is
+rusted yellow by the decay of certain minerals which contain iron.
+
+Few materials on the earth are more important than the soil; it acts as
+the intermediary between man and the earth. The rocks have some
+substances locked up in them which animals need; by decay, or by being
+ground up, the rocks crumble so that plants may send roots into them and
+extract the substances needed by animals. Gifted with this wonderful
+power the plants grow and furnish food to animals, some of which is
+plant-food obtained from the rocks; and so the animals of the land, and
+man himself, secure a large part of their food from the rocks. It is
+then worth the while to stop for a moment and think and study about
+this, one of the most marvelous of the many wonderful adjustments of
+Nature, but so common that most persons live and die without even giving
+it more than a passing thought.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET IX.
+
+A HANDFUL OF SOIL: WHAT IT DOES.[11]
+
+BY L. A. CLINTON.
+
+
+[11] Nature-Study Quarterly, No. 2: Leaflet 15, October, 1899.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+The more one studies the soil, the more certainly it will be found that
+the earth has locked up in her bosom many secrets, and that these
+secrets will not be given up for the mere asking. As mysterious as the
+soil may appear at different times, it always is governed by certain
+laws. These principles once understood, the soil becomes an open book
+from which one may read quickly and accurately.
+
+
+USES OF THE SOIL.
+
+The soil has certain offices to perform for which it is admirably
+fitted. The most important of these offices are:
+
+  1. To hold plants in place;
+  2. To serve as a source of plant-food;
+  3. To act as a reservoir for moisture;
+  4. To serve as a storehouse for applied plant-food or fertilizer.
+
+Some soils are capable of performing all these offices, while others are
+fitted for only a part of them. Thus a soil which is pure sand and
+almost entirely deficient in the essential elements of plant-food, may
+serve, if located near a large city, merely to hold the plants in
+position while the skillful gardener feeds the plants with specially
+prepared fertilizers, and supplies the moisture by irrigation.
+
+Early in the study of soils an excursion, if possible, should be made
+into the woods. Great trees will be seen and under the trees will be
+found various shrubs and possibly weeds and grass. It will be noticed
+that the soil is well occupied with growing plants. The surface will be
+found covered with a layer several inches thick of leaves and twigs.
+Beneath this covering the soil is dark, moist, full of organic matter,
+loose, easily spaded except as roots or stones may interfere, and has
+every appearance of being fertile.
+
+
+SOIL CONDITIONS AS FOUND IN MANY FIELDS.
+
+After examining the conditions in the forest, a study should be made of
+the soil in some cultivated field. It will be found that in the field
+the soil has lost many of the marked characteristics noticed in the
+woodland. In walking over the field, the soil will be found to be hard
+and compact. The surface may be covered with growing plants, for if the
+seeds which have been put into the soil by the farmer have not
+germinated and the plants made growth, nature has quickly come to the
+rescue and filled the soil with other plants which we commonly call
+weeds. It is nature's plan to keep the soil covered with growing plants,
+and from nature we should learn a lesson. The field soil, instead of
+being moist, is dry; instead of being loose and friable, it is hard and
+compact, and it appears in texture entirely different from the woodland
+soil. The cause of the difference is not hard to discover. In the woods,
+nature for years has been building up the soil. The leaves from the
+trees fall to the ground and form a covering which prevents washing or
+erosion, and these leaves decay and add to the humus, or vegetable
+mould, of the soil. Roots are constantly decaying and furnish channels
+through the soil and permit the circulation of air and water.
+
+In the field, nature's lesson has been disregarded and too often the
+whole aim seems to be to remove everything from the soil and to make no
+returns. Consequently the organic matter, or humus, has been used up;
+the tramping of the horses' feet has closed the natural drainage canals;
+after the crop is removed, the soil is left naked during the winter and
+the heavy rains wash and erode the surface, and remove some of the best
+plant-food. After a few years of such treatment, the farmer wonders why
+the soil will not produce as liberally as it did formerly.
+
+_Experiment No. 1._--The fact that there is humus, or vegetable mould,
+in certain soils can be shown by burning. Weigh a potful of hard soil
+and a potful of lowland soil, or muck, after each has been thoroughly
+dried. Then put the pots on the coals in a coal stove. After the soil is
+thoroughly burned, weigh again. Some of the difference in weight may be
+due to loss of moisture, but if the samples were well dried in the
+beginning, most of the loss will be due to the burning of the humus.
+
+
+CONDITIONS WHICH AFFECT FERTILITY.
+
+There are certain conditions which affect soil fertility and of these
+the most important are:
+
+  Texture;
+  Moisture-content;
+  Plant-food;
+  Temperature.
+
+
+TEXTURE AND ITS RELATION TO FERTILITY.
+
+By texture is meant the physical condition of the soil. Upon good
+texture, more than upon any other one thing, depends the productivity of
+the soil. When the texture is right the soil is fine, loose, and
+friable; the roots are able to push through it and the feeding area is
+enlarged. Each individual particle is free to give up a portion of its
+plant-food, or its film of moisture. The conditions which are found in
+the woods' soil are almost ideal.
+
+_Experiment No. 2._--The importance of good texture may be well shown in
+the class room. Pots should be filled with a soil which is lumpy and
+cloddy, and other pots with the same kind of material after it has been
+made fine and mellow. After seeds are planted in the different pots, a
+careful study should be made of the length of time required for
+germination and of the health and vigor of the plants.
+
+_Experiment No. 3._--The greater part of our farming lands do not
+present ideal conditions as regards texture. Clay soils are especially
+likely to be in bad condition. If samples of the various soils can be
+collected, as sand, loam, clay, etc., it may be clearly shown how
+different soils respond to the same kind of treatment. With a common
+garden trowel, the soils should be stirred and worked while wet, and
+then put away to dry. After drying, the conditions presented by the
+soils should be noted, also the length of time required for the soils to
+become dry. Whereas the sand and the loam will remain in fairly good
+condition when dry, the clay will have become "puddled," _i. e._, the
+particles will have run together and made a hard, compact mass. Thus it
+is found in practice that clay soils must be handled with far more care
+and intelligence than is required for the sand and loams, if the texture
+is to be kept perfect.
+
+_Experiment No. 4._--If, in the experiment above suggested, the clay
+soil is mixed with leaf-mould, or humus soil, from the woods, it will
+be found to act very differently. The vegetable matter thus mixed with
+the mineral matter prevents the running together of the particles of
+clay.
+
+Two principles, both important as relating to soil texture, now have
+been illustrated. Soils must not be worked when they are so wet that
+their particles will cohere, and organic matter, or humus, must be kept
+mixed with the mineral matter of the soil. In practical farm operations,
+if the soil can be made into a mud ball it is said to be too wet to
+work. The required amount of humus is retained in the soil by
+occasionally plowing under some green crop, as clover, or by applying
+barn manures.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 35. The glass of water at the right has received
+lime and the clay has been flocculated; the other was not treated._]
+
+Clay soils are also frequently treated with lime to cause them to remain
+in good condition and be more easily tilled. Lime causes the fine
+particles to flocculate, or to become granular, _i. e._, several
+particles unite to form a larger particle, and these combinations are
+more stable and do not so readily puddle, or run together. A mud-puddle
+in clay soil will remain murky until the water has evaporated entirely.
+Let a little water-slaked lime be mixed with the muddy water, and the
+particles of clay will be flocculated and will settle to the bottom;
+thus the water will become clear.
+
+_Experiment No. 5._--Into two glasses of water put some fine clay soil;
+thoroughly stir the mixture (Fig. 35). Into one glass thus prepared put
+a spoonful of water-slaked lime; stir thoroughly, then allow both
+glasses to remain quiet that the soil may settle. Notice in which glass
+the water first becomes clear, and note the appearance of the sediment
+in each.
+
+
+THE MOISTURE IN THE SOIL.
+
+In Leaflet VI has been given the history of a thunder shower. We are not
+told much about the history of the water after it reaches the earth. If
+we go out immediately after a heavy shower, we find little streams
+running alongside the road. These little streams unite to make larger
+ones, until finally the creeks and rivers are swollen, and, if the rain
+was heavy enough, the streams may overflow their banks. In all these
+streams, from the smallest to the largest, the water is muddy. Where did
+this mud come from? It was washed largely from the cultivated fields,
+and the finest and best soil is certain to be the first to start on its
+voyage to the valleys or to the sea. If the farmer had only learned
+better the lesson from nature and kept his fields covered with plants, a
+large part of the loss might have been prevented. A rain gauge should be
+kept in every school yard, so that every shower can be measured. It can
+then be easily determined by the pupils how many tons of rain fall upon
+the school grounds, or how much falls upon an acre of land. It will be a
+matter of surprise that the amount is so great.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 36. a. Soil too dry. b. Soil in good condition. c.
+Soil too wet._]
+
+Not all the water which falls during a summer shower is carried off by
+surface drainage, since a considerable part sinks into the soil. As it
+passes down, each soil grain takes up a portion and surrounds itself
+with a little film of water, much as does a marble when dipped into
+water. If the rain continues long enough, the soil will become saturated
+and the water which cannot be retained, will, under the influence of
+gravity, sink down to the lower layers of soil until it finally reaches
+the level of the free water. From this free water, at varying depths in
+the soil, wells and springs are supplied. If the soil were to remain
+long saturated, seeds would not germinate, and most cultivated plants
+would not grow because all the air passages of the soil would be filled
+with water (Fig. 36). The water which sinks down deep into the soil and
+helps to supply our wells is called free water. That part which is held
+as a film by the soil particles (as on a marble) is called capillary
+water. After the rain is over and the sun shines, a part of the moisture
+which is held by the particles near the surface is lost by evaporation.
+The moisture which is below tends to rise to restore the equilibrium;
+thus there is created a current toward the surface, and finally into the
+air; the moisture which thus escapes aids in forming the next thunder
+storm.
+
+_Experiment No. 6._--Humus enables the soil to take up and hold large
+quantities of water. To illustrate this, two samples of soil should be
+obtained, one a humus, or alluvial, soil, rich in organic matter, and
+the other a sandy soil. Put the two samples where they will become
+thoroughly air dry. Procure, say five pounds each of the dry soils, and
+put each into a glass tube over one end of which there is tied a piece
+of muslin, or fine wire gauze. From a graduated glass pour water slowly
+upon each sample until the water begins to drain from the bottom of the
+tube. In this way it can be shown which soil has the greater power of
+holding moisture. Both samples should then be set away to dry. By
+weighing the samples each day, it can be determined which soil has the
+greater power of retaining moisture. This experiment may be conducted
+not only with sand and humus, but with clay, loam, gravel, and all other
+kinds of soil.
+
+_Experiment No. 7._--A finely pulverized soil will hold more
+film-moisture than a cloddy soil. To illustrate the importance of
+texture as related to moisture, soil should be secured which is cloddy,
+or lumpy. One tube should be filled, as heretofore described (Exp. No.
+6), with the lumpy soil, and the other tube with the fine soil which
+results from pulverizing the lumps, equal weights of soil being used in
+each case. From a graduated glass pour water upon each sample until the
+drainage begins from the bottom. Notice which soil possesses greater
+power of absorbing moisture. Put the samples away to dry, and by careful
+weighing, each day, it can be determined which soil dries out more
+readily.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 37. "Foot-prints on the sands of time."_]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 38. A cross section through one of the
+foot-prints._]
+
+The prudent farmer will take measures to prevent the escape of this
+moisture into the air. All the film-moisture (on the soil particles)
+needs to be carefully conserved or saved, for the plants will need very
+large amounts of moisture before they mature, and they can draw their
+supply only from this film-moisture. We can again apply the lesson
+learned in the woods. The soil there is always moist; the leaves form a
+cover, or blanket, which prevents the evaporation of moisture.
+Underneath an old plank or board, the soil will be found moist. If we
+can break the connection between the soil and the air, we can check the
+escape of moisture. A layer of straw over the soil will serve to prevent
+the loss of moisture; yet a whole field cannot be thus covered. It has
+been found that the surface soil, if kept loose, say about three inches
+of the top soil can be made to act as a blanket or covering for the soil
+underneath. Although this top layer may become as dry as dust, yet it
+prevents the escape, by evaporation, of moisture from below. It is a
+matter of common observation that if tracks are made across a freshly
+cultivated field, the soil where the tracks are will become darker (Fig.
+37). This darker appearance of the soil in the foot-marks is due to the
+moisture which is there rising to the surface. The implement of tillage
+makes the soil loose, breaking the capillary connection between the
+lower layers of soil and the surface; thus the upward passage of the
+water is checked. Where the foot-print is, the soil has been again
+pressed down at the surface, the particles have been crowded closer
+together, and capillarity is restored to the surface so that the
+moisture is free to escape (Fig. 38). In caring for flower-beds, or even
+in growing plants in a pot in the school-room, it is important that the
+surface of the soil be kept loose and mellow. Far better in a flower
+garden is a garden rake than a watering pot.
+
+_Experiment No. 8._--To show the importance of the surface mulch, fill
+several pots with a sandy loam soil, putting the same weight of soil
+into each pot. In one pot, pack the soil firmly; in another pot, pack
+the soil firmly and then make the surface loose. These pots of soil may
+then be put away to dry; by daily weighing each it can be readily
+determined what effects the various methods of treatment have upon the
+moisture-holding power of soils.
+
+_Experiment No. 9._--The above experiment may be varied by covering the
+soil in some of the pots with leaves, or straw, or paper, care being
+taken that the added weight of the foreign matter is properly accounted
+for.
+
+
+SOIL TEMPERATURE.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 39. The moss-grown lawn or grass plot._]
+
+If a kernel of corn be placed in the ground in early spring before the
+soil has become warm, the seed will not germinate. Abundance of moisture
+and oxygen may be present, but the third requisite for germination,
+proper temperature, is lacking. The soil is very slow to become warm in
+the spring, and this is due to the large amount of water which must be
+evaporated. During the winter and spring, the rain and melting snow have
+saturated the soil. The under-drainage is deficient so there is no way
+for the escape of the surplus water except by evaporation, and
+evaporation is a cooling process. A well-drained soil is thus warmer
+than a poorly-drained one.
+
+The atmosphere is much quicker to respond to changes in temperature than
+is the soil. In the spring, the air becomes warm while the soil
+continues cold, and the rains which fall during this time are warmed by
+passing through the warm air. Then in sinking through the soil the
+rain-water parts with some of its heat which makes the soil warmer.
+During mid-summer the soil becomes very warm, and it is not affected by
+cool nights, as is the atmosphere. Consequently as a summer rain may be
+several degrees cooler than the soil, the water in passing through the
+soil takes up some of the heat; thus the soil conditions are made more
+favorable for plant growth. Therefore, soil temperature is regulated
+somewhat by the rainfall.
+
+_Experiment No. 10._--The color of a soil also affects its temperature,
+a dark soil being warmer than a light colored soil. By having
+thermometers as a part of the school room equipment, interesting
+experiments may be conducted in determining the effect of color and
+moisture upon the temperature of soils.
+
+
+AIR IN THE SOIL.
+
+Although that part of the plant which we can see is entirely surrounded
+by air, it is also necessary that the soil be in such a condition that
+it can be penetrated by the air. Indeed, growth cannot begin in a soil
+from which the air is excluded.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 40. The clover roots penetrate the soil deeply._]
+
+_Experiment No. 11._--To prove this, put clay soil in a pot and plant
+seeds; then wet the surface of the soil and puddle or pack the clay
+while wet and watch for the seeds to germinate and grow. At the same
+time put seeds in another pot filled with loose, mellow, moist soil.
+
+Frequently, after the farmer has sown his grain, there comes a heavy,
+beating rain, and the surface of the soil becomes so packed that the air
+is excluded and the seeds cannot germinate. If plants are grown in pots
+and the water is supplied at the top, the soil may become so hard and
+compact as to exclude the air and the plants will make a sickly growth.
+The surface soil must be kept loose so that the air can penetrate it.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 41. After the clover dies the soil is in better
+condition for its having lived._]
+
+On many lawns it may be noticed that the grass is not thriving. It has a
+sickly appearance, and even the application of fertilizer does not seem
+to remedy the conditions. Perhaps the ground has become so hard that the
+air cannot penetrate and the grass is being smothered. If the surface of
+the soil can be loosened with a garden rake, and clover seed sown, much
+good may be accomplished. The clover is a tap-rooted plant, sending its
+main root deep into the soil.
+
+After the death of the plant, the root decays, and the nitrogen which is
+stored in it can be used as food by the other plants. Most useful of
+all, however, in such cases, the decay of the tap-root of the clover
+makes a passage deep into the soil and thus allows the air to enter.
+Consult Figs. 39-41.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET X.
+
+THE BROOK.[12]
+
+BY J. O. MARTIN.
+
+INTRODUCTION BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[12] Nature-Study Quarterly, No. 5: Leaflet 18. June, 1900.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+A brook is the best of subjects for nature-study. It is near and dear to
+every child. It is a world in itself. It is an epitome of the nature in
+which we live. In miniature, it illustrates the forces which have shaped
+much of the earth's surface. Day by day and century by century, it
+carries its burden of earth-waste which it lays down in the quiet
+places. Always beginning and never ceasing, it does its work as slowly
+and as quietly as the drifting of the years. It is a scene of life and
+activity. It reflects the sky. It is kissed by the sun. It is caressed
+by the winds. The minnows play in the pools. The soft weeds grow in the
+shallows. The grass and the dandelions lie on its sunny banks. The moss
+and fern are sheltered in the nooks. It comes one knows not whence; it
+flows one knows not whither. It awakens the desire of exploration. It is
+a realm of mysteries. It typifies the flood of life. It goes "on
+forever."
+
+In many ways can the brook be made an adjunct of the school-room. One
+teacher or one grade may study its physiography; another its birds;
+another may plat it. Or one teacher and one grade may devote a month or
+a term to one phase of it. Thus the brook may be made the center of a
+life-theme.
+
+L. H. B.
+
+
+I. A BROOK AND ITS WORK.
+
+On a rainy day most of us are driven indoors and thus we miss some of
+nature's most instructive lessons, for in sunshine or rain the great
+mother toils on, doing some of her hardest labor when her face is
+overcast with clouds. Let us find our waterproofs, raise our umbrellas,
+bid defiance to the pattering rain, and go forth to learn some of the
+lessons of a rainy day.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 42. The brook may be made the center of a
+life-theme._]
+
+Along the roadside, the steady, down-pouring rain collects into pools
+and rills, or sinks out of sight in the ground. The tiny streams search
+out the easiest grade and run down the road, digging little gullies as
+they go. Soon these rills meet and, joining their muddy currents, flow
+on with greater speed down the hillside until they reach the bottom of
+the valley and go to swell the brook which flows on, through sunshine or
+rain. The water which sinks into the ground passes out of sight for a
+time, but its journey is also downward toward the brook, though the
+soil, acting as a great sponge, holds it back and makes it take a slower
+pace than the rushing surface water. This slower-moving underground
+water percolates through the soil until it comes to a layer of rock,
+clay, or other impervious substance, along the slope of which it flows
+until it is turned again to the surface in the form of a spring. Perhaps
+this spring is one of those clear, cold pools, with the water bubbling
+up through its sandy bottom, from which we love to drink on a hot
+summer's day; or, again, it is a swampy spot on the hillside where the
+cat-tails grow. In whatever form it issues from the ground, a tiny rill
+carries away its overflow, and this sooner or later joins the brook.
+
+The brook, we see, is simply the collected rainfall from the hillsides,
+flowing away to join the river. It grows larger as other brooks join it,
+and becomes a creek and finally a river. But where is the dividing line
+between brook, creek, and river? So gradually does the brook increase in
+volume that it would be difficult to draw any dividing line between it
+and the larger streams. And so with the rills that formed the brook:
+each is a part of the river, and the names rill, brook, creek, and river
+are merely relative terms.
+
+Brooks are but rivers on a small scale; and if we study the work that a
+brook is doing, we shall find it engaged in cutting down or building up,
+just as the river does, although, owing to the smaller size of the
+brook, we can see most of these operations in a short distance. Let us
+take our way through the wet grass and dripping trees to the brookside
+and see what work it is doing.
+
+The countless rain-born rills are pouring their muddy water into the
+brook and to-day its volume is much greater than when it is fed, as it
+is in fair weather, by the slower-moving underground water of the
+springs. It roars along with its waters no longer clear but full of clay
+and sand ("mud" as we call it).
+
+If we should dip up a glassful of this muddy water, we should find that
+when it had settled there remained on the bottom of the glass a thin
+deposit of sediment. The amount of this sediment is small, no doubt, for
+a single glassful, but when we think of the great quantity of water
+constantly flowing by, we can see that considerable sediment is going
+along with it. But this sediment in suspension is not all the load that
+the brook is moving. If you will roll up your sleeve, plunge your hand
+to the bottom of the brook and hold it there quietly, you will feel the
+coarser gravel and small stones rolling along the bottom.
+
+All this load of sand and gravel comes, as we have seen, from the valley
+sides, the banks of the brook, and from its bed. It is moving downward
+away from its original resting place; and what is the result? For
+thousands upon thousands of years, our brook may have been carrying off
+its yearly load of sediment; and though each day's labor is small, yet
+the added toil of centuries has been great. The result of this labor we
+can see in the great trough or valley through which the brook flows.
+Tennyson speaks of the ceaseless toil of the brook in the following
+words:
+
+  "I chatter, chatter, as I flow
+    To join the brimming river,
+  For men may come and men may go,
+    But I go on forever."
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 43. A brook cutting under its bank and causing a
+landslide._]
+
+We have seen how the rills and torrents bring into the brook their loads
+of sand, clay, and gravel; now let us walk along the bank and see what
+the brook is doing to increase this load. Just here there is a sudden
+turn in the channel and so sharp is the curve that the rushing stream is
+not able to keep in mid-channel, but throws itself furiously against the
+outer bank of the curve, eating into the clay of which it is composed,
+until the bank is undermined, allowing a mass of clay to slide down into
+the stream bed, where it is eaten up and carried away by the rushing
+water (Fig. 43). Farther on, the brook dashes down a steep, rocky
+incline, and if we listen and watch we may hear the thud of boulders
+hurled along, or even see a pebble bound out of the muddy foaming water.
+These moving pebbles strike against each other and grind along the
+bottom, wearing out themselves as well as the large unmovable boulders
+of the rocky bed of the brook. Thus the larger stones are ground down,
+rounded at first but in time reduced to sand, adding in this way to the
+moving burden of the brook. By this slow process of cutting and
+grinding, the deep rock gorges of New York state, like those at Watkins,
+Ithaca, Au Sable Chasm, and even the mighty gorge of Niagara, have been
+made. The Grand Canyon of the Colorado, over a mile in depth, is one of
+the greatest examples of stream cutting to be found in the world.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 44. A pile of brook debris deposited by the
+checking of the current._]
+
+Now the brook leads us into a dripping woodland, and just ahead we can
+hear the roar of a little waterfall, for at this point the cutting
+stream flows upon the bed rock with its alternating bands of hard and
+soft rock through which the busy brook is cutting a miniature gorge.
+Here is a hard layer which the stream has undermined until it stands out
+as a shelf, over which the water leaps and falls in one mass with a drop
+of nearly ten feet. Watch how the water below boils and eddies; think
+with what force it is hammering its stone-cutting tools upon the rocky
+floor. Surely here is a place where the brook is cutting fast. Notice
+that swirling eddy where the water is whirling about with the speed of a
+spinning top; let us remember this eddy and when the water is lower we
+will try to see what is happening at its bottom.
+
+On the other side of the woods our brook emerges into a broad meadow;
+let us follow it and see what becomes of its load, whether it is carried
+onward, or whether the tired brook lays it down occasionally to rest.
+Out of the woods, the brook dashes down a steep incline until the
+foaming tide comes to rest in a deep pool. What becomes of the large
+pebbles which have been swept down? Do they go on or do they stop? If
+you go to the outlet of the pool you will see that the water is coming
+out with nothing in its grasp but the fine clay and sand, the gravel and
+pebbles having been dropped by the less rapid current of the pool. This
+is one of the most important of the brook's lessons, for anything that
+tends to check the current makes it drop some of the sediment that it
+carries (Fig. 44). Yonder is an old tree stump with its crooked roots
+caught fast on the bottom; the mid-stream current rushes against it only
+to be thrown back in a boiling eddy, and the waters split in twain and
+flow by on either side with their current somewhat checked. In the rear
+of the stump is a region of quiet water where the brook is building up a
+pile of gravel. Farther on, the banks of the brook are low and here the
+waters no longer remain in the channel, but overflow the low land,
+spreading out on either side in a broad sheet. The increased friction of
+this larger area reduces the current, and again we see the brook laying
+down some of its load. The sand and gravel deposited here is spread out
+in a flat plain called a _flood plain_, because it is built up when the
+stream is in flood. It is on the large flood plains of rivers that many
+of our richest farm lands occur. These receive, each spring when the
+stream is in flood, a fresh coating of soil mixed with fragments of
+vegetable matter, and thus grow deeper and richer year by year. The
+flood plains of the Mississippi and of the Nile are notable examples of
+this important form of stream deposit.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 45. A delta built by a tiny rill flowing from a
+steep clay bank._]
+
+And now let us make one more rainy-day observation before going back to
+our warm, dry homes. Just ahead on the other side of that clump of
+alders and willows lies the pond into which the brook flows and where
+its current is so checked that it gives up almost all its burden of
+sediment. Close to the shore it has dropped its heaviest fragments,
+while the sand and clay have been carried farther out, each to be
+dropped in its turn, carefully assorted as to size and weight. Here you
+can see that the stream has partly filled this end of the pond, and it
+is now sending its divided current out over the deposit which it has
+made in a series of branching rivulets. This deposit is called a _delta_
+(Fig. 45), and deltas are another important form of stream deposits. In
+the lakes and ponds, deltas may grow outward until the lake is filled,
+when the stream will meander across the level plain without much current
+and hence without much cutting power (Fig. 46). In the sea, great deltas
+are being formed in some places, like those at the mouths of the
+Mississippi, the Nile, and the Ganges. Large areas of dry land have thus
+been built. Deltas, like flood plains, afford rich farming lands when
+they are built high enough to remain above the water.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 46. A brook flowing across a pond which has been
+filled._]
+
+Here let us end our study of the brook for to-day, and wait until the
+rain ceases and the water runs clear again; then we can see the bottom
+and can also learn by contrast how much more work the brook has been
+doing to-day than it does when the volume of water is less.
+
+On the road home, however, we can notice how the temporary streams, as
+well as the everflowing brook, have been cutting and depositing. See
+where this tiny rill has run down that steep clay bank until its
+current was checked at the foot. Notice how it has spread out its
+sediment in a fan-shaped deposit. This form of deposit is sometimes made
+by larger streams, especially in a mountainous country with plains at
+the foot of the slopes. They are called _alluvial fans_ or _cone deltas_
+(Fig. 47), but they are not as important as flood plains and deltas.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 47. A brook building a delta into a lake. Formerly
+the brook flowed straight ahead, but its own delta has caused it to
+change its direction._]
+
+The first dry, sunny morning that comes we visit the brook again. It no
+longer roars, but its clear waters now sing a pleasant melody as they
+ripple along the stony bed. We can see at a glance that comparatively
+little work is going on to-day, and yet if we look closely, we shall see
+glittering particles of sand moving along the bottom. The clear water,
+however, allows us to study the bottom which before was hidden by the
+load of mud.
+
+First we see the rounded boulders and pebbles of all sizes which must
+have been rolled about for a long time to make them so smooth. Some of
+them are so very hard that we cannot even scratch them with our knives;
+others are soft and easily broken. What would be the effect of rolling
+together stones of such varying hardness? We must think of these stones
+as the tools with which the brook cuts and grinds, for water without
+sediment can do little more than slightly to dissolve the rock.
+
+Let us go at once to the little waterfall, for we shall be curious to
+see what lies at the bottom of the whirling eddy that drew our attention
+yesterday. As we look down into the sunlit pool we see that the eddy is
+gone, for the volume of water is not great enough to cause it to
+revolve, but there in the rock on the bottom is a deep basin-like hole.
+In the bottom of this hole we shall see a number of well-rounded stones,
+with perhaps some sand and gravel. These stones are the tools which,
+whirled about by the eddying water, have cut the basin-like holes. Holes
+of this sort are common in rocky stream beds, especially in the
+neighborhood of falls or in places where falls have once been; they are
+called _pot-holes_ and represent another form of stream cutting (Fig.
+48).
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 48. A pot-hole cut in the rock of a stream's bed._]
+
+Next let us visit the flood plains which we saw forming when the water
+was high. Now we shall find the brook flowing in its channel with the
+flood plain deposits left high and dry. If we dig down into the flood
+plain, we shall see that it is made up of successive layers varying in
+thickness and in the size of the fragments. Each of these layers
+represents a period of high water and the size of the fragments in the
+layer tells us something of the strength of the current, and therefore
+of the intensity of the flood. Some layers are thicker than others,
+showing a longer period of flood, or perhaps several floods in which
+there was little variation. This _stratification_, as it is called, is
+one of the peculiarities of water deposits and it is due to the
+assorting power of currents which vary in force. If we were to cut into
+the delta we should find the same thing to be true,--a regular
+succession of layers, though sometimes confused by changes in direction
+of flow.
+
+To-day we shall notice something which escaped our attention when it was
+held by the rushing torrent--the valley bottom is much wider than the
+bed of the stream; if we keep our eyes open we shall see the explanation
+of this in the abandoned channels, where, owing to some temporary
+obstructions, the stream has been turned from side to side of the
+valley, now cutting on one bank and now on the other. In this turning
+from side to side the cutting area of the stream is increased, and it
+goes on widening its valley as well as cutting it downward.
+
+And now we have learned some of the most important ways in which the
+busy brook is toiling; but there are other points which we might have
+seen, and in some brooks there are special features to be noted.
+However, we have learned that the brook is no idler, that its main work
+is to conduct to the ocean the rain that falls upon the earth's surface,
+and that in doing this it is wearing down the hills, carrying them away
+only to build up in other places. The cheerful song of the brook takes
+on a new meaning as we lie in the shade and watch it hurry by. It is not
+the song of idleness nor of pleasure, but like the song with which a
+cheerful and tireless worker seeks to make its task lighter.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XI.
+
+INSECT LIFE OF A BROOK.[13]
+
+BY MARY ROGERS MILLER.
+
+
+[13] Nature-Study Quarterly, No. 5: Leaflet 18, June, 1900.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+What wader, be he boy or water-fowl, has not watched the water-insects?
+How they dart hither and thither, some skimming the surface, others
+sturdily rowing about in the clear shallows! The sunlight fastens, for
+an instant, their grotesque reflections on the smooth bottom, then
+away--the shadow is lost, except for the picture it left in the memory
+of the onlooker.
+
+The splashing, dashing wader, with his shout and his all-disturbing
+stick, stands but a poor chance of making intimate acquaintances among
+water-folk. Your true brook-lover is a quiet individual except when
+occasion demands action. The lad who, from the vantage ground of a
+fallen log or overhanging bank, looks down on the housekeeping affairs
+of his tiny neighbors has the right spirit. Indeed, I doubt whether
+these little folk are aware of his presence or curiosity.
+
+Time was when the enjoyment of brook-life was limited to boys. White
+aprons, dainty slippers and fear of being called "Tom-boy" restrained
+the natural impulses of the "little women." Happily that day is past,
+and it no longer looks queer for girls to live in the open air and
+sunshine, free to chase butterflies and hunt water-bugs with their
+brothers.
+
+My brooks abound in swift eddies, perfect whirlpools in miniature, and
+water-falls of assorted sizes. They have also their quiet reaches, where
+whirligig beetles perform their marvelous gyrations, and bright-eyed
+polliwogs twirl their tails in early May. On the banks are ferns and
+mosses; sometimes willows and alders form a fringing border.
+
+The heart-leaved willows along many brooksides are found to bear at the
+tips of many of their branches, knob-like bodies which look like pine
+cones. (Fig. 49.) Now everybody knows that willows bear their seeds in
+catkins. Why, then, should so many brookside willows thrust these cones
+in our faces? On cutting one of the cones open, we learn the secret. A
+tiny colorless grub rolls helplessly out of a cell in the very centre of
+the cone. It is the young of a small gnat, scarcely larger than a
+mosquito, and known as a "gall gnat." The cone-shaped body on the willow
+branch is called a "pine-cone willow-gall." The little gray gnat comes
+out in the spring. Any one can collect the galls from the willows and
+keep them in some kind of cage in the house until the gnats come forth.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 49. Knob-like bodies resembling pine cones._]
+
+The pine-cone gall is an enlarged and deformed bud. The twig might have
+developed into a branch but for the presence of the little larva. The
+scales of the cone are the parts which under more favorable conditions
+would have been leaves. The brook-lover cannot afford to miss the
+pine-cone willow-galls.
+
+Wandering along the brookside in spring or early summer, one is
+surprised to find so many insect visitors darting about in the air.
+There are dragon-flies of many shapes, sizes and colors; dainty
+damsel-flies perch airily on reeds, their gleaming wings a-flutter in
+the sunshine; sometimes a nervous mud-wasp alights for a moment, and
+then up and away. The dragon-flies seem intent on coming as near to the
+water as possible without wetting their wings. They pay no heed to other
+visitors, yet how easily they escape the net of the would be collector!
+Let them alone. Their business is important if we would have a new
+generation of dragon-flies to delight the eye next year. The eggs of
+these creatures are left in the water and the young ones are aquatic. If
+you would know more of them, dip down into the stream in some sluggish
+bay. Dip deep and trail the net among the water plants. Besides
+dragon-fly nymphs there will be caddice-worm cases like tiny cob-houses,
+water-boatmen, back-swimmers, and giant water-bugs.[14] These are
+insects characteristic of still or sluggish water, and are found in
+spring and summer.
+
+[14] These and other forms found in still or slow flowing water are
+described and pictured in Leaflet No. XII, Life in an Aquarium.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 50. Water-striders have long, thin legs._]
+
+The insects which skip lightly over the surface of the water where the
+current is not too strong, are water-striders. (Fig. 50.) Some are short
+and stout, others slender-bodied; but all have long thin legs. Their
+color is nearly black. As they scurry about in the sunshine the
+delighted watcher will sometimes catch a glimpse of their reflections on
+the bottom. Six oval bits of shadow, outlined by rims of light; there is
+nothing else like it! Be sure you see it.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 51. The dobson makes no pretensions to beauty.
+(Natural size)._]
+
+Let us leave the quiet, restful pools and the sluggish bays, and follow
+the hurrying water to the rapids. Every stone changes the course of the
+current and the babble makes glad the heart of the wayfarer. Let us
+"leave no stone unturned," until we have routed from his favorite haunt
+that genius of the rapids, the dobson. (Fig. 51.) These creatures bear
+other common names. They are prized by fishermen in the black bass
+season. Dirty brown in color and frankly ugly in appearance and
+disposition, these larvæ, for such they are, have little to fear from
+the casual visitor at the water's edge. When a stone is lifted, the
+dobsons beneath it allow themselves to be hurried along for some
+distance by the current. The danger over, they "catch hold" and await
+their prey farther down stream. In spite of their vicious looking jaws
+these insects are not venomous. At the very worst they could do no more
+than pinch the finger of the unwary explorer.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 52. May-fly nymph._ (_Three times natural size_).]
+
+When the dobson is full grown, it is called a hellgrammite fly or horned
+corydalis. It has lost none of its ugliness, though it has gained two
+pairs of thin, brownish-gray wings, and flies about in the evening. It
+has been known to create some consternation by flying in at an open
+window. It is harmless and short-lived in the adult stage.
+
+Upturned stones are likely to bring to view other strangers. Lying close
+against these wet stony surfaces one usually finds young May-flies.
+(Fig. 52.[15]) These, like the young dragon-flies, are called _nymphs_.
+
+[15] Figures 52, 53 and 54 are adapted from Dr. R. Leuckart's Zoological
+Charts.
+
+When they are ready to leave the water they make their way to the shore,
+and, clinging to some convenient tree trunk or building, they shed their
+nymph skins. I have seen trees and buildings on the banks of the St.
+Lawrence river literally covered with these cast skins. In the early
+morning in June and July one may watch the molting process, the
+unfolding of the gauzy wings, and the unsheathing of the long filaments.
+(Fig. 53.)
+
+Do not believe that May-flies are harmful. They are sometimes too
+numerous for comfort at summer resorts where myriads of them swarm about
+the lights; but stories of their stinging and biting are entirely
+without foundation. They are short-lived in the adult stage. The name of
+the family to which they belong, _Ephemeridæ_, suggests their ephemeral
+existence. It is of these that poets have sung.
+
+Stone-fly nymphs, also, cling closely to the flat stones. The cast skins
+of these are frequently found on the banks of streams. They resemble
+the May-fly nymphs but can be identified by a comparison with these
+illustrations. (Fig. 54.)
+
+Sometimes on the very brink of a cataract one will see what appear like
+patches of loose black moss. Strangely enough, these are the larvæ of
+black-flies, related to the terrible black-fly of the north woods. The
+black-fly larvæ can live only in the swiftest water. There they pass
+through their transformations and succeed in emerging into their aërial
+stage, in spite of the rushing current.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 53. The May-fly sheds its nymph skin._ (_Twice
+natural size._)]
+
+All these things and many more are seen by those who frequent the water
+brooks. Observers cannot tell all they see, for some things are too deep
+for words. They can and do say to one and all, "Come, let us visit the
+brook together. The water and all that dwell in it and round about,
+invite us and make us welcome."
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 54. Stone-fly, showing one pair of wings. The
+lower figure is a nymph._ (_Twice natural size._)]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XII.
+
+LIFE IN AN AQUARIUM.[16]
+
+BY MARY ROGERS MILLER.
+
+
+[16] Teachers' Leaflet No. 11. May, 1898.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+There is no more fascinating adjunct to nature-study than a well-kept
+aquarium. It is a never-ending source of enjoyment, interest and
+instruction to students of any age. Children in the kindergarten or at
+home will watch with delight the lively occupants, which cut all sorts
+of queer capers for their amusement, and older people may read some of
+nature's choicest secrets through the glassy sides of the little water
+world. To many, the word aquarium suggests a vision of an elaborately
+constructed glass box, ornamented with impossible rock-work and strange
+water plants, or a globe in which discouraged and sickly-looking
+gold-fish appear and disappear, and take strange, uncanny shapes as they
+dart hither and thither.
+
+Such forms of aquaria have their place in the world, but they are not
+suited to the needs of an ordinary school-room. Every school may have
+some sort of an aquarium if the teacher and pupils are willing to give
+it some daily thought and care. Without such attention a fine aquarium
+may become an unsightly and disagreeable object, its inhabitants
+unhealthy and its beauty and usefulness lost.
+
+The great fundamental principle underlying success in making and
+maintaining an aquarium is this: _imitate nature_. We all know how much
+easier it is to formulate a principle, and even to write a book about
+it, than to put it into practice. Most of us have not had the time and
+opportunity for the close observation of nature necessary to interpret
+her methods and to imitate her. It is to those teachers who are anxious
+to learn what nature has to teach and who wish to lead their pupils to a
+higher and wider conception of life, that these suggestions are offered.
+
+Four things are important in making and keeping an aquarium:
+
+1. The equilibrium between plant and animal life must be secured and
+maintained. It is probable that an aquarium in an elementary school is
+mainly used for the study of animal life; but animals do not thrive in
+water where no plants are growing. Nature keeps plants and animals in
+the same pond and we must follow her lead. The plants have three
+valuable functions in the aquarium. First, they supply food for the
+herbivorous creatures. Second, they give off a quantity of oxygen which
+is necessary to the life of the animals. Third, they take up from the
+water the harmful carbonic acid gas which passes from the bodies of the
+animals. Just how the plants do this is another story.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 55. A museum-jar aquarium. (More animal life would
+make a better equilibrium._)]
+
+2. The aquarium must be ventilated. Its top should be broad and open.
+Every little fish, snail and insect wants air, just as every boy and
+girl wants it. A certain quantity of air is mixed with the water, and
+the creatures must breathe that or come to the surface for their supply.
+How does Mother Nature manage the ventilation of her aquaria,--the ponds
+and streams? The plants furnish part of the air, as we have said. The
+open pond, whose surface is ruffled by every passing breeze, is
+constantly being provided with fresh air. A tadpole or a fish can no
+more live in a long-necked bottle than a boy can live in a chimney.
+
+3. The temperature should be kept between 40° and 50° Fahr. Both nature
+and experience teach us this. A shady corner is a better place for the
+aquarium than a sunny window on a warm day.
+
+4. It is well to choose such animals for the aquarium as are adapted to
+life in still water. Unless one has an arrangement of water pipes to
+supply a constant flow of water through the aquarium, it is better not
+to try to keep creatures that we find in swift streams.
+
+Practical experience shows that there are certain dangers to guard
+against,--dangers which may result in the unnecessary suffering of the
+innocent. Perhaps the most serious results come from overstocking. It is
+better to have too few plants or animals than too many of either. A
+great deal of light, especially bright sunlight, is not good for the
+aquarium. A pond that is not shaded soon becomes green with a thick
+growth of slime or algæ. This does not look well in an aquarium and is
+likely to take up so much of the plant-food that the other plants are
+"starved out." The plants in the school-room window may provide shade
+for the aquarium, just as the trees and shrubs on its banks shade the
+pond. If we find green slime forming on the light side of our miniature
+pond, we should put it in a darker place, shade it heavily so that the
+light comes in from the top only, and put in a few more snails. These
+will make quick work of the green slime, since they are fond of it, if
+we are not.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 56. A rectangular glass aquarium._]
+
+Some of the most innocent-looking "water nymphs" may be concealing
+habits that we can hardly approve. There are some which feed on their
+smaller and weaker neighbors, and even on the members of their own
+families. We know that such things go on in nature, but if we wish to
+have a happy family we must keep the cannibals by themselves.
+
+After an aquarium has been filled with water and the inhabitants well
+established, it is not necessary to change the water, except in case of
+accident. The water that is lost by evaporation has to be replaced. It
+should be poured in gently in order not to disturb the water and destroy
+its clearness. If a piece of rubber tubing is available, a practical use
+of the siphon can be shown and the aquarium replenished at the same
+time. It is a good plan to use rain water, or clear water from a pond,
+for this purpose.
+
+A piece of thin board or a pane of glass may be used as a cover to keep
+the dust out of the aquarium. This need not fit tightly or be left on
+all the time. A wire netting or a cover of thin cotton net would keep
+the flying insects from escaping, and it might be tied on permanently.
+Dust may be skimmed off the top of the water or may be removed by laying
+pieces of blotting paper on the surface for a moment.
+
+If any of the inhabitants do not take kindly to the life in the
+aquarium, they can be taken out and kept in a jar by themselves--a sort
+of fresh air and cold water cure. If any chance to die they ought to be
+removed before they make the water unfit for the others. Bits of
+charcoal in the water are helpful if a deodorizer or disinfectant is
+needed.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 57. A home-made aquarium._]
+
+Experience, the dear but thorough teacher, is of more value to every one
+of us than many rules and precepts. Nothing can rob us of the pleasure
+that comes of finding things out for ourselves. Much of the fun as well
+as much of the success in life comes from overcoming its difficulties.
+One must have a large store of patience and courage and hopefulness to
+undertake the care of an aquarium. After it is once made it is less
+trouble to take care of than a canary or a pet rabbit. But most things
+that are worth doing require patience, courage and hopefulness, and if
+we can add to our store of any of these by our study of life in an
+aquarium we are so much the better for it.
+
+Two kinds of aquaria will be found useful in any school. Permanent
+ones--those which are expected to continue through a season or through a
+whole year if the school-room is warm enough to prevent freezing; and
+temporary ones--those which are for lesson hours or for the study of
+special forms.
+
+If some one phase in the life of any aquatic animal is to be studied
+during a short period, it is well to have special temporary aquaria.
+Also, when a talk on some of the occupants of the larger aquarium is to
+be given, specimens may be placed in small vessels for the time being
+and returned later. For such purposes glass tumblers can be used, or
+small fruit jars, finger bowls, broken goblets set in blocks of wood,
+ordinary white bowls or dishes, tubs, pails or tanks for large
+fishes,--in fact any wide-mouthed vessel which is easy to get. Special
+suggestions will be made in connection with the study of some of the
+water insects and others.
+
+A permanent aquarium need not be an expensive affair. The rectangular
+ones are best if large fishes are to be kept, yet they are not
+essential. Here, again, it is easier to write directions for the
+construction of a perfect aquarium than it is for the most patient
+teacher, with the help of the boys who are handy with tools, to put
+together a box of wood and glass that will not spring a leak some day
+and spoil everything. But failures do not discourage us; they make us
+only more determined. If a rectangular water-tight box is out of the
+question, what is the next best thing? One of the busiest laboratories
+in New York State has plants and animals living in jars of all shapes
+and sizes,--fruit jars, glass butter jars, candy jars, battery jars,
+museum jars, and others of like nature. There are rectangular and round
+aquaria of various sizes kept by all firms who deal in laboratory
+supplies, and if some money is to be spent, one of these is a good
+investment. Fig. 56 shows one of these rectangular ones, and Fig. 57
+shows a round one of small size which is useful and does not cost much.
+
+
+A GOOD SCHOOL AQUARIUM.
+
+A cheap, substantial aquarium for general use may be made of glass and
+"angle" or "valley" tin. Pieces of glass are always handy and the tin
+can be had at any tin-shop. The tinsmith will know just how to cut,
+"angle" and solder it.
+
+The following directions for making an aquarium of this kind are
+supplied us by Professor C. F. Hodge of Clark University. He has made
+and used them for years with great satisfaction in the university
+laboratory and in graded schools.
+
+The illustration (Fig. 58, 59) shows various sizes. A good all-round
+size has these dimensions: 12 inches high, 15 inches long and 8 inches
+wide. One may use spoiled photographic plates for small desk aquaria, in
+which to watch the development of "wigglers," dragon-fly nymphs or other
+water insects. Lids of wire screen are shown on some of the aquaria in
+the picture (1, 2 and 3).
+
+_To make the frame._--If the aquarium is to be 10 x 8 x 5 inches, we
+shall need two pieces of glass for sides 10 x 5 inches, two for ends 8 x
+10, and one for bottom 8 x 5; and two strips of tin 3/4 inch wide, 28
+inches long, and four strips 10-3/8 inches long. These should be angled
+by the tinner, and out of them we shall make the frame. The 28-inch
+strips should be cut with tinner's snips half way in two at 10-3/8,
+5-3/8, 10-3/8 and 5-3/8 inches, cutting off the end at the last mark.
+This keeps the top and the bottom of the frame each in one piece. Next
+we bend them into shape. When the corners are well squared they should
+be soldered. The four 10-3/8 pieces make the vertical corners and we
+will solder them in place. An easy way to be sure that each angle is
+square is to hold it in a mechanic's square while soldering it.
+
+[Illustration: _Figs. 58, 59. Permanent aquarium made of tin and
+glass._]
+
+_To set the glass._--Lay the aquarium cement (see recipe) on evenly all
+around the bottom of the frame and press the bottom glass into place.
+Put in the sides and ends in the same way. Next carefully put a few very
+limber twigs into the aquarium to hold the glass against the frame till
+the cement takes hold. Cut off the extra cement with a knife and smooth
+it nicely. Cover the frame with asphaltum varnish or black lacquer. In
+a week it will be ready to use.
+
+Double thick glass must be used for large aquaria.
+
+_Cement._--Shun all resinous cements that require to be put on hot. The
+following is a recipe for cement used in successful angle tin aquaria,
+for both salt and fresh water:
+
+  10 parts, by measure, fine, dry, white sand,
+  10 parts plaster of Paris,
+  10 parts litharge,
+  1 part powdered resin.
+
+Stir well together and, as wanted, mix to consistency of _stiff_ putty
+with _pure_ boiled linseed oil.
+
+The formula given by the U. S. Fish Commission is recommended:
+
+  8 parts putty,
+  1 part red lead,
+  1 part litharge.
+
+Mix, when wanted, to consistency of _stiff_ putty, with raw linseed oil.
+
+After reading all these directions and getting the idea of an aquarium,
+one should think the whole matter out for himself and make it just as he
+wants it. Directions are useful as suggestions only. The shallow form is
+better for raising toads, frogs and insect larvæ; the deeper aquaria
+show water plants and fishes to better advantage.
+
+
+INHABITANTS OF THE AQUARIUM.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 60. Eel-grass._]
+
+It is now time to begin to think about what shall be kept in the
+aquarium. At the bottom a layer of sand, the cleaner the better, two or
+three inches deep will be needed. A few stones, not too large, may be
+dropped in on top of this first layer, to make it more natural. The
+water plants come next and will thrive best if planted securely in the
+sand. The most difficult thing is to get the water in without stirring
+things up. A good way is to pour the water in a slow stream against the
+inside of the aquarium. The best way is to use a rubber tube siphon, but
+even then the water ought not to flow from a very great height. If the
+aquarium is large, it had better be put in its permanent place before
+filling.
+
+The aquarium will soon be ready for snails, polliwogs, and what ever
+else we may wish to put into it. In the course of a few days the plants
+will be giving up oxygen and asking for carbon dioxid.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 61. Duck-weed._]
+
+_Plants that thrive and are useful in aquaria._--Many of the common
+marsh or pond plants are suitable. The accompanying illustrations show a
+few of these. Nothing can be prettier than some of these soft, delicate
+plants in the water. The eel-grass, or tape grass (Fig. 60), is an
+interesting study in itself, especially at blossoming time when the
+spiral stems, bearing flowers, appear.
+
+Any who are especially interested in the life-history of this plant may
+read in reference books a great deal about what other observers have
+learned from the plant concerning its methods of growth and development.
+The best that we learn will be what the plant itself tells us day by
+day.
+
+Some of the best reference books on both plant and animal life are found
+in the New York State Teachers' Library and can be obtained by teachers
+through the school commissioners.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 62. Water plants._]
+
+Every boy and girl who likes to taste the fresh, peppery plants which
+they find growing in cold springs, knows watercress. If the aquarium is
+not too deep, this plant will grow above the surface and furnish a
+resting place for some snail which, tired perhaps by its constant
+activity, enjoys a few minutes in the open air.
+
+Duck-weed or duck's-meat (Fig. 61) grows on the surface, dangling its
+long thread-like roots in the water. A little of it is enough. Too much
+would keep us from looking down upon our little friends in the water.
+
+The parrot's feather (Fig. 62, A) is an ornamental water plant that can
+be obtained from a florist; a plant that looks very like it grows in our
+ponds. It is called water-milfoil.
+
+The water purslane, B, or the common stoneworts, _Nitella_ and _Chara_,
+D, E, the waterweed, F, and the horn-wort, C, appear graceful and pretty
+in the water. If you do not find any of these, you are sure to find
+others growing in the ponds in your neighborhood which will answer the
+purpose just as well.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 63. Snail._]
+
+_Animals that may be kept in aquaria._--_The snail._ The common pond
+snail with the spiral shell, either flat or conical, can be found
+clinging to the stems of the cat-tails or flags and to floating rubbish
+in ponds or swamps. If these are picked off carefully and taken home in
+a pail of water they will be valuable inhabitants for the aquarium. They
+are vegetable feeders and unless there is some green slime in the water,
+cabbage or lettuce leaves may be put where the snails can get them. The
+eggs of the snail are excellent food for fishes, and if a few could be
+secured for special study, their form, habits and development may be
+made delightful observation and drawing lessons. Snails can be kept out
+of the water for some time on moist earth. Land snails and slugs should
+be kept on wet sand and fed with lettuce and cabbage leaves. The common
+slug of the garden is often injurious to vegetation. It may always be
+tracked by the trail of slime it leaves behind it. Gardeners often
+protect plants from those creatures by sprinkling wood-ashes about them.
+
+_Minnows._ Every boy knows where to find these spry little fellows. They
+can be collected with a dipper or net and will thrive in an aquarium if
+fed with earth worms or flies or other insects. If kept in small
+quarters where food is scarce, they will soon dispatch the other
+occupants of the jar. They will, however, eat bits of fresh meat. If the
+aquarium is large enough, it would hardly be complete without minnows.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 64. Snail with conical shell._]
+
+_Cat fish._--It will not be practicable to keep a cat fish in the
+permanent aquarium. If one is to be studied it can be obtained at any
+fish market or by angling, the latter a slow method, but one which will
+appeal to every boy in the class. The cat fish should be kept in a tub,
+tank, or large pan of water, and if not wanted for laboratory work, they
+might be fried for lunch, as cat fish are very good eating.
+
+_Gold fish_ are a special delight if kept in large aquaria. These may
+often be obtained from dealers in the larger cities. Those who wish
+other fish for study should be able to get information from the New York
+State Fish Culturist, concerning the species that are suited to life in
+still water, and how to get and take care of them.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 65. "Frog spawn."_]
+
+_The clam._--If empty clam shells are plenty on the bank of some stream
+after a freshet, a supply of clams may be obtained by raking the mud or
+sand at the bottom of the stream. They can be kept in a shallow pan, and
+if the water is warmish and they are left undisturbed for a time, they
+will move about. If kept in a jar of damp sand they will probably bury
+themselves. They feed on microscopic plants and might not thrive in the
+permanent aquarium.
+
+_Crawfish or crayfish._--These can be collected with nets from under
+stones in creeks or ponds. They can live very comfortably out of the
+water part of the time. There is small chance for the unsuspecting snail
+or water insect which comes within reach of the hungry jaws of the
+crawfish, and the temporary aquarium is the safest place for him. Many
+who live near the ocean can obtain and keep in sea water the lobster, a
+cousin of the crawfish, and will find that the habits of either will
+afford much amusement as well as instruction. The school boy generally
+knows the crawfish as a "crab."
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 66. A useful net for general collecting._]
+
+_The frog._--The study of the development of the common frog is
+accompanied with little or no difficulty. To be sure there are some
+species which require two or three years to complete their growth and
+changes, from the egg to the adult, yet most of the changes can be seen
+in one year. Frogs are not at all shy in the spring, proclaiming their
+whereabouts in no uncertain tones from every pond in the neighborhood.
+The "frog spawn" can be found clinging to plants or rubbish in masses
+varying in size from a cluster of two or three eggs to great lumps as
+large as the two fists. The "spawn" is a transparent jelly in which the
+eggs are imbedded. Each egg is dark colored, spherical in shape, and
+about as large as a small pea. The eggs of the small spotted salamander
+are found in similar masses of jelly and look very much like the frog's
+eggs. If a small quantity of this jelly-like mass be secured by means of
+a collecting net or by wading in for it, it may be kept in a flat white
+dish with just enough clean, cool water to cover it, until the young
+tadpoles have hatched. As they grow larger a few may be transferred to a
+permanent aquarium prepared especially for them in a dish with sloping
+sides, and their changes watched from week to week through the season.
+The growing polliwog feeds on vegetable diet; what does the full grown
+frog eat?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 67. The predaceous diving-beetle._]
+
+_Insects that can be kept in aquaria._--Insects are to many the most
+satisfactory creatures that can be keep in aquaria. They are plentiful,
+easy to get, each one of the many kinds seems to have habits peculiar to
+itself, and each more curious and interesting than the last.
+
+Some insects spend their entire life in the water; others are aquatic
+during one stage of their existence only. Those described here are a few
+of the common ones in ponds and sluggish streams, of the central part of
+the state of New York. If these cannot be found, others just as
+interesting may be kept instead. One can hardly make a single dip with a
+net without bringing out of their hiding places many of these "little
+people."
+
+The predaceous diving-beetle (Fig. 67) is well named. He is a diver by
+profession and is a skilled one. The young of this beetle are known as
+"water-tigers" (Fig. 68), and their habits justify the name. Their food
+consists of the young of other insects; in fact it is better to keep
+them by themselves unless we wish to have the aquarium depopulated. When
+the tiger has reached his full size, his form changes and he rests for a
+time as a pupa; then comes forth as a hard, shiny beetle like Fig. 67.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 68. A water-tiger._]
+
+The water-scavenger beetle (Fig. 69), so called because of its appetite
+for decayed matter, is common in many ponds. It has, like the diving
+beetle, a hard, shiny back, with a straight line down the middle, but
+the two can be distinguished when seen together. The young of this
+beetle look and act something like the water-tigers, but have not such
+great ugly jaws.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 69. A water-scavenger beetle._]
+
+There are three other swimmers even more delightful to watch than those
+already mentioned. The water-boatmen (Fig. 70), with their sturdy
+oar-like legs and business-like way of using them, are droll little
+fellows. They are not so large as the back-swimmers. Fig. 71 shows a
+back-swimmer just in the act of pulling a stroke. These creatures swim
+with their boat-shaped backs down and their six legs up. We must be
+careful how we handle the back-swimmers, for each one of them carries a
+sharp bill and may give us a thrust with it which would be painful,
+perhaps poisonous.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 70. Water-boatman._]
+
+The water-scorpion (Fig. 72) is a queer creature living in a neighborly
+way with the boatmen and back-swimmers, though not so easy to find. Do
+not throw away any dirty little twig which you find in the net after a
+dip among water plants near the bottom of a stream or pond. It may begin
+to squirm and reveal the fact that it is no twig but a slender-legged
+insect with a spindle-shaped body. We may handle it without danger, as
+it is harmless. This is a water-scorpion, and his way of catching his
+prey and getting his air supply will be interesting to watch. He is not
+shy and will answer questions about himself promptly and cheerfully.
+Fig. 72 will give an idea of the size and appearance of this insect.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 71. A back-swimmer._]
+
+No water insect except the big scavenger beetle can begin to compare in
+size with the giant water-bug (Fig. 73). We may think at first that he
+is a beetle, yet the way he crosses his wings on his back proves him a
+true bug. In quiet ponds these giants are common enough, but the boy or
+girl who "bags" a full-grown one at the first dip of the net may be
+considered lucky.
+
+The boatmen, back-swimmers and giants all have oars, yet are not
+entirely dependent on them. They have strong wings, too, and if their
+old home gets too thickly settled, and the other insects on which they
+feed are scarce, they fly away to other places. The giant water-bug
+often migrates at night, and is attracted to any bright light he sees in
+his journey. This habit has given him the popular name of
+"electric-light bug."
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 72. Water-scorpion._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 73. Giant water-bug._]
+
+Among the insects which spend but part of their life in the water, we
+shall find many surprises. It made us feel queer when we learned that
+the restless but innocent-looking wiggler of the rain-water barrel was
+really the young of the too familiar mosquito. The adult mosquito
+leaves its eggs in tiny boat-shaped masses on the surface of stagnant
+water, where food will be abundant for the young which soon appear. Some
+time is spent by the wigglers in eating and growing before they curl up
+into pupæ. Insects are rarely active in the pupa stage. The mosquito is
+one of the very few exceptions. From these lively pupæ the full-grown
+mosquitoes emerge. Fig. 74 shows a small glass tumbler in which are seen
+the three aquatic stages of the mosquito's life and an adult just
+leaving the pupa skin. Nothing is easier than to watch the entire
+development of the mosquito, and the changes must be seen to be fully
+enjoyed and appreciated. It would be interesting to note the differences
+between the mosquitoes that come out of the small aquaria. A supply of
+wigglers may be kept in the permanent aquarium where they serve as food
+for the other insects.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 74. Temporary aquarium, containing eggs, larvæ and
+pupæ of mosquito._]
+
+Every child knows the dragon-fly or darning-needle, and none but the
+bravest of them dare venture near one without covering ears or eyes or
+mouth, for fear of being sewed. Many and wide-spread are the
+superstitions concerning this insect, and it is often difficult to bring
+children to believe that this creature, besides being a thing of beauty,
+is not only harmless but actually beneficial. If they knew how many
+mosquitos the darning-needle eats in a day they would welcome instead of
+fearing the gay creature.
+
+The young of the dragon-fly live a groveling existence, as different as
+can be from that of their sun-loving parents. Their food consists of
+mosquito larvæ, water-fleas and the like, and their method of catching
+their prey is as novel as it is effective. Pupils and teacher can get
+plenty of good healthy entertainment out of the behavior of these
+awkward and voracious little mask-wearers. The first dip of the net
+usually brings up a supply of dragon-fly nymphs and of their more
+slender cousins, the damsel-fly nymphs. The latter have expanded
+plate-like appendages at the hind end of the body which distinguish them
+from the dragon-fly nymphs.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 75. The life history of a dragon-fly as seen in an
+aquarium._]
+
+The transformation of one of these young insects into an adult is one of
+the most interesting observation lessons that can be imagined for a warm
+spring morning. If a dragon-fly nymph should signify its intention of
+changing its form in my school-room, I should certainly suspend all
+ordinary work and attend to him alone. Each child should see if possible
+this wonderful transfiguration.
+
+Floating in the water of a pond or stream one may find a little bundle
+of grass or weed stems, with perhaps a tiny pebble clinging to the mass.
+Close examination will prove this to be the "house-boat" of one of our
+insect neighbors, the caddice-worm. Contrasting strangely with the
+untidy exterior is the neat interior, with its lining of delicate silk,
+so smooth that the soft-bodied creature which lives inside is safe from
+injury. The commonest of the many forms of houses found here are those
+illustrated in Figs. 76 and 77. These will find all they wish to eat in
+a well-stocked aquarium. When full grown they will leave the water as
+winged creatures, like Fig. 78, and return to its depths no more.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 76. Case of caddice-worm._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 77. Another caddice-worm case._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 78. Caddice-fly._]
+
+There is surely no lack of material furnished by Mother Nature
+for the study of aquatic life. Every one who really believes in its
+usefulness can have an aquarium, and will feel well repaid for the
+time and effort required when the renewed interest in nature is
+witnessed which this close contact with living beings brings
+to every student. Let us take hold with a will, overcome the
+difficulties in the way, and teacher and pupils become students
+together.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XIII.
+
+A STUDY OF FISHES.[17]
+
+BY H. D. REED.
+
+
+[17] Nature-Study Quarterly, No. 8: Leaflet 21. January, 1901.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+The first forms of animal life which attract the young naturalist's
+attention are doubtless the birds. These are most interesting to him
+because of their beautiful colors, their sweet songs, and the grace with
+which they fly. But who has watched the fishes in a brook or an aquarium
+and is not able to grant them a place, in beauty, grace and delicate
+coloration, equal to the birds? To be sure, fishes cannot sing, yet
+there are so many other interesting facts in connection with their
+habits and life-histories that it fully makes up for their lack of
+voice.
+
+
+THE PARTS OF A FISH.
+
+While observing a living fish and admiring its beauty, it will probably
+occur to some of us that a fish consists only of a head and tail. Yet
+this is not all. Between the head and tail is a part that we may call
+the trunk. It contains the digestive and other organs. There is no
+indication of a neck in a fish. Any such constriction would destroy the
+regular outline of the animal's body and thus retard the speed with
+which it moves through the water. But head, trunk and tail are not all.
+There are attached to the outer side of the fish's body certain
+appendages that are called fins.
+
+Before discussing some of the different kinds of fishes and their
+habits, it will be necessary to learn something about fins, for the fins
+of all fishes are not alike. When a fish moves through the water, it
+bends its tail first to one side and then to the other. This undulatory
+movement, as it is called, pushes the fish's body ahead. One can observe
+the movements easily upon a specimen kept alive in an aquarium jar. At
+the extreme end of the tail there is a broad, notched fin which aids
+the tail in propelling and steering the body. We will call this the
+_tail_ or _caudal_ fin (Fig. 79 B). In most of our common fishes there
+are seven fins--six without the caudal. The first of these six is a
+large fin situated near the middle of the back. This is the _back_ or
+_dorsal_ fin (Fig. 79 A). Sometimes we may find a fish that has two
+dorsal fins. In this case the one nearest the head is called first
+dorsal and the next one behind it the second dorsal. Near the head, in a
+position corresponding to our arms, is a pair of fins which are called
+the _arm_ or _pectoral_ fins (Fig. 79 E). Farther back towards the tail,
+on the under side of the fish, is another pair, corresponding in
+position to the hind legs of a quadruped. This pair is called the _leg_
+or _pelvic_ fins (Fig. 79 D). Just behind the pelvic fins is a single
+fin, situated on the middle line of the body. This is the _anal_ fin
+(Fig. 79 C). The pectoral and pelvic fins are called paired fins because
+they are in pairs. The others which are not in pairs are called median
+fins, because they are situated on the middle line of the body. The
+paired fins serve as delicate balancers to keep the body right side up
+and to regulate speed. They are also used to propel the body backwards.
+After naming the different fins of the fish in the schoolroom aquarium,
+it will be interesting to observe the uses of each.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 79. Diagram of a fish to show: A, dorsal fin; B,
+caudal fin; C, anal fin; D, pelvic fins; E, pectoral fins; L, lateral
+line._]
+
+On the side of the body, extending from the head to the caudal fin, is,
+in most fishes, a line made up of a series of small tubes which open
+upon the surface. This is called the _lateral line_, and acts in the
+capacity of a sense organ (Fig. 79 L). Is the lateral line straight or
+curved? Does it curve upwards or downwards? Does the curvature differ in
+different kinds of fishes? Do all the fishes you find possess a lateral
+line? Is the lateral line complete in all fishes, _i. e._, does it
+extend from the head to the caudal fin without a single break?
+
+WHERE FISHES SPEND THE WINTER.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 80. 1, Shiner; 2, Barred Killifish; 3, Black-nosed
+Dace; 4, Creek Chub; 5, Young of Large-mouthed Black Bass; 6,
+Varying-toothed Minnow._]
+
+As winter approaches and the leaves fall and the ground becomes frozen,
+the birds leave us and go farther south into warmer climates where food
+is more abundant. We are all familiar with this habit of the birds, but
+how many of us know or have even wondered what the fishes have been
+doing through the cold winter months while the streams and ponds have
+been covered with ice? Before the warmth of spring comes to raise the
+temperature of the streams, let us go to some familiar place in a brook
+where, during the summer, are to be found scores of minnows. None are to
+be found now. The brook shows no signs of ever having contained any
+living creatures. Suppose we go farther up or down the stream until we
+find a protected pool the bottom of which is covered with sediment and
+water-soaked leaves. With our net we will dip up some of the leaves and
+sediment, being sure that we dip from the very bottom. On looking over
+this mass of muddy material we may find a fish two or three inches long,
+with very fine scales, a black back, a silvery belly and a blackish or
+brown band on the side of the body extending from the tip of the nose to
+the tail. This is the _Black-nosed Dace_ (Fig. 80). If specimens of this
+fish are caught very early in the spring, one will be able to watch
+some interesting color changes. As the spawning time approaches, the
+dark band on the sides and the fins change to a bright crimson.
+Sometimes the whole body may be of this gaudy color. During the summer
+the lateral band becomes orange. As the season goes, the bright colors
+gradually fade until finally, in the fall and winter, the little
+black-nose is again clothed in his more modest attire. A great many of
+the fishes, and especially the larger ones, seek some deep pond or pool
+in the stream at the approach of winter, and remain near the bottom. If
+the pond or stream is so deep that they do not become chilled they will
+remain active, swimming about and taking food all winter. But when the
+stream is very shallow and the fishes feel the cold, they settle down to
+the bottom, moving about very little and taking little or no food. The
+carp collect in small numbers and pass the winter in excavations that
+they make in the muddy bottom. If the débris thrown up by the water
+across the marshy end of a lake be raked over during the winter, one
+will probably find some of the smaller catfishes spending the season in
+a semi-dormant state.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 81. The Common Catfish or Bullhead._]
+
+Some interesting experiments may be tried with the fishes in the
+aquarium jar. Keep them for a few days where it is cold and then bring
+them into a warmer room and note the difference in their activity.
+
+
+THE COMMON CATFISH OR BULLHEAD.
+
+This sleepy old fellow differs in many respects from most of our common
+fishes. He has no scales. About the mouth are eight long whisker-like
+appendages, called barbels (Fig. 81). Perhaps he is called catfish
+because he has whiskers about his mouth like a cat. Any one who has ever
+taken a catfish from the hook probably knows that care is needed in
+order not to receive a painful prick from the sharp spines in his
+pectoral and dorsal fins.
+
+There is nothing aristocratic about the catfish. In warm pools and
+streams where the water is sluggish and the muddy bottom is covered with
+weeds, he may be found moving lazily about in search of food. His taste
+is not delicate. Animal substance, whether living or dead, satisfies
+him. When in search of food he makes good use of his barbels, especially
+those at the corners of his mouth, which he uses as feelers. The catfish
+will live longer out of water than most of our other food fishes. They
+will live and thrive in water which is far too impure for "pumpkin
+seeds" or bass. They spawn late in the spring. The mother fish cares for
+her young much as a hen cares for her chickens. When they are old enough
+to take care of themselves, she weans them.
+
+
+THE COMMON SUNFISH OR PUMPKIN SEED.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 82. The common Sunfish or Pumpkin Seed._]
+
+Some evening just at sunset visit a quiet pool in a nearby stream. Drop
+in your hook baited with an "angle worm" and presently the dancing cork
+shows that you have a "bite." On "pulling up" you find that you really
+have a fish. It is a beautiful creature, too--thin flat body shaped
+something like the seed of a pumpkin. His back is an olive green
+delicately shaded with blue. His sides are spotted with orange, while
+his belly is a bright yellow. His cheeks are orange-color streaked with
+wavy lines of blue. Just behind his eye on his "ear-flap" is a bright
+scarlet spot. This is the common _Sunfish_ or _Pumpkin Seed_ (Fig. 82).
+He is a very beautiful, aristocratic little fellow, "looking like a
+brilliant coin fresh from the mint."
+
+Keep him alive in an aquarium jar with a shiner. Compare the two fishes,
+as to the size and shape of their bodies and fins. Feed them different
+kinds of food, such as worms, insects and crackers, and try to discover
+which they like best and how they eat.
+
+The sunfishes prefer quiet waters. They lay their eggs in the spring of
+the year. The male selects a spot near the banks of the stream or pond
+where the water is very shallow. Here he clears a circular area about a
+foot in diameter. After making a slight excavation in the gravel or
+sand, the nest is completed. The eggs are then deposited by the female
+in the basin-like excavation. He watches his nest and eggs with great
+diligence, driving away other fishes that chance to come near.
+
+
+THE BLACK BASSES.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 83. Adult Small-mouthed Black Bass._]
+
+The black basses are not usually found in small streams where it is most
+pleasant for teachers and pupils to fish. They are fishes that seek the
+rivers and lakes. There are two kinds of black bass, the _Large-mouthed_
+and the _Small-mouthed_. As the name indicates, the two may be
+distinguished by the size of the mouth. In the large-mouthed black bass
+the upper jaw extends to a point behind the eye, while in the
+small-mouthed species it extends to a point just below the middle of the
+eye (Fig. 83).
+
+Both kinds of black bass may be found in the same body of water. The
+character of the bottoms over which they are found, however, differs.
+The small-mouthed prefers the stony bars or shoals. The large-mouthed,
+on the contrary, selects a muddy bottom grown over with reeds. They feed
+upon crayfish ("crabs"), minnows, frogs, worms, tadpoles and insects.
+Our black basses are very queer parents. They prepare a nest in which
+the eggs are deposited. Both male and female are very courageous in the
+defense of their eggs and young. As soon as the young fishes are able to
+take care of themselves the parent fishes leave them, and after that
+time may even feed upon their own children.
+
+
+THE STICKLEBACK.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 84. A Stickleback._]
+
+The sticklebacks are queer little fellows indeed (Fig. 84). The slender
+body, extremely narrow tail, and the sharp, free spines in front of the
+dorsal fin, give them at once the appearance of being both active and
+pugnacious little creatures. The sticklebacks are detrimental to the
+increase of other fishes since they greedily destroy the spawn and young
+of all fishes that come within their reach. They build nests about two
+inches in diameter, with a hole in the top. After the eggs are laid the
+male defends the nest with great bravery. The little five-spined brook
+stickleback in the Cayuga Lake basin, N. Y., is most commonly found in
+stagnant pools, shaded by trees, where the water is filled with decaying
+vegetable matter,--the so-called "green frog-spawn" (spirogyra), and
+duck weed. If you supply the sticklebacks with plenty of fine vegetable
+material, you may induce them to built a nest in the aquarium jar, but
+they must be caught and placed in the jar early in the season before
+they spawn.
+
+
+THE JOHNNY DARTERS.
+
+In New York State, every swift stream which has a bed of gravel and flat
+stones ought to contain some one of the Johnny darters, for there are a
+great many different kinds (Fig. 85). They are little creatures,
+delighting in clear water and swift currents where they dart about,
+hiding under stones and leaves, or resting on the bottom with their
+heads up-stream. The body of a darter is compact and spindle-shaped,
+gradually tapering from the short head to a narrow tail. The eyes are
+situated nearly on top of the head. The color of the darters varies
+greatly with the different kinds. Some are very plain, the light ground
+color being broken only by a few brown markings. Others are gorgeous in
+their colorings, it seeming as if they had attempted to reproduce the
+rainbow on their sides. Such kinds are indeed very attractive and are
+ranked with the most beautifully colored of all our common fishes. When
+a darter swims, he appears bird-like, for he flies through the water
+much as a bird flies through the air. He does not use his tail alone in
+swimming, as the catfish, the sunfish, the stickleback, and most of the
+other fishes do, but flies with his pectoral fins.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 85. A Johnny Darter._]
+
+You surely must have a Johnny darter in your aquarium jar. The Johnnies
+are true American fishes. Though small, they face the strong currents
+and eke out a living where their larger cousin, the yellow perch, would
+perish. There are many interesting facts which may be learned from the
+Johnny darters when kept alive in an aquarium. When not actually moving
+in the water, do the Johnnies rest on the bottom of the jar or remain
+suspended in the middle apparently resting on nothing, as the other
+aquarium fishes do? When a fish remains still in the middle of the jar
+he does so because he has a well-developed air-bladder to help buoy him
+up, and when a fish dies it is the air-bladder which causes him to turn
+over and rise to the top. Now if the Johnnies always rest on the bottom
+of the jar when not swimming and if one happens to die and does not rise
+to the top we may know that, if he has an air-bladder at all, it is only
+a vestigial one. It would be interesting also to find out for ourselves
+whether a Johnny darter can really "climb trees" (I mean by trees, of
+course, the water plants in the aquarium jar), or if he can perch upon
+the branches like a bird.
+
+
+THE MINNOWS.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 86. A convenient form of aquarium jar supplied with
+water plants. The bottom is covered with clean sand and flat stones._]
+
+All the small fishes of the brooks are called minnows, or more often
+"minnies," by the boy fisherman. The boy believes that they grow into
+larger fishes. This is not true. The minnows are a distinct group of
+fishes and, for the most part, small ones. They do not grow to be bass
+or pike or sunfishes or anything else but minnows. Some of the minnows,
+however, are comparatively large. Two of these are the _Creek Chub_
+(Fig. 80), and the _Shiner_ (Fig. 80). The chub is the king of the small
+brooks, being often the largest and most voracious fish found in such
+streams. His common diet probably consists of insects and worms, but if
+very hungry he does not object to eating a smaller fish. During the
+spawning season, which is springtime, the male chub has sharp, horny
+tubercles or spines developed upon the snout. We are able to recognize
+the creek chub by means of a black spot at the front of the base of the
+dorsal fin.
+
+The shiner or red-fin has much larger scales than the chub. The back is
+elevated in front of the dorsal fin, giving him the appearance of a
+hump-back. His sides are a steel-blue with silvery reflections. While
+the shiner is not the largest, it is almost everywhere one of the most
+abundant brook fishes. In spring the lower fins of the male become
+reddish. Like the chub, he has small horny tubercles developed on the
+snout.
+
+
+RANDOM NOTES.
+
+Did you ever see a fish yawn? Watch a shiner in your aquarium. Sometimes
+you may see him open his mouth widely as though he was very sleepy.
+Again you may find him resting on the bottom of the jar taking a nap.
+Fishes cannot close their eyes when they sleep for they have no eyelids.
+
+A convenient way to collect fishes for the schoolroom aquarium is to use
+a dip net. The ordinary insect net will do, but it is better to replace
+the cheese-cloth bag by a double thickness of mosquito-bar, thus
+enabling one to move the net through the water more rapidly. By dipping
+in the deep pools, among grasses and under the banks with such a net one
+can soon obtain fishes enough to stock an aquarium (Fig. 86). The
+aquarium jar should never be placed in the sun. It is better to have
+only three or four fishes in an aquarium at one time. Some flat stones
+on the bottom of the jar will afford them convenient hiding places.
+
+For further notes on aquaria, consult Leaflet No. XII.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XIV.
+
+THE OPENING OF A COCOON.[18]
+
+BY MARY ROGERS MILLER.
+
+
+[18] Nature-Study Quarterly, No. 4: Leaflet 17. March, 1900.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Among the commonest treasures brought into the schools by children in
+the fall or winter are the cocoons of our giant silk-worms. If one has a
+place to put them where the air is not too warm or dry, no special care
+will be necessary to keep them through the winter. Out-door conditions
+must be imitated as nearly as possible. If early in the fall one is
+fortunate enough to meet one of these giants out for a walk, it is the
+simplest thing in the world to capture him and watch him spin his
+marvelous winter blanket. Two members of this family of giant insects
+are quite common in this state, the largest the Cecropia, called
+sometimes the Emperor, and the Promethea.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 87. Cocoon of the Cecropia moth. It sometimes hangs
+from a twig of a fruit tree._]
+
+The Cecropia moth often measures five or six inches across--a veritable
+giant. Its main color is dusty brown, with spots and bands of cinnamon
+brown and white. On each wing is a white crescent bordered with red and
+outlined with a black line. The body is heavy and covered with thick,
+reddish-brown hairs, crossed near the end with black and white lines. On
+its small head are two large feathery feelers or antennæ. The Cecropia
+moth emerges from the cocoon, full grown, in early summer, when out of
+doors. Those kept in the house often come out as early as March. The
+eggs are deposited by the adults upon apple, pear, cherry, maple and
+other shade and fruit trees. Professor Comstock says that the spiny
+caterpillars which hatch from the eggs in about two weeks, are known to
+feed upon the leaves of some fifty species of plants. One could
+therefore hardly make a mistake in offering refreshment to these
+creatures, since they are anything but epicures. The full-grown
+caterpillar, having spent the summer eating and growing, with now and
+then a change of clothes, is often three inches long and an inch in
+diameter. It is a dull bluish green in color. On its back are two rows
+of wart-like protuberances (tubercles), some yellow, some red, some
+blue. As there is nothing else in nature which is just like it, one need
+have no difficulty in recognizing the Cecropia in its different phases.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 88. End of cocoon of Cecropia, inside view, showing
+where the moth gets out._]
+
+The cocoon which this giant silk-worm weaves is shown in Fig. 87. It may
+be found on a twig of some tree in the dooryard, but sometimes on a
+fence-post or equally unexpected place. Inside the cocoon the brown
+pupa, alive but helpless, waits for spring.
+
+After the moth comes out it is interesting to examine the structure of
+the cocoon, and to discover how the moth managed to free itself without
+destroying the silken blanket (Fig. 88).
+
+Swinging loosely from last summer's twigs in lilac bushes, and on such
+trees as wild cherry and ash, one often finds the slender cocoons of the
+Promethea moth (Fig. 89). We cannot help admiring the skill and care
+displayed by the spinner of this tidy winter overcoat. The giant
+silk-worm which spun it chose a leaf as a foundation. He took care to
+secure himself against the danger of falling by fastening the leaf to
+the twig which bore it by means of shining strands of silk. It is easy
+to test the strength of this fastening by attempting to pull it loose
+from the twig.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 89. Cocoon of Promethea moth fastened to a twig
+with silk._]
+
+The moths which come from these cocoons do not always look alike, yet
+they are all brothers and sisters. The brothers are almost black, while
+the wings of the sisters are light reddish brown, with a light gray wavy
+line crossing the middle of both wings. The margins of the wings are
+clay-colored. On each wing is a dark velvety spot. The adults emerge in
+spring and are most often seen in the late afternoon. Their flight is
+more spirited than that of the Cecropia, which moves very sedately, as
+becomes a giant.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 90. Cocoon of Promethea, cut open lengthwise to
+show the valve-like device at upper end through which the adult moth
+pushes its way out._]
+
+The caterpillars of this species, the young Prometheas, feed during the
+summer on leaves of wild cherry, ash and other trees. They grow to be
+about two inches long, and are distinguished from others by their pale
+bluish green color and yellow legs. They also have rows of wart-like
+elevations on their backs, some black and shining, four of a bright red
+and one large and yellow near the hindmost end.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The life of these giant insects is divided into four distinct stages:
+the egg, deposited by the adult moth usually on or near the food plant;
+the larva, or caterpillar stage, when most of the eating and all the
+growing is done; the pupa, passed inside the cocoon woven by the larva;
+and the adult, a winged moth.
+
+The life-cycle or generation is one year, the winter being passed in the
+pupa stage. The insect lives but a short time in the adult stage and the
+egg stage is but two or three weeks. Most of the summer is devoted to
+the caterpillar phase of its life.
+
+These creatures are entirely harmless. They seldom appear in numbers
+sufficient to make them of economic importance.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XV.
+
+A TALK ABOUT SPIDERS.[19]
+
+BY J. H. COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[19] Nature-Study Quarterly, No. 9: Leaflet 22. May, 1901.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Of all our little neighbors of the fields there are none that are more
+universally shunned and feared than spiders, and few that deserve it
+less. There is a wide-spread belief that spiders are dangerous, that
+they are liable to bite, and that their bites are very venomous. Now
+this may be true of certain large species that live in hot countries;
+but the spiders of the Northern United States are practically harmless.
+
+It is true, spiders bite and inject venom sufficient to kill a fly into
+the wound made by their jaws. But they are exceedingly shy creatures,
+fearing man more than they are to be feared. If an observer will refrain
+from picking up a spider there is not the slightest danger of being
+bitten by one; and excepting a single uncommon species no spider is
+known in this part of the country whose bite would seriously affect a
+human being.
+
+On the other hand, spiders do much to keep in check various insect
+pests, and hence must be regarded as our friends. It is, however, from a
+different point of view that we wish to look upon them at this time. It
+is as illustrations of remarkable development of instinctive powers, and
+of wonderful correlation of structure and habit, that we would have the
+reader study these creatures. The teacher of nature-study can find no
+more available or more fertile field from which to take subjects for
+interesting children in the world about us. Let us then put aside our
+fears and go into the fields and see whether we can learn something of
+the ways of these spinners.
+
+
+THE FUNNEL-WEB WEAVERS.
+
+Often on summer mornings the grass of the roadsides and fields is seen
+to be carpeted with little sheets of glistening silk, the webs of the
+grass-spider. None were observed the day before; and we wonder at the
+sudden appearance of this host of weavers. Later in the day the webs
+have vanished! Have the weavers rolled them up and carried them off? We
+remember that there was an especially fine one near the end of the
+veranda steps; we examine the place carefully and find that it is still
+there, but not so conspicuous as it was. The warm sun has dissipated the
+dew which rendered visible to our dull eyes the tapestry of the fields.
+Now that our eyes are opened we can find the webs everywhere and are
+impressed with a suspicion that perhaps ordinarily we see very little of
+what is around us.
+
+We examine one of the webs carefully and find that it is a closely woven
+sheet made of threads running in all directions; that it is attached to
+spears of grass, and supported by numerous guy lines, and that from one
+side a funnel-like tube extends downwards. If, while we are watching, an
+insect alights on the sheet, there darts from the tunnel, where she was
+concealed, the owner of the web, a dark-colored spider; and the insect
+must be agile if it escapes.
+
+If you attempt to catch the spider it retreats to its tunnel; and when
+you examine the tunnel the spider is not there. You find that the tube
+is open below, that there is a back door by which the spider can escape
+when hard pressed.
+
+We call those spiders that makes webs of this kind _The Funnel-web
+Weavers_. They are long-legged, brown spiders, which run on the upper
+surface of their webs; these are usually made on grass, but sometimes
+they are found in the angles of buildings, and in quite high places.
+
+
+THE COBWEB WEAVERS.
+
+The webs that we most often find in the corners of rooms are of a
+different kind and are made by the members of a family known as _The
+Cobweb Weavers_. In these webs there is not such a definite sheet of
+silk as in those of the funnel-web weavers, but instead a shapeless maze
+of threads extending in all directions. Many of the cobweb weavers,
+however, make their webs in the fields on bushes, and weave in them a
+flat or curved sheet, under which the spider hangs back downward. The
+funnel-web weavers run right side up; the cobweb weavers hang inverted.
+Some of the cobweb weavers do not remain in their webs, but have a nest
+in a neighboring crack or corner, from which they rush to seize their
+prey, and sometimes there is a funnel-shaped tube leading to their nest.
+But these spiders differ from the true funnel-web weavers in running
+back downwards on the lower side of their webs.
+
+
+THE ORB WEAVERS.
+
+The spider webs that most often excite admiration are those in which the
+supporting threads radiate from a center like the spokes of a wheel, and
+bear a spiral thread. Such webs are known as orb-webs; and the family of
+spiders that make them, _The Orb Weavers_.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 91. Nearly completed orb-web._]
+
+Few if any of the structures built by lower animals are more wonderful
+than these webs; but they are so common that they are often considered
+hardly worthy of notice. If they occurred only in some remote corner of
+the earth, every one would read of them with interest.
+
+The webs or nets of the different species of orb weavers differ in the
+details of their structure; but the general plan is quite similar. There
+is first a framework of supporting lines. The outer part of this
+framework is irregular, depending upon the position of the objects to
+which the net is attached; but the central part is very regular, and
+consists of a number of lines radiating from the center of the net (Fig.
+91). All of these supporting lines are dry and inelastic. Touch them
+with your pencil and you find that they neither stretch nor adhere to
+it. Upon these radiating lines there is fastened in a very regular
+manner a thread which is sticky and elastic. This will adhere to your
+pencil, and will stretch several times its normal length before
+breaking. Usually this sticky thread is fastened to the radiating lines
+so as to form a spiral; but a few species make nets in which it is
+looped back and forth. And even in the nets where the greater part of
+the thread is in a spiral there are in most cases a few loops near the
+lower margin (Fig. 91). Examine the next orb-web you find and see
+whether it is true in that case.
+
+Many of the orb weavers strengthen their nets by spinning a zigzag
+ribbon across the center. This ribbon is made by spreading apart the
+spinnerets, the organs from which the silk is spun, and which will be
+described later. Ordinarily the tips of the spinnerets are held close
+together so that they form a single thread, but by spreading them apart
+many threads can be spun at once, thus forming a ribbon.
+
+Some orb weavers are not content with making a simple zigzag band across
+the center of the net, but weave an elaborate bit of lace in this
+position. Fig. 92 is from a photograph of the center of the net of one
+of these spiders, which was found near Ithaca.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 92. Lace-like hub of an orb-web._]
+
+In studying the various kinds of orb-webs one should pay particular
+attention to the center of the web; for this part differs greatly in the
+webs of the different species. There is usually a _hub_ composed
+entirely of dry and inelastic silk woven in an irregular manner; outside
+of this there are several turns of a spiral thread which is also dry;
+this constitutes the _notched zone_, a name suggested by the fact that
+the spiral line is attached for a short space to each radius it crosses,
+thus giving the line a notched course. In many cases it is here, on the
+hub and the notched zone, that the spider waits for its prey; and it is
+obvious that sticky silk in this place would be objectionable. Between
+the notched zone and the _spiral zone_, the part furnished with the
+sticky spiral thread, there is a clear space, the _free zone_, crossed
+only by the radii. This gives the spider an opportunity to pass from one
+side of the web to the other without going around the entire web.
+
+Some orb weavers do not wait upon the hub but have a retreat near one
+edge of the net, in which they hang back downwards. While resting in
+these retreats they keep hold of some of the lines leading from the net,
+so that they can instantly detect any jar caused by an entrapped insect.
+
+When an insect in its flight touches one of the turns of the sticky line
+the line adheres to it, but it stretches so as to allow the insect to
+become entangled in other turns of the line. If it were not for this
+elasticity of the sticky line, most insects could readily tear
+themselves away before the spider had time to reach them.
+
+In running over its net the spider steps upon the radii, carefully
+avoiding the sticky line; otherwise it would destroy its own net. The
+rapidity with which a spider can cross its net without touching the
+sticky line is remarkable.
+
+In making its web an orb weaver first spins a number of lines extending
+irregularly in various directions about the place where its orb is to
+be; this is the outer supporting framework. Often the first line spun is
+a bridge between two quite distant points, as the branches of two
+separate bushes. How did the spider cross the gulf? It has no wings.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 93. Nearly completed orb-web._]
+
+The bridge building can be easily seen on a warm summer evening, the
+time at which the spiders are most active repairing their old nets and
+building new ones. The spider lifts the hind end of its body and spins
+forth a thread; this is carried off by the wind, until, finally striking
+some object, it becomes fast to it. The spider then pulls in the slack
+line, like a sailor, and when the line is taut fastens it to the object
+on which it is standing, and the bridge is formed.
+
+After making the outward framework, the radiating lines are formed. A
+line is stretched across the space so as to pass through the point which
+is to be the center of the orb. In doing this the spider may start on
+one side, and be forced to walk in a very roundabout way on the outer
+framework to the opposite side. It carefully holds the new line up
+behind it as it goes along, so that it shall not become entangled with
+the lines on which it walks; one or both hind feet serve as hands in
+these spinning operations; for, as the spider has eight feet, it can
+spare one or two for other purposes than locomotion. When the desired
+point is reached the slack is pulled in and the line fastened. The
+spider then goes to the point where the center of the orb is to be, and,
+fastening another line, it walks back to the outer framework, and
+attaches this line an inch or two from the first. In this way all of the
+radiating lines are drawn. The next step is to stay these radii by a
+spiral line, which is begun near the center, and attached to each radius
+as it crosses it. The turns of this spiral are as far apart as the
+spider can conveniently reach.
+
+All of the threads spun up to this stage in the construction of the web
+are dry and inelastic. The spider now proceeds to stretch upon this
+framework a sticky and elastic line, which is the most important part of
+the web, the other lines being merely a framework to support it. In
+spinning the sticky line, the spider begins at the outer edge of the
+orb, and passing around it, fastens this line to each radius as it goes.
+Thus a second spiral is made. The turns of this spiral are placed quite
+close together, and the first spiral, which is merely a temporary
+support, is destroyed as the second spiral progresses. Fig. 93
+represents a web in which the second spiral is made over the outer half
+of the radii. In this figure, _aa_ represents the temporary stayline;
+_bb_, the sticky spiral; and _cc_, the fragments of the first spiral
+hanging from the radii.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 94. Wasp, with head, thorax and abdomen
+separated._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 95. Spider, showing division of the body into
+cephalothorax and abdomen._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 96. Lower side of cephalothorax of a spider;_ md_,
+mandible;_ mx_, maxilla;_ p_, palpus;_ l_, lower lip;_ s_, sternum._]
+
+
+THE PARTS OF A SPIDER.
+
+Spiders differ much in appearance from the true insects. In the insects
+the body is composed of three regions: the head; the thorax, to which
+the legs are attached; and the abdomen or hind part of the body (Fig.
+94). In the spiders the head and thorax are grown together, forming a
+region which is known as the _cephalothorax_; to this the _abdomen_ is
+joined by a short, narrow stalk (Fig. 95). Spiders differ also from
+insects in the number of their legs, spiders having eight legs and
+insects only six.
+
+Spiders have two pairs of jaws, which, except in the Tarantula family,
+move sidewise like the jaws of insects. The first pair of jaws are
+called the _mandibles_. Each mandible consists of two segments, a strong
+basal one and a claw-shaped terminal one, at the tip of which the poison
+gland opens (Fig. 96). The second pair of jaws is known as the
+_maxillæ_. These jaws are situated just behind the mandibles, one on
+each side of the mouth. Each maxilla bears a large feeler or _palpus_.
+These palpi vary greatly in form; frequently, especially in females,
+they resemble legs; hence many spiders appear to have five pairs of
+legs. In the male spiders the last segment of the palpus is more or less
+enlarged, ending in a complicated, knob-like structure (Fig. 97). It is
+thus easy to determine the sex of a spider by merely examining the
+palpi.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 97. Maxilla and palpus of male house-spider._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 98. Head of spider, showing eyes and mandibles._]
+
+The greater number of spiders have four pairs of eyes (Fig. 98), but
+there may be only one, two, or three pairs; and certain cave spiders are
+blind. The eyes appear like little gems set in the front of the
+cephalothorax. They are most prominent in the jumping spiders, which
+stalk their prey on plants, logs, fences, and the sides of buildings.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 99. Spinnerets of a spider._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 100. A group of spinning tubes._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 101. Viscid silk from an orb-web._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 102. Spinnerets and cribellum of a curled-thread
+weaver._]
+
+The most characteristic feature of spiders is their spinning organs. The
+silk is secreted in glands within the abdomen, and while in the body it
+is a fluid. It passes out through the _spinnerets_, which are situated
+near the hind end of the abdomen. There are two or three pairs of
+spinnerets. These are more or less finger-like in form, and sometimes
+jointed (Fig. 99). Upon the end of each spinneret there are many small
+tubes, the _spinning tubes_ (Fig. 100), from which the silk is spun.
+Some spiders have as many as one hundred and fifty or two hundred of
+these spinning tubes on each spinneret.
+
+Ordinarily the tips of the spinnerets are brought close together, so
+that all of the minute threads that emerge from the numerous spinning
+tubes unite to form a single thread. Hence this tiny thread, which is so
+delicate that we can see it only when the light falls on it in a
+favorable way, is composed of hundreds of threads. It is not like a
+rope, composed of separate strands; for all the minute threads fuse
+together into a single thread. The change in the silk from a fluid to a
+solid cord, strong enough to support the weight of the spider, must take
+place quickly after the silk comes in contact with the air on leaving
+the spinning tubes; the minute size of the threads coming from the
+spinning tubes doubtless facilitates this change.
+
+Sometimes a spider will spread its spinnerets apart, and thus spin a
+broad ribbon-like band. We have seen a spider seize a large grasshopper
+which was entangled in its web, and rolling it over two or three times,
+completely envelop it in a sheet of silk spun from its spread-apart
+spinnerets. We have already described bands spun by orb weavers across
+the hub of the net in this way.
+
+It is supposed that the two kinds of silk spun by the orb weavers are
+spun from different spinnerets, and that the viscid silk comes from the
+front pair. When this silk is first spun, the viscid matter forms a
+continuous layer of liquid on the outside of it. But very soon this
+layer breaks up into bead-like masses--in a way similar to that in which
+the moisture on a clothes line on a foggy day collects into drops (Fig.
+101).
+
+There are two families of spiders that have spinning organs differing
+from those of all other spiders. They have in front of the usual
+spinnerets an additional organ, which is named the _cribellum_ (Fig.
+102, c). This bears spinning tubes like the other spinnerets,
+but these tubes are much finer. These spiders have also on the
+next-to-the-last segment of the hind legs one or two rows of curved
+spines; this organ is the _calamistrum_ (Fig. 103). By means of the
+calamistrum these spiders comb from the cribellum a band of loose
+threads which form a part of their webs.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 103. Last two segments of hind leg of spider,
+showing calamistrum._]
+
+
+THE CURLED-THREAD WEAVERS.
+
+The spiders possessing a cribellum and a calamistrum represent two
+families, one of which makes irregular webs; the other, those which are
+of definite form.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 104. Web of a curled-thread weaver._]
+
+An irregular web of a curled-thread weaver is shown in Fig. 104, from a
+photograph. In this web the framework is of ordinary silk; and upon this
+framework is placed a band of curled or tangled threads (Fig. 105). An
+insect alighting on a net of this kind is likely to get its feet caught
+in the tangled silk, and to be held fast till the spider can pounce upon
+it. Nets of this kind are found on bushes and on the sides of buildings.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 105. Fragment of a curled-thread weaver's web,
+enlarged._]
+
+There are two quite distinct types of regular webs made by spiders
+possessing a cribellum and a calamistrum. One is a round web which
+resembles at first sight those of the orb weavers; but it differs from
+the ordinary orb-web in that the spiral thread is made of curled or
+hackled silk. These webs are nearly horizontal, and are usually made
+between stones or in low bushes; they are not common.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 106. Web of the triangle spider._]
+
+The other type is represented by the web of the triangle spider. This
+web is most often found stretched between the twigs of a dead branch of
+pine or hemlock. At first sight it appears like a fragment of an orb-web
+(Fig. 106); but a little study will show that it is complete. The
+accompanying figure, by Dr. B. G. Wilder, who first described the habits
+of this spider ("Popular Science Monthly," 1875) illustrates the form of
+the web. It consists of four plain lines corresponding to the radiating
+lines of an orb-web, and a series of cross lines, which are spun by the
+cribellum and calamistrum. Each cross line is composed of two lines,
+about 1/500 of an inch apart. These double lines take the place of the
+curled threads woven by other members of the family to which the
+triangle spider belongs. From the point where the radiating lines meet,
+a strong line extends to one of the supporting twigs. Near this twig the
+spider rests, pulling the web tight so that there is some loose line
+between its legs, as shown in the enlarged figure. When an insect
+becomes entangled in one of the cross lines, the spider suddenly lets go
+the loose line so that the whole web springs forward, and the insect is
+entangled in other cross lines. The spider then draws the web tight and
+snaps it again. This may be repeated several times before the spider
+goes out upon the web after its prey.
+
+The triangle spider is a tiny fellow, and so closely resembles the color
+of the dead branch near which it rests that it is very difficult to
+find; its web is more easily seen, though it usually requires careful
+searching to discover it.
+
+
+THE MOTHERHOOD OF SPIDERS.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 107. Egg-sac of a spider._]
+
+As a rule young spiders are forced to shift for themselves, and a very
+hard time they have; but of this we have not space to write. With
+spiders, the mother's care is devoted chiefly to furnishing protection
+to her helpless eggs. These are placed in silken sacs, which are often
+very elaborate in construction and protected with great care.
+
+The most common egg-sacs are those found in the fields attached to
+stones and pieces of wood (Fig. 107). They are disk-shaped objects,
+silvery in color, and about the size of an old-fashioned three-cent
+piece.
+
+The egg-sacs of the cobweb weavers can be found suspended in their webs;
+and those of the orb weavers, in various situations. Fig. 108 represents
+the large egg-sac of one of the orb weavers. This is made in the autumn,
+and contains at that season a large number of eggs--five hundred or
+more. These eggs hatch early in the winter; but no spiders emerge from
+the egg-sac until the following spring. If egg-sacs of this kind be
+opened at different times during the winter, the spiders will be found
+to increase in size but diminish in numbers as the season advances. In
+fact, a strange tragedy goes on within these egg-sacs: the stronger
+spiders calmly devour their weaker brothers, and in the spring those
+that survive emerge sufficiently nourished to fight their battles in the
+outside world.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 108. Egg-sac of an orb weaver._]
+
+The females of the _Running Spiders_ not only make a carefully
+constructed egg-sac, but also care for the young spiders for a time. The
+running spiders are the large dark-colored, hairy spiders, often found
+under stones and rubbish; they are so-called because they capture their
+prey by running. The females of most of the species (those of the genus
+_Lycosa_) drag after them their egg-sac, which is attached to the
+spinnerets (Fig. 109); and when the young hatch, they climb on their
+mother's back, and are carried about for a time.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 109. Lycosa and egg-sac._]
+
+One of the running spiders (_Dolomedes_) carries her egg-sac with her
+mandibles until the young are ready to emerge. At this time the mother
+fastens the egg-sac in a bush, and spins irregular threads about it,
+among which the young spiders remain for a time (Fig. 110). In the
+specimen figured, the egg-sac was concealed in the upper part of the
+web.
+
+
+THE BALLOONING SPIDERS.
+
+In warm autumn days, innumerable threads can be seen streaming from
+fences, bushes, and the tips of stalks of grass, or floating through the
+air. These are made by the _Ballooning Spiders_, which are able to
+travel long distances, hundreds of miles, through the air by means of
+these silken threads.
+
+The ballooning spider climbs to some elevated point, and then, standing
+on the tips of its feet, lifts its body as high as it can, and spins out
+a thread of silk. This thread is carried up and away by a current of
+air. When the thread is long enough the force of the air current on it
+is sufficient to bear the spider up. It then lets go its hold with its
+feet and sails away. That these spiders travel long distances in this
+manner has been shown by the fact that they have been seen floating
+through the air at sea far from land.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 110. Nursery of Dolomedes. _]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XVI.
+
+LIFE HISTORY OF THE TOAD.[20]
+
+BY S. H. GAGE.[21]
+
+
+[20] Teachers' Leaflet, No. 9, May, 1897.
+
+[21] It was the desire of the author to tell the story of this leaflet
+in pictures as well as in words, and he wishes to express his
+appreciation of the enthusiasm and ability with which the illustrations
+were executed by Mr. C. W. Furlong.
+
+In this edition are added half-tone reproductions of photographs to
+bring out more completely the life story.
+
+On account of its economic importance, and because the marvelous changes
+passed through in growing from an egg to a toad are so rapid that they
+may all be seen during a single spring term of school, the common
+or warty toad has been selected as the subject of a leaflet in
+nature-study. Toads are found everywhere in New York, and nearly
+everywhere in the world; it is easy, therefore, to get abundant material
+for study. This animal is such a good friend to the farmer, the
+gardener, the fruit-grower, the florist and the stock-raiser that every
+man and woman, every boy and girl, ought to know something about it.
+
+Furthermore, it is hoped and sincerely believed that the feeling of
+repugnance and dislike, and the consequent cruelty to toads, will
+disappear when teachers and children learn something about their
+wonderful changes in form, structure and habits, and how harmless and
+helpful they are. Then, who that knows of the chances, the dangers and
+struggles in the life of the toad, can help a feeling of sympathy; for
+after all, how like our human life it is. Where sympathy is, cruelty is
+impossible, and one comes to feel the spirit of these beautiful lines
+from Coleridge's "Ancient Mariner:"
+
+  "_He prayeth best who loveth best
+    All things both great and small;
+  For the dear God who loveth us
+    He made and loveth all._"
+
+It was William Harvey, the discoverer of the circulation of the blood,
+who first clearly stated the fact that every animal comes from an egg.
+This is as true of a toad as of a chicken.
+
+The toad lives on the land and often a long way from any pond or stream,
+but the first part of its life is spent in the water; and so it is in
+the water that the eggs must be looked for. To find the eggs one should
+visit the natural or artificial ponds so common along streams. Ponds
+from springs or even artificial reservoirs or the basins around
+fountains, also may contain the eggs. The time for finding the eggs
+depends on the season. The toad observes the season, not the almanac. In
+ordinary years, the best time is from the middle of April to the first
+of May.
+
+One is often guided to the right place by noticing the direction from
+which the song or call of the toad comes. The call of the toad is more
+or less like that of the tree toads. In general it sounds like
+whistling, and at the same time pronouncing deep in the throat,
+bu-rr-r-r-r-. If one watches a toad while it makes its call, one can
+soon learn to distinguish the sound from others somewhat similar. It
+will be found that different toads have slightly different voices, and
+the same one can vary the tone considerably, so that it is not so easy
+after all to distinguish the many batrachian solos and choruses on a
+spring or summer evening. It will be noticed that the toad does not open
+its mouth when it sings, but, instead, the resonator or vocal sac under
+its mouth and throat is greatly expanded. One must be careful to
+distinguish the expansion of the mouth in breathing from the expansion
+of the vocal sac. See the left hand toad in the drawing (Fig. 111) for
+the vocal sac, and the toad in hibernation (Fig. 121) for the expansion
+of the mouth in breathing. It is only the males that possess the vocal
+sac, so that the toad chorus is composed solely of male voices.
+
+The eggs are laid in long strings or ropes which are nearly always
+tangled and wound round the water plants or sticks on the bottom of the
+pond. If the pond is large and deep, the eggs are laid near the shore
+where the water is shallow. If the eggs have been freshly laid in clear
+water the egg ropes will look like glass tubes containing a string of
+jet black beads. After a rain the eggs are obscured by the fine mud that
+settles on the transparent jelly surrounding them, but the jelly is much
+more evident than in the freshly laid egg strings.
+
+Secure enough of the egg string to include 50 or 100 eggs and place it
+in a glass fruit dish or a basin with clean water from the pond where
+the eggs were found. Let the children look at the eggs very carefully
+and note the color and the exact shape. Let them see whether the color
+is the same on all sides. If the eggs are newly laid they will be nearly
+perfect spheres.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 111. The toad in various stages of development from
+the egg to the adult_]
+
+Frogs, salamanders and tree toads lay their eggs in the same places and
+at about the same time as the toad we are to study. Only the toad lays
+its eggs in strings, so one can be sure he has the right kind. The
+others lay their eggs in bunches or singly on the plants, so they never
+need be mistaken for the ones sought.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 112. Just hatched toad tadpoles climbing up where
+the water is better aerated._]
+
+The eggs which are taken to the school house for study should be kept
+in a light place; an east, south or west window is best.
+
+It requires only a short time for the eggs to hatch. In warm weather two
+to four days are usually sufficient, but in the cool days of April it
+may require ten days. As the changes are so very rapid, the eggs ought
+to be carefully looked at two or three times a day to make sure that all
+the principal changes are seen. If a pocket lens or a reading glass is
+to be had it will add to the interest, as more of the details can be
+observed. But good sharp eyes are sufficient if no lens is available.
+
+_Hatching._--Watch and see how long it is before the developing embryos
+commence to move. Note their change in form. As they elongate they move
+more vigorously till on the second or third day they wriggle out of the
+jelly surrounding them. This is hatching, and they are now free in the
+water and can swim about. It is curious to see them hang themselves up
+on the old egg string or on the edge of the dish (Fig. 112). They do
+this by means of a peculiar v-shaped organ on their heads.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 113. Older toad tadpoles with their heads up._]
+
+How different the little creatures are, which have just hatched, from
+the grown up toad which laid the eggs! The difference is about as great
+as that between a caterpillar and a butterfly.
+
+_Tadpoles, polliwogs._--We call the young of the frog, the toad and the
+tree toad, tadpoles or polliwogs. The toad tadpoles are black. As they
+increase in size they may become greyish. Those raised in the house are
+usually darker than those growing in nature.
+
+The tadpoles will live for some time in clear water with apparently
+nothing to eat. This is because in each egg is some food, just as there
+is a large supply of food within the egg shell to give the chicken a
+good start in life. But when the food that the mother supplied in the
+egg is used up, the little tadpoles would die if they could not find
+some food for themselves. They must grow a great deal before they can
+turn into toads; and just like children and other young animals, to grow
+they must have plenty of food.
+
+_Feeding the tadpoles._--To feed the tadpoles it is necessary to imitate
+nature as closely as possible. To do this, a visit to the pond where the
+eggs were found will give the clue. Many plants are present, and the
+bottom will be seen to slope gradually from the shore. The food of the
+tadpole is the minute plant life on the stones, the surface of the mud,
+or on the outside of the larger plants.
+
+One must not attempt to raise too many tadpoles in the artificial pond
+in the laboratory or school-room or there will not be enough food, and
+all will be half starved, or some will get the food and the rest will
+starve to death. While there may be thousands of tadpoles in the natural
+pond, it will be readily seen that, compared with the amount of water
+present, there are really rather few.
+
+Probably many more were hatched in the school-house than can be raised
+in the artificial pond. Return the ones not put in the artificial pond
+to the natural pond. It would be too bad to throw them out on the ground
+to die.
+
+_Comparing the growth of the tadpoles._--Even when one does his best it
+is hard to make an artificial pond so good as the natural one for the
+tadpoles, and the teacher will find it very interesting and stimulating
+to compare the growth and change in the tadpoles at the school-house
+with those in the natural pond.
+
+As growth depends on the supply of food and the suitability of the
+environment, it is easy to judge how nearly the artificial pond equals
+the natural pond for raising tadpoles. It will be worth while to take a
+tadpole from the natural pond occasionally and put it in with those at
+the school-house, so that the differences may be more strikingly shown.
+There is some danger in making a mistake here, however, for there may be
+three or four kinds of tadpoles in the natural pond. Those of the toad
+are almost jet black when young, while the others are more or less
+brownish. If one selects only the very black ones they will probably be
+toad tadpoles.
+
+Every week or oftener, some water plants, and perhaps a small stone
+covered with the growth of microscopic plants, and some water, should be
+taken from the pond to the artificial pond. The water will supply the
+place of that which has evaporated, and the water plants will carry a
+new supply of food. If the water in the artificial pond in the
+school-room does not remain clear, it should be carefully dipped out and
+fresh clear water added. It is better to get the water from the pond
+where the eggs were laid, although any clear water will answer; but do
+not use distilled water.
+
+The growth and changes in form should be looked for every day. Then it
+is very interesting to see what the tadpoles do, how they eat, and any
+signs of breathing.
+
+All the changes from an egg to a little toad (Fig. 111), are passed
+through in one or two months, so that by the first of June the tadpoles
+will be found to have made great progress. The progress will be not only
+in size, but in form and action.
+
+One of these actions should be watched with especial care, for it means
+a great deal. At first the little tadpoles remain under water all the
+time, and do not seem to know or care that there is a great world above
+the water. But as they grow larger and larger, they rush up to the
+surface once in awhile and then dive down again, as if their lives
+depended on it. The older they grow the oftener do they come to the
+surface. This is even more marked in the large tadpole of the bullfrog.
+What is the meaning of this? Probably most of the pupils can guess
+correctly; but it took scientific men a long time to find out just why
+this was done. The real reason is that the tadpole is getting ready to
+breathe the free air above the water when it turns into a toad and lives
+on the land. At first the little tadpoles breathe the air dissolved in
+the water, just as a fish does. This makes it plain why an artificial
+pond should have a broad surface exposed to the air. If one should use a
+narrow and deep vessel, like a fruit jar, only a small amount of air
+could be taken up by the water and the tadpoles would be half
+suffocated.
+
+As the tadpoles grow older they go oftener to the surface to get the air
+directly from the limitless supply above the water, as they will have to
+do when they live wholly in the air.
+
+_Disappearance of the tail._--From the first to the middle of June the
+tadpoles should be watched with especial care, for wonderful things are
+happening. Both the fore and hind legs will appear, if they have not
+already. The head will change in form and so will the body; the color
+will become much lighter, and, but for the tail, the tadpole will begin
+to look something like its mother.
+
+If you keep an especially sharp lookout, do you think you will see the
+tail drop off? No, toad nature is too economical for that. The tail
+will not drop off, but it will be seen to get shorter and shorter every
+day; it is not dropping off, but is being carried into the tadpole. The
+tail is perfect at every stage; it simply disappears. How does this
+happen? This is another thing that it took scientific men a long time to
+find out.
+
+It is now known that there are two great methods for removing parts of
+the body no longer needed. In the first method the living particles in
+the body which are able to wander all around, as if they were inspectors
+to see that everything is in order, may go to the part to be removed and
+take it up piece by piece. These living particles are known as white
+blood corpuscles, wandering cells, phagocytes, leucocytes and several
+other names. In the other method, the blood and the lymph going to the
+part to be removed dissolve it particle by particle. Apparently the toad
+tadpole's tail is dissolved by the blood and lymph rather than being
+eaten up by the phagocytes, although the phagocytes do a part of the
+work.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 114. Transforming tadpole of the green tree toad to
+show the rapidity of tail absorption._ (_Change in 24 hours. Natural
+size._)
+
+_HVLA--Natural size. Change in 24 hours; 28 mm. of tail absorbed in 24
+hours; 1-1/6 mm. per hour. Common toad shortens the tail about 1/5 mm.
+per hour._]
+
+Now, when the tadpole is ready to dispense with its tail, the blood and
+lymph and the phagocytes take it up particle by particle and carry it
+back into the body where it can be used just as any other good food
+would be. This taking in of the tail is done so carefully that the skin
+epithelium or epidermis is never broken, but covers up the outside
+perfectly all the time. Is not this a better way to get rid of a tail
+than to cut it off?
+
+If you look at the picture of the disappearance of the tail in the toad
+tadpole (Fig. 115) and in the tree-toad tadpole (Fig. 114), you will get
+an idea how rapidly this takes place. It is easier to see the actual
+shortening if the tadpoles are put in a white dish of clear water
+without any water plants. The tadpoles do not eat anything while they
+are changing to toads, so they will not need to be fed.
+
+_Beginning of the life on the land._--Now, when the legs are grown out,
+and the tail is getting shorter, the little tadpole likes to put its
+nose out of the water into the air; and sometimes it crawls half way
+out. When the tail gets quite short, often a mere stub, it will crawl
+out entirely and stay for some time in the air. It now looks really like
+a toad except that it is nearly smooth instead of being warty, and is
+only about as large as the end of a child's little finger (Fig. 115).
+
+Finally, the time comes when the tadpole, now transformed into a toad,
+must leave the water for the land.
+
+What queer feelings the little toad must have when the soft, smooth
+bottom of the pond and the pretty plants, and the water that supported
+it so nicely are all to be left behind for the hard, rough, dry land!
+But the little toad must take the step. It is no longer a tadpole, or
+half tadpole and half toad. It cannot again dive into the cool, soft
+water when the air and the sunshine dry and scorch it. As countless
+generations of little toads have done before, it pushes boldly out over
+the land and away from the water.
+
+If one visits the natural pond at about this season (last half of June,
+first of July), he is likely to see many of the little fellows hopping
+away from the water. And so vigorously do they hop along that in a few
+days they may be as far as a mile from the pond where they were hatched.
+After a warm shower they are particularly active, and are then most
+commonly seen. Many think they rained down. "They were not seen before
+the rain, so they must have rained down." Is that good reasoning?
+
+The little toad is careful and during the hot and sunny part of the day
+stays in the shade of the grass or leaves or in some other moist and
+shady place. If it staid out in the sun too long it would be liable to
+dry up.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 115. Toad development in a single season_ (_1903_).
+
+_1-18. Changes and growth, April to November. 1-13. Development in 25 to
+60 days._
+
+_15-18. Different sizes, October 21, 1903. 9, 14. Different sizes, July
+30, 1903._
+
+_10, 11. The same tadpole,--11, 47 hours older than 10._
+
+_12, 13. The same tadpole,--13, 47 hours older than 12._]
+
+
+FOOD ON THE LAND.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 116. Toad catching a winged insect, and
+illustrating how the tongue is extended and brought in contact with the
+insect. Several other creatures that the toad might eat are shown in
+various parts of the picture._]
+
+In the water the tadpole eats vegetable matter; but when it becomes a
+toad and gets on the land it will touch nothing but animal food, and
+that must be so fresh that it is alive and moving. This food consists of
+every creeping, crawling or flying thing that is small enough to be
+swallowed. While it will not touch a piece of fresh meat lying on the
+ground, woe to moving snail, insect or worm that comes within its reach!
+
+It is by the destruction of insects and worms that the toad helps men so
+greatly. The insects and worms eat the grain, the fruits and the
+flowers. They bite and sting the animals and give men no end of trouble.
+The toad is not partial, but takes any live thing that gets near it,
+whether it is caterpillar, fly, spider, centipede or thousand-legged
+worm; and it does not stop even there, but will gobble up a hornet or a
+yellow jacket without the least hesitation.
+
+It is astonishing to see the certainty with which a toad can catch these
+flying or crawling things. The way the toad does this may be observed by
+watching one out of doors some summer evening or after a shower; but it
+is more satisfactory to have a nearer view. Put a large toad into a box,
+or better, into a glass dish with some moist sand on the bottom. In a
+little while, if one is gentle, the toad will become tame, and then if
+flies and other insects are caught with a sweep net and put into the
+dish and the top covered with mosquito netting one can watch the process
+of capture. It is very quickly accomplished, and one must look sharply.
+As shown in the little picture (Fig. 116), the toad's tongue is
+fastened at the front part of its mouth, not back in the throat as with
+men, dogs, cats and most animals. It is so nicely arranged that it can
+be extended for quite a distance. On it is a sticky secretion, and when,
+quick as a flash, the tongue is thrown out or extended, if it touches
+the insect, the insect is caught as if by sticky fly paper, and is taken
+into the mouth.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 117. Toad making a meal of an angle worm._]
+
+Think how many insects and worms a toad could destroy in a single
+summer. Practically every insect and worm destroyed adds to the produce
+of the garden and the farm, or takes away one cause of discomfort to men
+and animals. One observer reports that a single toad disposed of
+twenty-four caterpillars in ten minutes, and another ate thirty-five
+celery worms within three hours. He estimates that a good-sized toad
+will destroy nearly 10,000 insects and worms in a single summer.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 118. Two newts feasting on tadpoles._]
+
+
+ENEMIES--THE SHADOW SIDE OF LIFE.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 119. In danger from a crow._]
+
+So far nothing has been said about the troubles and dangers of the
+toad's life. Fig. 111 is meant to show the main phases in the
+life-history. If one looks at it perhaps he may wonder what becomes of
+all the tadpoles that first hatch, as only two toads are shown at the
+top. Is not this something like the other life-histories? How many
+little robins or chickens die and never become full-grown birds! Well,
+the dangers to the toad begin at once. Suppose the eggs are laid in a
+pond that dries up before the little toads can get ready to live on the
+land; in that case they all die. The mother toads sometimes do make the
+mistake of laying the eggs in ponds that dry up in a little while. You
+will not let the artificial pond at the school-house dry up, will you?
+Then sometimes there is an especially dry summer, and only those that
+transform very early from tadpoles to toads are saved.
+
+In the little picture (Fig. 118) is shown another source of danger and
+cause for the diminution in numbers. The newts and salamanders find
+young tadpoles very good eating and they make way with hundreds of them.
+Some die from what are called natural causes, that is, diseases, or
+possibly they eat something that does not agree with them. So that while
+there were multitudes of eggs (1,000 or more from each toad), and of
+just hatched tadpoles, the number has become sadly lessened by the time
+the brood is ready to leave the water.
+
+Then when they set foot on land, their dangers are not passed. They may
+be parched by summer's heat or crushed under the feet of men or cattle.
+Birds and snakes like them for food. Figs. 119 and 120 show some of
+these dangers. Is it a wonder, then, that of all the multitudes of
+tadpoles so few grow up to be large toads?
+
+We have so few helpers to keep the noxious insects in check, it is not
+believed that any boy or girl who knows this wonderful story of a toad's
+life will join the crows, the snakes and the salamanders in worrying or
+destroying their good friends.
+
+
+MOULTING AND HIBERNATION.
+
+There are two very interesting things that happen in the life of many of
+the lower animals; they happen to the toad also. These are moulting, or
+change of skin, and hibernation, or winter sleep. Every boy and girl
+ought to know about these, and then, if on the lookout, some or all of
+the things will be seen.
+
+_Moulting._--Probably everybody who lives in the country has seen a
+snake's skin without any snake in it. It is often very perfect. When the
+outside skin or cuticle of a snake or a toad gets old and dry or too
+tight for it, a new covering grows underneath, and the old one is shed.
+This is a very interesting performance, but the toad usually sheds it in
+a retired place, so the process is not often seen. Those who have seen
+it say that a long crack or tear appears along the back and in front.
+The toad keeps moving and wriggling to loosen the old cuticle. This
+peels the cuticle off the sides. Now, to get it off the legs and feet,
+the toad puts its leg under its arm, or front leg, and in that way pulls
+off the old skin as if it were a stocking. But when the front legs are
+to be stripped the mouth is used as is sometimes done by people in
+pulling off their gloves. Do you think it uses its teeth for this
+purpose? You might look in a toad's mouth sometime, and then you would
+know.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 120. Snakes frequently swallow toads hind legs
+foremost, as shown in the picture. This is especially true of the garter
+snake, which is a great enemy of the toad._]
+
+It is said that when the skin is finally pulled off the toad swallows
+it. This is true in some cases; at least it is worth while keeping watch
+for. It is certain that the toad sometimes swallows the cast skin; it is
+also certain that in some cases the cast skin is not swallowed. After a
+toad has shed his old skin, he looks a great deal brighter and cleaner
+than before, as if he had just got a new suit of clothes. If you see
+one with a particularly bright skin, you will now know what it means.
+
+_Hibernation._--The toad is a cold-blooded animal. This means that the
+temperature of its blood is nearly like that of the surrounding air.
+Men, horses, cows, dogs, are said to be warm-blooded, for their blood is
+warm and of about the some temperature whether the surrounding air is
+cold or hot.
+
+When the air is too cool, the toad becomes stupid and inactive. In
+September or October a few toads may be seen on warm days or evenings,
+but the number seen becomes smaller and smaller; and finally, as the
+cold November weather comes on, none are seen. Where are they? The toad
+seems to know that winter is coming, that the insects and worms will
+disappear, so that no food can be found. It must go into a kind of
+death-like sleep, in which it hardly moves or breathes. This winter
+sleep or hibernation must be passed in some safe and protected place. If
+the toad were to freeze and thaw with every change in the weather it
+would not wake up in the spring.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 121. Toad in the winter sleep._ (_Natural size_).]
+
+The wonderful foresight which instinct gives it, makes the toad select
+some comparatively soft earth in a protected place where it can bury
+itself. The earth chosen is moist, but not wet. If it were dry the toad
+would dry up before spring. It is not uncommon for farmers and gardeners
+to plough them up late in the fall or early in the spring. Also in
+digging cellars at about these times they are found occasionally.
+
+In burying itself the toad digs with its hind legs and body, and pushes
+itself backward into the hole with the front legs. The earth caves in as
+the animal backs into the ground, so that no sign is left on the
+outside. Once in far enough to escape the freezing and thawing of
+winter, the toad moves around till there is a little chamber slightly
+larger than its body; then it draws its legs up close, shuts its eyes,
+puts its head down between or on its hands, and goes to sleep and sleeps
+for five months or more.
+
+When the warm days of spring come it wakes up, crawls out of bed and
+begins to take interest in life again. It looks around for insects and
+worms, and acts as if it had had only a comfortable nap.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 122. The same toad awake in the spring._ (_Natural
+size_).]
+
+The little toad that you saw hatch from an egg into a tadpole and then
+turn to a toad, would hibernate for two or three winters, and by that
+time it would be quite a large toad. After it had grown up and had
+awakened from its winter sleep some spring, it would have a strong
+impulse to get back to the pond where it began life as an egg years
+before. Once there it would lay a great number of eggs, perhaps as many
+as a thousand or two, for a new generation of toads. And this would
+complete its life cycle.
+
+While the toad completes its life cycle when it returns to the water and
+lays eggs for a new generation, it may live many years afterward and lay
+eggs many times, perhaps every year.
+
+Many insects, some fish and other animals, die after laying their eggs.
+For such animals the completion of the life cycle ends the life-history
+also. But unless the toad meets with some accident it goes back to its
+land home after laying the eggs, and may live in the same garden or
+dooryard for many years, as many as eight years, and perhaps longer.
+(See Bulletin No. 46, Hatch Experiment Station of the Massachusetts
+Agricultural College, Amherst, Mass.)
+
+
+ERRONEOUS NOTIONS ABOUT THE TOAD.
+
+If one reads in old books and listens to the fairy tales and other
+stories common everywhere, he will hear many wonderful things about the
+toad, but most of the things are wholly untrue.
+
+One of the erroneous notions is that the toad is deadly poison. Another
+is that it is possessed of marvelous healing virtues, and still another,
+that hidden away in the heads of some of the oldest ones are the
+priceless toad-stones, jewels of inestimable value.
+
+_Giving warts._--Probably every boy and girl living in the country has
+heard that if one takes a toad in his hands, or if a toad touches him
+anywhere he will "catch the warts." This is not so at all, as has been
+proved over and over again. If a toad is handled gently and petted a
+little it soon learns not to be afraid, and seems to enjoy the kindness
+and attention. If a toad is hurt or roughly handled a whitish, acrid
+substance is poured out of the largest warts. This might smart a little
+if it got into the mouth, as dogs find out when they try biting a toad.
+It cannot be very bad, however, or the hawks, owls, crows and snakes
+that eat the toad would give up the practice. The toad is really one of
+the most harmless creatures in the world, and has never been known to
+hurt a man or a child.
+
+A boy might possibly have some warts on his hands after handling a toad;
+so might he after handling a jack-knife or looking at a steam engine;
+but the toad does not give the warts any more than the knife or the
+engine.
+
+_Cows giving bloody milk._--It is a common belief in the country that if
+one kills a toad his cows will give bloody milk. Cows will give bloody
+milk if the udder is injured in any way, whether a toad is killed or
+not. There is no connection whatever between the bloody milk and a
+killed toad.
+
+_Living without air and food._--Occasionally one reads or hears a story
+about a toad found in a cavity in a solid rock. When the rock is broken
+open it is said that the toad wakes up and hops around as if it had
+been asleep only half an hour. Just think for a moment what it would
+mean to find a live toad within a cavity in a solid rock. It must have
+been there for thousands, if not for millions of years, without food or
+air. The toad does not like a long fast, but can stand it for a year or
+so without food if it is in a moist place and supplied with air. It
+regularly sleeps four or five months every winter, but never in a place
+devoid of air. If the air were cut off the toad would soon die. Some
+careful experiments were made by French scientific men, and the stories
+told about toads living indefinitely without air or food were utterly
+disproved.
+
+It is not difficult to see that one working in a quarry might honestly
+think that he had found a toad in a rock. Toads are not very uncommon in
+quarries. If a stone were broken open and a cavity found in it, and then
+a toad were seen hopping away, one might jump at the conclusion that the
+toad came out of the cavity in the rock. Is not this something like the
+belief that the little toads rain down from the clouds because they are
+most commonly seen after a shower?
+
+
+SURVEYS AND MAPS.
+
+In considering the suggestions made in this leaflet, we thought of the
+hundreds of schools throughout the state and wondered whether there
+might not be some difficulty in finding the ponds where the toads lay
+their eggs, and in finding some of the things described in the other
+leaflets.
+
+The teachers and students in Cornell University found this difficulty in
+1868 when the University opened. The great Louis Agassiz came to the
+University at the beginning to give a course of lectures on natural
+history. The inspiration of his presence and advice, and of those
+lectures, lasts to this day.
+
+Agassiz, and the University teachers, who had many of them been his
+pupils, saw at once that the region around Ithaca must be full of
+interesting things; but they did not know exactly where to find them.
+Agassiz himself made some explorations, and the professors and students
+took hold of the work with the greatest enthusiasm. They explored the
+beautiful lake, the streams, hills, valleys, gorges, ponds and marshes.
+Careful notes were kept of the exact locality where every interesting
+thing was found and simple maps were made to aid in finding the places
+again. Finally, after several years, knowledge enough was gained to
+construct an accurate map for the use of all. A part of this map,
+showing only the most important features, is put into this leaflet to
+serve as a guide (Fig. 123).
+
+It will be seen that the University is made the starting point. With a
+few hints it is believed that every school can make a good beginning
+this year on a natural history survey of the region near its
+school-house, and in the preparation of a map to go with the survey.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 123. Simple map showing the position of Cornell
+University, the city of Ithaca, Cayuga Lake, and the roads and streams
+and ponds near the University. From W. R. Dudley's map in "The Cayuga
+Flora." Scale, 1 centimeter to the kilometer._
+
+_U. Cornell University._
+
+_U. L. University Lake in Fall Creek._
+
+_R. Reservoir supplied from University Lake, and supplying the campus._
+
+_E. P. East Pond where the eggs of the toad, tree toad, frogs and
+salamanders are found._
+
+_F. P. Forest Home Pond. A very favorable place for eggs, tadpoles,
+etc._
+
+_Inlet. The inlet of the lake. The lampreys are abundant near Fleming's
+meadow._]
+
+_Preparation of the map._--It is well to have the map of good size. A
+half sheet of bristol board will answer, but a whole sheet is better.
+About the first thing to decide is the scale to which the map is to be
+drawn. It is better to have the scale large. Twelve inches to the mile
+would be convenient. Divide the map into squares, making the lines quite
+heavy. If so large a scale were used it would be advantageous for
+locating places to have the large squares divided into square inches,
+but much lighter lines should be used so that there will be no confusion
+with the lines representing the miles.
+
+_Locating objects on the map._--The corner of the school-house
+containing the corner stone should be taken as the starting point. If
+there is no corner stone, select the most convenient corner. Put the
+school-house on the map anywhere you wish; probably the center of the
+map would be the best place. In the sample map the University is not in
+the center, as it was desired to show more of the country to the south
+and west than to the north and east.
+
+The map should of course be made like other maps, so it will be
+necessary to know the four cardinal points of the compass before
+locating anything on it. Perhaps the school-house has been placed facing
+exactly north and south or east and west, that is, arranged with the
+cardinal points of the compass; if so, it will be the best guide. If you
+are not sure, determine with a compass. With it the points can be
+determined very accurately. Having determined the points of compass,
+commence to locate objects in the landscape on the map as follows: Get
+their direction from the starting point at the corner of the
+school-house, then measure the distance accurately by running a bicycle
+on which is a cyclometer, straight between the starting point and the
+object. The cyclometer will record the distance accurately and it can be
+read off easily. If no bicycle with a cyclometer is available, one can
+use a long measuring stick, a tape measure or even a measured string;
+but the bicycle and cyclometer are more convenient and accurate,
+especially when the distances are considerable.
+
+Suppose the distance is found to be one-sixth of a mile due west. It
+should be located two inches west of the corner taken as the starting
+point. If the direction were south-west, then the two inches would be
+measured on the map in that direction and located accordingly. Proceed
+in this way for locating any pond or marsh, forest or glen. Now, when
+the places are located on the map, you can see how easy it would be for
+any one to find the places themselves. While the exact position should
+be determined if possible and located, one does not often take a
+bee-line in visiting them, but goes in roads, often a long distance
+around. In locating the objects on the map, every effort should be made
+to get them accurately placed, and this can be done most easily by
+knowing the distances in a straight line.
+
+It is hoped that every school in the state will begin this year making a
+natural history survey and a map of the region around its school-house.
+The map will show but few locations, perhaps, but it can be added to
+from year to year, just as the University map has been added to; and
+finally each school will have a map and notes showing exactly where the
+toads lay their eggs, where fish and birds are; and where the newts and
+salamanders, the different trees and flowers, rocks and fossils may be
+found.
+
+If the dates are kept accurately for the different years, one can also
+see how much variation there is. Indeed, such nature-study will give a
+sure foundation for appreciating and comprehending the larger questions
+in natural science, and it will make an almost perfect preparation for
+taking part in or for appreciating the great surveys of a state or a
+country. It is believed that if accurate information were collected and
+careful maps made by the different schools, the Empire State could soon
+have a natural history survey and map better than any now in existence
+in any state or country.
+
+_To the Teacher:_
+
+_It is the firm belief of those who advocate nature-study that it is not
+only valuable in itself, but that it will help to give enjoyment in
+other studies and meaning to them. Every pupil who follows out the work
+of this leaflet will see the need of a map of the region around the
+school-house. This will help in the appreciation of map work generally._
+
+_So many of the beautiful and inspiring things in literature are
+concerning some phase of nature, that nature-study must increase the
+appreciation of the literature; and the noble thoughts in the literature
+will help the pupils to look for and appreciate the finer things in
+nature._
+
+_It is suggested that as many of the following selections as possible be
+read in connection with the leaflet:_
+
+_"The Fiftieth Birthday of Agassiz," by Longfellow._
+
+_The "Prayer of Agassiz," by Whittier. Professor Wilder, who was
+present, assures the author that this describes an actual occurrence._
+
+_This "Silent Prayer" is also mentioned in an inspiring paragraph by
+Henry Ward Beecher in the Christian Union, 1873._
+
+_The first part of Bryant's "Thanatopsis," Coleridge's "Ancient_
+_Mariner," Burns' "On Scaring Some Water Fowl in Loch-Turit," and "To a
+Mouse."_
+
+_Cowpers "The Task," a selection from book vi., beginning with line 560.
+This gives a very just view of the rights of the lower animals._
+
+_In connection with the disappearance of the tail, read Lowell's
+"Festina Lente," in the Biglow Papers. For older pupils, Shakespeare's
+picture of the seven ages in the human life cycle might be read. "As You
+Like It," Act II, Scene II, near the end, commencing, "All the world's a
+stage," etc._
+
+_Kipling's Jungle Books, and the works of Ernest Thompson-Seton and
+William J. Long will help one to see how the world might look from the
+standpoint of the animals._
+
+_One of the most satisfactory books to use in connection with
+nature-study is Animal Life, by President David Starr Jordan and
+Professor Kellogg. This gives the facts that every teacher ought to know
+in connection with the processes of reproduction._
+
+_Attention is also called to A. H. Kirkland's Bulletin No. 46 of the
+Hatch Experiment Station of the Massachusetts Agricultural College, and
+to the Nature-Study Leaflet on the Toad, by Dr. C. F. Hodge, of Clark
+University, Worcester, Mass._
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 124. From egg back to toad._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XVII.
+
+LIFE IN A TERRARIUM.[22]
+
+BY ALICE I. KENT.
+
+  And Nature, the old nurse, took
+    The child upon her knee,
+  Saying: "Here is a story-book
+    Thy Father has written for thee."
+
+  --_Longfellow to Agassiz._
+
+
+[22] Nature-Study Quarterly No. 8: Leaflet 21, January, 1901.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 125. Life in the terrarium._]
+
+Fortunate are the children and the teachers who are so placed that
+Nature's story book is close at hand. But city children and their
+teachers need not despair, for Nature, the old nurse, is loving and
+bountiful and will rewrite, in living characters, many a page from the
+wondrous book, for those who care to read. One such a page may be a
+terrarium--a confined plot of earth on which things may live and grow
+(from _terra_, "earth," as aquarium is from _aqua_, "water"). Within its
+narrow confines, the whole drama of the beautiful life of many a tiny
+creature may be rewritten.
+
+Here is a fragment of the drama, as written in one terrarium.
+
+This terrarium was made from an old berry crate (Figs. 125, 126). When
+the children saw it first, last fall, this is what it looked like: a
+large rectangular box, grass-green in color, thirty-nine inches long,
+eighteen inches wide, and fifteen inches high. The long sides were of
+glass, the short sides and top of green wire netting. The top could be
+removed like the lid of a box. It stood upon a pedestal-table provided
+with castors. In the bottom of the terrarium were three inches of rich
+soil, covered with the delicate green of sprouting grass-seed. In one
+corner was a mossy nook, and in another a mass of thistles and clover.
+At one end, a small cabbage was planted and at the other lay several
+sprays of glossy pin-oak. Suspended from the top, was a large spray of
+purple thistles.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 126. Butterfly-time in the terrarium world._]
+
+Among the thistles in the corner, ten pendants of vivid green, bright
+with golden points, could be seen. They were the chrysalids of the
+monarch, or milkweed, butterfly. Among the cabbage leaves, were many of
+the pale green eggs and several of the caterpillars of the cabbage
+butterfly. Among the sprays of oak in the corner, several oak
+caterpillars were feeding.
+
+Before many days had passed, the drama of life began. One by one, the
+chrysalids of the milkweed butterfly paled in color and, becoming
+transparent, showed through their whitened walls the orange-colored
+wings of the developing butterflies within. They then burst, freeing
+their gorgeous tenants. This happened until there were seven butterflies
+in the terrarium. As two of these proved discontented with their new
+home, they were set free. The five others spent the little round of
+their aërial life seemingly happy and satisfied. They lived from three
+to six weeks and showed some individuality in their tastes and habits.
+Sometimes they chose the mossy corner for their resting place. On other
+occasions they preferred the netting at the ends and top of the
+terrarium. In fact, the netting at the ends of the terrarium was a
+source of pleasure to these butterflies, as it served as a secure
+resting place and an agreeable and convenient pathway to the top. One of
+them spent nearly all its life on the thistles suspended from the top.
+These thistles were kept fresh a long time by placing their stems in a
+large sponge which was frequently drenched with water.
+
+The butterflies showed some individuality in their eating also. Thistle,
+clover, golden-rod, nasturtiums, and honey-suckle were offered to them.
+The thistle and the golden-rod were most frequently visited, and next to
+these the nasturtiums were most favored. Another fact noted was that
+most of the butterflies continued to visit the flower first chosen.
+When, however, a thick syrup of sugar and water was offered to them, the
+flowers were much neglected, only one butterfly persisting in
+flower-visiting. Golden-rod was its choice. If the syrup was fresh-made
+every morning and was placed in a convenient spot, the butterflies never
+failed to sip it. They generally slept clinging to the wire-netting at
+the ends or top of the terrarium.
+
+In the meantime, the cabbage began to attract the watchful eyes of the
+wondering children. As it had industriously sent out many tiny roots, it
+proved a safe and satisfactory home for its hidden occupants. Soon, one
+by one, the caterpillars began to appear at the edges of the uppermost
+leaves. They began small tours in the vicinage of the cabbage, and,
+finally, as with the butterflies, the end wire nettings proved to be an
+easy pathway to the top of the terrarium. Here several found good
+resting places, and slowly changed to chrysalids.
+
+One day a cabbage butterfly obligingly flew in at the open window. It
+was caught and placed in the terrarium. It, too, proved to be very fond
+of sugar syrup. One morning the syrup was accidentally spilled on the
+wooden ridge at the bottom of the terrarium outside of the netting. The
+butterfly was so hungry that it could not wait for food more
+conveniently placed; so it stretched its tongue out, full length,
+through the netting, and in that way obtained it. The children were
+surprised to find its tongue somewhat longer than its body.
+
+At this time, the cabbage was removed so that the eggs and the remaining
+young caterpillars could be observed. The protecting coloring of the
+eggs and caterpillars was first noticed. One little boy at first
+announced that the caterpillars were green because they were not ripe, a
+good example surely of the danger of reasoning from analogy!
+
+Very soon the inhabitants of this terrarium world began to increase. A
+father and two mother grasshoppers and a young one, with his "armor on,"
+came to live there; also a "woolly bear," several other species of
+caterpillars, several species of beetles, a big horse-fly, some
+lady-bugs, and a cicada. About this time too, some very unwelcome
+immigrants appeared. These were the ichneumon flies. So numerous did
+they become in a very short time, that they threatened desolation to
+this prosperous community. Nature's methods were then scrutinized and
+the services of two tree-toads were sought. Their response was immediate
+and cordial. Soon not an ichneumon fly could be found.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 127. Hand over hand._]
+
+The grasshoppers were partial to celery, over-ripe bananas, and
+moisture. Three days after they became inhabitants of this miniature
+world, the mother grasshopper dug a hole in the ground and laid eggs.
+The observing children then had before them living illustrations of the
+three stages of grasshopper life.
+
+The tree-toads were both amusing and accommodating. They, too, liked the
+wire netting at the ends of the terrarium, and delighted the children by
+climbing up foot over foot, or hand over hand, like odd four-handed
+sailor boys (Fig. 127.) This brought into plain view the tiny suckers on
+their feet.
+
+After the ichneumon flies had disappeared, a new difficulty arose. The
+ground became mouldy, and the grass died down. The terrarium was then
+placed by an open window and left there several hours for a number of
+days until it was thoroughly dried out. Then bird-seed was planted and
+the ground was watered thereafter with a small plant syringe. This gave
+sufficient, but not excessive moisture, and it was one of the pleasures
+of the children to imitate a rainy day in the terrarium world. And it
+was a pleasing experience, for there were splashes of water on the glass
+sides and many shining drops on the netting and verdure, which soon grew
+several inches tall; there was the same delightful odor of rich fresh
+earth that one enjoys during summer rains, and the sunshine touched with
+brilliancy the gay fall flowers and the gorgeous outspread wings of the
+butterflies.
+
+At this time the terrarium had an annex in the shape of a wooden box, a
+foot square, with a gauze top. Here lived two mother spiders with their
+egg-balls carefully hung on the cobweb beams of their homes. One day a
+beautiful yellow silk egg-ball was found out of doors, and when it was
+carefully opened to show the eggs with which it was filled, the
+gratifying discovery was made that these eggs were hatching. They were
+very tiny and very numerous. They were inclosed in a silken pouch and
+were the exact color of its lining. When resting the little spiders
+seemed to hold their legs under the body, and they were so small and so
+like the egg in general appearance that if they had not run about when
+disturbed they would never have been discovered. As soon as the egg ball
+was opened they exploited their one talent, for they ran out on the
+fingers of the person who held the ball and then suspended themselves by
+almost invisible threads from all parts of the fingers. When they were
+to be returned to the egg-ball they were gently pushed up. They then
+obligingly ran back into their silken home, which was carefully closed
+as before. These little ones were kept a week or ten days and were then
+allowed to escape and establish homes for themselves. The life history
+of the spider was thus seen, although, unfortunately, our adult spiders
+did not belong to the same species as the young ones.
+
+To return to the terrarium: It was now early in November and each day
+found one or more of the terrarium inhabitants missing. One of the
+caterpillars disappeared and a cocoon made of its own hair was found in
+its place; several chrysalids were found on the top of the terrarium;
+the butterflies and the grasshoppers, one by one, went into that sleep
+from which there is no awakening; and a number of the other creatures
+disappeared. The children finally concluded that the latter had gone to
+sleep in the ground. The grasshoppers and the tree-toads were the last
+to take their rest, but just before they answered Mother Nature's call
+to slumber, a large garden toad came to bear them company.
+
+He was a very interesting toad for he bore signs of having lived through
+what must have been almost a tragedy. He had lost the lower half of one
+front leg and had the scar of a long gash on his throat. These
+disfigurements seemed not to cause him the least unhappiness, for he had
+a very bright wide-awake expression and was as plump and complacent as a
+toad should be. The loss of his leg caused him a little inconvenience,
+for he sometimes lost his balance when hopping and fell on his back. He
+occasionally found it difficult to right himself at once, but a few
+vigorous kicks and jumps generally placed him right side up. Three days
+after he became a member of the terrarium community, he, too, heard
+Mother Nature's call to bed, and partially buried himself. Each day he
+covered himself more completely, until finally only the top of his head
+and two sleepy eyes were to be seen. One day, about a week afterward, he
+disappeared entirely. He proved to be a very restless sleeper, and
+frequently showed himself during the sunniest parts of nearly every day
+all winter, occasionally coming entirely out of his earthy covering. He
+served as a sort of barometer all winter, appearing in bright and
+disappearing in gloomy weather. He never, however, left the spot he had
+chosen for his bed.
+
+"Winter is the night of the year," and the little terrarium world
+indoors exemplifies it as truly as the great fields of Nature's domain
+out of doors. The soil is dry and hard in this miniature world and the
+verdure has dried down to palest green and brown. In its earthy bed, the
+caterpillars, beetles, and other creatures lie cosily asleep, and with
+the masses of tiny eggs, await the vivifying touch of spring.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XVIII.
+
+DIRECTIONS FOR COLLECTING AND PRESERVING INSECTS.[23]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[23] Teachers' Leaflet No. 7, June, 1897.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+It is the purpose of this leaflet to give a few suggestions to aid those
+pupils of the secondary schools who desire to make collections of
+insects.
+
+There are several good reasons why children should be encouraged to make
+collections of flowers, birds and insects; and the least of these
+reasons is the possession of such a collection on the part of the child.
+Making a collection of natural history specimens should only be the
+means to an end, _i. e._, training the child to observe. When eyes are
+opened to the wonders of nature, every roadside, brook and woodland is
+fraught with interest which is undreamed of by those who are
+nature-blind. It is sad to think of the hosts of people who go through
+this beautiful world having eyes but seeing not, having ears but hearing
+not. The eyes must be unsealed in youth, when the mind is alert and
+receptive if the man or woman is to find in later life that Nature is
+not only a resource and recreation but an ever faithful friend holding
+out comforting arms to those who are weary in soul and body.
+
+Not only does the study of nature open the child's eyes, but it also
+teaches him the value of accuracy. The young naturalist soon understands
+that an observation is worth nothing unless it is truthful. On the other
+hand, nature-study cultivates the imagination. The wonders in the lives
+of insects, plants, and birds are so illimitable that almost anything
+_seems_ possible. Few indeed are the studies wherein the fire kindled by
+imaginative _seeming_ is guarded and checked by the facts of actual
+_seeing_.
+
+There are a few points in favor of beginning with insects when the child
+first attempts making a collection of natural objects. Insects are to be
+found everywhere and are easily caught; it requires no technical skill
+to preserve them, as is the case with birds; they retain their natural
+forms and colors better than do flowers. To secure the desired results
+for the pupil when he is making his collection of insects, the teacher
+should take care that he makes his observations incidentally, thus
+subserving the true methods of nature-study, which is to teach the child
+while he remains unconscious of the fact that he is being taught. The
+teacher, therefore, should ask the young collector, "Where did you catch
+this butterfly?" "Where did you find this beetle?" "Upon what plant or
+flower did you find this bug?" "Did you hear this cricket chirp? If so,
+how did he do it?" etc., etc.; thus making him tell orally or in a
+written language lesson the things he has seen while collecting. The
+differences in the appearance and structure of the insects caught should
+also be brought out by questions. These questions may be adapted to
+pupils of any age, and the success of this part of the work must ever
+depend upon the interest and genius of the teacher.
+
+The objection is sometimes raised that collecting and killing insects
+and birds incite the child to cruelty and wanton destruction of life.
+This seems good _a priori_ reasoning, but experience does not confirm
+it. We have always found that those who collect and take an interest in
+insect life are much more careful about killing or hurting insects than
+are other people; the entomologist of all men takes the greatest pains
+to avoid stepping upon the caterpillar or cricket in his path; also the
+young ornithologists who have come under our observation show the
+greatest devotion to the rights and interests of birds. Our experience
+is that as soon as the child begins to take an interest in insects he
+begins to see matters from their point of view, and this insures a
+proper regard for their right to life. It will be well, however, for the
+teacher to impress upon the pupil that he should kill no insect that is
+not desired for his collection.
+
+The articles necessary for collecting insects are few and inexpensive.
+One net and one killing bottle may do service for a grade or an entire
+country school, thus reducing the expense to a minimum.
+
+
+INSECT NET. FIG. 128.
+
+
+_Materials required._
+
+1. A handle about three feet long; an old broom handle will do.
+
+2. A piece of tin three inches wide, long enough to reach around the
+handle.
+
+3. A piece of No. 3 galvanized wire 3 feet 6 inches long.
+
+4. One-sixth of a yard of heavy sheeting.
+
+5. Three-quarters of a yard of cheese cloth.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 128. Insect net._]
+
+Bend the wire into a ring about a foot in diameter and bend back about 3
+inches of each end of the wire so they may be inserted into a hole
+drilled into the end of the handle. The piece of tin should be fastened
+around the end of the handle where the wire is inserted to hold it
+securely in place. If practicable, a tinsmith should be called upon to
+help in bending the wire and fastening it to the handle. After this is
+done, take the sheeting and fold it over the wire double, using only
+enough to fit around the wire without gathering; the object of this
+heavy cloth is to prevent the net from wearing out quickly. Make the
+cheese cloth into a bag with rounded bottom and just wide enough to fit
+the facing of sheeting, to which it should be sewed securely, and the
+net is finished.
+
+
+HOW TO USE THE NET.
+
+To be successful, the net must be swung swiftly. Insects have many eyes
+and are very wide awake and have no desire to be caught; therefore, the
+collector must be very active if he gets anything. One method of using
+the net is called "sweeping;" to do this take the handle about a foot
+and a half above the ring and pass the net quickly back and forth
+striking it against the grass in front of you as you walk through open
+fields; the net must be turned at each stroke and kept in rapid motion
+or the insects will escape. After a time the net should be examined and
+the insects put in the killing bottle.
+
+Another method of using the net is called "beating." This method is used
+in collecting insects from bushes, and consists of lifting the net,
+mouth upward, and striking it sharply against the branches or leaves,
+thus jarring the insects into it.
+
+To use the net in water, sweep the water plants as quickly as possible.
+In running streams, overturn stones, holding the net just below them
+with the mouth up stream. An old dipper made into a sieve by perforating
+the bottom with an awl is a good utensil for collecting water insects.
+
+
+THE KILLING BOTTLE. FIG. 129.
+
+It is desirable to kill the insects in a humane way, so that they will
+not suffer by the process; it is also desirable that they should not
+revive after they are pinned, both for their own sakes as well as for
+the sake of the feelings of the collector. The best way to secure
+painless and sure death for the insects is by the means of a "cyanide
+bottle."
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 129. Killing bottle._]
+
+
+_Materials needed for a killing bottle._
+
+1. A bottle with a wide mouth; a morphine bottle or a small olive or
+pickle bottle will do. Even a glass fruit-can holding a pint will answer
+very well, although taking off and putting on the cover consumes more
+time than is desirable.
+
+2. A cork that will fit the bottle tightly and is long enough to handle
+easily.
+
+3. Two cents' worth of cyanide of potassium.
+
+4. One cent's worth of plaster of Paris.
+
+These latter materials may be procured from any drug store.
+
+Place the lump of cyanide of potassium in the bottle and pour in enough
+water to cover it. Add immediately enough plaster of Paris to soak up
+all the water; leave the bottle open in a shady place for an hour and
+then wipe the dry plaster of Paris from its sides, put in the cork, and
+it is ready for use. The plaster of Paris forms a porous cement, which,
+while it holds the cyanide fast in the bottom, also allows the fumes of
+the poison to escape and fill the bottle. It should be labelled
+"poison," for cyanide of potassium is very poisonous. If kept corked
+when not in use, a killing bottle made like this will last a whole
+season.
+
+The first rule in using the killing bottle is this: do not kill any more
+insects than you need for your collection. The second rule is: do not
+breathe the fumes of the bottle, for they smell badly and are not good
+for you. When you uncork the bottle to put an insect in it, hold it away
+from your face and cork it up again as quickly as possible.
+
+Some insects may be caught from flowers, etc., directly into the bottle
+by holding it uncorked beneath them for a moment; the fumes of the
+poison soon overcome them and they drop into the bottle. In taking
+insects from the net, hold the bottle in the right hand and the cork in
+the left; insert the bottle into the net and place the mouth of it over
+an insect crawling on the inside of the net, then put the cork on the
+outside of the net into the mouth of the bottle, net and all, for a
+moment until the insect falls into the bottom of the bottle; then remove
+the cork and take the rest of the imprisoned insects in the same way.
+Insects should be left in the bottle at least an hour, and may be left
+in there over night without injury to the specimens.
+
+
+INSECT PINS. FIG. 130.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 130. Insect pins, 1, 3, 5, are German insect pins.
+2 is a steel mourning pin._]
+
+After the insects are caught they should be pinned so that they may be
+arranged in the collection in an orderly manner. Common pins are not
+good for pinning insects; they are too thick and they corrode very soon,
+covering the specimens with verdigris. Regular insect pins are desirable
+as they are very slender and do not corrode so quickly. These may be
+obtained of any dealer in entomological supplies at a cost of fifteen
+cents per hundred.
+
+Ask for the German insect pins Nos. 1, 3 and 5. If these pins are too
+expensive you can use the black steel mourning pins. These come in
+shallow boxes one by two inches square and have round glass heads and
+the boxes are labelled "Germany;" these may be procured from any dry
+goods store. However, insects pinned with any beside regular insect pins
+cannot be sold or exchanged.
+
+All insects except beetles should be pinned through that part of the
+body just back of the head, as shown in Figs. 137, 139, 140, 141.
+Beetles should be pinned through the right wing-cover, as shown in Fig.
+138. About one-fourth of the pin should project above the back of the
+insect. Very small insects may be gummed to a narrow strip of card board
+and the pin put through the card board.
+
+
+LABELLING SPECIMENS.
+
+Specimens should be labelled with the date of capture and the locality.
+Thus the butterfly, Fig. 141, would be labelled thus:
+
+  Ithaca, N. Y.
+  Aug. 12, 1896.
+
+The paper on which this label is written should be slipped upon the pin
+with which the butterfly is pinned and placed just below the insect.
+Labels should be as small as possible and be neatly cut.
+
+
+INSECT BOXES.
+
+For the beginner nothing is more convenient than an empty cigar box,
+which may be obtained at any store where cigars are sold. (Fig. 131.)
+The bottom of the box should be covered with some soft, firm material
+into which pins may be pushed without bending them. There are many such
+materials. Sheet cork or pressed peat may be obtained of dealers in
+entomological supplies. Some ingenious boys use regular bottle corks,
+cut into cross sections about 1/4 inch thick. Others take the pith of
+dried corn-stalks divided in half lengthwise. The cheapest and most
+easily procurable of the purchasable materials is cork linoleum. This is
+for sale in most carpet stores. Get the quality that is about 1/4 inch
+thick, which costs about $1 per yard; put it into the box cork-side up.
+Any of these materials can be fastened to the bottom of the box with
+glue or with tacks. In all cases they should be covered neatly with
+white paper, for the insects appear better against a white background.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 131. A convenient box for the use of the young
+collector._]
+
+For permanent collections, wooden boxes with glass tops are much safer;
+and as the insects may be seen through the glass these boxes are more
+practical for school collections. This kind of a box is shown in Fig.
+132. Its sides are 18 by 16 inches and its height is three inches
+outside measure. The upper edge of the sides of the bottom part of the
+box is made with a tongue which fits into a groove made in the lower
+edge of the sides of the cover. This is done so that the top and bottom
+parts of the box shall fit very closely together in order that museum
+pests cannot get in and destroy the specimens.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 132. Insect box made of wood, with glass top._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 133. A cross-section of the side of insect box Fig.
+132, showing method of construction and giving measurements._]
+
+In Fig. 133 is a cross section through one side of the box, showing how
+it should be made and giving measurements. In the drawing the glass is
+fitted into a groove in the inner side of the cover. This glass might be
+puttied in like a window pane if it is found difficult to make the
+groove. The corners of the box may be mitred and dove-tailed, or mitred
+and nailed; the latter is more easily done. Any carpenter or cabinet
+maker can make this box. Great care must be taken to use only thoroughly
+seasoned wood in its construction; otherwise the bottom will be sure to
+warp and shrink and leave cracks through which the museum pests will
+enter.
+
+The cost of such a box will vary from $0.75 to $1. Basswood should be
+used for its construction; pine is not at all suitable on account of the
+resin in it. Screw eyes may be put into these boxes and they may be hung
+on the walls of the schoolroom like pictures.
+
+
+MUSEUM PESTS.
+
+These are small beetles which find their way through the narrowest
+crevice into the insect boxes and lay their eggs on the pinned insects.
+
+The larvæ when they hatch work within the specimens at first but after a
+time destroy the bodies entirely. The presence of these little rascals
+may be detected by dust on the bottom of the box just below the
+infested insect. As soon as this dust is observed, pour into one corner
+of the box a tablespoonful of carbon bisulfide, or benzine, and close
+the box quickly. The teacher or parent should put the substances into
+the boxes, as the first is a poison and both are very inflammable. As a
+method of preventing the beetles from attacking the collection it is
+well to fasten a "moth ball" into one corner of the box. These may be
+obtained at a drug store.
+
+
+SPREADING-BOARD. FIG. 134.
+
+Butterflies and moths look much better in a collection when their wings
+are extended at right angles to the length of the body. To arrange them
+thus we have to use what is termed a spreading-board.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 134. A spreading-board._]
+
+
+_Materials needed for a medium sized spreading-board._
+
+1. Two strips of pine or other soft wood 18 inches long, 1-1/2 inches
+wide and 1/2 inch thick.
+
+2. One strip of wood 18 inches long, 3-1/4 inches wide and 1/2 inch
+thick.
+
+3. Two cleats 3-1/4 inches wide, 3/4 inch high and 1/2 inch thick; and
+two cleats 1 inch wide and as high and thick as the others.
+
+4. A strip of cork or linoleum 17 inches long and a little less than an
+inch wide.
+
+To construct the spreading-board, take the two narrow strips of wood,
+place them one-fourth inch apart and on the under side fasten them
+across the ends of the longer cleats. Then on the same side as the
+cleats tack the piece of cork or linoleum over the space between the
+strips of board, and as the cleats are one-half inch wide the linoleum
+should cover all the space left. Then midway the boards fasten the two
+smaller cleats. Fig. 135 shows a cross-section of the spreading-board
+just in front of these two middle cleats. Now it is ready for the
+bottom board which will fit exactly if directions are followed, and this
+completes it. The space between the two upper boards is wide enough to
+take in the body of the moth or butterfly. The cork or linoleum below
+the space will hold firmly the pin on which the butterfly is impaled.
+The cleats hold the top and bottom boards apart and so protect the
+points of the pins. Spreading-boards may be made much smaller or much
+larger to suit moths of different sizes; the space between the top
+boards must always be large enough to admit the body of the insect.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 135. A cross-section of spreading-board in front of
+the cleat "d" in Fig. 134._]
+
+To use the spreading-board: Insert the pin with the butterfly on it into
+the linoleum just far enough so that the body of the insect will be in
+the space between the boards up to the wings, Fig. 135. Place the wings
+out flat on the board and fasten them there with narrow strips of paper
+pinned across them, Fig. 134, _a_. While held down by these strips of
+paper arrange them so that the hind margins of the front wings shall
+cover the front margins of the hind wings and shall be in a line at
+right angles to the body; then pin larger pieces of paper over the rest
+of the wings, Fig. 134, _b_. Sometimes isinglass is used instead of
+paper to hold the wings down, Fig. 134, _c_. The insects should be left
+on the spreading-board at least three days; and when the board has
+insects on it, it should be kept in a box where the museum pests and
+mice cannot get at it.
+
+Sometimes when the moths are not spread soon after being killed, they
+become so stiff that the wings cannot be moved without breaking them. In
+such cases the insects should be put on paper in a jar which has some
+wet sand in the bottom and which can be covered tightly. The air in such
+a can is so moist that in two or three days the insect will become
+limber and may be spread with ease.
+
+
+WHERE TO COLLECT INSECTS.
+
+The border of a piece of woods where many shrubs and weeds are growing
+is an especially good place for collecting many kinds of insects. Any
+place where there is a great variety of plants and flowers will give a
+variety of insects. Banks of streams and underneath stones in the fields
+are good places for collecting.
+
+
+WHEN TO COLLECT INSECTS.
+
+The best time of the year is during the summer months. The best time of
+day is in the forenoon after eight o'clock, and in the twilight at
+evening.
+
+At night many moths may be caught by making a paste of sugar and water
+(unrefined sugar is best) and painting it upon tree trunks with a brush
+after sunset. The paste should cover a space two inches wide and several
+inches long. After dark seek these places cautiously with a lantern and
+moths will be found sucking the paste; these may be caught with the
+killing bottle if you move carefully so as not to frighten them; they do
+not seem to mind the light of the lantern.
+
+Electric street-lights attract many insects which may be caught
+in the net. A lamp set in an open window is also a very good lure
+on warm nights in the spring and summer.
+
+
+ARRANGING THE INSECTS IN BOXES.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 136. a, Cricket. b, Grasshopper._]
+
+After collecting insects comes the desire to arrange them properly,
+putting together in neat rows those that resemble each other. To
+classify insects correctly requires much study. The scope of this
+leaflet admits of only a few suggestions about the most common insects.
+
+_Dragon Flies._--There are many kinds of these, but they all have four
+wings, finely netted and transparent, the hind wings being as large or
+larger than the front wings. These are perfectly harmless insects.
+
+_Grasshoppers, Crickets and Katydids._--These are known to all, Fig.
+136. There are two families of grasshoppers: those with long horns or
+antennæ and those with short antennæ. Katydids, crickets, cockroaches
+and walking-sticks are near relatives to the grasshoppers.
+
+_Bugs._--These insects have the front pair of wings thick and heavy at
+the base and thin and transparent at the tips, Fig. 137, _b_. The
+squash-bug, the chinch-bug, and the electric-light bug are examples of
+these. Some bugs have the front wings entirely thin and transparent and
+sloping like a steep roof over the back of the insect, like the cicada,
+Fig. 137, _a_; and the Brownie bug, Fig. 137, _c_, _d_.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 137. a, Cicada. b, Stink-bug. c, Leaf-hopper. d,
+Leaf-hopper--front view._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 138. Beetles--showing the pin through the right
+wing cover. a, Snapping beetle. b, Wood-boring beetle. c, Water
+beetle._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 139. Flies--showing the knobs just below the wings.
+Note that flies have only two wings. a, Crane fly. b, Pomace
+fly--enlarged._]
+
+_Beetles._--These have hard wing-covers which meet in a straight line
+down the back and have a pair of thin wings folded under them, Fig.
+138. The "June bug" or "May beetle" and the potato beetle are good
+examples of beetles.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 140. a, Wasp. b, Bee. Note these have four wings._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 141. The Red Admiral butterfly. Note the knobbed
+antennæ._]
+
+_Flies._--These have only two wings, usually transparent. Behind each of
+these wings a short thread with a knob on it extends out on each side of
+the body instead of hind wings, Fig. 139. House-flies, horse-flies and
+mosquitoes are examples of flies.
+
+_Bees, Wasps and Ants._--Bees, wasps and the winged form of ants have
+four transparent wings, Fig. 140. Some flies resemble bees and wasps,
+but if examined it will be found that they have only two wings instead
+of four.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 142. The Cabbage butterfly._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 143. The Bass-wood leaf-roller moth._]
+
+_Butterflies and Moths._--Butterflies and moths may be told apart by
+the following character: The antennæ or horns of the butterflies are
+always threadlike and knobbed at the tip, Figs. 141, 142, while the
+antennæ of moths are in various shapes, but never bear knobs at the
+tips, Figs. 143, 144, 145, 146.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 144. The Imperial moth. A common night-flying
+moth._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 145. An under-wing moth._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 146. The Luna moth. A common night-flying
+species._]
+
+
+DEALERS IN ENTOMOLOGICAL SUPPLIES.
+
+The following is a list of the dealers in entomological supplies that
+have advertisements in the current American entomological journals:
+
+A. Smith & Sons, 269 Pearl Street, New York, N. Y.
+
+John Akhurst, 78 Ashland Place, Brooklyn, N. Y.
+
+M. Abbott Frazar, 93 Sudbury Street, Boston, Mass.
+
+Entomological Society of Ontario, Victoria Hall, London, Ont.
+
+Queen & Co., 1010 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, Pa.
+
+The Bausch & Lomb Optical Company, 515-543 N. St. Paul Street,
+Rochester, N. Y.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XIX.
+
+SOME TENT-MAKERS.[24]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[24] Teachers' Leaflet No. 5, June, 1897.
+
+It is unfortunate that there is, throughout the country, a prevailing
+dislike for the small creatures called "worms." This dislike is, in most
+instances, the result of wrong training, and is by no means a natural
+instinct. As evidence of this, witness the joy with which the small boy
+or even the small girl, handles "bait" when preparing to go fishing;
+although of all common "worms" surely the angle-worm is least attractive
+from any point of view. A still more striking example is the hardihood
+with which young fishermen catch the dobson to use as a lure for
+bass--for the dobson is not only very ugly in appearance but is also
+vicious, often pinching severely the careless fingers of its captors.
+Thus the dislike for insects being the result of the point of view, it
+should be the first duty of the teacher to remove this repulsion. In the
+lesson which follows there is no occasion for teacher or pupils to touch
+the insects unless they choose to do so; but an attempt is made to
+arouse an interest in the habits and ways of insect life. If we can
+succeed in arousing the child's interest in the actions of a
+caterpillar, he will soon forget his dislike for the "little brothers"
+which live upon foliage and which experience miraculous changes of form
+during their short lives.
+
+In selecting the Apple-tree Tent Caterpillar for this lesson we have
+been guided by the following facts: First, it is to be found in early
+spring; second, its life-history from egg to cocoon is accomplished
+within the limits of the spring term of our schools; third, it is common
+everywhere; fourth, it is an important insect from an economic point of
+view, and the children may be taught how to keep it out of the orchards,
+thus making the lesson of practical use.
+
+In this lesson the teacher is encouraged to use her own methods and
+originate new ones to make the work interesting. The Leaflet is meant
+for the exclusive use of the teacher and the text should not be shown to
+the pupils. The pictures on page 235 are to be shown to the pupils at
+the teacher's discretion. When answers are herein given to the questions
+asked, they are meant to aid the teacher in drawing out the correct
+replies from the children.
+
+
+MATERIALS NEEDED.
+
+1. A pocket lens or a tripod lens is desirable, but not a necessity.
+These lenses may be bought from or ordered through any jeweler or
+bookseller. They cost from twenty-five cents to one dollar each. It is
+worth while for any teacher to possess one of these magnifiers as a
+means of interesting her pupils in many things.
+
+2. A bottle, a broad-bottomed one being preferable so that it will not
+tip over easily. This bottle is to be filled with water in which a small
+branch of the apple tree may be placed to keep it fresh. A common ink
+bottle will do to begin with. Fig. 147.
+
+3. A wooden or pasteboard box, twelve or fourteen inches square,--a soap
+box or hat box will do. In place of a cover, nail or paste mosquito
+netting or cheese cloth over the top; remove the bottom so that the box
+may be placed over the bottle and the branch of apple in it. This is
+called a "breeding-cage," and its use is to keep the insects from
+straying about the schoolroom.
+
+4. A twig bearing the egg-mass of the tent caterpillar. These are easily
+found before the leaves appear on the apple tree or the wild cherry
+tree.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 147. The bottle with the twigs bearing the
+egg-masses. The tent is being woven below._]
+
+
+METHODS OF USING THE LEAFLET.
+
+The teacher should give the pupils a preliminary talk on tents. Speak of
+the tents used by Indians, by armies, by circuses, by campers, and
+describe them each in turn. The teacher should use all the facts at her
+disposal, and all her ingenuity to get the children interested in this
+subject. Spend a little time for two or three days in discussing tents,
+and get the pupils to tell orally or in essays all they know about
+tents. When sufficient interest is thus aroused, tell them this: "The
+reason we have talked about tents is that we are going to study some
+little folks who make tents and live in them. Their tents are not made
+of bark like the Indian's or of canvas like the soldier's, but are made
+of the finest silk, which is spun and woven by the tenters themselves.
+These silken tents are not pitched upon the ground and fastened down by
+ropes and pegs, for these folk, like the Swiss Family Robinson, live in
+trees. Many people live in one of these tree tents, and they are all
+brothers and sisters. Now, just where these tents are made, and how they
+are made, and what sort of little people make them are things which we
+shall find out if we watch carefully and patiently."
+
+
+LESSON I.--THE EGGS. FIG. 149, _a_.
+
+The teacher, having found the egg-mass, should show it to the pupils and
+let them, during play hours, collect some for themselves. Say that they
+are eggs, but explain no further. Get the children to examine the
+egg-masses; ask the following questions:
+
+On what part of the trees are these egg-masses found?
+
+What is the shape of the egg-mass? (Bring out the fact that they look
+like a portion of the twig swollen or budded.)
+
+What is the color of the egg-mass?
+
+Is there much difference in color between the egg-mass and the branch?
+
+Has this similarity in color any use? (Develop the idea that the shape
+and the color of the egg-mass make it resemble the twig so closely as to
+hide it from birds or any animal that would be likely to eat the eggs.)
+
+Does the egg-mass shine?
+
+Why does it shine? _Answer._ Because there is a coat of varnish around
+the eggs.
+
+Why was varnish put around the eggs? (Get the answer by asking why
+varnish is put on wood. Varnish is put around the eggs to preserve them
+and to keep them dry during the rains and snows of autumn and winter.)
+
+If the eggs are near the hatching period the varnish will have scaled
+off, revealing the tiny white eggs; if not, let the teacher remove the
+varnish with a knife or pin, thus exposing the eggs. If the teacher has
+a lens the children should view the eggs through it. Exhibit the picture
+Fig. 149, b, which represents the eggs greatly enlarged showing the
+net-work of cement which holds them in place. Ask the children to
+compare the shape of these eggs with that of bird's eggs, and bring out
+the fact that these are thimble-shaped. Then ask the pupils to guess
+what sort of mother laid these eggs, cemented them fast with a network,
+and then covered them with a coat of waterproof varnish. After
+sufficient interest is aroused on this point, explain to them: "One day
+last July a little moth or miller was flitting about the tree from which
+these twigs were taken. If we could have been there and caught her we
+should have found her a pretty little creature with four wings covered
+with down and a soft fuzzy body. In color she was a pale rosy-brown, and
+had two bands of pale yellow across each front wing." (Call attention to
+the picture of the moth, Fig. 149, e.[25])
+
+[25] If a specimen of the moth could be obtained, it would be much more
+interesting to the children than the picture. The teacher can collect or
+breed the moths in July to use the next spring to illustrate the lesson.
+
+"This is the little mother which laid her eggs in a ring around the twig
+and covered them with a waterproof coat to keep them safe and sound
+until this spring, when they will hatch."
+
+What will come out of these eggs when they hatch? The teacher should not
+answer this question, but let the pupils watch the eggs and discover the
+answer for themselves.
+
+Place the twig with the egg-mass upon it in the bottle of water (Fig.
+147). It will be best if this twig is a part of a forked branch, so that
+the caterpillars may make their web upon it (Fig. 148). As soon as the
+eggs hatch ask the following questions:
+
+What sort of young ones hatch out of the eggs?
+
+Are they like their mother?
+
+What color are they?
+
+Why are their heads so large? _Answer._ So that they can gnaw the lid
+off the egg and thus get out.
+
+Why should the young ones of a pretty moth be little black caterpillars?
+
+(Leave this answer for future investigation.)
+
+After the caterpillars hatch it will be necessary to bring in each day
+fresh apple twigs with buds and leaves on them so as to feed the little
+prisoners. It is very desirable that they be kept alive until they have
+begun their web and have molted at least twice. If they show a
+disposition to wander off, put the breeding cage over the bottle and
+branch and so keep them confined with their food.
+
+To supplement the study of the imprisoned caterpillars, study should be
+made at the same time of the insects out of doors and under natural
+conditions. If none appear upon an apple or wild cherry tree near the
+school-house, the teacher should transfer a colony to such a tree (Fig.
+148). This may be done by fastening a twig with an egg-mass upon it to a
+branch of the tree. If too late to get the unhatched eggs, get a nest
+with the small worms in it and tie that to the convenient branch
+instead. This study of the insects out of doors is very necessary in
+discovering their normal habits.
+
+
+LESSON II. THE CATERPILLARS. FIG. 149, _c_.
+
+If the eggs hatch before the leaves appear, upon what do the
+caterpillars feed?
+
+How long is it after hatching before the caterpillars commence to make
+their tent?
+
+Where is the tent always formed?
+
+_Answer._ In the fork of the branches.
+
+Why is this so?
+
+_Answer._ The forking branches offer a convenient support upon which to
+stretch the tent: and when, as in the case out of doors, the tent is
+spread in a fork of the larger limbs, these limbs afford two branching
+roads for the caterpillars to follow in searching for food.
+
+Let the pupils make drawings of the tent as soon as it is large enough
+to be seen well.
+
+What is the color of the caterpillars when they are a week old?
+
+Upon what do they feed?
+
+At what time of day do they feed?
+
+When on a tree, how far from their tent do they go for food?
+
+Are the paths over which the caterpillars travel when searching for food
+marked in any way?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 148. A young colony of tent-makers on a cherry
+tree._]
+
+_Answer._ This caterpillar spins a silken thread wherever it goes and
+therefore leaves a trail of silk behind it.
+
+Of what is the tent made?
+
+Compare the tent with a spider's web and note the differences.
+
+Where does the silk come from, of which the tent is made?
+
+_Answer._ The silk glands of the caterpillar are situated near the
+mouth, while those of the spider are on the rear end of the body.
+
+
+LESSON III. HOW THE INSECTS GROW.
+
+The caterpillars shed their skins about five times. The first molt
+occurs about three days after they hatch; the second molt about four
+days later; and the third molt about six days after the second. After
+each molt, the color and markings of the caterpillars are somewhat
+changed. During some of the molts the pupils should watch a caterpillar
+change his skin. After the class has seen this operation the teacher may
+give the following lesson:
+
+Where is your skeleton?
+
+What is it made of?
+
+What is it for? Bring out the fact that the skeleton is a support for
+the muscles and organs of the body.
+
+Where is an insect's skeleton? Get as many answers to this question as
+possible, then explain:
+
+The insect's skeleton is on the outside of its body instead of a skin,
+and the flesh and muscles are supported by it on the inside instead of
+on the outside like our own. As this skeleton is hard it cannot stretch;
+as the insect grows and gets too large the shell bursts open and the
+insect walks out of it. Now underneath this old hard skeleton a new one
+is formed, which is soft and flexible at first, and so stretches to
+accommodate the growing insect. After a little time this new skeleton
+also hardens and has to be shed when it is too small to suit its owner.
+
+Notes should be made by the pupil upon the change of color and markings
+after the different molts, and the process of molting should be
+described.
+
+
+LESSON IV. THE PUPA. FIG. 149, _d_.
+
+In ordinary seasons, about the middle of May, the caterpillars get their
+growth. If those in the breeding cage have died or have not thrived,
+bring in a few full-grown caterpillars from the orchard and put them on
+some branches in the breeding cage. Give them fresh food each day as
+long as they will eat; also place some sticks and chips on the bottom
+of the breeding cage for the worms to "spin up" on. Then have the
+children observe the following things:
+
+How do the caterpillars begin their cocoons?
+
+Where are the cocoons made?
+
+How are they made?
+
+Draw a picture of a cocoon.
+
+About a week after a cocoon is made, open it carefully with a pair of
+scissors so as not to hurt the inmate, and let the pupil see the change
+that has come over the caterpillar.
+
+Have the pupils describe the pupa.
+
+Let the pupils make drawings of the pupa.
+
+The moths will hardly emerge from the cocoons until after the close of
+the school term. The children should be encouraged to gather the cocoons
+from the fences around the orchards and from the sticks and the branches
+on the ground and to carry them home. The cocoons may be placed in
+pasteboard boxes and kept until the moths emerge, about the middle of
+July.
+
+
+LESSON V. DESTROYING THE CATERPILLARS.
+
+After the caterpillars are fully grown and all the processes of growth
+have been observed by the pupils, the teacher should give a lesson upon
+the injury which they do to trees and the necessity of keeping the
+orchards free from these pests. This lesson should be given guardedly so
+as not to encourage the children to cruelty in killing insects. The
+teacher should always try to inculcate in the child reverence for life,
+that wonderful force, which we can so easily take from a creature but
+which we can never give back. It is better to appeal to the child's
+sense of justice in giving this lesson. The teacher may vary it to suit
+her own ideas, but in substance it might be given somewhat as follows:
+
+"All life is sacred; the smallest worm has as good a right to live in
+the sight of God as you or any child has. Life should never be taken
+except when necessary. However, no one has the right to interfere with
+the rights of another. Neither the child nor the worm has any right to
+trespass upon the property of any one else."
+
+"Let us see whether these caterpillars are trespassers or not. The
+farmer works hard to earn the money to buy the land upon which the
+orchard is planted; he works hard to earn the money with which to buy
+the young trees; he works hard to set out the trees and cultivate the
+orchard; therefore the orchard and the fruit of it are his property, and
+he has a right to drive away all thieves. If men or children steal the
+fruit, he has a right to appeal to the law and have them fined or
+imprisoned. If worms come and injure the tree by eating up the foliage,
+he has a right to keep them out if he can. The leaves are necessary to
+the tree, for if they are destroyed the tree cannot get the air it needs
+to keep it vigorous and enable it to mature its fruit. We have seen that
+these caterpillars destroy the leaves, and thus do great injury to the
+apple crop. We therefore have a right to destroy these little robbers,
+as that is the only way we can keep them out of our orchards."
+
+How can the caterpillars be destroyed?
+
+The egg-masses can be collected in winter and early spring from young
+orchards, and burned.
+
+Tie bits of suet or fresh fat pork to the branches of the trees and thus
+induce chickadees, nuthatches, and woodpeckers to visit the orchard in
+winter. These birds will destroy eggs and cocoons of the tent
+caterpillar, and of other insect pests also.
+
+In large, old trees, we must wait until later. Ask the pupils the
+following questions:
+
+At what times did we find the worms in their tents? _Answer._ Early
+morning; late afternoons; and during cold, dark days.
+
+If we should destroy the tents in the middle of a warm, sunny day, what
+would happen? _Answer._ The caterpillars, being out feeding on the
+leaves, would not be hurt, and as soon as they came back would make
+another tent.
+
+If the tent is destroyed in the early morning or late afternoon or on a
+cold, dark day, what would happen? _Answer._ The caterpillars, all being
+in the tent, would be destroyed.
+
+How may the tents be destroyed? _Answer._ By wiping them out with a long
+pole on one end of which is wound a rag saturated with kerosene. Or by
+burning them out with a torch.
+
+Is it best to destroy the caterpillars early in the season, while they
+are still small, or to wait until they are large and are about ready to
+pupate.
+
+If the trees were sprayed with Paris green in the early spring, what
+would happen? _Answer._ The caterpillars would be killed as soon as they
+began to eat, when they were first hatched.
+
+When these caterpillars feed on the leaves of wild cherry they are doing
+no damage to an orchard. Therefore, when the tents appear on wild cherry
+trees have we any right to destroy them? _Answer._ The wise and careful
+farmer does not allow wild cherry trees to grow along his fences if
+they will become breeding places for insect enemies which will next year
+attack his orchards.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 149. The Curious History of a Tent Caterpillar. a,
+The masses of eggs on the twigs of an apple tree. b, The eggs enlarged.
+c, A full grown caterpillar. d, Cocoons. e, The moth, or adult insect._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XX.
+
+MOSQUITOES.[26]
+
+BY MARY ROGERS MILLER.
+
+    "Nature-Study is learning those things in nature that are best
+    worth knowing, to the end of doing those things that make life
+    most worth living."
+
+    --PROFESSOR HODGE in _Nature-Study and Life_.
+
+
+[26] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. IV, No. 23, May, 1902.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Spite of all the efforts of scientists and nature-students to popularize
+the mosquito, its reputation as a public nuisance is as well sustained
+as ever, and it seems destined to remain as unpopular as were its
+ancestors. There is no doubt that these creatures "abound" and that
+"they are great annoyances to both man and animals," as Dr. Howard tells
+us in "The Insect Book;" but he has laid a new and even more deadly sin
+at their door in stating, as he does in no uncertain terms, that "they
+are active agents in the transfer of disease."
+
+There seems to be no escape from the attention of these persistent "imps
+o' evil." Though we travel to far Alaska or to icy Greenland we cannot
+be free. Since we are doomed to existence in the same world with the
+mosquito it behooves us to discover, if possible, some way to turn the
+creature to account for our entertainment or instruction. Forget for the
+moment that you despise mosquitoes, and let us study their ways. By
+making its life history the subject of some of our lessons we may at
+least learn how the mosquito lives and develops; and later we can turn
+this knowledge to practical account. Since for many generations these
+creatures have made the human race the subject of insistent study, it is
+no more than fair that the tables should be turned!
+
+You are not good nature-students until you have recognized and overcome
+your prejudices. You read the life history of the rabbit and you think
+you hate its enemies. You watch a family of foxes with their cunning
+ways, and the mother's care for her young and you cannot help
+sympathizing with them in their struggle for existence. Every creature
+in its turn becomes interesting to you when you find yourself wondering
+about how it makes its home, rears its young, and gets its food. As you
+get nearer to nature you will cease to feel any pride in the fact that
+you "hate" snakes, mosquitoes, and all such "varmints." Indeed that
+hatred, born of ignorance, will have given place to sympathy and
+interest. You have a new point of view.
+
+One of the first questions asked of the returning animals in early
+spring is, "How have you spent the winter?" The bluebird and the robin
+show no signs of weariness after their long flight from the South. The
+"woolly bear" caterpillars look just as they did in October. The early
+butterflies are a trifle worn and shabby after their hibernation. But
+who has thought to inquire where and how the mosquito has spent the cold
+season? "Who cares," one may say, "so long as they don't stay around
+where we are as they did last summer?"
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 150. Mosquito's wing._]
+
+Suppose we make it our business from now on to care about such things,
+and to inquire into the ways our plant and animal neighbors have of
+living and of getting a living. Are you quite sure that the mosquitoes
+have not spent their winter under your protection? If in April you had
+had occasion to frequent either garret or cellar there you might have
+found them. By dozens and scores they were waiting for the return of
+warm weather to free them. Many of them winter not as eggs, larvæ, or
+pupæ, but as winged adults, as _mosquitoes_. This rather interferes with
+the prevalent notion that mosquitoes live but for a day. Would that this
+were true, and might that day be short!
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 151. Raft of eggs, greatly enlarged._]
+
+
+THE LIFE HISTORY OF THE MOSQUITO.
+
+The life history of a mosquito is in four chapters, some of which are
+exceedingly short, others long. The length of each may be varied by the
+weather and the season. Moisture and warmth are particularly
+advantageous to the rapid development of these creatures. Ten days in
+hot weather may be sufficient time for the growth of a generation of
+them, from egg to adult. There are many generations in a year.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 152. The larva or wiggler._]
+
+The larvæ of mosquitoes are aquatic. They live in stagnant water
+everywhere, in ponds, swamps, ditches, puddles, rain-water barrels, and
+horse-troughs. In early spring the female mosquito that has wintered in
+your garret will probably go to the nearest rain-water barrel or
+water-tank. She finds her way by instinct, before the sun is up. When
+you go to replenish your pitcher you will find a little flat cluster of
+eggs like a tiny raft floating on the surface (Fig. 151). It is
+dark-colored and the chances are you will not see it unless it gets into
+your pitcher. By two o'clock in the afternoon there may be from two to
+four hundred lively little wigglers in the water. Possibly they will
+wait until the following day. They all hatched from the eggs of one
+mosquito. They hitch and twitch about in the water, coming often to the
+surface and hanging there for a moment (Fig. 152). You call them
+"wigglers." But did you ever wonder why they wiggle, why they come so
+often to the surface, and why they thrust up the little tube which
+projects from near the end of the body? Did you ever ask what they find
+to eat in the water, and how they eat it?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 153. The active pupa._]
+
+The larval stage lasts about ten days in hot summer weather, but longer
+when the days are cool. Then comes a change in form into the pupa (Fig.
+153). The creature is still active and aquatic, though no food is taken.
+It does not stay long away from the surface while in this stage.
+Finally, after two or more days as a pupa, the full-grown mosquito
+emerges and takes wing, leaving its pupa case floating on the top of the
+water like a forlorn little derelict.
+
+
+ENEMIES OF THE MOSQUITO.
+
+Besides man, the mosquito has many natural enemies. In the water
+especially they fall easy victims to the thousand-and-one insect ogres.
+The nymphs of dragon-flies are especially fond of wigglers, and there
+has been much said and written about raising dragon-flies as a safeguard
+against mosquitoes. Most of the predaceous insects which live in still
+water feed on young mosquitoes, while the adults often fall prey to
+their more swiftly flying insect neighbors.
+
+
+HOW TO STUDY THE MOSQUITO.
+
+Over and around the tumbler place a piece of close-woven mosquito
+netting to confine the adult insects. A glass tumbler two-thirds full of
+rain-water, a little cluster of eggs, or a half dozen wigglers, a keen
+observer, and you have a nature-study opportunity not to be surpassed in
+the finest laboratory. If you have already seen a part of the life
+history, do not be satisfied until you have completed your chain of
+observations. Get the eggs; watch the hatching, the molting, the
+transformations. See every stage. Learn something new every time you
+look at the wiggler or the mature mosquito. It is not at all necessary
+that you let these insects escape into the school-room and cause
+trouble.
+
+Those who wish more minute description, with many illustrations of
+mosquitoes of different kinds, should obtain from the Division of
+Publications, Department of Agriculture, the published results of Dr. L.
+O. Howard's studies of mosquitoes. In this pamphlet, from which the
+drawings in this lesson are copied, the subject of the transfer of
+disease germs by mosquitoes is very thoroughly discussed, with pictures
+which distinguish between the common mosquito and those which transfer
+malaria and other diseases.
+
+Those scientists who had to do with the naming of the many species of
+mosquitoes had certainly a sense of humor. One would think they named
+the creatures according to the mildness or malignity of their bite. A
+few of the names are as follows:
+
+  Culex excitans
+  Culex pungens
+  Culex irritans
+  Culex stimulans
+  Culex perturbans
+  Culex excrucians
+
+
+THE CRUSADE AGAINST MOSQUITOES.
+
+BY M. V. SLINGERLAND.
+
+There is now a world-wide crusade against mosquitoes, extending from the
+wilds of Africa through the noted malarial districts of Italy to
+America. In America a National Mosquito Extermination Society has been
+formed. This extensive crusade is due to the practical demonstration
+that some kinds of mosquitoes may transmit malaria, yellow fever and
+probably other diseases of human beings.
+
+All mosquitoes must have water in which to develop, and the warfare
+against them consists largely in destroying their watery breeding
+grounds. This is being done on a large scale, either by draining or by
+filling in marshes, pools, and similar places which often swarm with the
+"wigglers." Large areas of such mosquito-breeding waste lands in New
+Jersey and on Long Island are thus being reclaimed and the mosquito
+nuisance largely abated.
+
+Aquaria, rain barrels, tanks, small ponds and similar places can be kept
+free from the "wigglers" by introducing small fish, as gold fish or
+silver fish, sunfish, "killies," roaches or minnows. An interesting and
+instructive object lesson could be given by putting a few minnows from a
+near-by brook into the school aquarium or into a specially prepared
+glass dish well stocked with the "wigglers."
+
+One can easily prevent mosquitoes from breeding in rain barrels or tanks
+by covering them with mosquito netting.
+
+Another practicable and successful method is to pour or sprinkle
+kerosene oil every two or three weeks in a thin film over the surface of
+cesspools, rain barrels, tanks, ponds or any other body of sluggish
+water where the "wigglers" are found. This oil film kills the "wigglers"
+(both larvæ and pupæ) by preventing them from getting to the surface to
+breathe, and it also prevents the mother mosquito from laying her eggs
+on the water. There are patent preparations or oils which penetrate all
+through the water, killing the "wigglers" but spoiling the water for
+general use, so that such oils are usually applied only to infested
+cesspools, sewer basins, or manure pits.
+
+By a little concerted effort of local officials, individuals, or by the
+school children in applying whichever of the above methods is most
+practicable, much interesting and valuable work could be accomplished
+and the pestiferous mosquito largely eliminated in many localities.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXI.
+
+THE WAYS OF THE ANT.[27]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[27] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. V, No. 1. October, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+For many years ants have been recognized as among the most interesting
+of the little animals that people our fields. However, not until
+recently have we begun to understand, even in a small measure, their
+economic importance and the part they play in maintaining the balance in
+insect life. Therefore, we shall give a few studies of ants and their
+ways, and as a knowledge of their habits is necessary to begin with, we
+will take up the ant-nest first.
+
+
+AN ANT-NEST.
+
+Two panes of glass laid flat one on the other with a space between of
+one-eighth of an inch or less, these panes covered with a piece of dark
+paper or wood to keep out the light and then placed on something that
+will allow them to be surrounded by water; a bit of blotting paper
+two inches square, dampened and placed at one end of the glass
+chamber--these are all the materials and the art necessary for the
+construction of a perfectly equipped ant-nest.
+
+Once we wished to make an ant-nest hurriedly, and this is the way we did
+it: we chose an agate wash basin (Fig. 154), as this would not rust, and
+filled it half-full of water; in this we made an island, by placing in
+it a three-pint agate basin turned bottom side up. We took two discarded
+negatives, size 4x5 inches, and cleaned off the films; then we placed
+one of the pieces of glass on the basin-island, took the stumps of four
+burnt matches and placed one on each side of this glass near its edge;
+then we placed the other piece of glass on top, letting it rest on the
+matches to make a chamber just high enough for the ants to live in
+comfortably. This done, we took the cover of a cigar-box and cut it
+down to the size of the negatives, put a screw-eye in the center to lift
+it by and placed it on top of the upper glass to make the chamber below
+quite dark. Then we took a trowel and fruit-can and went after some
+inhabitants for our island. We went to an open pasture and turned over
+stones until we found beneath one a heap of yellowish grain-like pupæ
+and little translucent whitish bodies, which we knew were larvæ, all
+being cared for by swarms of worker-ants. One of us pushed the trowel
+beneath, taking up dirt and all, while the other held the can open, into
+which the trowel was emptied. We hastened back and as gently as
+possible, taking care to hurt none of our little captives, placed the
+contents of the can on the top of the nest.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 154. An improvised ant-nest._]
+
+As the first thought of an ant is never for its own safety, but for the
+safety of its infant sisters, the little workers began to hunt for a
+safe and dark place in which to stow away their charges. In running
+about they soon discovered the space between the two pieces of glass and
+in a few hours the young ones were moved into the new quarters. Then we
+cleaned away the earth on top of the nest, and by lifting the cover we
+were able to see all that was going on within. The water in the
+wash-basin prevented any of our uneasy captives from escaping, as these
+little people, so clever in most things, have never yet mastered the art
+of swimming.
+
+I have an ant-nest on my table as I write, shown in Fig. 156. Instead of
+matches to keep the two pieces of glass apart I have a narrow strip of
+canton flannel glued around the edge of the glass floor except for two
+little doors at the opposite corners; there is also a narrow strip of
+cloth partitioning the chamber into two rooms with a door at one end.
+One room I left empty and in the other I placed a bit of blotting paper
+which I keep damp by occasionally adding a few drops of water. The nest
+is placed upon a piece of plank 18 inches square. Around the plank near
+the edge is a groove about an inch deep made with a chisel and kept full
+of water, so that my ants have a castle with a moat. It was necessary to
+paint this bit of plank thoroughly, above and below, to keep it from
+warping.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 155. Ant-nest, on a piece of plank, which has a
+moat near its edge to confine the insects._]
+
+The ants in my nest I found on a hillside beneath a stone; they are
+brownish with yellow legs and a little less than a quarter of an inch in
+length. They were stupid at first and would not discover the chamber
+prepared for them, but persisted in hiding their young under bits of
+earth which were brought in with them. So I made a scoop of a sheet of
+writing paper and with it placed a heap of the young, with a few of the
+nurses, in the empty chamber, then put on the glass ceiling and cover
+and left them. In a few hours the whole colony had moved into this
+chamber, but evidently it was not humid enough for the health of the
+young, and by the next morning the pupæ and larvæ and eggs were all in
+the other chamber arranged around the edges of the blotting paper.
+
+What I have seen of interest in this nest on my table would fill a small
+volume, if written out in detail. Just now a worker approached a pupa,
+that appears through the lens like a little bag of meal tied at one end
+with a black string; she examined it carefully with her antennæ and
+concluded it needed to be moved, and, though it is as large as she,
+picked it up in her jaws and carried it to a position which she regarded
+as more favorable. Then she approached a larva which looks like a little
+crook-neck squash, inquired as to its needs with her antennæ and then
+cleaned it with her tongue, as a cat licks a kitten, and fed it. Her
+next duty was to pick up a whole bunch of little white oblong eggs and
+scurry off with them to get them out of the light. Then she stopped to
+help another worker to straighten out the soft legs and antennæ of a
+pale, new sister that was just emerging from the pupa skin. By the time
+I had seen as much as this I felt it my duty to replace the cover, as
+the light greatly disturbs the little captives. It is said that if a
+yellow glass be used for the upper piece, the ants feel that they are in
+darkness, and their actions may be watched constantly without disturbing
+them.
+
+For a permanent nest, it is necessary to secure a queen, which lays all
+the eggs for the colony. She may be recognized by her larger size and
+may sometimes be found in a nest under the stones. However, it is so
+difficult to obtain a queen that I more often bring in the young and the
+workers; the latter will be content as long as they have the babies to
+feed and bring up; when finally this is accomplished, I usually take my
+colony back to its nest in the field, where it is made most welcome.
+This may seem sentimental, but after you have watched these little
+people working so hard and taking such devoted care of their baby
+sisters and doing so many wise things in their home, you will be loth to
+let the tiny creatures die of discouragement because they have nothing
+else to do, and you will be still more loth to let them loose to
+scatter, bewildered and helpless, over a strange earth. However, I have
+to be very careful and mark the nest to which they belong, for if I
+should put them near another colony, my poor captives would soon die
+inglorious deaths.
+
+Food which we provide for the ants in captivity should be varied and
+should be put on the island, rather than in the nest as we may thus be
+able to better clean away the refuse. Crackers or bread soaked in
+sweetened water, sponge cake, berry-jam, sugar, bits of raw meat, yolks
+of hard boiled eggs crushed, freshly killed insects or earth-worms, all
+may prove acceptable to our little friends. Their food may be soft but
+should not be in a fluid state.
+
+
+QUESTIONS ABOUT ANTS.
+
+_If you have not made an ant-nest and observed the ant as indicated,
+make some field observations. These may be made with the naked eye, or
+with a tripod lens. Such a lens costs about thirty-five cents._
+
+1. Have you ever seen an ant-hill? If so, describe it.
+
+2. Do all ants build mound nests?
+
+3. In what situations have you found ant-nests?
+
+4. How many kinds of ants do you know?
+
+5. Have you ever seen winged ants? If so, describe the experience.
+
+6. What is the reason for a winged form of ants?
+
+7. Have you observed ants meet and "converse" with each other? If so,
+how did they do it?
+
+8. Have you seen the ants carrying their young? If so, how do they do
+it?
+
+9. If you have made an ant-nest, tell what you have seen going on within
+it.
+
+10. Tell any experiences you have had with ants, that show their
+courage, energy or cleverness.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 156. Uncovered ant-nest, viewed from above, looking
+through the glass ceiling._
+
+_The white pieces around the edges and at the center are strips of
+canton flannel, forming walls and partition to the nest. Note the doors
+at the lower left and upper right hand corners and at lower end of the
+partition. The piece of blotting paper in the chamber at the left
+chanced to have a picture of an eagle upon it. The small white objects
+are pupæ, assorted in heaps._]
+
+
+ANTS AND THEIR HERDS.[28]
+
+[28] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. V, No. 8, May, 1904.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 157. Rose infested with aphids or plant-lice._]
+
+Very soon after the green leaves come, one may notice that the ants seem
+to be greatly interested in getting to the tops of trees, bushes and
+vines. If one watches for only a short time, he may see them hastening
+up and down with that important ant-air which says plainly, "There now,
+don't hinder me, I haven't a moment to waste." If we should follow with
+our eyes one of these hurried six-footed Marthas on her way up a tree,
+we would find that her business was that of milk-maid. Her cows are
+there pasturing on the leaves overhead, and she hastens to them coaxing
+for the milk, which is a clear drop of sweet honeydew. For many years
+entomologists repeated the statement that the honeydew secreted by
+aphids or plant-lice for the use of the ants came from the two little
+tubes on the back of the insect. It is easy to see how this mistake came
+about; the tubes were there, and so was the honeydew; the tubes
+suggested a cow's udder, and as the ants use the honeydew the natural
+inference was that it came from the tubes. This interesting error has
+been printed in so many honorable books, that it has become a classic.
+As a matter of fact, the caterpillars of our little, blue butterflies do
+have glands on the abdomen which secrete honeydew for the use of the
+ants; but the honeydew of the plant-lice, like honey itself, is
+manufactured in the alimentary canal, and issues from it. Observations
+have shown that each individual plant-louse may produce from five to
+seven drops of honeydew in twenty-four hours. If our cows could produce
+as much in proportion, then a good Holstein would give something like
+six thousand pounds of milk per day, and would be a highly profitable
+animal to have in the dairy. Although the honeydew does not come from
+the little tubes on the back of the plant-louse, yet those tubes have
+their uses. I once observed a young spider approaching an aphid, which
+was facing its enemy. As the spider approached, the aphid lifted its
+abdomen, and thrust one of these tubes over directly in the spider's
+face, and on this tube there suddenly appeared a little ball of yellow
+wax. The whole act was so like a pugilist thrusting his fist in his
+enemy's face that I laughed. The spider retreated and the aphid let its
+abdomen fall back in its natural position, but the little wax ball
+remained for some time on the tip of the tube. A German scientist, Mr.
+Busgen, of the University of Jena, discovered that a plant-louse smeared
+the eyes and jaws of his enemy, the aphis-lion, with this wax which
+dried as soon as applied. In action it was something like throwing a
+basin of paste at the head of an attacking party. Mr. Busgen discovered
+that the aphis-lion thus treated was obliged to stop and clean himself
+before he could go on with his hunt, and meantime the aphid walked off
+in safety.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 158. A stable made by ants for plant-lice._]
+
+The honeydew is excreted in such quantities that often the pavement
+beneath trees may be seen to be spattered by the drops of this sweet
+rain. It seems to be excreted solely for attracting the ants. In return
+for this, the ants give care and protection to their herds. They
+sometimes take them into their nests and care for them. In one case, at
+least, one species of ant builds for one species of aphid (which lives
+upon dogwood) a little mud stable which protects the aphids from all
+enemies. This stable is neatly placed at the fork of the twigs and has a
+little circular door by which the ants may enter (Fig. 158). The
+lady-bug larvæ and the ant-lions both feed voraciously on the aphids; an
+ant will attack single-handed one of these depredators, although it be
+much larger than herself, and will drive it away or perish in the
+attempt.
+
+Some so-called practical people say, "Let us study only those things in
+Nature that affect our pocketbook, and not waste our time studying
+irrelevant things." If this spirit had animated scientists from the
+first, many of the most important economic discoveries would never have
+been made. This relation of ants to aphids is an example to the point.
+For a hundred years has the fact been known that ants use the aphids for
+their cows, and the practical men said, "This is a very pretty story,
+but what we want is some method of killing the aphids." It remained for
+Professor Forbes, of Illinois, to show the practical application of this
+"pretty story" in the life history of the corn-root plant-louse, which
+did great damage to the corn crop of the West. These plant-lice winter
+in the ground wherever they chance to be left by the dying roots of the
+last year's crop, and with their soft bodies could never work their way
+in the hard earth and to the roots of the newly-planted corn in the
+spring. Professor Forbes discovered that the ants in these infested
+fields make mines along the principal roots of the new corn; and that
+they then go out and collect the plant-lice, and place them in these
+burrows, and there watch over them and protect them.
+
+
+OBSERVATION LESSON ON THE RELATION OF ANTS TO PLANT-LICE.
+
+_A reading-glass or lens may be used to advantage in making these
+observations._
+
+_Find some plant near at hand that is infested by aphids in order to
+note from time to time the relation of ants to these little creatures.
+Some aphids on the petiole and leaves of the Virginia Creeper on our
+piazza once afforded me a convenient field for daily observation._
+
+1. How does the ant approach the aphid and ask for honeydew?
+
+2. Does she wait long if there is no response?
+
+3. Does the ant step on the aphids as she runs about among them?
+
+4. What are the colors of the aphids you have observed?
+
+5. On what plants were they feeding?
+
+6. What sort of mouth parts have the aphids?
+
+7. What part of the plant is their food, and how do they get it?
+
+8. Why does not Paris green applied to the leaves on which aphids are
+feeding kill them?
+
+9. Have you seen the lady-bird larvæ or the ant-lions destroying aphids?
+Explain.
+
+10. Have you ever seen the little wax balls on the tubes of the
+plant-lice? If so, did you note when and why they were produced?
+
+11. Have you ever seen an ant attacking the enemies of plant-lice?
+Describe.
+
+12. How do you think this relation of ants to aphids affects
+agriculture?
+
+13. Study what the ants do for the aphids which infest your rose bushes.
+Do you infer from this that it is well to exterminate the ant colonies
+in your flower garden?
+
+14. Do you know how to clear your plants of plant-lice? If so, how? If
+not send to Cornell or some other experiment station for a spray
+bulletin.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXII.
+
+THE BIRDS AND I.[29]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[29] Teachers' Leaflet No. 10, May, 1898.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+The springtime belongs to the birds and me. We own it. We know when the
+Mayflowers and the buttercups bloom. We know when the first frogs peep.
+We watch the awakening of the woods. We are wet by the warm April
+showers. We go where we will, and we are companions. Every tree and
+brook and blade of grass is ours; and our hearts are full of song.
+
+There are boys who kill the birds, and girls who want to catch them and
+put them in cages; and there are others who steal their eggs. The birds
+are not partners with them; they are only servants. Birds, like people,
+sing for their friends, not for their masters. I am sure that one cannot
+think much of the springtime and the flowers if his heart is always set
+upon killing or catching something. We are happy when we are free; and
+so are the birds.
+
+The birds and I get acquainted all over again every spring. They have
+seen strange lands in the winter, and all the brooks and woods have been
+covered with snow. So we run and romp together, and find all the nooks
+and crannies which we had half forgotten since October. The birds
+remember the old places. The wrens pull the sticks from the old hollow
+rail and seem to be wild with joy to see the place again. They must be
+the same wrens that were here last year and the year before, for
+strangers could not make so much fuss over an old rail. The bluebirds
+and wrens look into every crack and corner for a place in which to
+build, and the robins and chipping-sparrows explore every tree in the
+old orchard.
+
+If the birds want to live with us, we should encourage them. The first
+thing to do is to let them alone. Let them be as free from danger and
+fear as you or I. Take the hammer off the old gun, give pussy so much to
+eat that she will not care to hunt for birds, and keep away the boys who
+steal eggs and who carry sling-shots and throw stones. Plant trees and
+bushes about the borders of the place, and let some of them, at least,
+grow into tangles; then, even in the back yard, the wary cat-bird may
+make its home.
+
+For some kinds of birds we can build houses. Some of the many forms
+which can be used are shown in the pictures at the end of this Leaflet.
+Any ingenious boy can suggest a dozen other patterns. Although birds may
+not appreciate architecture, it is well to make the houses neat and
+tasty by taking pains to have the proportions correct. The floor space
+in each compartment should be not less than five by six inches, and six
+by six or six by eight may be better. By cutting the boards in multiples
+of these numbers, one can easily make a house with several compartments;
+for there are some birds, as martins, tree swallows, and pigeons that
+like to live in families or colonies. The size of the doorway is
+important. It should be just large enough to admit the bird. A larger
+opening not only looks bad, but it exposes the inhabitants to dangers of
+cats and other enemies. Birds which build in houses, aside from doves
+and pigeons, are bluebirds, wrens, tree-swallows, martins, and sometimes
+the chickadees. For the wren and the chickadee the opening should be an
+inch augur hole, and for the others it should be about one-and-a-half
+inches. Only one opening should be provided for each house or
+compartment. A perch or door-step should be provided just below each
+door. It is here that the birds often stop to arrange their toilets; and
+when the mistress is busy with domestic affairs indoors the male-bird
+often sits outside and entertains her with the latest neighborhood
+gossip. These houses should be placed on poles or on buildings in
+somewhat secluded places. Martins and tree-swallows like to build their
+nests twenty-five feet or more above the ground, but the other birds
+usually prefer an elevation less than twelve feet. Newly made houses,
+and particularly newly painted ones, do not often attract the birds.
+
+But if the birds and I are companions I must know them more intimately.
+Merely building houses for them is not enough. I want to know live and
+happy birds, not dead ones. We are not to know them, then, by catching
+them, or stuffing them, or collecting their eggs. Persons who make a
+business of studying birds may shoot birds now and then, and collect
+their eggs. But these persons are scientists and they are grown-up
+people. They are trying to add to the sum of human knowledge, while we
+want to know birds just because we want to. But even scientists do not
+take specimens recklessly. They do not rob nests. They do not kill
+brooding birds. They do not make collections merely for the sake of
+making them; and even their collections are less valuable than a
+knowledge of the bird as it lives and flies and sings.
+
+Boys and girls should not make collections of eggs, for these
+collections are mere curiosities, as collections of spools and marbles
+are. They may afford some entertainment, to be sure, but one can find
+amusement in harmless ways. Some persons think that the securing of
+collections makes one a naturalist, but it does not. The naturalist
+cares more for things as they really are in their own homes than for
+museum specimens. One does not love the birds when he steals their eggs
+and breaks up their homes; and he is depriving the farmer of one of his
+best friends, for birds keep insects in check.
+
+Stuffed birds do not sing and empty eggs do not hatch. Then let us go to
+the fields and watch the birds. Sit down on the soft grass and try to
+make out what the robin is doing on yonder fence or why the wren is
+bursting with song in the thicket. An opera-glass or spy-glass will
+bring them close to you. Try to find out not only what the colors and
+shapes and sizes are, but what their habits are. What does the bird eat?
+How much does it eat? Where is its nest? How many eggs does it lay? What
+color are they? How long does the mother bird sit? Does the father bird
+care for her when she is sitting? How long do the young birds remain in
+the nest? Who feeds them? What are they fed? Is there more than one
+brood in a season? Where do the birds go after breeding? Do they change
+their plumage? Are the mother birds and father birds unlike in size or
+color? How many kinds of birds do you know?
+
+These are some of the things that every boy or girl wants to know; and
+we can find out by watching the birds! There is no harm in visiting the
+nests, if one does it in the right way. I have visited hundreds of them
+and have kept many records of the number of eggs and the dates when they
+were laid, how long before they hatched, and when the birds flew away;
+and the birds took no offense at my inquisitiveness. These are some of
+the cautions to be observed: Watch only those nests which can be seen
+without climbing, for if you have to climb the tree the birds will
+resent it. Make the visit when the birds are absent, if possible; at
+least, never scare the bird from the nest. Do not touch the eggs or the
+nest. Make your visit very short. Make up your mind just what you want
+to see, then look in quickly and pass on. Do not go too often; once or
+twice a day will be sufficient. Do not take the other children with you,
+for you are then likely to stay too long and to offend the birds.
+
+Now let us see how intimately you can become acquainted with some bird
+this summer.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 159._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 162._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 160._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 163._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 161._]
+
+[Illustration: _Suggestions for home-made bird houses._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 164._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 165._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 166._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 167._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 168._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 169._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 170._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 171._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 172._]
+
+[Illustration: _Improvised bird houses._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 173._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 176._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 174._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 175._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 177._]
+
+[Illustration: _Suggestions for home-made bird houses._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXIII.
+
+THE EARLY BIRDS.[30]
+
+BY L. A. FUERTES.
+
+
+[30] Nature-Study Quarterly, No. 4: Leaflet 17, March, 1900.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+After a long winter, many of us are too impatient for spring to wait for
+the swelling of the buds, the opening of the early flowers, and the
+springing of the grass. Several weeks lie between the end of winter and
+the truly genial spring days, and during this interval we look for
+something to herald the settled spring season. And the thing which gives
+us that for which we are unconsciously looking, more than all other
+signs, is the arrival of the birds. Who has not warmed to the quavering
+call of the first blue-bird, or been suddenly thrilled some early spring
+day with the sunny notes of the song-sparrow!
+
+In the southern part of this State, notably in the lower Hudson Valley,
+the winter is spent by several birds which elsewhere we are accustomed
+to see only after the winter has passed. Among these are the blue-bird,
+robin, song-sparrow, white-throated-sparrow, meadow-lark, and possibly
+the purple-finch. But in most of the State we must wait until the first
+or second week in March before we can be sure of seeing any of them. It
+is a question which of the earlier birds will first make its appearance,
+as these early migrants are much less regular in their movements than
+those that come late in April and in May, after the weather has become
+settled. Many a robin and blue-bird arrives during some early warm
+"spell," to find himself suddenly surrounded by flying snow and blown
+about by cold winds. But these and a few other hardy ones seem able to
+stand such rebuffs with great equanimity, and the momentary shining of a
+fickle March sun will often evoke some pent-up song-sparrow's notes from
+the shelter of a hedge or thicket. Robins, blue-birds, song-sparrows,
+cowbirds, meadow-larks, phoebes, bronzed grackles, kingfishers, and
+doves may be looked upon as the vanguards of the hosts of migrating
+birds that come to us each year, and the first four or five may be
+expected almost any time after the first week in March. If the winter
+has been late, these may not appear until the middle or even the latter
+part of the month, in which case one is busy keeping track of the
+arrivals, as the other birds have caught up then, and all come nearly at
+the same time.
+
+It is unnecessary to give detailed descriptions of robins, bluebirds,
+and song-sparrows, as nearly everyone is familiar with them; but some of
+the other early comers may be more easily recognized if some field
+impressions of them be given.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Almost any warm day in early March we may hear a thin, clear "tsssss" in
+a high piping key, and on looking up see from one to five black birds,
+about the size of orioles, flying in a strange undulating manner--some
+up and some down, with the wings held close to their sides during the
+"drop" in their flight. They are cowbirds. The flock may swirl into the
+top of a tree and sit close together. (Fig. 178.) If this happens within
+eyeshot, stop and watch them for a moment. One or two of the males are
+almost certain to utter the ridiculous song of the species, which, like
+that of their relatives, the grackles, is accompanied by the most
+grotesque of actions. The bird spreads its wings to their utmost,
+spreads and elevates the tail, stretches its neck upwards and forwards,
+and then, quivering and tottering, nearly falls forward off the perch.
+The only sound which accompanies this absurd action is a faint chuckling
+"clk-sfs'k," which is scarcely to be heard a hundred feet away.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 178. Cowbirds._]
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+With the cowbirds we may expect the arrival of the bronzed grackles,
+which resemble them much in flight, but are larger and come in far
+larger flocks--sometimes ten, sometimes a hundred or more. Their arrival
+is known by the vigorous calls they utter while flying, a loud bass
+"jook." When seen squabbling in the spruce trees or in the bare branches
+of the willows fringing the streams, the males are likely to be giving
+their "song." It is scarcely more of a note than the cowbird's, a rusty
+squeak, and it is accompanied by a contortion in the same manner. It is
+not such a pronounced effort, however, and is often only a slight
+shudder and shrug of the shoulders. They feed, like cowbirds, mostly on
+the ground, and walk about most sedately in the grass like small crows.
+In tall grass, however, they waddle too much to be graceful. When taking
+flight they spread their long pointed tails in a very peculiar and
+characteristic manner--not out in a horizontal plane, like most birds,
+but up at the sides in the shape of a gardener's trowel, which gives
+them an extraordinary appearance.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The redwings begin to come into the marshes soon after the grackles, and
+are at that time in full feather and song. Their rich, deliberate
+"clonk-ka lrrrrrrr," interlarded with the clear piping whistles of some
+of the flock, makes a concert of bird-notes very dear to all who are
+familiar with it. In their scarlet and black velvet dress these birds
+are impossible to mistake, whether seen chasing over the marshes,
+singing from an elm-top, or balancing with spread tail upon some tall
+reed stalk.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+There is a bird-note so often and so justly mistaken for that of the
+phoebe that the error certainly merits correction. The spring song of
+the chick-a-dee (which may be heard on almost any warm day all winter,
+and is very easy to call forth by even a poorly whistled imitation) is a
+clear, pure "^[=eee]_{[=eee]}" or "[--__ __]" which really says
+"Phoebe" much more plainly than the true phoebe note, this latter
+being much lower in tone, and only to be heard after March is well on,
+and almost always in the vicinity of running streams and brooklets;
+while the gay little chick-a-dee whistles at any time or place that
+suits his versatile fancy.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 179. Meadow larks._]
+
+The mellow flute notes of the meadow larks (Fig. 179) float to us from
+the middle of some large, open field, and are among the most beautiful
+bits of bird music we ever hear. They are not to be represented by
+notes, and can only be most inadequately described. There is great
+variation in the sequence of notes, but all are beautifully clear and
+ringing, and have a decided tinge of what would be sadness if it were
+not so sweet. The bird flies in a very characteristic manner, never
+raising the wings above the plane of the back, and when seen below the
+horizon line always shows the white feathers in the tail. His saffron
+breast and black breast-mark seldom show on the living birds, and the
+mottled brown back is a wonderful safeguard against his many overhead
+enemies.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Two or more doves may be seen winging their headlong flight through the
+air. These are among the swiftest of birds, and are generally out of
+eyeshot almost before you have seen them. (That is one way of knowing
+what they are.) In flight, they look like small pigeons with very long
+graduated tails, and when, in some old orchard or open wood, you see one
+rise from the ground into a tree, the white lateral feathers in the tail
+make an easily recognizable mark. (Fig. 180.) Their cooing notes are
+well known--a high-pitched "overtone," followed by several long
+bell-toned "[(ooooo],--[(ooooo]," notes.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 180. Mourning doves._]
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+About April 1 to 10, you may hear a scratching in the dead leaves among
+the underbrush in any thickly grown tangle, and upon cautiously coming
+up you may discover the authors--not big grouse as you may have
+supposed, but a flock of fine, vigorous fox-sparrows on their way to
+their northern breeding grounds. They are bright bay fellows, with
+boldly blotched brown and white breasts, diligently scattering the
+leaves for their food of seeds, spiders, ants, and various insects. If
+you have been fortunate enough not to have been seen you may hear their
+song, which is one of the finest of our sparrow songs, readily
+recognizable as such, though not resembling any of its fellows--a clear,
+vigorous carol, often ending abruptly with a rather unmusical "clip."
+If, however, they have seen you, you will be treated to a sharp "tseep!"
+and a rear view of a flock of rapidly retreating birds, for they are not
+sociable (with us, at least), and generally take a hint to move on
+before you know of their presence. They do not stay long with us on
+their migration, and seeing them one day is no indication that you can
+find them the next.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Although the white-throated sparrows spend the winter in our southern
+counties, they do not start their northward journey as early as we might
+expect, and it is not until the first part of April that we may be sure
+of finding them. I have one list, indeed that shows their first
+appearance on May first!
+
+They are to be found in places similar to those which the fox-sparrows
+choose, and are very similar to them in habits, but the boldly striped
+head and gray breast are very distinctive marks. Almost all of our
+native sparrows have a call note, the "tsweep" note, which is hard to
+distinguish in the different species without much patient listening--and
+I doubt if any person is infallible in this distinction. The
+white-throat has this note, as well as the song-sparrow, tree-sparrow (a
+winter-bird), fox-sparrow, white-crown, chippy, field-sparrow,
+grass-finch, in fact all our brown-backed sparrows. But the song of the
+white-throat is his own, and may be heard frequently during his very
+leisurely journey through our state. His Canadian name, "Peabody bird"
+is descriptive of his notes, "-- _.., _.., _.." When a number get
+together and whistle, as if they were singing a round, it makes a very
+sweet concert.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 181. White-throated sparrow._]
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+One of the foremost birds in the spring movement is the grass-finch
+(vesper-sparrow or bay-winged bunting). It is to be found in open fields
+and along roadside fences, in company with meadow larks, and its sweet
+song may be heard almost any warm evening after the middle of April.
+Unlike most of our birds, this sparrow sings at its best late in the
+afternoon and during twilight, which perhaps makes its song seem the
+sweeter. It is rather a gentle song, though to be heard at some
+distance, carrying quite as far as that of the song-sparrow. Although
+the quality of voice is somewhat similar in these two birds,
+the grass-finch lacks the merry abandon that characterizes the
+song-sparrow's song, but has instead a deeper chord, which is called by
+some people sadness. The bird may be easily recognized in the fields by
+the white tail-feathers, which always show in flight. It is about the
+size and general color of the song-sparrow.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+By the time the foregoing birds are comparatively common, and the maple
+buds are bursting and the lilacs swelling, the gay purple finch appears.
+He is not purple at all, but has a crimson head, which fades on the
+lower breast through rosy pink into pure white. He is fond of spruces
+and larches, feeding greedily on the tender buds as well as on the ants
+and scale insects that infest them. His song is a fine one, and in
+addition to the charm of being poured forth in full flight, is so long
+and intricate that one finds himself holding his breath as the burst of
+melody continues, as if to help the little fellow catch up with his
+music.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Along the banks of some lake or stream, sitting idly on a telegraph pole
+or wire, rising and settling, elevating and depressing his long parted
+top-knot, a patriarchal old kingfisher may be seen silently awaiting the
+gleam of a shiner in the water below (Fig. 182). Or perhaps you may
+first see him flying like a big woodpecker, screaming his chattering cry
+high in the air, or scaling close to the water under the fringing
+hemlock branches that overhang the stream. His large size, slate-blue
+back, loud notes, and characteristic flight make him a hard bird to
+mistake in any case.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 182. Kingfisher._]
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+There are many other birds which pass us on their way north, but they
+herald rather the summer than the breaking of spring. The following list
+of spring migrations is taken from Mr. Chapman's "Handbook of the Birds
+of Eastern North America," and was compiled for use about New York City.
+The dates nearly coincide with those I have found about the central part
+of the State, and are, in the main, only a few days in advance of those
+for the northern counties. The latter dates in the column are about what
+may be taken for the middle tier of counties.
+
+It is the earnest hope of the writer that these few very brief
+sketches may be of use to those interested in entering the delightful
+field of the study of birds; your experience may and probably
+will be different from that which I have cited, which only goes to
+show that everyone must really see for himself, and not only that,
+but by so doing may make new observations and get new ideas on
+practically all of even our best known birds. Birds are not, as a
+rule, hard to watch, and the patience it requires to sit still and
+"be a stump" long enough for birds to cease noticing you is soon
+and amply repaid by the new insight into an unknown realm
+which is sure to follow.
+
+LIST OF BIRDS COMPRISING THE SPRING MIGRATION.
+
+(Until April 20--Approximate.)
+
+(_Taken from Chapman's Handbook of Birds of Eastern North
+America._)
+
+  Date of arrival.
+
+  Feb. 15-Mar. 10.  Purple Grackle.
+                    Rusty Grackle.
+                    Red-winged Blackbird.
+                    Robin.
+                    Bluebird.
+
+  Mar. 10-20        Woodcock.
+                    Phoebe.
+                    Meadow Lark.
+                    Cowbird.
+                    Fox-sparrow.
+
+  Mar. 20-31        Wilson's Snipe.
+                    Kingfisher.
+                    Mourning Dove.
+                    Swamp-sparrow.
+                    Field-sparrow.
+
+  April 1-10        Great Blue Heron.
+                    Purple Finch.
+                    Vesper-sparrow.
+                    Savanna-sparrow.
+                    Chipping-sparrow.
+                    Tree Swallow.
+                    Myrtle Warbler.
+                    American Pipit.
+                    Hermit Thrush.
+
+  April 10-20       Yellow-bellied Woodpecker.
+                    Barn Swallow.
+                    Yellow Palm Warbler.
+                    Pine Warbler.
+                    Louisiana Water Thrush.
+                    Ruby-crowned Kinglet.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXIV.
+
+THE WOODPECKERS.[31]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[31] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. IV, No. 30, March, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+It is best to follow some definite line of bird study for an entire
+year. All of the observations that could be made in a single month on
+any bird would give but an inadequate idea of its habits. To know the
+life of a bird, one must study it month by month for at least one year.
+
+The woodpeckers seem a most attractive group for our study. They are not
+only very interesting, but of great importance to the farmer, orchadist
+and forester. There are five common species in New York State that we
+all may learn to know, and then make observations of our own on their
+habits. These species are the downy, the hairy, the sapsucker, the
+flicker and the redhead. The way to begin our observations in winter is
+to tie a piece of suet to the branch of some tree easily observed from
+our windows. Such a bird feast as this is on a branch of a chestnut oak
+in front of my office window, and though I never have time to watch more
+than momentarily the birds that come there to eat, yet each glance tells
+me something of their ways, and my own day's work is much brighter and
+happier therefor. The "downy" (Fig. 183), as he is universally called,
+comes with his mate every day and they eat greedily of the suet; when
+they first arrive they are so absorbed in working this food mine that I
+sometimes stand directly beneath and watch them without frightening
+them. Perhaps they know that I am the friend who invited them to
+breakfast. Anyway, as soon as they leave the suet they hunt
+industriously over my tree, finding there all of the hidden insects, and
+thus they keep my oak clean and pay for their breakfast. Occasionally
+the hairy woodpecker comes, a self-invited guest to the suet banquet. To
+the untrained eye he looks very like an over-grown downy, as he is by
+two or three inches the longer; but his outer tail feathers are
+entirely white, while the downy's are barred with black; usually the red
+cap of the hairy is divided by a black stripe. The hairy is said to be a
+shy bird, but I have seen him several times this winter at a suet party
+near dwellings.
+
+In April there is likely to appear in any region of New York State a
+bird which is often mistaken for the downy or hairy, although it is very
+different in both coloring and habits. This is the sapsucker, the only
+woodpecker of bad repute (Fig. 184). However, I am sure its deeds are
+not nearly so black as they are painted. The male sapsucker has a bright
+red crown and chin and throat, his breast is yellow, and he is also
+yellowish on the back; while the males of the downy and hairy are
+red-capped and black and white with no yellow.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 183. Downy woodpecker._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 184. Sapsucker._]
+
+QUESTIONS ON WOODPECKERS TO BE ANSWERED IN MARCH.
+
+1. What is the difference in appearance between the male and female
+downy?
+
+2. How does the downy travel down a tree; does it go head-first? What
+food have you seen it eat?
+
+3. How does the downy use its tail in going up and down the tree trunk?
+
+4. Have you approached a woodpecker closely enough to see how its toes
+are arranged? If so, describe them.
+
+5. How does it manage its head to make its blows forceful?
+
+6. Are you able to discriminate between the hairy and the downy when you
+see them? How?
+
+7. Do you know the difference in the notes of the hairy and downy?
+Explain.
+
+
+DOWNY, SAPSUCKER AND RED-HEAD.[32]
+
+[32] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. IV, No. 31, April, 1903.
+
+This morning I was awakened by the beating of a drum over in the woods.
+My ear was not yet sufficiently trained so that I knew whether my
+drummer was Mr. Downy or Mr. Hairy, yet I strongly suspected the former.
+The tattoo of the Sapsucker (which does not nest here) James Whitcomb
+Riley has aptly characterized as "Weeding out the lonesomeness." This is
+exactly what the drumming of woodpeckers in the early spring means. The
+male selects some dried limb of hard wood and there beats out his
+well-known signal which advertises far and near, "Wanted, a wife." And
+after he wins her he keeps on drumming to cheer her, while she is busy
+with her family cares. The woodpecker has no voice for singing, like the
+robin or thrush, and realizing his deficiency, he does not insist on
+singing like the peacock, whether he can or no. He chooses rather to
+devote his voice to terse and business-like conversation, and when he is
+musically inclined he turns drummer. He is rather particular about his
+instrument, and, having found one that pleases him in tone, returns to
+it day after day.
+
+In case the drumming I heard this morning was an advertisement for a
+wife, I am interested to know what has become of Mrs. Downy, who has
+been true to her mate all winter. Does, perhaps, the springtime bring
+divorce as well as marriage? Mr. Burroughs tells of a downy that was
+absolutely brutal in his treatment of his mate in winter, not allowing
+her to live in his neighborhood. Be this as it may, the downy and the
+hairy woodpeckers that have feasted upon my suet this winter have
+invariably come in pairs, and while only one at a time sits at meat, and
+the lord and master is somewhat "bossy," yet they seem to get along as
+well as most married pairs.
+
+The sapsucker is a woodpecker that has strayed from the paths of
+virtue; he has fallen into temptation by the wayside, and instead of
+drilling a hole for the sake of the grub at the end of it he drills it
+for its own sake. He is a tippler and sap is his beverage. He is
+especially fond of the sap of the mountain ash, apple, thorn apple,
+canoe birch, red maple, red oak and white ash. He drills his holes in
+beautiful rows, and sometimes girdles a limb or tree, and for this he is
+pronounced a rascal by men who have themselves ruthlessly cut from our
+land millions of trees that should now be standing. However, the
+sapsucker does not live solely on sap and the soft cambium layer of the
+tree; he also feeds on insects wherever he finds them. When feeding
+their young, sapsuckers are true flycatchers, getting the insects while
+on the wing. If you find a sapsucker girdling a tree in your orchard or
+a birch on your lawn, just protect the trees with a wire netting, and
+let the sapsucker catch mosquitoes for you instead, and remember that he
+belongs to a good family and is entitled to some consideration, even if
+he has taken to drink.
+
+The red-head (Fig. 185) is well named, for his helmet and visor show a
+vivid, glowing crimson that stirs the sensibilities of the color lover.
+He is readily distinguished from all other woodpeckers because his
+entire head and the bib under his chin are red. For the rest, he is a
+beautiful dark metallic blue and white. He is a most adept drummer, and
+his roll is a long one. One that I observed last spring selected a dead
+limb at the top of an oak tree and there he drummed merrily every
+morning. He is an adaptable fellow and has been known to drum on tin
+roofs and lightning rods, thus braving the dangers of civilization for
+the sake of better music. Though he can rattle so well when he is
+musically inclined, he is not, after all, much of a woodpecker, for he
+lives mostly on insects which he catches while they are crawling or on
+the wing, and he also likes nuts. He is especially fond of beech nuts,
+and, being a thrifty fellow as well as musical, in time of plenty he
+stores up food against time of need. He places his nuts in crevices and
+forks of branches, in holes in trees, and other hiding places. Lets us
+watch him this spring and see whether we can discover what he eats.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 185. The Red-headed Woodpecker._]
+
+QUESTIONS ABOUT WOODPECKERS TO BE ANSWERED IN APRIL AND MAY.
+
+1. Have you observed any species of woodpecker drumming?
+
+2. Have you been able to see the drum? If so, describe it.
+
+3. Are you able to distinguish between the tapping of the woodpecker
+when searching for food, and his drumming when he is making music?
+
+4. If you have made any observations on the sapsucker, please give them.
+
+5. Have you seen the sapsucker at work? If so, did the holes girdle the
+tree? Were the holes round or square?
+
+6. Have you seen the red-head this spring?
+
+7. Describe the way the woodpecker uses its tail when climbing a tree.
+
+8. Send for Bulletin No. 7, of the United States Department of
+Agriculture, Division of Ornithology, called "Food of Woodpeckers." Read
+this Bulletin and answer these questions: Does the sapsucker do more
+harm than good? What special benefit to us is the red-head? Which is the
+most useful of our woodpeckers?
+
+
+THE FLICKER OR YELLOW HAMMER.[33]
+
+[33] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. IV, No. 32, May, 1903.
+
+The first time I ever saw a flicker I said, "What a wonderful meadow
+lark, and what is it doing on that ant hill?" But another glance
+revealed to me a red spot on the back of the bird's neck, and as soon as
+I was sure that this was not a bloody gash I knew it belonged to no
+meadow lark. The golden brown plumage dotted with black, the under wings
+of luminous yellow, the white spot above the tail, the ashen gray back,
+and, above all, the oriental ornaments of crescents,--one brilliant red
+across the back of the neck, one black across the breast,--all conduce
+to make the flicker one of our most showy and beautiful birds. The
+flicker has many names, such as golden-winged woodpecker, yellow hammer,
+highhole, and yarup or wake-up, and many others. It earned the name of
+highhole because of its way of excavating its nest high up in trees,
+usually between ten and twenty-five feet from the ground. It especially
+loves an old apple tree as a site for a nest, and most of our large, old
+orchards of New York State may boast of a pair of these handsome birds
+during the nesting season of May and June. However, the flicker is not
+above renting any house he finds vacant which was made by other birds
+last year. The flicker earned his name of "yarup" or "wake-up" from his
+spring song, which is a rollicking jolly "wick-a-wick-a-wick." As a
+business bird the flicker shines in the rather extraordinary line of
+eating ants. It has a tongue equipped almost exactly like the tongue of
+the animal called the ant eater, and it often may be seen using it with
+great effectiveness in catching the little communal laborers.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 186. Young Flickers._]
+
+Those who have observed the flicker during the courting season declare
+him to be the most silly and vain of all the bird wooers. Mr. Baskett
+says, "When he wishes to charm his sweet-heart he mounts a very small
+twig near her, and lifts his wings, spreads his tail, and begins to nod
+right and left as he exhibits his mustache to his charmer, and sets his
+jet locket first on one side of the twig and then the other. He may even
+go so far as to turn his head half around to show her the pretty spot on
+his 'back hair.' In doing all this he performs the most ludicrous
+antics, and has the silliest of expressions of face and voice as if in
+losing his heart, as some one phrases it, he had lost his head also."
+
+
+SUMMARY OF THE STUDY OF WOODPECKERS.
+
+We have now studied our five species of woodpeckers common in New York
+State, and I trust that you know them all by sight. When you are
+teaching the children about the woodpecker, there are many interesting
+stories to tell about the way that his form is adapted to his life. Some
+of these stories are as follows: First. The woodpecker's bill, which is
+a drill and chisel, and how he uses it for getting at the grub or the
+borer in the wood, and for making the hole for the nest, and for
+drumming when he feels musical. Second. The tongue, which is a barbed
+spear, and has a wonderful spring attachment of bones which allows it to
+be thrust far out. This tongue is fitted in each case to get the kind of
+food which sustains its owner. Third. The feet have a special
+arrangement of toes which allows the bird to cling tenaciously to a tree
+trunk. Study the way the fourth toe, which may be compared to our little
+finger, has been moved around backward so that it acts as another thumb.
+Fourth. Study how the tail made of stiff feathers is particularly
+adapted to act as a brace, helping the bird to climb a tree. In studying
+all these things I would especially recommend you to a little book
+called, "The Woodpeckers" by Fannie Hardy Eckstrom, published by
+Houghton, Mifflin & Co., price $1.00.
+
+
+QUESTIONS ON THE FLICKER.
+
+1. Have you ever seen a flicker?
+
+2. Do you know its song?
+
+3. Has the flicker a straight bill like the downy's?
+
+4. What are the differences between the male and female flicker?
+
+5. Have you ever seen a flicker catching ants? Describe.
+
+6. Do you think the flicker is a beneficial bird? If so, why?
+
+7. Have you ever seen a flicker's nest? Describe.
+
+8. Do you know how the flicker feeds its young? Explain.
+
+9. Describe the difference in color between the male and female of the
+(a) downy, (b) the hairy, (c) the redhead, (d) the sapsucker, (e) and
+the flicker.
+
+10. How can you tell the difference between a flicker and a meadow lark
+during flight?
+
+[Illustration: _Downy's long tongue._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXV.
+
+THE CHICKADEE.[34]
+
+[34] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. V, No. 3, December, 1903.
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+    _He is the hero of the woods; there are courage and good nature
+    enough in that compact little body, which you may hide in your
+    fist, to supply a whole groveful of May songsters. He has the
+    Spartan virtue of an eagle, the cheerfulness of a thrush, the
+    nimbleness of Cock Sparrow, the endurance of the seabirds
+    condensed into his tiny frame, and there have been added a
+    pertness and ingenuity all his own. His curiosity is immense, and
+    his audacity equal to it; I have even had one alight upon the
+    barrel of the gun over my shoulder as I sat quietly under his
+    tree._--ERNEST INGERSOLL.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+However careless we may be of our friends when we are in the midst of
+the luxurious life of summer, even the most careless among us give
+pleased attention to the birds that bravely endure with us the rigors of
+winter. And when this winged companion of winter proves to be the most
+fascinating little ball of feathers ever created, constantly overflowing
+with cheerful song, our pleased attention changes to active delight.
+Thus it is that in all the lands of snowy winters the chickadee
+is a loved comrade of the country wayfarer; that happy song,
+"chick-a-dee-dee-dee," finds its way to the dullest consciousness and
+the most callous heart.
+
+One day in February we were, with much enjoyment, wading through a
+drifted highway that skirted a forest, the least twig of which bore a
+burden of soft snow. Over all hung that silence of winter which is the
+most "silent silence" that rests upon the earth anywhere outside the
+desert. No breeze swayed a creaking branch or shook from it the snow in
+soft thud to the white carpet below. Even the song of the brook was
+smothered beneath coverlets of ice and pillows of drift. We stood fast,
+awed by the stillness, when suddenly it was broken by the thrilling
+notes of the chickadees. We could hardly credit our senses, for it
+seemed as if the woods was a hopeless place for any living creature that
+morning. But there before our eyes was a flock of these courageous birds
+hunting for food on the leeward sides of boles and branches left bare
+and black in the recent storm. Their tiny weights sent the snow in
+showers from the terminal twigs, which phenomenon was greeted with
+triumphant song while the cheerful midgets hunted the relieved branches
+topside and bottomside for any lurking tidbit. As we watched them,
+Emerson's poem came to mind:
+
+  "Piped a tiny voice near by,
+  Gay and polite, a cheerful cry--
+  Chick-chickadeedee! saucy note
+  Out of sound heart and merry throat,
+  As if it said, 'Good-day, good Sir!
+  Fine afternoon, old passenger!
+  Happy to meet you in these places
+  Where January brings few faces.'"
+
+No wonder that the great American philosopher was attracted by this
+other American philosopher who sings when he is cold and hungry.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 187. A chickadee at the entrance to its nest._]
+
+Besides its usual song the chickadee has a song that says "phoebe" much
+more distinctly than does the song of the phoebe itself. Few people
+recognize this, and often in February or early March it is announced in
+the local newspaper, "The phoebe-birds were heard to-day" though it may
+be weeks yet before these birds arrive. The two songs may be easily
+distinguished by even the ear untrained to music. In the phoebe song of
+the chickadee, the last syllable is at least one note lower than the
+first and has a falling inflection; while the last syllable of the
+phoebe bird's song is at least a half note higher than the first and has
+a rising inflection.
+
+Not long since I visited the deserted nest of a devoted pair of
+chickadees. It was cuddled down in the bottom of a hole that
+opened on the very top of a fence post, and, one would imagine,
+must have been wet more than once while inhabited. However,
+a large family was raised there during the past season and much
+enjoyment was derived from watching the many fubsy birdlings
+that found home and comfort in that unattractive retreat. I
+looked upon them with special interest, for I was sure they would
+visit the suet on my trees this winter and thus become friendly
+neighbors.
+
+As soon as the trees are bare, nail or tie bits of suet to branches
+which may be observed from your windows. I know of no investment which
+pays such enormous dividends both to pleasure and pocket as do suet
+restaurants in orchards patronized by chickadees. Every child, at home
+or school, will be attracted by this experiment.
+
+
+QUESTIONS ON THE CHICKADEE.
+
+1. Describe the colors of the chickadee above; below; wings; tail;
+throat and head.
+
+2. Describe the differences in coloring between the chickadee and the
+nuthatch.
+
+3. What is the shape of the chickadee's beak and for what is it adapted?
+
+4. Does it frequent the trunks of trees, or the twigs?
+
+5. Describe its actions when hunting for food on a twig.
+
+6. What is the chief food of the chickadee?
+
+7. Why is it of special value to the farmer?
+
+8. What are the differences in the winter and summer habits of the
+chickadee?
+
+9. Do you know the "phoebe" note of the chickadee?
+
+10. Where do these birds build their nests and of what material?
+
+11. What are the colors and markings on the eggs?
+
+12. When is the nesting season?
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXVI.
+
+THE WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH.[35]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[35] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. V, No. 4, January, 1904.
+
+  The busy nuthatch climbs his tree,
+  Around the great bole spirally,
+  Peeping into wrinkles gray,
+  Under ruffled lichens gay,
+  Lazily piping one sharp note
+  From his silver mailèd throat.
+
+  --MAURICE THOMPSON.
+
+"_With more artless inquisitiveness than fear, this lively little
+acrobat stops his hammering or hatching at your approach, and stretching
+himself out from the tree until it would seem he must fall off, he peers
+down at you, head downward, straight into your upturned opera-glass. If
+there is too much snow on the upper side of a branch watch how he runs
+along underneath it like a fly, busily tapping the bark, or adroitly
+breaking the decayed bits with his bill, as he stretches for the
+spider's eggs, larvæ, etc., hidden there; yet somehow, between
+mouthfuls, managing to call out his cherry quank! quank! hank! hank!_"
+
+--NELTJE BLANCHAN.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+A voice outside is calling at me; I cannot describe it accurately, but
+it is making delightful woodsy remarks that make me long to throw aside
+the pen and go out and wander where the snow is making still softer the
+carpet of dead leaves on the forest floor. It is not a musical note but
+it is most enticing and translates into sound the picture of
+bare-branched trees and the feeling of enchantment that permeates the
+forest in winter. Neltje Blanchan says the voice reiterates "quank,
+quank," others say it is "nay, nay"--but no nasal sound of the human
+voice, and no spelling of the English language adequately represent this
+call of the white-breasted nuthatch.
+
+On the tree in front of the window I can see the owner of this sylvan
+voice. He is a little bird blue-gray above with black head and black and
+white V-trimmings on the back of his suit and with soft, white breast.
+He is flitting blithely from tree to tree enjoying the snow storm and
+coming often to the suet feast which I have spread for him and for his
+little feathered kin.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 188. The nuthatch, one of the winter birds._]
+
+We have been having exciting times at the suet banquet this morning. The
+building in which my office is, stands on a high knoll near the
+forest-covered brink of a deep gorge. Thus my window is opposite the
+tops of the trees. One of our nature-study staff, a brave and gallant
+knight, who loves birds and knows that I love to watch them, climbed two
+of these trees at imminent risk of breaking his neck in order to place
+this suet just opposite my window. The whole chickadee family and four
+nuthatches, and Sir Downy and Madam Hairy had been reveling in the feast
+all the morning when suddenly one after another three crows appeared
+upon the scene. My heart sank as I saw them eying the suet with
+interest. Nearer and nearer they hopped from branch to branch. I pounded
+on the window and called out, "Go away" in both the crow and the English
+language, all in vain. One crow braver or hungrier than the others with
+one defiant eye on me flapped confidently down and sought to carry the
+suet off in his beak; to his surprise it was tied on. That seemed
+suspicious and when we raised the window and leaning far out explained
+matters he lifted slowly with a jeering "caw" that said plainly "I'll
+call sometime when you are not at home" and with that he and his
+companions disappeared up the gorge. The invited guests at the suet
+table were less disturbed than was I, and I suppose it is rather
+inconsistent to feed the chickadees and let the ravens go hungry. But
+this suet will last the little birds a month while it would hardly
+furnish a breakfast for three crows; and in philanthropic enterprises
+one is obliged to draw the line somewhere even at the cost of
+consistency.
+
+I will return to my nuthatch, who, by the way, has just hammered off a
+piece of suet and thrust it into a crevice of the bark on the tree
+bole. Why does he do that: is it for convenience in eating or is it an
+attempt to store up some of his dinner for future need? Anyway it is bad
+manners, like carrying off fruit from _table d' hote_. But he is polite
+enough in another respect; every time after eating the suet he wipes his
+beak on his branch napkin with great assiduity, first one side and then
+the other, almost as if he were sharpening it. The woodpeckers are
+similarly fastidious in cleaning suet off their beaks.
+
+The loud note of the nuthatch, seeming to be out of proportion to the
+size of the bird is, by no means, its only note. Yesterday we observed a
+pair hunting over the branches of an elm over our heads, and they were
+talking to each other in sweet confidential syllables "wit, wit, wit,"
+entirely different from the loud note that is meant for the world at
+large.
+
+The nuthatches and chickadees hunt together all winter. This is no
+business partnership, but one of congeniality based upon similar tastes.
+Thus it is that the two birds are often confused. There is, however, a
+very noticeable character that distinguishes them at the first glance.
+Strange to say the nuthatch has also been confused with the sapsucker
+and has gained unjust obloquy thereby. How any one with eyes could
+confuse these two birds is a mystery, for they resemble each other in no
+particular nor in general appearance.
+
+While the nuthatch finds much of its food on trees, yet Mr. Torrey tells
+of seeing one awkwardly turning over the fallen leaves for hidden
+cocoons and other things quite worth his while; and Mr. Baskett tells of
+having seem them catch flies in the air and becoming quite out of breath
+at this unusual exercise.
+
+Audubon made some most interesting observations on the nuthatch. He says
+they may sleep hanging head downward. He also says of their nesting
+habits that "both birds work together, all the time congratulating each
+other in the tenderest manner. The male, ever conspicuous on such
+occasions, works some, and carries off the slender chips chiseled by the
+female. He struts around her, peeps into the hole, cherups at intervals,
+or hovers about her on the wing. While she is sitting on her eggs, he
+seldom absents himself many moments; now with a full bill he feeds her,
+now returns to be assured that her time is pleasantly spent."
+
+The red-breasted nuthatch is sometimes associated with its
+white-breasted cousin; it is a smaller bird and is essentially a
+northern species. The nuthatches get their name from their habit of
+wedging nuts and acorns into bark and then hatching them open. From
+every standpoint the nuthatches are most desirable acquaintances, and we
+cannot spend our time to better advantage than in getting familiar with
+their interesting habits.
+
+
+QUESTIONS ON THE WHITE-BREASTED NUTHATCH.
+
+1. Describe from your own observations the colors of the nuthatch above
+and below.
+
+2. (a) What is the most noticeable character that distinguishes the
+nuthatch from the chickadee? (b) Does the nuthatch usually frequent the
+bole or the twigs of a tree? (c) Is there any difference in this respect
+between the habits of the nuthatch and the chickadee?
+
+3. Does the nuthatch alight with its head down or up?
+
+4. Does it travel down or up? Does it always go in a spiral?
+
+5. What is its food?
+
+6. Does it open nuts for the meat or the grubs within?
+
+7. Does it use its tail as a brace in climbing trees as does the
+woodpecker?
+
+8. Where does it build its nest?
+
+9. What is the color of the eggs?
+
+10. Why does it seem less common in summer than in winter?
+
+11. How does it use its feet when resting on a tree trunk?
+
+12. Has it any special development of the feet to help it in traveling
+on tree trunks?
+
+13. Do you know the note of the nuthatch? Describe.
+
+14. How would you spell its note?
+
+15. How does the nuthatch help the farmer and fruit grower?
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXVII.
+
+ABOUT CROWS.[36]
+
+BY MARY ROGERS MILLER.
+
+
+[36] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. IV, No. 27, December, 1902.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Thousands and thousands of crows fast asleep amongst the branches of a
+grove of pines! The trees themselves look dark and sombre against the
+snowy hillside, but when the assemblage of dusky birds has gathered
+there, the shadows thicken and the darkness settles like a pall. Soon
+all is hushed and silent.
+
+Would you not go miles to see such a sight?
+
+Yet maybe you have lived for years within easy walking distance of a
+great crow "dormitory" without even suspecting its existence. You may
+have watched the crows flying overhead every morning and then again
+every afternoon, without noticing that they came from the same direction
+each morning and returned at nightfall. This was just my experience
+until I began to care about crows and their ways. Now I know that there
+is a sleeping roost a mile or so up one of our wooded valleys and the
+oldest inhabitant tells me that he remembers seeing "more'n a million"
+crows up there in winters when he was a boy. Undoubtedly generation
+after generation of crows return to these sleeping places; certain
+localities have probably been so used for centuries.
+
+Although we have crows here all winter they may not be the same
+individuals that spent the summer here. The center of crow population in
+the eastern United States from November till February is the
+neighborhood of Chesapeake Bay. There the food supply is more abundant
+than where the ground is snow-covered in winter, and thither the crows
+migrate in innumerable armies. Dormitories from ten to thirty acres in
+extent and accommodating from ten thousand to three hundred thousand
+crows each have been found in that region.
+
+Why crows gather thus in companies either small or large is undoubtedly
+due to their natural sociability. The opportunities for exhibition of
+conversational powers offered by such a custom seems to be greatly
+appreciated by every crow. Such a babel as they raise when in early
+morning their watchman rouses them from sleep! They appear to be
+reviling him for his untimely interruption. For several minutes the
+woods fairly ring with their loud, coarse shouts. Then, as if resigned
+to their fate, they take flight towards the feeding grounds. By sunset
+they all congregate again and after recounting their adventures, settle
+down early to sleep.
+
+In open winters crows fare well enough. Seeds and berries are easy to
+get and considerable grain may be found in harvested fields. But like
+barnyard fowls, crows are omnivorous. After the grasshoppers disappear,
+a supply of animal food is hard to get. The silken egg-sacs of spiders
+are often found torn open and rifled, while suspiciously near by are the
+tracks of crows. Undoubtedly rabbits and field mice would unite with the
+spiders in declaring the crow to be their deadly enemy.
+
+That crows eat corn is undeniable. The farmers know it to their sorrow,
+the bird's champions reluctantly admit it, the crow himself goes openly
+into the field, both in winter and summer, with no intent to conceal his
+intentions. And yet this universally acknowledged habit will bear
+investigation. Upon the real or supposed injury done to sprouting corn
+and to roasting-ears, the farmer and his sons base their animosity
+toward crows and rejoice at the wholesale or retail slaughter of these
+birds. Carefully prepared estimates show conclusively that the crow is
+the farmer's friend. Only _three per cent_ of the total food of the crow
+consists of corn in any form, while _twenty-six per cent_ consists of
+insects such as grasshoppers, May beetles (June bugs, whose young are
+the white grubs), cutworms and other injurious kinds. On such evidence
+as this would not an unprejudiced jury acquit the crow?
+
+The best way to establish the crow in this new and true relationship to
+the farmer, is to interest the boys and girls in studying crows and
+their ways. To make a fair judgment, one must collect evidence. Mere
+hearsay is not always to be depended on. Justice and truth are worth
+working for. The case of the Crow _vs._ the Farmer, will give
+opportunity for the practice of both of these virtues.
+
+
+WINTER BIRDS.[37]
+
+[37] Quiz on Lesson No. 27, December, 1902.
+
+The winter is not so devoid of life as we sometimes think. There are
+mammals in the woods and coverts, fishes in the lakes and deep brooks,
+birds in the forest and the open. Let us devote one early midwinter
+lesson to the birds. Have the children make particular observations on
+the English sparrow. Other birds may be observed, as, for example, our
+old friend the crow. All these birds touch the life of the farmer and
+the nature-lover. Those students who are so situated that a study of
+crows is impossible may substitute English sparrows, chickadees,
+woodpeckers or any other winter birds.
+
+A bulletin entitled "The Common Crow" was issued by the U. S. Department
+of Agriculture in 1895. Students in this course can obtain one copy each
+by sending ten cents to Superintendent of Documents, Union Building,
+Washington, D. C. Do not send stamps.
+
+Do crows winter in your vicinity?
+
+Are you able to verify the statements made in the lesson concerning the
+flight in opposite directions in morning and evening? Give observations
+made since receiving this lesson.
+
+Is there a crow dormitory in your vicinity? (Inquire of old residents
+and keep a close watch.)
+
+Watch a crow on the wing. If he is flying low, try to count the big wing
+feathers. Note here any peculiarities of this bird's way of flying.
+
+How does a crow hold on to a limb when asleep?
+
+What characteristics have crows and chickens in common?
+
+How do they differ?
+
+Compare feathers, bills and feet of chickens and crows.
+
+Look for crow tracks in the snow. Where have you seen them? Can you
+always tell which way the bird was going? How? Sketch the tracks on
+separate sheet.
+
+How long is the longest toe, including the claw? Which toe is this?
+
+Is the track ever longer than the toe itself? If so, why?
+
+Have you ever seen the scratches in the snow made by the stiff wing
+feathers when the crow takes its flight from the ground?
+
+Count the scratches.
+
+What food have you seen crows eating?
+
+Watch during the whole month and mention any new items you can add to
+their bill of fare.
+
+Have you ever seen crow's nests? Where? When?
+
+Describe the nest, eggs and nestlings, if you have seen them. (These are
+things to look for during the spring and summer.)
+
+Does the plumage of the yearling crow differ from that of the older
+birds?
+
+Do males and females differ in color?
+
+Crows are said to possess remarkably well developed brains. What
+evidence have you of their sagacity, fearlessness, cunning or greed?
+
+What other winter birds have you seen this year?
+
+Give on separate sheet an account of a winter walk.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXVIII.
+
+HOW A SQUASH PLANT GETS OUT OF THE SEED.[38]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[38] Teacher's Leaflet No. 1, December, 1896. The first Cornell
+nature-study leaflet. For a discussion of the title of this leaflet and
+what it signifies pedagogically, consult "The Integument Man," in "The
+Nature-Study Idea." (Doubleday, Page & Co.)
+
+[Illustration]
+
+If one were to plant seeds of a Hubbard or Boston Marrow squash in loose
+warm earth in a pan or box, and were then to leave the parcel for a week
+or ten days, he would find, upon his return, a colony of plants like
+that shown in Fig. 189. If he had not planted the seeds himself or had
+not seen such plants before, he would not believe that these curious
+plants would ever grow into squash vines, so different are they from the
+vines which we know in the garden. This, itself, is a most curious
+fact,--this wonderful difference between the first and the later stages
+of nearly all plants, and it is only because we know it so well that we
+do not wonder at it.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 189. Squash plant a week old._]
+
+It may happen, however,--as it did in a pan of seed which I sowed a few
+days ago--that one or two of the plants may look like that shown in Fig.
+190. Here the seed seems to have come up on top of the plant; and one is
+reminded of the curious way in which beans come up on the stalk of the
+young plant. If we were to study the matter, however,--as we may do at a
+future time--we should find a great difference in the ways in which the
+squashes and the beans raise their seeds out of the ground. It is not
+our purpose to compare the squash and the bean at this time, but we are
+curious to know why one of these squash plants brings its seed up out of
+the ground whilst all the others do not. In order to find out why it is,
+we must ask the plant, and this asking is what we call an experiment. We
+may first pull up the two plants. The first one (Fig. 189) will be seen
+to have the seed-coats still attached to the very lowest part of the
+stalk below the soil, but the other plant has no seed at that point. We
+will now plant more seeds, a dozen or more of them, so that we shall
+have enough to examine two or three times a day for several days. A day
+or two after the seeds are planted, we shall find a little point or
+root-like part breaking out of the sharp end of the seed, as shown in
+Fig. 191. A day later this root part has grown to be as long as the seed
+itself (Fig. 192), and it has turned directly downwards into the soil.
+But there is another most interesting thing about this germinating seed.
+Just where the root is breaking out of the seed (shown at _a_ in Fig.
+192), there is a little peg or projection. In Fig. 193, about a day
+later, the root has grown still longer, and this peg seems to be forcing
+the seed apart. In Fig, 194, however, it will be seen that the seed is
+really being forced apart by the stem or stalk above the peg for this
+stem is now growing longer. The lower lobe of the seed has attached to
+the peg (seen at _a_, Fig. 194), and the seed-leaves seem to be backing
+out of the seed. Fig. 195 shows the seed a day later. The root has now
+produced many branches and has thoroughly established itself in the
+soil. The top is also growing rapidly and is still backing out of the
+seed, and the seed-coats are still firmly held by the obstinate peg.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 190. Squash plant which has brought the seed-coats
+out of the ground._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 191. Germination just beginning._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 192. The root and peg._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 193. Third day of root growth._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 194. The plant breaking out of the seed._]
+
+Whilst we have been seeing all these peculiar things in the seeds which
+we have dug up, the plantlets which we have not disturbed have been
+coming through the soil. If we were to see the plant in Fig. 195, as it
+was "coming up," it would look like Fig. 196. It is tugging away in
+getting its head out of the bonnet which is pegged down underneath the
+soil, and it has "got its back up" in the operation. In Fig. 197 it has
+escaped from its trap and it is laughing and growing in delight. It must
+now straighten itself up, as it is doing in Fig. 197, and it is soon
+standing proud and straight, as in Fig. 189. We now see that the reason
+why the "seed" came up on the plant in Fig. 190, is that in some way the
+peg did not hold the seed-coats down (see Fig. 195), and the expanding
+leaves, being pinched together must get themselves loose as best they
+can.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 195. The operation further progressed._]
+
+There is another thing about this interesting squash plant which we must
+not fail to notice, and this is the fact that these first two leaves of
+the plantlet came out of the seed and did not grow out of the plant
+itself. We must notice, too, that these leaves are much smaller when
+they are first drawn out of the seed-coat than they are when the
+plantlet has straightened itself up. That is, these leaves increase very
+much in size after they reach the light and air. The roots of the
+plantlet are now established in the soil and are taking in food which
+enables the plant to grow. The next leaves which appear will be very
+different from these first or seed leaves.
+
+These later ones are called the true leaves. They grow right out of the
+little plant itself. Fig. 199 shows these true leaves as they appear on
+a young Crookneck squash plant, and the plant now begins to look much
+like a squash vine.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 196. The plant just coming up._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 197. The plant liberated from the seed-coats._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 198. The plant straightening up._]
+
+We are now curious to know how the stem grows when it backs out of the
+seeds and pulls the little seed-leaves with it, and how the root grows
+downwards into the soil. Now let us pull up another seed when it has
+sent a single root about two inches deep into the earth. We will wash it
+very carefully and lay it upon a piece of paper. Then we will lay a
+ruler alongside of it, and make an ink mark one-quarter of an inch from
+the tip, and two or three other marks at equal distances above (Fig.
+200).[39] We will now carefully replant the seed. Two days later we will
+dig it up, when we shall most likely find a condition somewhat like that
+in Fig. 201. It will be seen that the marks E, C, B, are practically the
+same distance apart as before and they are also the same distance from
+the peg AA. The point of the root is no longer at DD, however, but has
+moved on to F. The root, therefore, has grown almost wholly in the end
+part.
+
+[39] NOTE.--Common ink will not answer for this purpose because it
+"runs" when the root is wet; indelible ink, used for marking linen or
+for drawing, should be used. It should also be said that the root of the
+common pumpkin and of the summer bush squashes is too fibrous and
+branchy for this test. It should be stated also that the root does not
+grow at its very tip, but chiefly in a narrow zone just back of the tip;
+but the determination of this point is rather too difficult for the
+beginner, and, moreover, it is foreign to the purpose of this tract.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 199. The true leaves developing._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 200. Marking the root._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 201. The root grows in the end parts._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 202. The marking of the stem, and the spreading
+apart of the marks._]
+
+Now let us make a similar experiment with the stem or stalk. We will
+mark a young stem, as at A in Fig. 202; but the next day we shall find
+that these marks are farther apart than when we made them (B, Fig. 202).
+The marks have all raised themselves above the ground as the plant has
+grown. The stem, therefore, has grown between the joints rather than
+from the end. The stem usually grows most rapidly, at any given time, at
+the upper or younger part of the joint (or internode); and the joint
+soon reaches the limit of its growth and becomes stationary, while a new
+one grows out above it.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXIX.
+
+HOW THE TREES LOOK IN WINTER.[40]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[40] Teacher's Leaflet No. 12, January, 1899.
+
+[Sidenote: _To the teacher._--We want the country child to have a closer
+touch with nature in the winter time. Teach him to see, to know, and to
+care for the trees when they are leafless. This leaflet will suggest how
+you may interest him.
+
+You can also intensify his interest in the subject, and at the same time
+increase his knowledge of drawing, by having him make skeleton or
+outline drawings of the trees about the schoolhouse or the home. Leaflet
+XXX gives suggestions for drawing.
+
+You can correlate this work with geography by giving the distribution or
+range of the different kinds of trees. Indicate the limit of
+distribution northward, southward, eastward, westward; also the regions
+in which the species is most abundant. The common manuals of botany will
+help you in this work; or you may consult the many excellent special
+books on trees.
+
+In teaching nature-study, remember that a great part of its value lies
+in the enthusiasm and zeal with which you handle it. Try, also, to
+develop the æsthetic sense of the pupil; but do not teach mere
+sentiment.]
+
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Only the growing and open season is thought to be attractive in the
+country. The winter is bare and cheerless. The trees are naked. The
+flowers are under the snow. The birds have flown. The only bright and
+cheery spot is the winter fireside. But even there the farmer has so
+much time that he does not know what to do with it. Only those who have
+little time, appreciate its value.
+
+But the winter is not lifeless and charmless. It is only dormant. The
+external world fails to interest us because we have not been trained to
+see and know it; and also because the rigorous weather and the snow
+prevent us from going afield. In the spring, summer, and fall, the hours
+are full to overflowing with life and interest. On every hand we are in
+contact with nature. If the farmer's winter is to be more enjoyable the
+farmer must have more points of contact with the winter world. One of
+the best and most direct of these points of sympathy is an interest in
+the winter aspects of trees.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 203. Small-fruited Shagbark Hickory._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 204. Pignut Hickory. This and Fig. 203 are from
+"Lessons with Plants."_]
+
+
+a. THE STRUCTURE OF THE TREE-TOP.
+
+In the summer time we distinguish the kinds of trees chiefly by means of
+the shape and the foliage. In winter the foliage is gone; but the shape
+remains, and the framework of the tree is also conspicuous. Trees are as
+distinct in winter as in summer; and in some respects their characters
+are more apparent and pronounced.
+
+Observe the outline of a tree against the dull winter sky. It does not
+matter what kind of tree it is. Note its height, shape, and size of top,
+how many branches there are, how the branches are arranged on the main
+trunk, the direction of the branches, whether the twigs are few or many,
+crooked or straight.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 205. Slippery Elm. The expression is stiff and
+hard._]
+
+Having observed these points in any tree, compare one kind of tree with
+another and note how they differ in these features. Compare an apple
+tree with an elm, an elm with a maple, a basswood with a pine, a poplar
+with a beech, a pear tree with a peach tree.
+
+Having made comparisons between very dissimilar trees, compare those
+which are much alike, as the different kinds of maples, of elms, of
+oaks, of poplars. As your powers of observation become trained, compare
+the different varieties of the same kind of fruit trees, if there are
+good orchards in the vicinity. The different varieties of pears afford
+excellent contrasts. Contrast the Bartlett with the Flemish Beauty, the
+Kieffer with the Seckel. In apples, compare the Baldwin with the Spy,
+the King with the Twenty Ounce. The sweet and sour cherries show marked
+differences in method of branching. Fruit men can tell many varieties
+apart in winter. How?
+
+Two common hickories are shown in Figs. 203 and 204. How do they differ?
+Do they differ in length of trunk? General method of branching?
+Direction of branches? Character of twig growth? Straightness or
+crookedness of branches?
+
+Contrast the slippery elm (Fig. 205) and the common or American elm
+(Fig. 211). The former has a crotchy or forked growth, and long, stiff,
+wide-spreading branches. The latter is more vase-like in shape. The
+branches are willowy and graceful, with a tendency to weep.
+
+Compare the oaks. The white and scarlet oaks have short trunks when they
+grow in fields, and the main branches are comparatively few and make
+bold angles and curves. The swamp white oak (Fig. 206), however, has a
+more continuous trunk, with many comparatively small, horizontal, and
+tortuous branches.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 206. Swamp White Oak._]
+
+With Fig. 206 compare the pepperidge (Fig. 207). This is one of the most
+unusual and interesting of all our native trees. It grows in swales. It
+has a very tough-grained wood. The autumn foliage is deep red and
+handsome. The peculiarities of the tree are the continuation of the
+trunk to near the summit, and the many lateral, short, deflected,
+tortuous branches.
+
+Consider the structure of the sassafras in Fig. 208. The great branches
+stand off nearly at right angles to the trunk, and are bushy and twiggy
+at the ends. Each large branch if cut off at its base and stood upright
+would look like an independent tree, so tree-like are its branches.
+Observe how much more bushy the sassafras is than any of the other trees
+already figured. Compare it in the method of branching and the
+twigginess with the slippery elm (Fig. 205).
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 207. Pepperidge or Sour Gum. The oddest of New York
+trees._]
+
+But there is still greater brushiness in the thorn-apple (Fig. 209). In
+twigginess Figs. 208 and 209 are very unlike, however. Pick out the
+differences. Observe the very short and spur-like twigs in the
+thorn-apple; also notice how soon the trunk is lost in the branches.
+
+With all the foregoing pictures compare the steeple-like form of the
+Lombardy poplar (Fig. 210). The tree is frequent along roadsides and
+about yards. What is its structure? Observe it as it stands against the
+winter sky. There is nothing else in our northern landscape so straight
+and spire-like. If you know a beech tree standing in a field, contrast
+it with the Lombardy poplar. These two trees represent extremes of
+vertical and of horizontal branching.
+
+Aside from the general structure of the tree-top, the pupil will become
+interested in the winter color of the tree and in the character of the
+bark. How does the bark differ between elms and maples, oaks and
+chestnuts, birches and beeches, hickories and walnuts? Why does the bark
+separate in ridges or peel off in strips? Is it not associated with the
+increase in diameter of the trunk? The method of breaking of the bark
+is different and peculiar for each kind of tree.
+
+Look at these things; and think about them.
+
+
+THE EXPRESSION OF THE TREE.
+
+Consciously or unconsciously, we think of trees much as we think of
+persons. They suggest thoughts and feelings which are also attributes of
+people. A tree is weeping, gay, restful, spirited, quiet, sombre. That
+is, trees have expression.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 208. Sassafras. Type of a bushy-topped tree._]
+
+The expression resides in the observer, however, not in the tree.
+Therefore, the more the person is trained to observe and to reflect,
+the more sensitive his mind to the things about him, and the more
+meaning the trees have. No one loves nature who does not love trees. We
+love them for what they are, wholly aside from their uses in
+fruit-bearing or shade-giving. A knowledge and love of trees binds one
+close to the external world.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 209. Thorn-apple. One of the most picturesque
+objects in the winter landscape._]
+
+How shall one increase his love of trees? First, by knowing them. He
+learns their attributes and names. Knowing them in winter, as already
+suggested, is one of the ways of becoming acquainted. Second, by
+endeavoring to determine what thought or feeling they chiefly express.
+The slippery elm is stiff and hard. The American elm is soft and
+graceful. The Lombardy poplar is prim and precise. The oak is rugged,
+stern, and bold. The pepperidge is dejected. The long white branches of
+a leaning buttonwood standing against a distant forest, suggest some
+spectre hurrying away from the haunts of men.
+
+Trees which have very strong expressions, or which are much unlike
+others, are said to have character. They are peculiar. Of such trees are
+oaks, pepperidges, Lombardy poplars, button woods, old apple trees.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 210. Group of Lombardy Poplars. From Bulletin 68._]
+
+A tree with very strong characters is said to be picturesque. That is,
+it is such an object as an artist delights to put into a picture. Trees
+which are very unsymmetrical, or knotty, gnarled, or crooked, are
+usually picturesque. Of all common trees, none is more picturesque than
+an old apple tree. Observe its gnarled and crooked branches, and the
+irregular spaces in its top.
+
+Encourage the pupil to extend his observation to all the trees about
+him, especially to such as are common and familiar. Teach him to observe
+the growths of bushes and trees in the fence-rows which lie on his way
+to school; and to observe carefully and critically. How do gooseberry
+bushes differ from currant bushes, and raspberries from blackberries?
+Observe the lilac bush and the snowballs. How is the snow held on the
+different kinds of evergreens--as the pines, spruces, arbor-vitæ? See
+how the fruit-spurs on pears and plums stand out against the sky.
+(Consult Leaflet No. XXXI, "Four Apple Twigs.") Are there any bright
+colors of branch and twig to relieve the bareness of the snow? Do you
+see any warmth of color in the swales where the willows and osiers are?
+Do you see old plumes of grass and weeds standing above the snow? Do
+they bring up any visions of summer and brooks and woods?
+
+[Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXX.
+
+ONE WAY OF DRAWING TREES IN THEIR WINTER ASPECT.[41]
+
+BY C. W. FURLONG.
+
+
+[41] Teacher's Leaflet, No. 12, January, 1899.
+
+The few suggestions which are set forth in these pages are based upon
+two assumptions:--first, that the teacher has some knowledge of the most
+salient principles of elementary perspective; and second, that she has a
+love for all things beautiful. It is feasible to deal here not to any
+extent with art in either its abstract or its concrete form, but only
+with drawing.
+
+Drawing, in its simplest analysis, is the ability to record objects as
+they appear to the normal eye.
+
+Art is more complicated. It includes many elements, a few of which are
+composition, expression of movement, and action. The very thought,
+feeling, and refinement of the artist must be expressed in his work. He
+must tell not only what he sees, but also what he feels. He interprets
+nature through his own moods.
+
+There are no outlines in nature. The boundaries, shapes, and character
+of various forms are determined by the difference of their color values,
+and the contrasts of light and shade. Yet an outline drawing is the
+simplest means of representing form and proportion. Although inadequate
+in many respects, this somewhat conventional rendering is important to
+the beginner, for it is necessary that the child be taught to observe
+forms and proportions correctly; and these impressions may be recorded
+most simply and definitely by outline drawings. Michael Angelo
+emphasized its importance in these words: "The science of drawing or of
+outline is the essence of painting and all the fine arts, and the root
+of all the sciences."
+
+To a great extent, one may show in an outline drawing the character and
+texture of surfaces. Our main object should be to train the boys and
+girls to observe in order to acquire a correctness of perception, for
+"education amongst us consists too much in telling, not enough in
+training."
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 211. The American Elm, one of the most typical of
+vase-form trees._]
+
+One of the greatest difficulties is to impress upon the minds of
+beginners the fact that they must think while they look and draw. Insist
+upon the pupil's looking repeatedly at the object. It is better to
+observe for five minutes and draw for one, than to observe for one and
+draw for five.
+
+Make the drawing lesson more interesting by telling the class something
+about the object which they are to draw, involving in the story facts
+that will impress upon their minds some of the most salient
+characteristics of the object. Encourage the children to discuss the
+object, drawing out facts for their own observation. Certain kinds of
+trees, like certain races of people, have a general similarity, yet
+every single tree has an individuality of its own.
+
+Apply a few essential questions that will help to determine at least the
+kind of tree it is, the race to which it belongs; for first we must get
+its general character, seeing its big proportions and shape; and later
+must search for its individualities.
+
+Is it tall for its greatest width?
+
+How far does the trunk extend before dividing?
+
+At what height do the lowest branches arise?
+
+What is their general direction?
+
+Do they appear to radiate from the trunk?
+
+How do they appear to radiate from the trunk?
+
+How do the main branches compare in size with the trunk?
+
+Are they crooked or straight?
+
+The manner of branch growth must be studied carefully.
+
+We see in our elm (Fig. 211) that the trunk divides at about a fourth of
+its height into several main branches, while in the case of the
+pepperidge (Fig. 207) the trunk extends to the very top of the tree, the
+branches being small in proportion to the trunk, not varying much in
+size, and taking an oblique downward direction. Notice the weird
+expression of these trees with their crookedly bent tops, one side of
+each trunk being almost devoid of branches.
+
+The trunk of the sassafras (Fig. 208) continues nearly to the top of
+this tree, while the large branches, though unsymmetrical, give it a
+well-balanced appearance.
+
+Again in our picture of the thorn-apple (Fig. 209), we are at once
+impressed with its irregular form, the branches on the left taking a
+more oblique direction than those of the other side, the trunk dividing
+a little short of half the height of the tree.
+
+For an example, let our subject be an elm tree (Fig. 211); our drawing
+to be rendered in outline.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 212. Blocking-in the elm tree (Fig. 211). The first
+work which the artist does when he draws the tree._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 213. Working in the details with sharp lines. The
+original pencil sketch is not followed exactly._]
+
+_Material._--Almost any good drawing paper, white or buff in color, will
+answer our purpose; 9x12 is a good size. Our pencil should be of medium
+grade lead (F. or HB.) of any standard make, Kohinoor preferred.
+
+If procurable, we should have a light drawing board 17x22 inches (here
+is an opportunity for the carpenters) to place the paper on, otherwise a
+very stiff piece of cardboard; or a large geography book might answer.
+It is best, however, to fasten our paper, which we cannot do in using
+the book. For fastening the paper use four thumb tacks for the corners.
+
+A Faber or multiplex pencil eraser is needed; also a sponge eraser with
+which to remove the light lines and clean the drawing before lining it
+in.
+
+_Our position._--Our point of view will depend upon our subject, but it
+is not well to be so near as to necessitate raising the head in order to
+see the top of the tree. If we take longer than one sitting for our
+drawing (which I do not think advisable, as we must not choose too
+complicated a subject), we must mark our position in order to obtain
+again the same point of view.
+
+_Position of the drawing-board._--Our paper must be placed on the board
+with its edges parallel to those of the board. The drawing-board should
+be held perpendicular, or nearly so, to the direction in which it is
+seen, for if the board is tilted far backward, it will be fore-shortened
+and our tree will probably have been drawn longer than it should be.
+
+_How to look._--The tendency of the beginner is to see and draw too much
+in detail. It is most essential that we look first for the large shapes,
+the greatest dimensions; next for the smaller ones; last for detail. It
+is not well for the pupils to work too close to their drawings. They
+should occasionally sit well back in their seats or get up and stand
+behind the seats to obtain the general effect of their drawing, to see
+that the big shapes are right and that the character of the tree has not
+been lost.
+
+As an aid to placing our drawing so as best to fill the space it has to
+occupy, we may use what the French call a _cherche-motif_, the English,
+a finder. This is nothing more than a small piece of stiff paper or
+cardboard about 5x8 inches, in which is cut a small rectangular opening
+about 3/4x1 inch; the size and proportion may vary somewhat. We may look
+through this opening, the card acting as a frame to our picture. This
+will help us to decide whether our subject will look better placed the
+horizontal or the vertical way of the paper and how much of the subject
+to include and where to place it in that space. We may include more or
+less in the finder by varying its distance from the eye.
+
+Now, I am sure we should not place ourselves within a dozen yards of our
+tree if we wished to get its general effect; therefore, we must have
+plenty of foreground in our drawing. We must give the eye a chance to
+look, allowing plenty of space between the lowest point of our drawing
+and the lower edge of our paper.
+
+As the height of tree we are to draw (Fig. 211) is greater than its
+greatest width, we find that it will fill the space best if placed the
+vertical way of the paper. After indicating the extreme height and width
+by four light marks, before carrying the drawing further we must test
+these proportions by comparing the width with the height, always testing
+the shorter dimension into the longer, viz.:
+
+_To test the drawing._--Close one eye. The pencil may be used to test
+the drawing by holding it in front of you at arm's length (as in Fig.
+214) perpendicular to the direction in which the object is seen; also
+revolving it in a plane perpendicular to the direction in which the
+object is seen, in order to compare one dimension with another. For
+example, hold your pencil horizontally at arm's length so that its blunt
+end covers the outermost left-hand point of the elm. Slide your thumb
+along the pencil till it covers the extreme right-hand point; retain
+that measurement (keeping the same position in your chair, pencil always
+at arm's length); revolve the pencil in the same plane until it
+coincides with the height of the elm, at the same time lowering it so
+that the end of the thumb covers the lowest point of the tree; note
+carefully the point that the blunt end covers; raise the pencil so that
+the end of the thumb covers that point, noting again where the blunt end
+occurs and notice how many times, and how much over, the width goes into
+the height. In our elm (Fig. 211) we find that the width goes about once
+and six-sevenths into the height, or a little short of twice. If the
+latter statement is preferred, we must bear in mind the proportion left
+over.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 214. How to test the drawing._]
+
+
+Do not use the scale side of a ruler or marks on the pencil or object
+used in order to test the proportions, and never transfer measurements
+from the object used in testing to your paper. A scale or other
+mechanical means should not be used in free-hand drawing. The teacher
+should have a spool of black thread and should give a piece about 2 feet
+6 inches long to each pupil. An eraser, a knife, or some small article
+may be attached to one end of the thread. By holding the weighted thread
+as a plumb-line in front of us, we have an absolutely vertical line; so
+by having it intersect a desired point of our tree we may obtain the
+relative positions to the right and left of other points above and below
+this intersected point.
+
+_Blocking-in._--We may conceive of the general shape of our elm by
+looking at it with half closed eyes. It appears in silhouette. Now
+imagine lines joining its outermost points; this will give the general
+mass or shape of our tree. Now if we represent the outermost points
+contained in these lines by sketching lightly these "blocking-in" lines,
+as they are called, we obtain the general shape of the elm (Fig. 212).
+We must emphasize the fact that these blocking-in lines are to be
+sketched in lightly by holding the pencil near the blunt end, using a
+free-arm motion. Now before going farther we again test these new points
+to see if they occupy their correct positions in relation to the height
+and width. Do not, however, transfer the measurements from the pencil to
+the paper. This test is only to obtain the proportion of one dimension
+to another. Having tested these smaller dimensions we may draw lightly
+the main branches.
+
+After having indicated their general direction and character of growth,
+we may indicate some of the smaller branches and twigs (Fig. 213). All
+this work should be carried out without erasing; all corrections should
+be made by slightly darker lines.
+
+Let us now sharpen our pencils to a good point and go over the drawing
+with a fine dark line, carefully studying the character and spirit of
+the tree. Now erase the lighter and superfluous lines, as the dark lines
+remain distinct enough to indicate our drawing.
+
+_Lining-in._--We may now take our pencil nearer the point and proceed to
+line-in the drawing, going over it with a definite, consistent line. If
+desirable, we may accent and bring out certain parts of the tree more
+strongly than others by darker or shade lines and short, strong markings
+called accents. These are especially effective at the junction and
+underside of branches, and where one wishes to give the object a
+nearer appearance. A soft, broad, grey line may be obtained by using a
+softer pencil (B) and the drawing given variety by breaking lines here
+and there. We should be cautious in using them, however; but lack of
+space does not permit further discussion of the subject of accented
+outlines.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 215. The outline drawing complete, and the first
+pencil marks erased._]
+
+Allow the pupils to make short ten- or fifteen-minute "time sketches" of
+trees. In these it is the spirit and general effect of the tree that we
+must strive for. Above all, we must allow our little draughtsmen to give
+their own interpretation of the tree. A helpful suggestion as to
+proportion, etc., would be in place, but we must allow their
+individuality to have as much play as possible.
+
+The suggestions given on these pages are necessary for the beginner.
+Some of them are hard facts; but it lies with the teacher to develop the
+æsthetic and artistic qualities lying dormant in the pupil, ready to be
+moulded and started in the right direction.
+
+If you have confined the pupils to the flat copy, break away from it;
+allow them to create. Let them see the beautiful things all about them.
+They will respond. Let them draw from nature and still life. Train them
+to observe.
+
+The early summer days, just before school closes, with their bright
+sunlight and strong shadows, make many subjects interesting as
+light-and-shade drawings. Fall, with its brilliant coloring, gives us a
+chance to use the color-box, while the early winter twilights will bring
+many an interesting silhouette before our boys and girls, and next day
+during the drawing hour these impressions may be carried out in pen and
+ink.
+
+The most successful teacher will be the one of sympathetic nature whose
+love reaches out to the boys and girls, as well as to all things
+beautiful. The most successful teacher will be the one who endeavors to
+place the children where they may view nature sympathetically and in the
+most intimate relationship.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXXI.
+
+FOUR APPLE TWIGS.[42]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[42] Teachers' Leaflet No. 3, March, 1897.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+As I walked through an apple orchard the other day for the first time
+since the long winter had set in, I was struck by the many different
+shapes and sizes of the limbs as I saw them against the blue-gray of the
+February sky. I cut four of them in passing, and as I walked back to the
+house I wondered why the twigs were all so different; and I found myself
+guessing whether there would be any apples next summer.
+
+I have had pictures made of these four little apple limbs. Let us look
+them over and see whether they have any story to tell of how they grew
+and what they have set out to do.
+
+
+I.
+
+One of these twigs (Fig. 216) was taken from a strong young tree which,
+I remember, bore its first good crop of apples last year. This simple
+twig is plainly of two years' growth, for the "ring" between the old and
+new wood is seen at B. That is, the main stem from the base up to B grew
+in 1895, and the part from B to the tip grew in 1896. But the buds upon
+these two parts look very unlike. Let us see what these differences
+mean.
+
+We must now picture to ourselves how this shoot from B to 10 looked last
+summer while it was growing. The shoot bore leaves. Where? There was one
+just below each bud; or, to be more exact, one bud developed just above
+each leaf. These buds did not put out leaves. They grew to their present
+size and then stopped. The leaves fell.
+
+What are these buds of the tip shoot preparing to do in 1897? We can
+answer this question by going back just one year and seeing what the
+buds on the lower (or older) part of the shoot did in 1896. On that part
+(below B) the buds seem to have increased in size. Therefore, they must
+have grown larger last year. There were no leaves borne below these
+buds in 1896, but a cluster of leaves came out of each little bud in the
+spring. As these leaves expanded and grew, the little bud grew on; that
+is, each bud grew into a tiny branch, and when fall came each of these
+branches had a bud on its end to continue the growth in the year to
+come. What we took to be simple buds at 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, are, therefore,
+little branches.
+
+But the strangest part of this wonderful little twig has not yet been
+seen,--the branches are of different sizes, and three of them (7, 8, 9)
+have so far outstripped the others that they seem to be of a different
+kind. It should be noticed, too, that the very lowermost bud (at 1)
+never grew at all, but remained perfectly dormant during the entire year
+1896. It will be seen, then, that the dormant bud and the smallest
+branches are on the lower part of the shoot, and the three strong
+branches are at the very tip of the last year's growth.
+
+If, now, we picture the twig as it looked in the fall of 1895, we shall
+see that it consisted of a single shoot, terminating at B. It had a
+large terminal bud (like those at 7, 8, 9, 10), and this bud pushed on
+into a branch in 1896, while three other buds near the tip did the same
+thing.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 216.--A two-year-old shoot from a young apple tree.
+Half size._]
+
+Why did some of these branches grow to be larger than others? "Simply
+because they were upon the strongest part of the shoot, or that part
+where the greatest growth naturally takes place," some one will answer.
+But this really does not answer the question, for we want to know why
+this part of the shoot is strongest. Probably the real reason is that
+there is more sunlight and more room on this outward or upward end. In
+1897,--if this shoot had been spared--each of these four largest twigs
+(7, 8, 9, 10) would have done the same thing as the parent twig did in
+1896: each would have pushed on from its end, and one or two or three
+other strong branches would probably have started from the strong
+side-buds near the tips, the very lowest buds would, no doubt, have
+remained perfectly inactive or dormant for lack of opportunity, and the
+intermediate buds would have made short branches like 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. In
+other words, the tree always tries to grow onward from its tips, and
+these tip shoots eventually become strong branches, unless some of them
+die in the struggle for existence. What, now, becomes of the little
+branches lower down?
+
+
+II.
+
+From another apple tree I took the twig shown in Fig. 217. We see at
+once that it is very unlike the other one. It seems to be two years old,
+one year's growth extending from the base up to 7, and the last year's
+growth extending from 7 to 8; but we shall see upon looking closer that
+this is not so. The short branchlets at 3, 4, 5, 7 are very different
+from those in Fig. 216. They seem to be broken off. The fact is that the
+broken ends show were apples were borne in 1896. The branchlets that
+bore them, therefore, must have grown in 1895, while the main branch,
+from 1 to 7, grew in 1894. It is plain, from the looks of the buds, that
+the shoot from 7 to 8 grew last year, 1896.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 217. A three-year-old shoot and the fruit-spurs.
+Half size._]
+
+Starting from the base, then, we have the main twig growing in 1894; the
+small side branches growing in 1895; these little branches bearing
+apples in 1896; and the terminal shoot also growing in 1896. Why was
+there no terminal shoot growing in 1895? Simply because its tip
+developed a fruit-bud (at 7) and therefore could not send out a branch;
+for there are two kinds of buds,--the small, pointed leaf-bud and the
+thick, blunt fruit-bud. If the branchlets 3, 4, 5, 7 are two years old,
+the dormant buds--1, 2--must be of the same age. That is, for two long
+years these little buds have been waiting (if I may use the expression)
+for some bug to eat off the buds and leaves above, or some accident to
+break the shoot beyond them, so that they might have a chance to grow;
+but they have waited in vain.
+
+We have now found, therefore, that the little side shoots upon apple
+twigs often become fruit-branches or fruit-spurs, while the more
+ambitious branches above them are making a great display of stem and
+leaves.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 218.--A fruit-spur which has borne six apples. Half
+size._]
+
+But will these fruit-spurs bear fruit again in 1897? No. The bearing of
+an apple is hard work, and these spurs did not have enough vitality left
+to make fruit-buds for the next year; but as they must perpetuate
+themselves, they have sent out small side buds which will bear a cluster
+of leaves and grow into another little spur in 1897, and in that year
+these new spurs will make fruit-buds for bearing in 1898. The side bud
+is plainly seen on spur 5, also on spur 4, whilst spur 7 has sown a
+seed, so to speak, in the bud at 6. It is plain, therefore, why the tree
+bears every other year.
+
+
+III.
+
+There was one tree in the orchard from which the farmer had not picked
+his apples. Perhaps the apples were not worth picking. At any rate, the
+dried apples, shriveled and brown, are still hanging on the twigs, and
+even the birds do not seem to care for them. I broke off one of these
+twigs (Fig. 218). Let us see how many apples this interesting twig has
+borne. We can tell by the square-cut scars. An apple was once borne at
+1, another at 2, another at 4, another at 5, another at 6, and another
+at 7,--and at 7 there will be a scar when the apple falls. Six apples
+this modest shoot has borne! And I wonder how many of them got ripe, or
+how many were taken by the worms, or how many were eaten by the little
+boys and girls on their way to school!
+
+A peculiar thing happened when the fruit was growing at 2. Two side buds
+started out, instead of one, and both of them grew the next year. But
+one of the little branchlets fell sick and died, or a bug nipped off its
+end, or it starved to death; and its memory is preserved by the little
+stick standing up at 3. The other branchlet thrived, and eventually bore
+apples at 4, 5, 6, and 7.
+
+I have said that these fruit-spurs bear only every other year; then, if
+this branch has borne six apples consecutively, it must be twelve years
+old. The truth is that it is about twenty years old, for some years it
+failed to bear; but the age cannot be traced out in the picture,
+although any little boy or girl with bright eyes could soon learn to
+trace out yearly rings on the shoot itself.
+
+
+IV.
+
+The last shoot that I got that day has a whole volume of history in it,
+and I cannot begin to tell its story unless I should write a small book.
+But we will trace out its birthdays and see how many apples it has
+borne. It is shown in Fig. 219, and because it is so long I have had to
+break it into several pieces to get it on the page. It begins at A, and
+is continued at B, C, D, E, and F.
+
+Let us count the yearly rings and see how old the whole limb is. These
+rings are at 28, 26, D, 12, 1,--five of them; and as the shoot grew one
+year before it made any ring, and another year made no increase in
+length--as we shall presently see--the whole branch must be seven years
+old. That is, the limb probably started in 1890.[43] Let us begin, then,
+at A, and follow it out.
+
+[43] It is really impossible to tell whether the shoot started from the
+limb A in 1889 or 1890, without knowing the age of A; for the spur may
+have developed its blossom bud at the end in either the first or second
+year of its life. That is, young fruit-spurs sometimes make a blossom
+bud the very year they start, but they oftener "stand still" the second
+year and delay the blossom bud until that time.
+
+1890. Started as a spur from the main branch, A, and grew to 1.
+
+1891. Apple borne at 1. This apple did not mature, however, as we can
+readily see by the smallness of the scar. In this year, two side buds
+developed to continue the spur the next year.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 219. A seven-year-old apple twig and its curious
+history. (Half size.)_]
+
+1892. Ceased to be a fruit-spur, and made a strong growth on to 12. For
+some reason, it had a good chance to grow. Perhaps the farmer pruned the
+tree, and thereby gave the shoot an opportunity; or perhaps he plowed
+and fertilized the land.
+
+In the meantime, one of the side buds grew to 3, and the other to 7, and
+each made a fruit-bud at its end.
+
+1893. Shoot grew lustily,--on to D.
+
+The fruit-bud at 3 bore an apple, which probably matured, as shown by
+the scar 2. Two side buds were formed beneath this apple, to continue
+the spur next year.
+
+The fruit-bud at 7 bloomed, but the apple fell early, as shown by the
+small scar. Two side buds were formed.
+
+The buds upon the main shoot--1 to 12--all remained dormant.
+
+1894. Shoot grew from D to beyond E.
+
+Side bud of 2 grew to 4, and made a fruit-bud on its end; the other side
+bud grew on to 5, and there made a fruit-bud.
+
+Side bud of 7 grew on to 10, and the other one to 8, each ending in a
+fruit-bud.
+
+Buds on old shoot--1 to 12--still remained dormant.
+
+Some of the buds on the 1893 growth--12 to D,--remained dormant; but
+some of them made fruit-spurs,--14, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23.
+
+1895. Shoot grew from beyond E to 28.
+
+Flowers were borne at 4 and 5; but at 4 the fruit fell early, for the
+five or six scars of the flowers can be seen, showing that no one of
+them developed more strongly than the other; that is, none of the
+flowers "set." A fairly good fruit was probably borne at 5. At the base
+of each, a bud started to continue the spur next year.
+
+Upon the other spur, flowers were borne both at 8 and 10. At 10 none of
+the flowers set fruit, but a side bud developed. At 8 the fruit
+partially matured, and a side bud was also developed.
+
+The buds upon the old stem from 1 to 12 still remained dormant.
+
+Some of the spurs on the 1893 growth--12 to D--developed fruit-buds for
+bearing in 1896.
+
+Some of the buds on the 1894 growth--D to beyond E--remained dormant,
+but others developed into small fruit-spurs. One of these buds, near the
+top of the 1894 growth, threw out a long shoot, starting from E; and
+the bud at 26 also endeavored to make a long branch, but failed.
+
+1896. Main shoot grew from 28 to the end.
+
+The side bud below 4 (where the fruit was borne the year before) barely
+lived, not elongating, as seen above 3. This branch of the spur is
+becoming weak and will never bear again. The side bud of 5, however,
+made a fairly good spur and developed a fruit-bud at its end, as seen at
+6.
+
+The side bud of 10 grew somewhat, making the very short spur 11. This
+branchlet is also getting weak. The bud of 8, however, developed a
+strong spur at 9. Both 11 and 9 bear fruit-buds, but that on 11 is
+probably too weak ever to bear fruit again. In fact, the entire spurs,
+from 1 to 6 and 1 to 9, are too weak to be of much account for
+fruit-bearing.
+
+This year several of the spurs along the 1893 growth--12 to D--bore
+flowers. Flowers were borne from two buds on the first one (at 13 and
+14), but none of the flowers "set." One of the little apples that died
+last June still clings to the spur at 14. A side bud (15) formed to
+continue the spur in 1897. Flowers were borne at 16, 20, 21, and 23, but
+no apples developed. Upon 16 and 20 the flowers died soon after they
+opened, as seen by the remains of them. Upon 23, one of the flowers set
+an apple, but the apple soon died. The spurs 17 and 18 are so weak that
+they have never made fruit-buds, and they are now nearly dead. The spurs
+19 and 22 have behaved differently. Like the others, they grew in 1894
+and would have made terminal fruit-buds in 1895, and would have borne
+fruit in 1896; but the terminal buds were broken off in the fall or
+winter of 1894, so that two side buds developed in 1895, and each of
+these developed a fruit-bud at its end in 1896 in the spur 19, but only
+one of them developed such a bud in 22. Upon these spurs, therefore, the
+bearing year has been changed.
+
+Upon the growth of 1894--D to beyond E--only three spurs have developed,
+nos. 24, 25, 26. These started out in 1895, and two of them--25 and
+26--have made large fat buds which are evidently fruit-buds. The shoot
+at E grew on to EE, and all the buds on its lower two-year-old portion
+remained dormant.
+
+On the 1895 growth--from beyond E to 28--all the buds remained dormant
+save one, and this one--27--made only a very feeble attempt to grow into
+a spur.
+
+The buds upon the 1892 growth--1 to 12--are still dormant and waiting
+for an opportunity to grow.
+
+What an eventful history this apple twig has had! And yet in all the
+seven years of its life, after having made fifteen efforts to bear
+fruit, it has not produced a single good apple! The fault, therefore,
+does not lie in the shoot. It has done the best it could. The trouble
+has been that the farmer either did not give the tree enough food to
+enable it to support the fruit, or did not prune the tree so as to give
+the twig light and room, or allowed apple-scab or some other disease to
+kill the young apples as they were forming. I am wondering, therefore,
+whether, when trees fail to bear, it is not quite as often the fault of
+the farmer as it is of the trees?
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXXII.
+
+THE BURST OF SPRING.[44]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[44] Nature-Study Quarterly No. 4, Leaflet 17, March, 1900.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Spring is coming! The buds will burst and the birds will sing!
+
+How do the buds burst? Watch them as the spring opens; or, if you are
+impatient, cut long twigs and place them in bottles of water in a
+living-room, and the buds will swell. First, notice what the winter buds
+are like,--that they are spherical, or oblong, or conical bodies lying
+close to the limb and tightly covered with scales. Notice that there is
+a mark or scar beneath the bud, showing where a leaf was borne.
+
+It is excellent practice to collect winter twigs of different kinds of
+trees and bushes, and to compare the form and color of the shoots, and
+the size, shape, color, and make-up of the buds. Lay the twigs side by
+side on the table and notice how one differs from the other. What part
+of the twig grew last year? Notice the "ring" at the base of the last
+year's growth. After all the differences are noted, put the twigs in
+water, as you would a bouquet. Sometimes flowers and leaves will appear.
+If the twigs are two or three feet long, the buds are more likely to
+grow, for then there is sufficient supply of food in them. Change the
+water frequently, and cut off the lower ends of the twigs so that a
+fresh surface will be exposed to the water. It will be two to five weeks
+before the buds open, depending mostly on the kind of plant.
+
+Mark one bud on a maple, or apple, or lilac, or other plant, by tying a
+string about the twig. Look at it carefully from day to day: observe how
+it opens, and what comes out of it.
+
+The pupil should know that a winter twig has interest.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The bud may be peach or apricot. Soon the bud begins to swell at its
+top. The scales open. A white lining appears. This lining soon protrudes
+(Fig. 220). Soon the lining opens. We see that it is a flower. Or
+perhaps the peach bud sends out a green shoot rather than a flower.
+There must be two kinds of peach and apricot buds,--a flower-bud and a
+leaf-bud. Can you tell them apart? The flower-bud is thicker and
+rounder. Usually one stands on either side of a leaf-bud. But the
+leaf-bud may stand alone. Find one: any peach tree or apricot tree will
+have leaf-buds, but all may not have flower-buds. As the bud expands and
+the flower or leaf appears, notice that the bud-scales fall away. Do
+these scales leave scars? And do not these scars, standing together,
+make the "ring" which marks the beginning of the new growth?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 220. Opening of an apricot bud._]
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Observe a pear bud. Notice that the scales elongate as the bud swells.
+You can see the white bases of the scales, marking the new growth (Fig.
+221). If it is a leaf-bud the scales may become three-fourths of an inch
+long before they fall. But sooner or later, they are cast, and their
+places are marked by scars. If it is a flower-bud, notice that several
+flowers come out of it. In the apricot and peach, there is only one
+flower in each bud. Each of these little pear flowers is closed up like
+a bud and elevates itself on a stalk before it opens: and this stalk
+becomes the stem of the pear fruit. But this pear flower-bud contains
+leaves as well as flowers. Fig. 222 shows what comes out of a pear bud.
+This, then, is a mixed flower-bud,--it contains both leaves and flowers.
+The apricot and the peach bear true or simple flower-buds.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 221. Opening of a pear bud._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 222. What came out of a pear bud._]
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Watch apple buds. The scales do not elongate as in the pear, but the
+flower-buds are mixed. Fig. 223 shows the expanding cluster from an
+apple flower-bud. Four flowers will open; and there are six leaves. If
+the buds are made to open in the house on severed twigs, the leaves do
+not grow so large before the flowers expand, for the twig does not
+contain sufficient food. Fig. 224 is a photograph of an apple twig which
+I had in my window one winter's day.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 223. Opening of an apple bud._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 224. Apple flowers in midwinter._]
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Examine a hickory twig. The illustration (Fig. 225) shows the "ring"
+marking the beginning of the annual growth. See the large leaf-scars.
+Notice that the terminal bud is much the largest. It is the one which
+will grow. The other buds will remain dormant unless they are forced
+into growth by the death of the terminal bud or by other unusual
+circumstances. Notice that buds differ in size on shoots of all plants;
+consider that not all the buds are to grow: there is a struggle for
+existence. When the hickory bud expands, some of the scales fall away;
+but some of the inner parts enlarge into leaf-like bodies, as shown in
+Fig. 226. In some hickories these bodies become two or three inches long
+before they fall. Hickories open very late in the season. The Norway
+maple, commonly planted on lawns, behaves in a similar way. Observe the
+sugar maple.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 225. Shoot of a hickory._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 226. The opening of a hickory bud._]
+
+A twig of the common elm is shown in Fig. 227. Notice the "ring." See
+the two kinds of buds. We suspect that the three larger ones are
+flower-buds. With the very first warm days--before the robin has built
+her nest--these three buds will burst; soon the red-brown tassels will
+hang on the leafless twigs. Each tassel is a flower. Several flowers
+come from each bud. We see them in Fig. 228; and the leaf-buds have
+elongated somewhat. Watch for the fruits or seeds that blow about the
+walks so early in spring; and note how the leaves come out.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 227. Twig of elm._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 228. Blossoms of the elm._]
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+With the first breath of spring, the "pussy willows" come. And what are
+the "pussies"? They are clusters of flowers. So snugly are the little
+flowers wrapped in wool, that the "pussies" are silken-soft as they
+begin to expand. Fig. 229 is a willow shoot. Find one when the buds
+first begin to burst. Notice the big brown-black scale that covers the
+bud as a shield and falls when the "pussy" first begins to appear.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+And now what is a winter bud? It is a miniature shoot or flower, resting
+for the time, and snugly wrapped for the long winter. It was made last
+season. It is ready to leap into growth the moment the warm rain of
+spring wakens it. A good hand lens will show the embryo branch, if a
+section is made of the bud.
+
+This bud is not only ready-formed but is ready-fed. The winter shoots
+contain starch. On a cut surface of a dormant twig, apply a drop of
+tincture of iodine; note the bluish color, which is indicative of
+starch. This starch is insoluble; but with the first awakening of life,
+it changes into sugar, which is soluble and is transferred to the
+growing part. The burst of spring is made possible by means of this
+stored food. Notice the azalea in the florist's window (Fig. 230). The
+large flower-buds were formed the year before, and it is a short
+operation to "force" them into bloom. The flowers come in advance of the
+leaves; therefore these leaves could not have made the food required for
+the bloom. The blooming of the apple twig (Fig. 224) in the winter shows
+that the food is in the twig and buds. Once I drew a branch of a tree
+into a room and fastened it there. It made leaves and began to grow
+while the tree to which it was attached was perfectly dormant (Fig.
+231).
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 230. Bloom of azalea._]
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 229. The opening of a pussy willow._]
+
+Not only are the buds ready-formed and ready-fed, but they are covered.
+Snugly is the tender, growing part protected. Pull away the scales of a
+winter bud one by one. Observe how closely they are placed. Often the
+chinks are filled with a packing of wool, or are sealed with varnish.
+Dip the bud in water: then see whether the water permeates the
+covering. The chief value of the bud covering is not to protect from
+freezing, as commonly supposed, but to prevent the soft growing parts
+from drying out.
+
+The plants are waiting for spring. They are ready.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 231. Branch of a tree bearing leaves inside a
+window, when the tree itself is dormant._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXXIII.
+
+EVERGREENS AND HOW THEY SHED THEIR LEAVES.[45]
+
+BY H. P. GOULD.
+
+
+[45] Teacher's Leaflet No. 13, February, 1899.
+
+[Sidenote: _Note to the teacher._--This leaflet has two particular
+objects: to teach how evergreens shed their leaves, and to enable you to
+distinguish a few of the evergreens which are most commonly met. These
+studies (and those suggested in Leaflet No. XXIX) should be the means of
+adding much cheer to the winter. Encourage pupils to make collections of
+cones, to observe when they shed their seeds, and how long (how many
+seasons) they remain attached to the branch. Remember that mere
+identification of the kinds of trees is not the highest type of
+nature-study.
+
+Cones are good subjects for free-hand drawing. Beginners should draw
+them in outline, omitting the shading. Encourage pupils to draw single
+leaf-clusters of the different pines, cautioning them to show the right
+number of leaves in each case.]
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Cone-bearing evergreens are familiar to everyone; yet this familiarity
+is usually with the trees as entire objects. We do not often stop to
+analyze a tree in order to find out what gives it its characteristic
+appearance or to see what makes it look as it does.
+
+We shall often find, if we stop to look, that much of the character of a
+tree,--that is, its general appearance or the way in which it impresses
+us,--is due to the leaves and to their arrangement on the branches. This
+is true of many of the evergreen trees.
+
+Why are certain kinds of trees called evergreen in distinction from
+those which are said to be deciduous? The reason is obvious. One kind is
+always green from the presence of foliage, while the other sheds all of
+its leaves every season. The evergreen trees, like the pines and the
+spruces and the firs, always appear to be well covered with foliage;
+hence it does not often occur to us that these trees shed their leaves.
+And yet perhaps we can recall happy hours when we used to play beneath
+some large pine tree where the ground was carpeted with pine "needles."
+
+The falling of the leaves of the maple trees or the oaks is a familiar
+sight, but who has seen the spruce leaves fall, and who can tell when
+the pine needles drop?
+
+That the evergreen trees do shed their foliage, as truly as the maples
+and the elms do, we will not question, for we can see the fallen leaves
+under any tree. Look up into the top of a spruce or pine. See that the
+interior is bare of foliage. The leaves are towards the ends of the
+branches, where they receive sunlight. Yet the branches which are now in
+the interior once bore leaves, for we can see the leaf-scars.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 232. Shoot of the common white pine, one-third
+natural size._]
+
+It will be interesting to find out something about the leaves of our
+common evergreens. Let us look at some of them.
+
+
+THE WHITE PINE.
+
+In Fig. 232 is shown a white pine branch. Notice that the leaves are
+borne in bunches or clusters of five. Each bunch of leaves is produced
+in the axil (or angle) of a minute scale-like body, but this scale can
+best be seen and studied on the very young growth. It has been worn away
+or broken from the older growth by the wind and the rain and the other
+forces of nature.
+
+Another strange fact should be well observed. The leaves of the maples
+and other deciduous trees are borne only on the present season's
+growth; but this is not the case in the pines, and kindred trees. If we
+trace back the growth of the past two or three years, we may find that
+there are as many leaves on the wood that is two years old as there are
+on the last season's growth; and in many cases we can find leaves on the
+part of the branch that is three years old. This means that the pine
+leaves or needles are two and sometimes three years old when they fall.
+The Fig. 232 shows the falling of the leaves from the different years'
+growth. The part of the branch between the tip and A is the last
+season's growth; between A and B it is two years old; the part between B
+and C is three years old. The part that grew four seasons ago--beyond
+C--has no leaves.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 233. Cone of white pine. It has shed its seeds.
+Half natural size._]
+
+The different seasons' growth is indicated not by distinct "rings" as in
+the case of deciduous trees, but by the branching. Each whorl of
+branches about a limb represents the end of a season's growth. A young
+pine tree, or the younger limbs of an old tree, shows this character
+very plainly.
+
+Do the leaves of the pines and of the other evergreen trees fall at the
+end of the growing season, as the leaves of most of the deciduous trees
+do? Or do they gradually become lifeless and fall at any season, from
+the force of the wind and other natural forces? Tie a large sheet of
+cloth in the top of some evergreen tree, in such a way as to form a
+receptacle to catch the leaves. Do you catch leaves in winter as well as
+in summer? Do you find leaves on the snow?
+
+As there are several different kinds of pines, we must picture carefully
+in our minds the foliage of the white pine, for it is different from
+that of any others. The leaves are soft and very slender, and from three
+to four inches long. The base of each cluster of leaves is at first
+surrounded by a small sheath. A scar is left when the leaves drop and
+these scars can often be seen on parts of the branches that are eight or
+ten years old. Do the leaves of other kinds of trees make a scar when
+they fall?
+
+The white pine cones, in which the seeds are borne, are conspicuous
+objects. They are five or six inches long and slightly curved. It will
+be interesting to find out whether the seeds ripen the same year in
+which they are formed. Perhaps a cone still containing seeds can be
+secured. Carefully tear it apart and see where the seeds are attached.
+Red squirrels sometimes eat the pine seeds. A white pine cone, which has
+shed its seeds, is shown in Fig. 233.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 234. Shoot of common pitch pine. One-half natural
+size._]
+
+This kind of pine is found widely scattered in New England, New York,
+and westward to Minnesota and Iowa and along the Alleghany Mountains as
+far south as Georgia; also in some parts of Canada. It is a valuable
+lumber tree.
+
+
+THE PITCH PINE.
+
+This kind of pine is very different, in many respects, from the white
+pine. Let us find some of the differences. Instead of having leaves in
+bunches of five, it has them in clusters of three, and the base of each
+cluster is inclosed by a scaly sheath which does not fall away as in the
+case of the white pine; neither does the little scale-like body upon the
+branch, in the axil of which the leaf-cluster is borne, fall away, but
+it may be found just below the leaf, and even on branches that are
+several years old. Sometimes a sheath is found with only two leaves. We
+shall want to know, too, how old the leaves are when they fall. Do they
+remain on the tree longer than the white pine leaves do?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 235. Cone of pitch pine. One-half natural size._]
+
+Again, instead of being soft and slender as the white pine leaves are,
+we shall find that these leaves are rigid and thick in comparison, and
+stand out straight from the branches. The shape of the leaves is also
+distinct from that of the white pine needles. See whether you can find
+any other differences.
+
+A pitch pine branch is shown in Fig. 234. The part between the tip and A
+is the past season's growth. Observe the foliage on the part that is two
+years old. Part of it has fallen. We often find it on growth which is
+older than this; but in this specimen there are no leaves on the
+three-year wood.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 236. Pitch pine. One-third natural size._]
+
+The cone of the pitch pine is very unlike that of the white pine. Fig.
+235 gives a good idea of one that has shed its seeds. Compare this with
+Fig. 233; or, better, examine the two kinds of cones side by side. The
+pitch pine cones are sometimes borne in clusters of two or more and
+they persist,--that is, remain on the tree for several years after the
+seeds have ripened and scattered.
+
+Notice how the new cones are borne with reference to last season's
+growth. Are they attached to the tip of a branchlet? Or are they closely
+attached to the side of a branch? Figs. 236 and 237 will help us answer
+this question. The little cones in Fig. 237 near the tip of the twig,
+are just beginning to form.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 237. Pitch pine, showing young cones. Half natural
+size._]
+
+The pitch pine usually grows in sandy or rocky soil and is found in the
+United States along the Atlantic coast to Virginia, along the mountains
+to Georgia, westward to Western New York, Eastern Ohio, Kentucky, and
+Eastern Tennessee. It has little value as timber, because it does not
+grow large enough.
+
+
+SCOTCH AND AUSTRIAN PINES.
+
+In the same manner other pines may be studied. Fig. 238 shows a cone and
+a bit of foliage of the Scotch pine, and Fig. 239 the Austrian pine.
+These cones grew the past season and are not yet mature. After they
+ripen and shed the seeds which they contain, they will look somewhat
+like the cone in Fig 235. The Scotch pine has short and blue-green
+needles. The Austrian pine is coarser, and has long dark-green needles.
+
+There are but two leaves in a cluster on these kinds of pines and we
+shall find that the sheath which incloses the base of the leaf-cluster
+is more conspicuous than in either the white or the pitch pine. Do the
+leaves persist in the Scotch and Austrian pines longer than they do in
+the others we have examined? Study the cones of these and other pines.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 238. Scotch pine. Half natural size._]
+
+The Scotch and Austrian pines are not native to this country, but are
+much grown for ornament. They can be found in almost any park and in
+many other places where ornamental trees are grown.
+
+
+THE NORWAY SPRUCE.
+
+The leaves of spruce trees are borne very differently from those of the
+pines. Instead of being in clusters of two or more, they are single and
+without a sheath at the base; neither are there scale-like bodies on the
+branches where the leaves are borne. Notice, too, that the leaves have a
+very short stem or petiole.
+
+The leaves of the Norway spruce are about one inch long, although the
+length varies more or less in different parts of the tree and in
+different trees. They are rather stiff and rigid and sharp-pointed. In a
+general way, the leaves are four-sided, though indistinctly so.
+
+It will be interesting to study the position which the leaves take on
+the branches. A hasty glance might give us the impression that the
+leaves are not produced on the under side of the branches; but a more
+careful examination will convince us that there are nearly as many on
+the under side as on the upper. The leaves are all pointing outward from
+the branch and as nearly upward as is possible. In other words, the
+leaves grow toward the light.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 239. Austrian pine. One-third natural size._]
+
+We must not forget to see how long the leaves of the Norway spruce
+persist and to find out when the leaf-scars disappear. We can find
+leaves that must surely be six or seven years old and sometimes we can
+find them even older than this. The leaf scars, too, remain a long time.
+The falling of the leaves is illustrated in Fig. 240. It shows the
+extremities of a limb which is eight years old. The part between the tip
+and A is last season's growth; between A and B it is two years old; and
+beyond B is a part that grew three seasons ago. The section beyond C is
+six years old; from C to D is seven years of age. The four years' growth
+of this limb not shown in the drawing was as densely covered with
+foliage as is the part shown in the upper figure; but there are not many
+leaves between C and D (seven years old) and none on the eight-year-old
+wood (except those on the branchlets, and these are younger).
+
+The cone of the Norway spruce is nearly as long as that of the white
+pine, but it is not so rough and coarse as the white pine cone is. The
+cones are usually borne on the tips of small branchlets, although
+occasionally one is borne in the manner shown in Fig. 241. The cones
+usually fall the first winter.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 240. Twig of the common Norway spruce. Half natural
+size._]
+
+The Norway spruce is not a native of this country, but like the Scotch
+and Austrian pines, it was introduced from Europe and is grown very
+widely as an ornamental tree. It is the commonest evergreen in yards and
+parks.
+
+
+THE BLACK SPRUCE AND ITS KIN.
+
+There are several different kinds of spruces which we find growing in
+our forests and swamps, and sometimes these are planted for ornament. A
+sprig of foliage and a cone of one of these,--the black spruce,--is
+shown in Fig. 242. The foliage is not very unlike that of the Norway
+spruce, but the cones are very small in comparison. They are about one
+inch long, though they vary considerably in size. Before they open they
+are oval or plum-shaped; but when mature and the scales of the cone have
+expanded, they are nearly globular. They are often borne in clusters, as
+well as singly, and persist for many years after the seeds have fallen.
+The position of the cones will depend upon their age. When young they
+point upward, but they gradually turn downward.
+
+In general appearance the white spruce resembles the black very closely.
+The leaves of the white spruce have a whitish or dusty looking tinge of
+color and when crushed or bruised give forth a peculiar, disagreeable
+odor. The cones vary in length from an inch to two inches, and in shape
+are more cylindrical or finger-shaped than the cone of the black spruce.
+
+The foliage of the red spruce lacks the whitish tinge of color of the
+white spruce and the cones, which are from one inch to two inches in
+length, are obovate in shape--that is, the widest place is through the
+upper part of the cone, and from this point it gradually tapers to the
+tip. They seldom persist longer than the second summer.
+
+The leaves of all these different kinds of spruces vary greatly in
+length, thickness, and sharpness of point, according to the part of the
+tree on which they grow, and their surroundings. The shedding of the
+leaves on these or other spruces can be determined as easily as in the
+Norway spruce.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 241. Cone of Norway spruce. Half size._]
+
+These three spruces like a cold climate and grow in many sections of the
+northern United States and Canada and farther south in the mountains.
+They are sometimes all found growing together, but the black spruce
+likes best the damp, cold swamps, while the others grow best on the
+drier and better drained lands. The black spruce is commonest. The red
+spruce is least known.
+
+
+THE BALSAM FIR.
+
+This is another evergreen tree which grows naturally in the cold, damp
+grounds of the northern United States and Canada, and to some extent in
+the eastern states as far south as West Virginia.
+
+The foliage is borne in much the same manner as that of the spruces; yet
+there are interesting differences in the characters of these two kinds
+of leaves. Perhaps the most noticeable difference is in the shape; and
+the color of the fir leaves will attract our attention because the under
+side is a silvery color, while the upper side is green. What is the
+nature of the tip of the leaf and how does it compare with the pines and
+spruces in this respect? Does the leaf have a stem or petiole or is it
+attached directly to the branch without any stem? How are the leaves
+shed?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 242.--Black spruce. Half natural size._]
+
+The cones are about three inches long and present a rather delicate
+appearance. It will be interesting to determine the position of the
+cones, that is, the direction in which they point, and to learn whether
+it is the same when they are young as it is after they have matured.
+
+The grayish colored bark of the trunk and limbs bears many "blisters"
+from which Canada balsam is obtained.
+
+
+THE HEMLOCK.
+
+A hemlock twig is an interesting object. It may have many characters in
+common with the spruce and fir; yet the impression which we get from it,
+or from a large hemlock tree, is entirely distinct. The arrangement of
+the leaves and the gracefulness of the drooping branchlets are most
+pleasing. We are led to examine it more closely. We notice that the
+leaves appear to be borne in two more or less regular rows,--one on
+each side of the branch or twig; but in reality they come from all sides
+of the branch, and it is the position which the leaves assume that gives
+this two-rowed appearance.
+
+The leaves have a short stalk or petiole, and this stalk rests along the
+side of the branchlet in such a direction that the leaves are placed in
+single rows on either side of the branch. The petioles of the leaves are
+nearly parallel with the branch while the leaves often make a decided
+angle with the petiole. This fact can best be brought out by carefully
+examining a small twig.
+
+While we are noting the arrangement of the leaves on the branchlets, we
+should also notice the points of similarity and difference between these
+leaves and those of the spruces and firs. We shall find that there is
+more in common, at least so far as shape and color are concerned,
+between the hemlock and the fir than between the hemlock and the spruce.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 243. Spray of the hemlock. Two-thirds natural
+size._]
+
+The small, delicate cones, borne on the tips of the branchlets, will
+also attract our attention (Fig. 243.) We may wonder at their small
+size, for they are only about three-quarters of an inch long, and very
+delicate; yet a second glance at the tree will impress us with the
+number of cones which the tree bears, and we conclude that, although the
+cones may be small, yet there are so many of them that there will be no
+lack of seeds.
+
+It is more difficult to trace the age of a hemlock limb than of many
+other kinds of trees, yet we can easily determine that many of the
+leaves are several years old when they fall.
+
+The bark of the hemlock is used in tanning hides for leather. The tree
+is much used for lumber. Where does it grow?
+
+
+THE ARBOR-VITÆ.
+
+One might almost wonder, at first sight, if the arbor-vitæ (often, but
+wrongly, called the white cedar) has any leaves at all. It does possess
+them, however, but they are very different in size and shape from any of
+the others that we have examined. They are small scale-like bodies,
+closely pressed together along the sides of the branchlets, in four
+rows. Leaves pressed to the branches in this manner are said to be
+"appressed." The leaves of the arbor-vitæ are so close together that
+they overlap one another. The leaves are of two distinct shapes,
+sometimes known as the surface leaves and the flank leaves. The former
+are located on what appears to be the flattened surface of the
+branchlets, while the latter are on the sides or edges. See Fig. 244.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 244. The Arbor-vitæ. Nearly full size._]
+
+If we carefully look at the leaves, we shall notice a raised spot near
+the point or tip. This is said to be a resin gland. This gland can be
+seen more plainly on the surface leaves that are two years old.
+
+Most of the leaves persist for at least two and sometimes three years;
+but even older ones can be found. These older leaves, however, exist not
+as green, active leaves, but merely as dried and lifeless scales. These
+lifeless leaves are probably detached from the branches by the forces of
+nature.
+
+The cones are even smaller than the hemlock cones. They are borne in the
+axils of the leaves in the same manner as the branchlets and are not
+conspicuous unless one is close to the tree.
+
+The arbor-vitæ is much planted for hedges and screens, as well as for
+other ornamental purposes. There are many horticultural varieties. The
+tree is abundant in a wild state in New York.
+
+
+SUMMARY OF THE KINDS OF COMMON EVERGREENS.
+
+_The white pine_ (Pinus Strobus).--Leaves in clusters of five, soft and
+slender; cones five or six inches long, slightly curved; bark smooth
+except on the trunks and larger limbs of old trees, where it is
+fissured.
+
+_The pitch pine_ (Pinus rigida).--Leaves in clusters of three, from
+three to four inches long, rather rigid; cones two to three inches long,
+often in clusters of two or more but frequently borne singly, persisting
+long after the seeds have been shed; bark more or less rough on the
+young growth and deeply fissured on the trunks of old trees.
+
+_The Scotch pine_ (Pinus sylvestris).--Leaves usually in clusters of
+two, from two to four inches long, rigid, of a bluish-green hue when
+seen in a large mass on the tree; cones two to three inches long and the
+scales tipped with a beak or prickle.
+
+_The Austrian pine_ (Pinus Austriaca).--Leaves in clusters of two, five
+or six inches long and somewhat rigid, dark green in color, and
+persisting for four or five years; cones about three inches long,
+conical in shape; and scales not beaked or pointed as in the Scotch
+pine.
+
+_The Norway spruce_ (Picea excelsa).--Leaves borne singly, about one
+inch long, dark green, four-sided; cones about six inches long, and
+composed of thin scales, and usually borne on the tips of branchlets.
+The small branches mostly drooping.
+
+_The black spruce_ (Picea nigra).--In general appearance, this is not
+very unlike the Norway spruce, but the small branches stand out more
+horizontally and the cones are only one or one and one-half inches long,
+recurving on short branches. The cones persist for several years after
+shedding the seed.
+
+_The white spruce_ (Picea alba).--Leaves about one inch long, having a
+glaucous or whitish tinge; twigs stout and rigid, of a pale
+greenish-white color; cones from one to two and one-half inches long,
+more or less cylindrical or "finger-shaped," and easily crushed when
+dry.
+
+_The red spruce_ (Picea rubra).--The foliage lacks the whitish tinge of
+the white spruce and is of a dark or dark yellowish color; twigs stouter
+than those of the black spruce and not so much inclined to droop; cones
+about one inch long, obovate, and usually falling by the second summer.
+
+_The hemlock_ (Tsuga Canadensis).--Leaves about one-half inch long, flat
+with rounded point, green on the upper side, whitish beneath, and borne
+on short appressed petioles; cones about three-quarters of an inch long,
+oval or egg-shaped, and borne on the ends of small branchlets and often
+persisting for some time.
+
+_The balsam fir_ (Abies balsamea).--Leaves narrow, less than one inch
+long, borne singly, very numerous and standing out from the branchlets
+in much the way of the spruce; cones about three inches long,
+cylindrical, composed of thin scales, and standing upright on the
+branches, or recurved; bark smooth, light green with whitish tinge.
+
+_The arbor-vitæ_ (Thuya occidentalis).--Leaves very small, scale-like,
+and over-lapping one another in four rows, adhering closely to the
+branchlets; the cones oblong and small,--a half-inch or less in
+length,--and composed of but few scales.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXXIV.
+
+THE CLOVERS AND THEIR KIN.[46]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+  The pedigree of honey does not concern the bee,
+  A clover any time to him is aristocracy.
+
+  --EMILY DICKINSON.
+
+
+[46] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. V, No. 8, May, 1904.
+
+[Illustration: _White clover._]
+
+There is a deep-seated prejudice that usefulness and beauty do not
+belong together;--a prejudice based obviously on human selfishness, for
+if a thing is useful to us we emphasize that quality so much that we
+forget to look for its beauty. Thus it is that the clover suffers great
+injustice; it has for centuries been a most valuable forage crop, and,
+therefore, we forget to note its beauty, or to regard it as an object
+worthy of æsthetic attention. This is a pitiful fact; but it cheats us
+more than it does the clover, for the clover blossoms not for us, but
+for the bees and butterflies as well as for itself. As I remember the
+scenes which have impressed me most, I find among them three in which
+clover was the special attraction. One was a well-cultivated thrifty
+orchard carpeted with the brilliant red of the crimson clover in bloom.
+One was a great field of alfalfa spread near the shore of the Great Salt
+Lake, which met our eyes as we came through the pass in the Wasatch
+Mountains after days of travel in dust-colored lands; the brilliant
+green of that alfalfa field in the evening sunlight refreshed our eyes
+as the draught of cold water refreshes the parched throat of the
+traveller in a desert. And another was a gently undulating field in our
+own State stretching away like a sea to the west, covered with the
+purple foam of the red clover in blossom; and the fragrance of that
+field settled like a benediction over the acres that margined it. But we
+do not need landscapes to teach us the beauty of clover. Just one clover
+blossom studied carefully and looked at with clear-seeing eyes, reveals
+each floweret beautiful in color, interesting in form, and perfect in
+its mechanism for securing pollination.
+
+The clover is especially renowned for its partnerships with members of
+the animal kingdom. It readily forms a partnership with man, thriftily
+growing in his pastures and meadows, while he distributes its seed. For
+ages it has been a special partner of the bees, giving them honey for
+carrying its pollen. Below the ground it has formed a mysterious
+partnership with microbes, and the clover seems to be getting the best
+of the bargain.
+
+For many years clover was regarded as a crop helpful to the soil, and
+one reason given was the great length of the roots. Thus the roots of
+red clover often reach the depth of several feet, even in heavy soil,
+which they thus aerate and drain, especially when they decay and leave
+channels. But this is only half the story; for a long time people had
+noted that on clover roots were little swollen places or nodules, which
+were supposed to have come from some disease or insect injury. The
+scientists became interested in the supposed disease, and they finally
+ascertained that these nodules are filled with bacteria, which are the
+underground partners of the clovers and other legumes. These bacteria
+are able to fix the free nitrogen of the air, and make it available for
+plant-food. As nitrogen is the most expensive of the fertilizers, any
+agency which can extract it from the free air for the use of plants is
+indeed a valuable aid to the farmer. Thus it is that in the modern
+agriculture, clover or some other legume is put on the land once in
+three or four years in the regular rotation of crops, and it brings back
+to the soil the nitrogen which other crops have exhausted. An
+interesting fact about the partnership between the root bacteria and the
+clover-like plants is that the plants do not flourish without this
+partnership, and investigators have devised a method by which these
+bacteria may be scattered in the soil on which some kinds of clover are
+to be planted, and thus aid in growing a crop. This method is to-day
+being used for the introduction of alfalfa here in New York State. But
+the use of clover as a fertilizer is not limited to its root factory for
+capturing nitrogen; its leaves break down quickly and readily yield the
+rich food material of which they are composed, so that the farmer who
+plows under his second-crop clover instead of harvesting it, adds
+greatly to the fertility of his farm.
+
+The members of three distinct genera are popularly called clovers: The
+True Clovers (_Trifolium_), of which six or seven species are found in
+New York State, and more than sixty species are found in the United
+States. The Medics (_Medicago_), of which four species are found here.
+The Melilots (_Melilotus_), or sweet clovers, of which we have two
+species.
+
+
+THE TRUE CLOVERS. (_Trifolium._)
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 245. The common red clover._]
+
+_The Red Clover (Fig. 245). (Trifolium pratense._[47])--This beautiful
+dweller in our fields came to us from Europe, and it is also a native of
+Asia. It is the clover most widely cultivated in New York State for
+fodder, and is one of our most important crops. Clover hay often being a
+standard of excellence by which other hay is measured. The export of
+clover seed from the United States has sometimes reached the worth of
+two million dollars per year, and this great industry is supposed to be
+carried on with the aid of that other partner of the red clover, the
+bumblebee. Bumblebees had to be imported into Australia before clover
+seed could be produced there. The whole question of the relation of the
+bumblebee to the pollination of clover no doubt needs to be re-studied,
+for recent observations have led to the contesting of prevailing
+opinions. It has been supposed that the failure of the clover seed crop
+in some places is due to the destruction of bumblebees; whether this is
+true or not, we are certain that bumblebees visit clover blooms, and the
+teacher can observe for himself.
+
+[47] Pronounced _Trifol' -ium praten' -se_, the second or specific name
+with three syllables.
+
+There is a more perennial form of red clover, known as variety
+_perenne_. It is distinguished from the common form of red clover by its
+taller growth and mostly less hairy herbage, and by the fact that the
+flower-head is usually somewhat stalked. Some persons regard it as a
+hybrid of red and zig-zag clover.
+
+_Zig-Zag Clover. (T. medium.)_--This is another species of red clover,
+resembling the one just discussed, except that its flower-head rises on
+a long stalk above the upper leaves, while the red clover has the
+flower-head set close to these leaves. The color of the blossom is
+darker than in red clover, and the flower-head is looser. The stems of
+the zig-zag clover are likely to be bent at angles and thus it gets its
+name. It is a question whether this species is really grown on farms. It
+is probable that some or all of the clover that passes under this name
+is _Trifolium pratense_ var. _perenne_. At all events, the zig-zag
+clover seems to be imperfectly understood by botanists and others.
+
+_Crimson Clover--Scarlet Clover (Fig. 246). (T. incarnatum.)_--While
+this beautiful clover grows as a weed in the southern parts of our
+State, it has only recently begun to play an important part in our
+horticulture. It is an annual, and its home is the Mediterranean region
+of Europe. It thrives best in loose, sandy soils, and in our State is
+chiefly used as a cover-crop for orchards, and to plow under as a
+fertilizer. It usually has bright, crimson flowers, arranged in a long,
+pointed head, and its brilliant green fan-shaped leaves make it the most
+artistically decorative of all our clovers.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 246. Crimson clover._]
+
+_Buffalo Clover (Fig. 247). (T. reflexum.)_--This is sometimes taken for
+a variety of the red clover, but only a glance is needed to distinguish
+it. While the head is perhaps an inch in diameter the flowerets are not
+directed upward and set close as in the red clover, but each floweret is
+on a little stalk, and is bent abruptly backward. The flowers are not
+pink. The standard is red, while the wings and keel are nearly white.
+The leaves are blunt at the tip. It grows in meadows in western New York
+and westward. This species is native to this country.
+
+_Alsike Clover. (T. hybridum.)_--This is a perennial and grows in low
+meadows and waste places from Nova Scotia to Idaho. It was introduced
+from Europe. It is especially valuable in wet meadows, where the red
+clover would be drowned. The blossoms of the alsike look like those of
+the white clover except that they are a little larger and are pink; but
+the long branching mostly upright stems are very different in habit from
+the creeping stems of the white clover; the blossoms are very fragrant.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 247. Three clovers, respectively, Buffalo, Yellow,
+and Rabbit-foot clover._]
+
+_The White Clover. (T. repens.)_--This beautiful little clover, whose
+leaves make a rug for our feet in every possible place, is well known to
+us all. It is the clover best beloved by honey-bees, and the person who
+does not know the distinct flavor of white clover honey has lost
+something out of life. While in hard soil the white clover lasts only
+two or three years, on rich, moist lands it is a true perennial. While
+it was probably a native in the northern part of America, yet it is
+truly cosmopolitan and may be found in almost all regions of the
+temperate zones. Very likely the common stock of it is an introduction
+from Europe. By many this is considered to be the original shamrock.
+
+_The Yellow, or Hop Clover (Fig. 247). (T. agrarium.)_--This friendly
+little plant, filling waste places with brilliant green leaves and small
+yellow flower-heads, is not considered a clover by those who are not
+observant. But if the flowerets in the small, dense heads are examined,
+they will be seen to resemble very closely those of the other clovers.
+The stems are many-branched and often grow a foot or more in height. The
+flowers are numerous, and on fading turn brown, and resemble the fruit
+of a pigmy hop vine, whence the name. Its leaves are much more pointed
+than those of the medics, with which it might be confused because of its
+yellow flowers.
+
+_Low Hop Clover, or Hop Trefoil. (T. procumbens.)_--This resembles the
+above species, except that it is smaller and also more spreading, and
+the stems and leaves are more downy.
+
+_The Least Hop Clover. (T. dubium.)_--This may be readily distinguished
+from the above species by the fact that its yellow flowerets occur from
+three to ten in a head. This is said by some to be the true shamrock,
+although the white clover is also called the shamrock.
+
+_The Rabbit-Foot, or Stone Clover (Fig. 247). (T. arvense.)_--This is
+another clover not easily recognized as such. It grows a foot or more in
+height and has erect branches. The leaflets are narrow and all arise
+from the same point. The flowerets occur in long, dense heads. The calyx
+is very silky, and the lobes are longer than the white corollas, thus
+giving the flower-head a soft, hairy look, something like the early
+stages of the blossom of the pussy willow. Because of its appearance it
+is often called "pussy clover."
+
+
+THE MEDICS. (_Medicago._)
+
+_Alfalfa (Fig. 248). (Medicago sativa.)_--This is the veteran of all the
+clovers, for it has been under cultivation for twenty centuries. It is a
+native of the valleys of western Asia. In America it was first
+introduced into Mexico with the Spanish invasion. It was brought from
+Chile to California in 1854, where it has since been the most important
+hay crop. In fact, there is no better hay than that made from alfalfa.
+It was probably introduced into the Atlantic States from southern
+Europe, and has grown as a weed for many years in certain localities in
+New England and the Middle States; only recently has it been considered
+a practicable crop for this climate, although it was grown in Jefferson
+Co., N. Y., in 1791. Its special value is that it is a true perennial,
+and may be cut three times or more during a season, and when once
+established it withstands hot, dry weather. It is of marvelous value to
+the semi-arid regions. The alfalfa flower is blue or violet, and grows
+in a loose raceme. The plant grows tall and its stems are many branched.
+This and all these medics are introduced from Europe.
+
+_Black or Hop Medic. (M. lupulina.)_--This would hardly be called a
+clover by the novice. The long stems lie along the ground, and the tiny
+yellow flower-heads do not much resemble the clover blossom. It is a
+common weed in waste places in our State. It is perennial.
+
+_The Toothed Medic. (M. denticulata.)_--Instead of having the yellow
+flowerets in a dense head, this species has them in pairs or perhaps
+fours, or sometimes more. It is widely distributed as a weed, and is
+also introduced as a pasture plant for early grazing. It is of little
+value as hay.
+
+_The Spotted Medic. (M. Arabica.)_--This very much resembles the
+preceding species except that the leaves are likely to have on them
+conspicuous dark spots near the center. Like the preceding species it is
+an annual and a weed, and has also been introduced as a plant for early
+grazing. This and the toothed medic are known to farmers under the name
+of bur-clover. The reason for this name is found in the seed-pod, which
+is twisted in a spiral and has an outer margin of curved prickles.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 248. Alfalfa, foliage and flowers._]
+
+
+THE MELILOTS, OR SWEET CLOVERS. (_Melilotus._)
+
+In driving or walking along the country roads, we may find ourselves
+suddenly immersed in a wave of delightful fragrance, and if we look for
+the source we may find this friendly plant flourishing in the most
+forbidding of soils. Growing as a weed, it brings sweet perfume to us,
+and at the same time nitrogen, aeration and drainage to the hopeless
+soil, making rich those places where other weeds have not the temerity
+to attempt to grow. When the soil is generous, the sweet clover often
+grows very tall, sometimes as high as ten feet. It is a cheerful,
+adaptable and beneficial plant, and I never see it without giving it a
+welcome, which, I am sorry to say, I cannot always grant to other
+roadside wayfarers. The sweet clovers are European.
+
+_The White Sweet Clover (M. alba)_ is sometimes called Bokhara clover
+and has white flowers (Fig. 249).
+
+_The Yellow Sweet Clover (M. officinalis)_ has yellow blossoms. It has
+interesting old English names, such as Balsam Flowers, King's Clover and
+Heartwort.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 249. White sweet clover._]
+
+
+QUESTIONS ON THE CLOVERS.
+
+_Two general kinds of types of studies are to be made of the clovers:
+identification studies, whereby you will come to know the kinds of
+clover; life history studies, whereby you will come to know under what
+conditions the plants live and thrive. The latter is the more important,
+but the former usually precedes it, for one is better able to discover
+and discuss the biological questions when he is acquainted with the
+species. The following questions will bring out some of the important
+biological aspects:_
+
+1. How many of the true clovers, the medics, and the sweet clovers do
+you know?
+
+2. Send me properly labelled pressed specimens of the leaves and
+blossoms of the clovers that you have been able to find.
+
+3. Dig a root of red clover and find the nodules on it. Please describe
+them.
+
+4. What methods does the U. S. Department of Agriculture employ to
+inoculate the soil with bacteria so that alfalfa may grow?
+
+5. How do clover roots protect the land from the effects of heavy rains?
+
+6. How do the clover plants conserve the moisture in the soil?
+
+7. How does this conservation of moisture aid the farmer and orchardist?
+
+8. What is a cover-crop, and what are its uses?
+
+9. Why do farmers sow red clover with grass seed?
+
+10. How do the habits of the stems of white clover differ from those of
+other clovers?
+
+11. Why is white clover so desirable for lawns?
+
+12. Compare the floweret of the red clover with the sweet pea blossom
+and describe the resemblance.
+
+13. Study a head of white clover from the time it opens until it is
+brown, and tell what changes take place in it day by day.
+
+14. What has happened to the flowerets that are bent downward around the
+stalk?
+
+15. Watch one of these flowerets deflect, and describe the process.
+
+16. How many flowerets do you find in a head of red clover? Of white
+clover? Of alsike?
+
+17. Which flowerets open first in a head of red clover?
+
+18. Describe a clover seed. Describe a seed of alfalfa.
+
+19. What insects do you find visiting the red clover blossoms? The white
+clover blossoms?
+
+
+ALFALFA, OR LUCERNE.[48]
+
+[48] Home Nature-Study Course, New Series, Vol. I, No. 1, October, 1904.
+
+The alfalfa plant is just now coming into great prominence in New York
+State. Every teacher, particularly in the rural schools, will need to
+know the plant and to have some information about it.
+
+_What alfalfa is._--It is a clover-like plant. It is perennial. It has
+violet-purple flowers. The leaves have three narrow leaflets. It sends
+up many stiff stems, 2 to 3 feet high. The roots go straight down to
+great depths.
+
+_Why it is important._--It is an excellent cattle food, and
+cattle-raising for dairy purposes is the leading special agricultural
+industry in New York State. In fact, New York leads all the States in
+the value of its dairy products. Any plant that is more nutritious and
+more productive of pasture and hay than the familiar clovers and grasses
+will add immensely to the dairy industry, and therefore to the wealth of
+the State. Alfalfa is such a plant. It gives three cuttings of hay year
+after year in New York State, thereby yielding twice as much as clover
+does. In the production of digestible nutrients per acre ranks above
+clover as 24 ranks above 10. When once established it withstands
+droughts, for the roots grow deep.
+
+Alfalfa is South European. It was early introduced into North America.
+It first came into prominence in the semi-arid West because of its
+drought-resisting qualities, and now it has added millions of dollars to
+the wealth of the nation. Gradually it is working its way into the East.
+It is discussed in the agricultural press and before farmers'
+institutes. Last year the College of Agriculture offered to send a small
+packet of seeds to such school children in New York State as wanted to
+grow a little garden plat of it. About 5,000 children were supplied. The
+teacher must now learn what alfalfa is.
+
+In nearly every rural community, sufficient alfalfa can be found for
+school purposes. In many places it has run wild along roadsides.
+
+On these plants make the following observations:
+
+1. Under what conditions have you found alfalfa growing? How did the
+plant come to grow there,--sown, or run wild?
+
+2. Describe the form of the root. How does the root branch?
+
+3. Do you find the little tubercles or nodules on the roots? On what
+part of the roots? How large? How numerous?
+
+4. The crown of the plant (at the surface of the ground),--describe it,
+and how the tops and the roots start from it.
+
+5. The stems,--how many from each crown, whether erect or prostrate, how
+they branch.
+
+6. The leaves,--simple or compound? Form? Edges entire or fine toothed?
+Do the leaves "sleep" at night, as those of clover do?
+
+7. Do you find any distinct spots on the leaves? What do you think is
+the cause of them?
+
+8. Flowers,--how borne (whether singly or in clusters), color, form,
+resemblance to any other flowers you may know. Do they vary in color?
+
+9. If possible, find the seed-pods and seeds, and describe.
+
+10. Make inquiries as to whether alfalfa is becoming well known in your
+vicinity.
+
+
+_Agricultural Account of Alfalfa._
+
+You may be asked some practical questions about alfalfa; therefore we
+give you a brief agricultural account of it. If you desire further
+information, write to the College of Agriculture, Ithaca, N. Y., for
+Bulletin 221, "Alfalfa in New York."
+
+Alfalfa is grown mostly for hay. It is not adapted to pasture, because
+the new growth springs from the crown at the surface of the ground, and
+if this is destroyed the growth will not be renewed vigorously. New York
+is a hay-producing State. Grain feeds can be grown more cheaply in the
+West. It is of great importance to the State, therefore, if a better
+hay-producing plant can be found. We have seen that New York leads the
+States in dairy cattle. Other livestock also is abundant. Last year more
+than half a million horses and mules were fed in the State.
+
+Success has not attended efforts to grow alfalfa in all parts of New
+York. This is due to two principal reasons: (1) farmers have not known
+the plant and its habits well enough to give it the care and treatment
+it demands; (2) the soils of many localities, because of their physical
+condition or composition, are not suitable for the plant.
+
+The alfalfa seedling is not a strong plant. It cannot compete with weeds
+nor overcome adverse conditions of moisture; it cannot adapt itself to
+conditions resulting from poor preparation of land, and it is not
+vigorous in its ability to get food from any source. Care must be given
+to the preparation of the land in order that sufficient moisture may be
+supplied during the early stages of growth and that there may be an
+abundance of quickly available plant-food. After growth has started,
+alfalfa has the power to get some of its nitrogen from the air through
+the nodules which grow upon its roots; yet during the early stages of
+growth it is essential that the soil be supplied with all elements of
+plant-food in available form.
+
+While alfalfa requires an abundance of moisture for its best growth and
+development, yet it will not grow in soils that hold water for any
+considerable length of time. Such soils are usually those with an
+impervious subsoil or hard-pan, or those of clay or silt structure which
+retain free water to the exclusion of air. Therefore, it is important
+that alfalfa soils be well and uniformly drained, either by natural
+conditions or by underground drains. One other essential of prime
+importance is that the soil be neutral or alkaline in its reaction; in
+other words, that it contain no free acid. Limestone or blue-grass soils
+are ideal in this regard for alfalfa. If acid is present, the difficulty
+may be corrected either wholly or in part by the application of 500 to
+2,000 pounds of lime per acre.
+
+As in most other legumes (members of the family Leguminosæ, including
+peas, beans, clovers), there is a peculiar relationship existing between
+the plant and excrescences or nodules upon its roots. These nodules are
+essential to the normal growth and development of the plant. They
+contain bacteria, and these bacteria have the power of "fixing" or
+appropriating the free atmospheric nitrogen in the soil. Legumes are
+"nitrogen-gatherers," whereas most other plants secure their nitrogen
+only from decomposing organic matter. Failure to have the soil
+inoculated with the proper bacteria for alfalfa is the cause for many
+failures with the crop. In most instances when the plants do not make
+satisfactory growth, or have a yellow, dwarfed appearance, the trouble
+can be traced to the absence of these bacteria from the soil, and hence
+to a lack of nodules on the roots. The relationship existing between the
+plant and the organism is one of mutual benefit. Each kind of leguminous
+plant seems to have its characteristic bacterium, which grows on no
+other plant, although this question is not thoroughly settled.
+
+Farmers are becoming aware of this requisite in alfalfa culture and
+usually supply it in two different ways. The older method is to take the
+surface soil from an old alfalfa field, where the plants have grown well
+and where nodules are to be found on the roots, and to sow it on the
+land to be seeded at the rate of one hundred or more pounds per acre. In
+this way the soil becomes inoculated with the bacteria, and as the young
+plants spring into growth the bacteria develop on the roots. Another
+method is to inoculate the seed before sowing with artificial cultures
+of the bacteria. Both of these methods are usually successful, and if
+soil conditions are right the chances for failure are few.
+
+Alfalfa should be cut when it opens into flower. At this time the stems
+and leaves contain their highest percentage of nutrients, the leaves do
+not so easily fall off in curing, and the stems are not so woody.
+Besides these reasons, if cutting be delayed until after flowering, the
+plant may not spring quickly into subsequent growth.
+
+Disease does not spare the alfalfa plant. Both leaves and roots are
+attacked, the leaf spot being serious. The parasitic dodder is a serious
+enemy in some parts of New York State.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXXV.
+
+HOW PLANTS LIVE TOGETHER.[49]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[49] Nature-Study Quarterly No. 6: Leaflet 19, October, 1900.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+To the general observer, plants seem to be distributed in a promiscuous
+and haphazard way, without law or order. This is because he does not see
+and consider.
+
+The world is now full of plants. Every plant puts forth its supreme
+effort to multiply its kind. The result is an intense struggle for an
+opportunity to live.
+
+Seeds are scattered in profusion, but only the few can grow. The many do
+not find the proper conditions. They fall on stony ground. In Fig. 250
+this loss is shown. The trunk of an elm tree stands in the background.
+The covering of the ground, except about the very base of the tree, is a
+mat of elm seedlings. There are thousands of them in the space shown in
+the picture, so many that they make a sod-like covering which shows
+little detail in the photograph. Not one of these thousands will ever
+make a tree.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 250. A carpet of young elms, all of which must
+perish._]
+
+Since there is intense competition for every foot of the earth's surface
+that is capable of raising plants, it follows that every spot will
+probably have many kinds of plant inhabitants. Plants must live
+together. They associate; they become adapted or accustomed to each
+other. Some can live in shade; they thrive in the forest, where
+sun-loving plants perish. Others prefer the sun, and thereby live
+together. There are plant societies.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 251. A plant society waiting for the spring._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 252. Weak, narrow-leaved grasses grow in the
+cat-tail forest._]
+
+Every distinct or separate area has its own plant society. There is one
+association for the hard-tramped dooryard,--knot-weed and broad-leaved
+plantain with interspersed grass and dandelions; one for the
+fence-row,--briars and choke-cherries and hiding weeds; one for the dry
+open field,--wire-grass and mullein and scattered docks; one for the
+slattern roadside,--sweet clover, ragweed, burdock; one for the meadow
+swale,--smartweed and pitchforks; one for the barnyard,--rank pigweeds
+and sprawling barn-grass; one for the dripping rock-cliff,--delicate
+bluebells and hanging ferns and grasses. Indefinitely might these
+categories be extended. We all know the plant societies, but we have not
+considered them.
+
+In every plant society there is one dominant note. It is the
+individuality of one kind of plant which grows most abundantly or
+overtops the others. Certain plant-forms come to mind when one thinks of
+willows, others when he thinks of an apple orchard, still others when he
+thinks of a beech forest. The farmer may associate "pussly" with
+cabbages and beets, but not with wheat and oats. He associates cockle
+with wheat, but not with oats or corn. We all associate dandelions with
+grassy areas, but not with burdock or forests.
+
+It is impossible to open one's eyes out-of-doors, outside the paved
+streets of cities, without seeing a plant society. A lawn is a plant
+society. It may contain only grass, or it may contain weeds hidden away
+in the sward. What weeds remain in the lawn? Only those which can
+withstand the mowing. What are they? Let a bit of lawn grow as it will
+for a month, and see what there is in it. A swale, a dry hillside, a
+forest of beech, a forest of oak, a forest of hemlock or pine, a weedy
+yard, a tangled fence-row, a brook-side, a deep quiet swamp, a lake
+shore, a railroad, a river bank, a meadow, a pasture, a dusty
+roadway,--each has its characteristic plants. Even in the winter, one
+may see these societies,--the tall plants still asserting themselves,
+others of less aspiring stature, and others snuggling just under the
+snow (Fig. 251).
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 253. The wild grape covers the treetop, and the
+children play in the bower. The grape is searching for light._]
+
+Often these societies are in the nature of overgrowth and
+undergrowth--one society living beneath another. Of such are forest
+societies. Few woods are so dark that some plants do not grow on the
+ground, unless they are evergreen or coniferous woods. Even in humbler
+communities, the overgrowth and undergrowth are usually apparent if one
+looks closely. Separate the cat-tails in the dense swamp and see the
+weak and narrow-leaved grasses growing between (Fig. 252). Note the
+clover, young grasses, and other plants between the grass in the meadow:
+the farmer says that his meadow has good "bottom."
+
+Some plants even grow on top of other plants. It is their way of getting
+light. Of such are the climbers. Note the mantle which the wild grape
+throws over the trees (Fig. 253). Often the supporting tree is smothered
+and killed.
+
+When an area is newly cleared, many plants rush for it. Quickly it is
+covered with ambitious growths,--pokeweeds, fireweeds, thistles, briars,
+nettles. Often each plant occupies large places alone, making clumps or
+patches. These patches are plant colonies,--made up mostly of one
+species or kind (Fig. 254). But as the struggle tightens, other plants
+insinuate themselves into the colony and it is broken up; a mixed
+population results. Sometimes these colonies are broken up by the shade
+of trees and tall bushes which have come up near them, for all neglected
+areas, in this part of the world, tend to return to forest if they are
+not mown, pastured or burned. Mown and pastured areas run into grass,
+for the grass withstands the cutting and grazing. In burned areas the
+struggle begins anew when the fire has passed.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 254. A colony of clotbur._]
+
+Plant societies are easy to study for the school. The study of them
+appeals to the desire for exploration and adventure, and adds zest to
+the excursion. Go to a swale, swamp, roadside, forest, weedy field, or
+other place, and ask the pupil to note: (1) that the flora of the place
+is unlike that of places with different physical features; (2) that
+these particular plants grow together because they can all survive
+under similar conditions; (3) what these conditions are,--whether sun,
+shade, dry soil, wet soil, sand, clay, rock; (4) what particular plant
+is most abundant or gives character to the society.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 255. Two plant societies,--the close-bitten sward
+and the rushy pond._]
+
+Study one society thoroughly. Make lists of the kinds of plants and of
+the relative numbers of each. If the names of the plants are not known,
+call them by numbers; make dried specimens of them for reference. When
+another society is visited, repeat these observations, and compare one
+society with another.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 256. The edge of the road. Trees and bushes crowd
+the drive-way, and a ribbon of grass and weeds has pushed itself to the
+very margin._]
+
+_Ask every plant why it grows there._
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXXVI.
+
+PLANTING A PLANT.[50]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[50] Nature-Study Quarterly, No. 8: Leaflet 21, January, 1901.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Most persons are interested in plants, even though they do not know it.
+They enjoy the green verdure, the brilliant flower, the graceful form.
+They are interested in plants in general. I wish that every person were
+interested in some plant in particular. There is a pleasure in the
+companionship, merely because the plant is a living and a growing thing.
+It expresses power, vitality. It is a complete, self-sufficient
+organism. It makes its way in the world. It is alive.
+
+The companionship with a plant, as with a bird or an insect, means more
+than the feeling for the plant itself. It means that the person has
+interest in something real and genuine. It takes him out-of-doors. It
+invites him to the field. It is suggestive. It inculcates a habit of
+meditation and reflection. It enables one to discover himself.
+
+I wish that every child in New York State had a plant of his own, and
+were attached to it. Why cannot the teacher suggest this idea to the
+pupils? It may be enough to have only one plant the first year,
+particularly if the pupil is young. It matters little what the plant is.
+The important thing is that it shall be alive. Every plant is
+interesting in its way. A good pigweed is much more satisfactory than a
+poor rosebush. The pupil should grow the plant from the beginning. He
+should not buy it ready grown, for then it is not his, even though he
+own it.
+
+It is well to begin with some plant that grows quickly and matures
+early. One is ambitious in spring, but his enthusiasm may wither and die
+in the burning days of summer. If possible, grow the plant in the free
+open ground; if this is not feasible, grow it in a pot or box or tin
+can. Take advantage of the early spring enthusiasm. Choose hardy and
+vigorous plants: sow the seeds when the "spirit moves."
+
+If a pupil is interested in kitchen-garden vegetables, recommend lettuce
+and radish, or a potato. If in flowers, suggest sweet pea, bachelor's
+button or blue-bottle, annual phlox, candytuft, China aster. If in
+fruits, suggest strawberry.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+We desire to inaugurate a general movement for the planting of plants.
+The school ground should be planted. Private yards should be planted.
+Roadsides should be planted. In some cities and villages there are
+committees or other organizations whose object it is to encourage the
+planting of public and private places. Sometimes this organization is
+connected with the school interest, sometimes with a local horticultural
+or agricultural society, sometimes with a business men's organization.
+There should be such a committee in every village and town. We wish that
+the teachers might help in this work, for they would not only be lending
+their aid to planting, but also be interesting their pupils in some
+concrete and useful work, and teaching them the value of public spirit.
+Arbor Day should be more than a mere ceremonial. It should be a means of
+awakening interest in definite plans for the adornment of the
+neighborhood and of directing the attention of the children
+nature-ward.
+
+
+LEAFLET XXXVII.
+
+CUTTINGS AND CUTTINGS.[51]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[51] Nature-Study Quarterly No. 3: Leaflet 16, January, 1900.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Perhaps no subject connected with the growing of plants awakens so much
+popular wonder and inquiry as their propagation by means of cuttings and
+grafts. We assume that propagation by means of seeds is the natural way,
+and therefore do not wonder, notwithstanding that it is wonderful. We
+assume that propagation by cuttings is wholly unnatural, and therefore
+never cease to wonder, notwithstanding that this is less wonderful than
+the other. To common minds, common things are not wonderful. Mere
+commonplace familiarity takes away the charm, for such minds have no
+desire of inquiry. The well trained mind goes beneath the surface, and
+wonders at everything; and this wonder, grown old and wise, is the
+spirit of science.
+
+A plant does not have a definite number of parts, as an animal does. It
+may have ten branches or fifty. Each of these branches may do what every
+other branch does--produce leaves, flowers, fruits, seeds. It is not so
+with the higher animals, for in them each part may do something which
+some other part cannot do: if the part is a leg, it runs; if an ear, it
+hears. Each part serves the whole animal; and it cannot reproduce the
+animal. But in the plant, each branch lives for itself: it grows on the
+parent stock; or, if it is removed, it may grow in the soil. And if it
+grow in the soil, it is relieved of competition with other branches and
+grows bigger: it makes what we call a plant.
+
+Having thus bewildered my reader, I may say that a bit of a plant stuck
+into the ground stands a chance of growing; and this bit is a cutting.
+Plants have preferences, however, as to the kind of bit which shall be
+used; but there is no way of telling what this preference is except by
+trying. In some instances this preference has not been discovered, and
+we may say that the plant cannot be propagated by cuttings. Most plants
+prefer that the cuttings be made of the soft or growing wood, of which
+the "slips" of geraniums and coleus are examples. Others grow equally
+well from cuttings of the hard or mature wood, as currants and grapes;
+and in some instances this mature wood may be of roots, as in the
+blackberry. Somewhat different principles underlie the handling of these
+two kinds of cuttings; and these principles we may now consider. We
+shall find it excellent practice to set the pupils to making cuttings
+now and then. If we can do nothing more, we can make cuttings of
+potatoes, as the farmer does; and we can plant them in a box in the
+window.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 257. Geranium cutting. One-half natural size._]
+
+
+THE SOFTWOOD CUTTING.
+
+The softwood cutting is made from tissue which is still growing, or at
+least from that which is not dormant. It must not be allowed to wilt. It
+must, therefore, be protected from direct sunlight and dry air until it
+is well established; and if it has many leaves, some of them should be
+removed, or at least cut in two in order to reduce the evaporating
+surface. Keep the soil uniformly moist; and avoid soils which contain
+much decaying organic matter, for these soils are breeding places of
+fungi which attack the soft cutting and cause it to "damp off."
+
+For most plants, the proper age of maturity of wood for the making of
+cuttings may be determined by giving the twig a quick bend; if it snaps
+and hangs by the bark, it is in proper condition; if it bends without
+breaking it is too young and soft or too old; if it splinters, it is too
+old and woody.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 258. Carnation cutting. Natural size._]
+
+The tips of strong upright shoots usually make the best cuttings.
+Preferably each cutting should have a joint or node near its base; and
+if the internodes are short, it may comprise two or three joints. Allow
+one to three leaves to remain at the top. If these leaves are large,
+cut them in two.
+
+Insert the cutting half or more its length in clean sand or gravel.
+Press the earth firmly about it. Throw a newspaper over the bed to
+exclude the light--if the sun strikes it--and to prevent too rapid
+evaporation. See that the soil is moist clear through, not on top only.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 259. Rose cutting. More than one-half natural
+size._]
+
+Mason's sand is good earth in which to start cuttings. Or fine
+gravel--sifted of most of its earthy matter--may be used. If the
+cuttings are to be grown in a window, put three or four inches of the
+earth in a shallow box or a pan. A soap box cut in two lengthwise, so
+that it makes a box four or five inches deep--like a gardener's flat--is
+excellent.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 260. Cutting-bed, showing carnations and roses._]
+
+If the box does not receive direct sunlight, it may be covered with a
+pane of glass to prevent evaporation; and then the children may see the
+plants more readily. But take care that the air is not kept too close,
+else the damping-off fungi may attack the cuttings and they will rot at
+the surface of the ground. See that the pane is raised a little at one
+end to afford ventilation; and if water collects in drops on the under
+side of the glass, remove the pane for a time. Cuttings of common
+plants, as geranium, coleus, fuchsia, carnation, should be kept in a
+living-room temperature.
+
+The pictures are better than words. The line across them shows where the
+soil comes. There are softwood cuttings of the geranium (Fig. 257), the
+carnation (Fig. 258), and the rose (Fig. 259); and there is a gardener's
+cutting bed (Fig. 260) with cuttings of carnations and roses.
+
+Be patient. As long as the cuttings look bright and green, they are
+safe. It may be a month before roots form. When roots have formed, the
+plants will begin to make new leaves at the tip. Then they may be
+transplanted into other boxes or into pots. The verbena in Fig. 261 is
+just ready for transplanting. Each child will want a plant.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 261. Verbena cutting ready for transplanting.
+Two-thirds natural size._]
+
+It is not always easy to find growing shoots from which to make the
+cuttings. The best practice is to cut back some old plant severely, then
+keep it warm and well watered, and thereby force it to throw out new
+shoots. The old geranium plant from the window garden, or the one taken
+up from the lawn bed, may be served this way. See Fig. 262. This may
+seem hard treatment, but that is all the old plant is good for; it has
+passed its usefulness for bloom. The best plants of the geranium and the
+coleus and many window plants are those which are not more than one year
+old. The cuttings that are made in January, February, or March will give
+compact blooming plants for the next winter; and thereafter new ones
+take their place.
+
+Some plants may be propagated by means of cuttings of leaves. The Rex
+begonias or "beefsteak geraniums" are the commonest examples. The large,
+nearly mature leaf is divided into triangular pieces, each piece
+containing at its point a bit of the leaf-base (top of the leaf-stalk).
+This kind of cutting is shown in Fig. 263. This base is sometimes split
+(as at o) by gardeners to hasten the formation of roots. Only the tip of
+the cutting is stuck into the sand; otherwise it is treated like other
+softwood cuttings.
+
+
+THE HARDWOOD CUTTING.
+
+Many plants grow readily from cuttings of ripe or dormant wood. The
+willows cast their branchlets in snow and wind, and these, falling in
+pleasant places propagate their kind; and thus the river sides and the
+lake shores become willow-crowned.
+
+Grapes, currants, gooseberries, poplars readily take root from the
+hardwood. Fig. 264 shows a currant cutting. It has only one bud above
+the ground.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 262. Old geranium plant cut back to make it throw
+out shoots from which cuttings can be made._]
+
+The best results are attained when the cuttings are made in the fall,
+and then buried until spring in sand in the cellar. They are not idle
+while they rest. The lower end calluses or heals, and the roots form
+more readily when the cutting is planted in the spring. But if the
+children are interested, take cuttings at any time in winter, plant them
+in a deep box in the window, and watch. They will need no shading or
+special care.
+
+When plants of any variety are scarce, the cuttings may be shorter.
+Sometimes they are reduced to a single "eye" or bud, with an inch or two
+of wood attached; and these single-eye cuttings are planted much as one
+plants seeds.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 263. Begonia leaf cutting. Natural size._]
+
+
+THE GRAFT.
+
+If the cutting were planted in a plant rather than in the soil, we
+should have a graft; and the graft might grow. In this case, the cutting
+would not make roots, but it would grow fast to the other plant, and the
+twain would become one. When the cutting is inserted in a plant it is no
+longer called a cutting, but a cion; and the plant in which it is
+inserted is called the stock. The completed thing--the cion growing in
+the stock--is a graft.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 264. Currant cutting. One-third natural size._]
+
+Plants are particular as to their companions, when it comes to such
+close relationships as these. They choose the stocks upon which they
+will grow; but we can find out what their choice is only by making the
+experiment. There are queer things about it. The pear grows well on the
+quince, but the quince does not grow so well on the pear. The pear grows
+on some of the hawthorns, but it is an unwilling subject on the apple.
+Tomato plants will grow on potato plants and potato plants on tomato
+plants. When the potato is the root, both tomatoes and potatoes may be
+produced; when the tomato is the root, neither potatoes nor tomatoes
+will be produced. Chestnuts are said to grow on some kinds of oaks.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 265. Cion for cleft-grafting. One-half natural
+size._]
+
+Why do we graft? Think a bit. If I sow seeds of a Baldwin apple, I shall
+probably have as many kinds of apples as I have trees. Some of these
+apples may be like the Baldwin, and they may not. That is, apple seeds
+do not reproduce the particular variety. They will not be held to any
+stricter account than merely to produce apples; these apples may range
+all the way from toothsome kinds to Ben Davis. The nurseryman knows
+this, and he does not wait for the trees to bear in the hope that they
+will produce something to his liking. So he grafts them when they still
+are young,--takes a cion from the kind which he wishes to perpetuate. So
+it happens that all the Baldwins and the Kings and the Russets, and all
+other named varieties, are growing on alien roots; and what kinds of
+fruits these stocks would have produced no one will ever know, because
+their heads were cut off in youth and other heads were put on to order.
+In this way apples and pears and plums and peaches and cherries and
+apricots are propagated, for they will not grow readily from cuttings.
+But raspberries and blackberries and gooseberries and currants and
+grapes grow willingly from cuttings, and they are not grafted by the
+nurseryman.
+
+The forming, growing tissue of the trunk is the cambium, lying on the
+outside of the woody cylinder, beneath the bark. In order that union may
+take place, the cambium of the cion and the stock must come together.
+Therefore, the cion is set in the side of the stock. I once knew a man
+who believed that everything was designed for some useful purpose. The
+hole in the pith bothered him, until he discovered that a cion just
+filled it. He grafted his trees accordingly; but the experiment was
+productive of nothing except pithy remarks.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 266. Cleft-graft. One-half natural size._]
+
+There are many ways of shaping the cion and of preparing the stock to
+receive it. These ways are dictated largely by the relative sizes of
+cion and stock, although many of them are matters of mere personal
+preference. The underlying principles are two: see that there is close
+contact between the cambiums of cion and stock; cover the wounded
+surfaces to prevent evaporation and to protect the parts from disease.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 267. The graft waxed._]
+
+On large stocks the common form of grafting is the cleft-graft. The
+stock is cut off and split; and in one or both sides a wedge-shaped cion
+is firmly inserted. Fig. 265 shows the cion; Fig. 266, the cions set in
+the stock; Fig. 267, the stock waxed. It will be seen that the lower
+bud--that lying in the wedge--is covered by the wax; but being nearest
+the food supply and least exposed to weather, it is the most likely to
+grow: it pushes through the wax.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 268. Shield-budding. One-half natural size._]
+
+The wax is made of beeswax, resin, and tallow. The hands are greased,
+and the wax is then worked until it is soft enough to spread. For the
+little grafting which any school would do, it is better to buy the wax
+of a seedsman. However, grafting is hardly to be recommended as a
+general school diversion, as the making of cuttings is; and this account
+of it is inserted chiefly to satisfy the general curiosity on the
+subject. But we hope that now and then a youngster will make the effort
+for himself, for nothing is more exciting than to make a graft grow all
+by one's self.
+
+Cleft-grafting is done in spring, as growth begins. The cions are cut
+previously, when perfectly dormant, and from the tree which it is
+desired to propagate. The cions are kept in sand or moss in the cellar.
+Limbs of various sizes may be cleft-grafted--from one-half inch up to
+four inches in diameter; but a diameter of one inch is the most
+convenient size. All the leading or main branches of a tree top may be
+grafted. If the remaining parts of the top are gradually cut away and
+the scions grow well, the entire top will be changed over to the new
+variety in three or four years. Each cion may be a different variety;
+but there is no difference in the operation or the treatment of the
+tree.
+
+On young or small stocks, like nursery trees, the cleft-graft is not
+practicable, and a different form of grafting is employed; but the
+teacher will not care to be confused with further details.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 269. The bud set in the matrix. One-half natural
+size._]
+
+We have seen that a cutting may be reduced to a single bud; so may a
+cion. If the bud-cion has very little or no wood attached, and is
+inserted underneath the bark, the operation is known as budding. The
+commonest form of budding is shown in Figs. 268, 269, 270. This is the
+method known as shield-budding, because the bud, with its attached
+bark, is shield-shaped (Fig. 268). A T-shape incision is made in the
+stock, and under the bark the bud is inserted (Fig. 269); then the wound
+is tightly bound with soft cord or bast (Fig. 270). Budding may be
+performed whenever the bark will "slip" and when well grown buds can be
+secured,--that is, either in spring or late summer. It is usually
+performed at the latter season; and then the bud does not throw out a
+shoot the same season, but merely grows fast to the stock. The next
+spring it throws out a shoot and makes a trunk; and in the meantime the
+stock has been cut off just above the bud. That is, the bud-shoot takes
+the place of the top of the stock.
+
+Shield-budding is performed only on small and young stocks. It is
+usually exclusively employed in the propagation of stone fruits, as
+cherries, peaches, plums, apricots, for experience has proved that it is
+preferable to other forms of grafting. It may also be employed for other
+fruit trees.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 270. The bud tied._]
+
+How is a peach tree made? In 1898 a pit or seed is saved. In the spring
+of 1899 it is planted. The young tree comes up quickly. In August, 1899,
+the little stock has one bud--of the desired variety--inserted near the
+ground. In the spring of 1900 the stock is severed just above the bud:
+the bud throws out a shoot which grows to a height of four or six feet;
+and in the fall of 1900 the tree is sold. It is known as a year-old
+tree; but the root is two years old.
+
+How is an apple tree made? The seed is saved in 1898, planted in 1899.
+The seedlings do not grow so rapidly as those of the peach. At the end
+of 1899 they are taken up and sorted; and in the spring of 1900 they are
+planted. In July or August, 1900, they are budded. In the spring of 1901
+the stock is cut off above the bud; and the bud-shoot grows three or
+four feet. In 1902 the shoot branches, or the top begins to form; and in
+the fall of 1902 the tree may be sold as a two-year-old, although most
+persons prefer to buy it in 1903 as a three-year-old. In some parts of
+the country, particularly in the west, the little seedling is grafted in
+the winter of 1899-1900 in a grafting-room; and the young grafts are set
+in the nursery row in the spring of 1900, to complete their growth.
+
+I have now given my reader an elementary lesson in horticulture; but I
+shall consider it of little avail if it is not transformed into
+practice for the children. February is the gardener's time for the
+starting of his cutting-beds, in which to grow plants for the summer
+bloom. Ask the children to bring the old geraniums and fuchsias and
+coleus, and other favorites. Keep them in a warm window; cut them back;
+see that they are well watered; then take the cuttings when the time
+comes. The children will be interested to watch the fortunes of the
+different cuttings. They will be interested in Vergil's couplet, as set
+to rhyme in old-fashioned English:
+
+  Some need no root, nor doth the Gardner doubt,
+  That Sprigs though headlong set, will timely sprout.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXXVIII.
+
+A CHILDREN'S GARDEN.[52]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[52] Teachers' Leaflet No. 4, April, 1897.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+We want every school child in the State to grow a few plants. We want
+every one of them to learn something of why and how plants grow; and the
+best and surest way to learn is to grow the plants and to watch them
+carefully. We want everyone to become interested in everything that
+lives and grows. It does not matter so very much just what kinds of
+plants one grows as it does that he grows something and grows it the
+best that he knows how. We want the children to grow these plants for
+the love of it,--that is, for the fun of it,--hence we propose that they
+grow flowers; for when one grows pumpkins and potatoes, and such things,
+he is usually thinking of how much money he is going to make at the end
+of the season. Yet, we should like some rivalry in the matter in every
+school, and we therefore propose that a kind of a fair be held at the
+school-house next September, soon after school begins, so that each
+child may show the flowers which he has grown. What a jolly time that
+will be!
+
+Now, we must not try to grow too many things or to do too much.
+Therefore, we propose that you grow sweet peas and China asters. They
+are both easy to grow, and the seeds are cheap. Each one has many
+colors, and everybody likes them. Now let us tell you just how we should
+grow them.
+
+_1. The place._--Never put them--or any other flowers--in the middle of
+the lawn,--that is, out in the center of the yard. They do not look well
+there, and the grass roots run under them and steal the food and the
+moisture. I am sure that you would not like to see a picture hung up on
+a fence-post. It has no background, and it looks out of place. The
+picture does not mean anything when hung in such a spot. In the same
+way, a flower bed does not mean anything when set out in the center of
+a lawn. We must have a background for it, if possible,--a wall upon
+which to hang it. So we will put the flower bed just in front of some
+bushes or near the back fence, or alongside the smoke-house, or along
+the walk at the side of the house, or in the back yard. The flowers will
+not only look better in such places, but it will not matter so much if
+we make a failure of our flower bed; there are always risks to run, for
+the old hen may scratch up the seeds, the cow may break into the yard
+some summer night, or some bug may eat the plants up.
+
+Perhaps some of the children may live so near to the school-house that
+they can grow their plants upon the school grounds, and so have sweet
+peas and asters where there are usually docks and smartweeds. Grow them
+alongside the fence, or against the school-house if there is a place
+where the eaves will not drip on them.
+
+_2. How to make the bed._--Spade the ground up deep. Take out all the
+roots of docks and thistles and other weeds. Shake the dirt all out of
+the sods and throw the grass away. You may need a little manure in the
+soil, especially if the land is either very hard or very loose and
+sandy. But the manure must be very fine and well mixed into the soil. It
+is easy, however, to make sweet pea soil so rich that the plants will
+run to vine and not bloom well.
+
+Make the bed long and narrow, but not narrower than three feet. If it is
+narrower than this the grass roots will be likely to run under it and
+suck up the moisture. If the bed can be got at on both sides it may be
+as wide as five feet.
+
+Sow the seeds in little rows crosswise the bed. The plants can then be
+weeded and hoed easily from either side. If the rows are marked by
+little sticks, or if a strong mark is left in the earth, you can break
+the crust between the rows (with a rake) before the plants are up. The
+rows ought to be four or five inches further apart than the width of a
+narrow rake.
+
+_3. How to water the plants._--I wonder if you have a watering-pot? If
+you have, put it where you cannot find it; for we are going to water
+this garden with a rake! We want you to learn, in this little garden,
+the first great lesson in farming,--how to save the water in the soil.
+If you learn that much this summer, you will know more than many old
+farmers do. You know that the soil is moist in the spring when you plant
+the seeds. Where does this moisture go to? It dries up,--goes off into
+the air. If we could cover up the soil with something, we should prevent
+the moisture from drying up. Let us cover it with a layer of loose, dry
+earth! We will make this covering by raking the bed every few
+days,--once every week anyway, and oftener than that if the top of the
+soil becomes hard and crusty, as it does after a rain. Instead of
+pouring water on the bed, therefore, we will keep the moisture in the
+bed.
+
+If, however, the soil becomes so dry in spite of you that the plants do
+not thrive, then water the bed. Do not _sprinkle_ it, but _water_ it.
+Wet it clear through at evening. Then in the morning, when the surface
+begins to get dry, begin the raking again to keep the water from getting
+away. Sprinkling the plants every day or two is one of the surest ways
+to spoil them.
+
+_4. When and how to sow._--The sweet peas should be put in just as soon
+as the ground can be dug, even before frosts are passed. Yet good
+results can be had if the seeds are put in as late as the 10th of May.
+In the sweet pea garden at Cornell last year, we sowed the seeds on the
+20th of April. This was about right. The year before, we sowed them on
+the 30th. If sown very early, they are likely to bloom better, but they
+may be gone before the middle of September. The blooming can be much
+prolonged if the flowers are cut as soon as they begin to fade.
+
+Plant sweet peas deep,--two or three or sometimes even four inches. When
+the plants are a few inches high, pull out a part of them so that they
+will not stand nearer together than six inches in the row. It is a good
+plan to sow sweet peas in double rows,--that is, put two rows only five
+or six inches apart,--and stick the brush or place the chicken-wire
+support between them.
+
+China asters may be sown from the middle of May to the first of June. In
+one large test at Cornell, we sowed them the 4th of June, and had good
+success; but this is rather later than we would advise. The China asters
+are autumn flowers, and they should be in their prime in September and
+early October.
+
+Sow the aster seed shallow,--not more than a half inch deep. The tall
+kinds of asters should have at least a foot between the plants in the
+row, and the dwarf kinds six to eight inches.
+
+Sometimes China asters have rusty or yellow spots on the undersides of
+their leaves. This is a fungous disease. If it appears, have your father
+make some ammoniacal carbonate of copper solution and then spray them
+with it; or Bordeaux mixture will do just as well or better, only that
+it discolors the leaves and flowers.
+
+_5. What varieties to choose._--In the first place, do not plant too
+much. A garden which looks very small when the pussy willows come out
+and the frogs begin to peep, is pretty big in the hot days of July. A
+garden four feet wide and twenty feet long, half sweet peas and half
+asters, is about as big as most boys and girls will take care of.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 271. A clump of weeds in the corner by the
+house,--motherwort and Virginia creeper. How pretty they are!_]
+
+In the next place, do not get too many varieties. Four or five kinds
+each of peas and asters will be enough. Buy the named varieties,--that
+is, those of known colors,--not the mixed packets. If you are very fond
+of reds, then choose the reddest kinds; but it is well to put in at
+least three colors. The varieties which please you may not please me or
+your neighbor, so that I cannot advise you what to get.
+
+Of China asters, the Comet type--in various colors--will probably give
+the most satisfaction. They are mostly large-growing kinds. Other
+excellent kinds are the Perfection and Peony-flowered, Semple or
+Branching, Chrysanthemum-flowered, Washington, Victoria, and, for early,
+Queen of the Market. Odd varieties are Crown, German Quilled, Victoria
+Needle, and Lilliput. Very dwarf kinds are Dwarf Bouquet or Dwarf
+German, and Shakespeare.
+
+One of the chief merits of the China aster is the lateness of bloom,
+allowing the flowers to be used in the schools after they open in the
+fall. An excellent flower for sowing during May is the common annual
+Phlox (_Phlox Drummondii_ of the catalogues). Poppies are also
+satisfactory, but the flowers do not last long. Petunias are excellent
+and Balsams, Clarkias, Coreopsis (or Calliopsis), and Zinnias may be
+sown.
+
+Now, let us see how many boys and girls in New York State will raise
+sweet peas and China asters this year! And we should like them to write
+us all about it.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XXXIX.
+
+A HILL OF POTATOES.[53]
+
+BY I. P. ROBERTS.
+
+
+[53] Nature-Study Quarterly, No. 7: Leaflet 20, January, 1901.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Plant a hill of potatoes. You can do it in the school-room. Plant in a
+box or a flower-pot. Keep the box warm, and do not let the soil dry out.
+Plant whole tubers and pieces of tubers. Plant pieces of various sizes.
+Plant some that have no "eyes." Plant shallow--so that the tuber is just
+covered with soil--and deep. Watch the results.
+
+All plants are abundantly supplied with means for reproducing their
+kind: some by seed, some by multiplication at the crown or base or by
+roots, others by means of underground stems; and some, as the potato,
+have two or more means of reproduction. In its wild or partially
+improved state the potato is abundantly supplied with fruit, "seed
+balls," borne on the top of the stalks. The seeds of a single ball will
+often produce many varieties of potatoes; but they cannot be depended
+upon to reproduce the parent stock. Farmers seldom attempt to raise
+potatoes from the seeds; when they do it is for the purpose of securing
+new varieties. The common method of reproduction is to plant a part or
+all of an enlarged underground stem, that is, a part of the "potato" or
+tuber.
+
+When the soil is reasonably porous and fertile, a strong root may start
+at the seed-piece and descend more or less directly into the subsoil. In
+most cases, however, the roots spread laterally. This is a good
+illustration of how plants may vary in their root habits in order to
+adapt themselves to their environment. Notice where the roots form on
+the plants you are growing. Few farmers know where they form.
+Distinguish the true or feeding roots from the underground stems.
+Determine how many tubers form on each underground stem. Dig up a hill
+of potatoes from the garden before school closes.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 272. Underground part of potato plant in mellow
+soil._]
+
+A single eye, with a portion of the tuber attached to furnish
+nourishment to the bud until sustenance can be secured from newly formed
+rootlets, may produce one, occasionally more, strong upright stems. A
+most interesting study of manifold reproduction may be made even in the
+winter time by planting in a fertile soil a piece of potato containing a
+single eye (Fig. 273). As soon as the rootlets begin to start, divide
+each eye and piece into two parts and re-plant. In a few days after the
+rootlets have again started, divide the two pieces into four and
+re-plant. This operation may be performed again and again, until many
+plants suitable for transplanting in the open may be secured from a
+single eye.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 273. Piece of tuber for planting, bearing a single
+eye._]
+
+Demonstrate that the potato contains starch. This can be done by
+applying a drop of dilute iodine to a freshly cut surface of the tuber:
+the starch grains turn blue-black. Five cents' worth of iodine purchased
+at the drug-store will be sufficient for many tests. Dilute it about
+one-half with water. This starch, after being changed to sugar,
+supplies the young plant with nourishment. Dig up the pieces you have
+planted and see which start first, shoots or roots.
+
+The "potato" is an enlarged underground stem provided with numerous buds
+similar to those on the stems of plants above ground. These buds are
+placed spirally on the underground stem or tuber with a considerable
+degree of uniformity. As on the stems of other plants, the buds are less
+numerous and weaker at the base and most numerous and vigorous at the
+top or upper end. On a smooth well developed long potato, the spiral
+arrangement of the buds may be illustrated by sticking a tooth-pick or
+pin in each eye, beginning at the base or stem end, and connecting the
+pins with a string (Fig. 274).
+
+[Illustration: Fig. 274. How to illustrate the spiral arrangement of the
+eyes.]
+
+
+FARM NOTES ON THE POTATO.
+
+Now that we have seen the potato growing in the school-room, some
+information may be given respecting its treatment in the field as a
+crop.
+
+Potatoes are easily raised, even under adverse conditions, although they
+respond quickly to superior fertility and tillage. The average yield in
+the United States during the last ten years was 76.6 bushels an acre,
+although from three to four hundred bushels an acre are not uncommon
+under superior tillage when soil and climate are at their best.
+
+The area devoted to potatoes during the last decade was two and a half
+million acres annually. Potatoes do best on a moderately moist and deep
+soil and in a climate relatively cool.
+
+Since the period of growth is short, varying from three to five months,
+they should be planted in soil which has an abundance of readily
+available plant-food. Notice in Fig. 272 that most of the underground
+stems which have produced potatoes leave the main stem about four inches
+below the surface and but a short distance above the seed-piece. This
+suggests that the seed should be planted about four inches deep. To
+produce three hundred bushels of potatoes requires the exhalation of
+over three hundred tons of water: therefore water or moisture is of
+quite as much importance in securing large yields as plant-food.
+
+It is best to prepare the land deeply, to plant deep, and then to
+practice nearly or quite level culture. The practice of hilling up
+potatoes, so common in most parts of the country, is to be discouraged,
+usually, because it is wasteful of moisture and the tubers do not grow
+in the coolest part of the soil. For very early potatoes, hilling-up may
+be allowable. Till the soil very often to save the moisture. For the
+philosophy of this, see Leaflet No. IX.
+
+Not infrequently the potato is seriously injured by blights which attack
+the leaves. The early blight, which usually appears in June, may destroy
+some of the foliage, thereby checking growth. The late blight, which
+also attacks the foliage, is far more serious. It differs little in
+outward appearance from the early blight. In rare cases the vines are so
+seriously injured that no potatoes are formed. The potato rot or blight
+did great damage to the potato in many localities in the United States
+in 1845. In 1846 the blight appeared in Ireland and virtually destroyed
+the entire crop. Before this date the potato had become the chief food
+supply of the peasantry. The cultivation of oats as a food crop had been
+universal before the introduction of the potato, but oats furnished so
+little food on a given area as compared to the potato that the
+cultivation of them at the time the blight appeared had been very
+largely abandoned. The loss of the potato crop produced widespread
+famine. The most conservative estimate of the numbers who perished for
+want of food or by disease caused by a meager diet of unhealthy and
+innutritions food is set down at six hundred thousand during the two
+years of the potato blight. This disease was not so destructive in 1847
+as in 1846; and by 1848 it had virtually disappeared. Some one has said
+that if Great Britain had expended one dollar for investigating the
+diseases of potatoes where she had spent a thousand dollars for
+perfecting the engines of war, the terrible famine might have been
+averted. We now think it a relatively easy matter to keep the blight in
+check by thorough spraying with Bordeaux mixture.
+
+
+HOW THE POTATO HAS BEEN IMPROVED.
+
+All plants have their origin in pre-existing plants. While the young
+plant is always similar to the one from which it was derived, it is
+never exactly like its parent in every detail. This arises from the fact
+that all of the conditions under which the parent plant and its
+offspring grow are never exactly alike. The variations or differences in
+the plants are usually exceedingly small in a single generation; but
+occasionally they are wide, in which case they are called "sports" and
+are usually difficult to perpetuate. If successive generations of plants
+are reared under continuously improved conditions, there will be a
+continuous and accumulating variation from generation to generation,
+which in time may come to be so great as to make it difficult to
+discover a marked similarity between the wild and the cultivated forms
+of the same plant.
+
+When conditions are undisturbed by man there is found to be a fierce
+struggle for existence. The hardiest or those best suited to the
+conditions preponderate, and this without any reference to the wants of
+mankind. The farmer steps in and selects those plants which give promise
+of being most useful or most beautiful and then decreases or eliminates
+the struggle for these selected plants, by destroying the plants which
+are least desirable, by fertilizing and tilling the soil, by conserving
+moisture, and by improving the physical conditions of the land, thereby
+making it more comfortable for the plants which he has chosen. The
+selected or "improved" plant, by reason of being more comfortable and
+better nourished, tends to vary in one or more directions from the wild
+and unimproved types. Whenever these variations tend towards greater
+productiveness, better quality or enhanced beauty, selection is again
+made of such specimens as give promise of supplying the wants and
+gratifying the desires of civilized man. The bettered conditions of the
+plant, by reason of man's effort, do not usually result in producing
+like variation along all lines. One part of the plant as the flower, the
+fruit, or the stem, varies more than the other parts. All this tends to
+break up a single type or stock into many varieties. There are hundreds
+of varieties of potatoes all traceable to a single wild species. The
+kind and quantity of nourishment supplied plays the most important part
+of any single factor in producing variation.
+
+The general character of the cultivated potato plant as to leaf, stem,
+root, and habit of growth, is virtually the same as the wild plant,
+variation having been directed and accentuated along the line of
+increasing the size and quality of the underground tubers. This habit of
+producing enormously enlarged underground stems has been operating so
+long that the plant has inherited the power of transmitting this
+acquired quality to the succeeding plants. The most improved varieties
+seldom produce seed balls, because growth has been directed so largely
+toward enlarging and multiplying the tubers. By selecting tubers with
+shallow buds or eyes and avoiding those with deep, sunken eyes,
+varieties have been produced with few eyes or buds, and these set not in
+deep indentations but nearly even with the surface of the potato.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+As a school-room subject, the potato is not very tractable, unless we
+study merely the tubers. If the school is in session in summer, the
+growing plant may be had. Then it will be found to be an interesting and
+profitable exercise to set the children at the problem of determining
+the root-system of the potato plant. How do the roots look? Does the
+plant have a tap-root, or do the roots spread laterally? Are the tubers
+borne on roots? Or on underground stems? Why do you think so? Does the
+tuber terminate the branch? What relation, in position, do the
+tuber-bearing branches bear to other parts of the underground system? Do
+you think that the tuber-bearing branches aid in collecting food from
+the soil?
+
+The top of the plant may be studied in the same spirit,--branching,
+leaves, flowers, berries.
+
+If the growing plant cannot be had, study tubers. Compare as to size,
+shape, color, character of eyes, whether scabby or smooth. Use them as
+objects in drawing.
+
+Plant tubers in the school-room, in boxes or flower pots. This Leaflet
+will suggest some interesting observations.
+
+How important is the potato crop in the State and nation? The pupil can
+use his mathematics here.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XL.
+
+THE HEPATICA.[54]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[54] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. IV, No. 30, March, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+As children are always especially interested in the wild flowers in
+spring, I have thought best to study a few of the woodland blossoms. The
+wonderful processes of plant life are as well shown in these as in any.
+The hepatica is among the first which greets us in the spring, and we
+will study this first.
+
+There are several ways of getting acquainted with a plant: one is to
+go-a-visiting, and another is to invite the plant to our own home,
+either as guest on the window-sill, or as a tenant of the garden. When
+we visit the hepatica in its own haunts it is usually with the longing
+for spring in our hearts that awakens with the first warm sunshine and
+which is really one of the subtlest as well as greatest charms of living
+in a climate that has a snowy winter. As we thread our way into the
+sodden woods, avoiding the streams and puddles that are little glacial
+rivers and lakes from fast disappearing snow-drifts still heaped on the
+north sides of things, we look eagerly for signs of returning life. The
+eye slowly differentiates from the various shades of brown in the floor
+of the forest a bit of pale blue or pink purple that at first seems as
+if it were an optical delusion; but as we look again to make sure, lo!
+it is the hepatica. There it is, rising from its mass of purple brown
+leaves, leaves that are always beautiful in shape and color and suggest
+patterns for sculpture like the acanthus or for rich tapestries like the
+palm-leaf in the Orient. There the brave little flower stands with its
+face to the sun and its back to the snow-drift and looks out on a gray
+brown world and nods at it and calls it "good."
+
+It is when the hepatica is our guest that we have a better opportunity
+for studying its form and features. Take up a hepatica root in the fall
+and pot it and place it in a cool cellar until March 1. Then give it
+light, warmth, and moisture on your table and see how gladly it will
+blossom and tell its secrets. Or perhaps if we are not sufficiently
+forehanded to get the root in the fall we can get it during a thaw in
+March when we go foraging for spring feelings in winter woods.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 275. Hepatica, harbinger of spring._]
+
+When finally a bud has uncuddled and lifted itself into a flower, it
+will tell us the story of leaves in different disguises, and we may be
+able to notice whether the pollen ripens and is all distributed when the
+flower begins to fade and fall. We may note also the number of seeds and
+examine one of them with a lens. It is what the botanists call an akene,
+which simply means just one seed with a tight envelope about it. We have
+a careless habit of forgetting all about plants after their blossoms
+fade unless their fruits or seed are good to eat or good to look at.
+This is as inconsistent as it would be to lose all interest in the farm
+before the fields were planted. After the flower is gone the plant must
+mature its seeds and somehow must sow them. We will study the hepatica
+through the summer and autumn, for we must know what is happening to it
+every month.
+
+
+QUESTIONS CONCERNING THE HEPATICA TO BE ANSWERED DURING MARCH AND APRIL.
+
+1. In what situations are the hepaticas found?
+
+2. How does the hepatica prepare for the winter and store up energy for
+blossoming early in the spring?
+
+3. How early do you find blossom buds down in the center of the plant?
+Did you ever look for these buds in the fall?
+
+4. Do the flowers come out of the crown bud?
+
+5. Are the leaves that come up late in the spring as fuzzy when they
+first appear as those that come up early?
+
+6. Make out as complete a life-history of the hepatica as you can,--how
+it sows itself, where it grows, how long it lives, with what plant it
+keeps company.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XLI.
+
+JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT.[55]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[55] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. IV, No. 31, April, 1903.
+
+  "Jack-in-the-Pulpit preaches to-day
+  Under the green trees, just over the way.
+  Squirrel and song sparrow high on their perch
+  Hear the sweet lily bells ringing to church.
+  Come, hear what his reverence rises to say,
+  In his low, painted pulpit this calm Sabbath day,
+  Fair is the canopy over him seen,
+  Penciled by nature's hand, black, brown, and green."
+
+  _J. G. Whittier._
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 276. Jack-in-the-Pulpit._]
+
+[Illustration]
+
+At one time or another, perhaps all of us are given to the belief that
+all flowers blossom for our especial enjoyment. It is hard to think back
+for a thousand years and imagine hepaticas blooming on our New York
+hills; yet no doubt, they blossomed then in far greater numbers than
+they do to-day. Many of our native plants played their part in
+sustaining the lives of the native Americans, and that little preacher,
+Jack-in-the-pulpit, was a turnip long before he was a preacher. Indian
+turnip was his name in the days of our ancestors because the Indians
+boiled his bulb-like root and the ripe berries, thus making them a less
+peppery and a more palatable food.
+
+The St. Nicholas Magazine was for so many years the organ through which
+Jack preached so many sermons to children all over our land that
+he is even to-day one of the best loved of the woodland flowers.
+Whittier, in his "Child Life," and Lucy Larcom have both celebrated
+Jack-in-the-pulpit in song, and these verses should be given to the
+children when they are studying the habits of this interesting plant.
+
+Jack-in-the-pulpit is a wild cousin of the over-civilized calla lily. It
+is interesting to study the way the flowers resemble each other, and
+this you and the children will be able to study for yourselves. It will
+teach you that the showy parts of a blossom may be merely a protection,
+and an advertisement for the true flower hidden within.
+
+
+QUESTIONS CONCERNING JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT.
+
+1. Where do you find this plant, in dry or in wet locations?
+
+2. What is the shape of the root? Is it pleasant to the taste?
+
+3. How do the leaves look when they first appear above the ground?
+
+4. How far are the leaves developed when the flowers appear?
+
+5. Does the tip of the hood fold over at first?
+
+6. Do you see a resemblance to the calla lily when you bend the tip of
+the hood backward? Compare or contrast the two plants.
+
+7. How many leaves has Jack-in-the-pulpit? Are they simple or compound?
+
+8. What are the colors of the "pulpits" in your locality?
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XLII.
+
+INDIAN CORN.[56]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[56] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. IV, No. 32, May, 1903.
+
+_"Hail! Ha-wen-ni-yu! Listen with open ears to the words of thy people.
+Continue to listen. We thank our mother earth which sustains us. We
+thank the winds which have banished disease. We thank He-no for rain. We
+thank the moon and stars which give us light when the sun has gone to
+rest. We thank the sun for warmth and light by day. Keep us from evil
+ways that the sun may never hide his face from us for shame and leave us
+in darkness. We thank thee, oh, mighty Ha-wen-ni-yu that we still live.
+We thank thee that thou hast made our corn to grow. Thou art our creator
+and our good ruler, thou canst do no evil. Everything thou doest is for
+our happiness."_
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Thus prayed the Iroquois Indians when the corn had ripened on the hills
+and valleys of New York State long before it was a state, and even
+before Columbus had turned his ambitious prows westward in quest of the
+Indies. Had he found the Indies with their wealth of fabrics and spices
+he would have found there nothing so valuable to the world as has proved
+this golden treasure of ripened corn.
+
+The origin of Indian corn, or maize, is shrouded in mystery. There is a
+plant which grows on the tablelands of Mexico which is possibly the
+original species, but so long had maize been cultivated by the American
+Indians that it was thoroughly domesticated when America was discovered.
+In those early days of American colonization it is doubtful, says
+Professor John Fiske, if our forefathers could have remained here had it
+not been for Indian corn. No plowing nor even clearing was necessary for
+the successful raising of this grain. The trees were girdled, thus
+killing their tops to let in the sunlight; the rich earth was scratched
+a little with a primitive tool and the seed put in and covered; and the
+plants that grew therefrom took care of themselves. If the pioneers had
+been obliged to depend alone upon the wheat and rye of Europe which
+would only grow with good tillage they might have starved before they
+had gained a foothold on our forest-covered shores. While maize has
+never been a popular grain in European countries outside of the
+southermost parts, yet on the great continents of Africa and Asia it
+was welcomed from the first, and is now largely grown. It has ripened
+for so many centuries on the slopes of the Himalayas that if you were to
+ask one of the natives to-day how long it had grown there he would
+answer you "always."
+
+It is fitting that a grain which is so peculiarly adapted to be the aid
+and support of a great civilization should grow upon a plant of such
+dignity and beauty as is the maize. The perfect proportions of the
+slender stalk to the long gracefully curving leaves; the plumed tassels
+swaying and bowing to every breeze and sending their pollen showers to
+the waiting skeins of silk hidden below; the ripened ear with its exact
+rows of shining yellow grains wrapped in silken husks; all these make
+the corn plant as delightful to the eye as it is intrinsically important
+to the welfare of nations. No more wonderful lesson in plant growth can
+we find for our study than this lesson of the Indian corn.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 277. Parts of corn kernel._]
+
+
+LESSON ON INDIAN CORN FOR SPRING AND SUMMER.
+
+Secure a kernel of corn and cut it in halves (Fig. 277) and with the
+naked eye you will be able to see there the young plant pressed close to
+its stored up food, which, though largely composed of starch, also has
+in it proteids and oil. You will see that this food is dry and thus
+cannot be used by the young plant, for plants, whether young or old,
+must take their nourishment in a fluid condition. Soak the seed and see
+how soon the young plant passes on the moisture to soften the food so
+that it may imbibe it and grow. Fill a tumbler with earth and plant a
+grain of corn next to the glass so that you may be able to see how it
+grows.
+
+
+CORN STALKS, LEAVES AND ROOTS.
+
+1. Which appears first, root parts or leaf?
+
+2. How does the leaf look when it first comes up?
+
+3. How old is the corn when the blossom stalks begin to show above the
+leaves?
+
+4. Does the stalk break more easily at the joints than elsewhere?
+Measure the distances between the joints in a stalk of young corn and
+two weeks later measure these distances again, and compare your figures.
+From these measurements tell whether the plant grows only at the top, or
+has it several growing places?
+
+5. Are the joints nearer each other at the bottom or at the top?
+
+6. Where do the bases of the leaves clasp the stalks?
+
+7. Tell why this arrangement gives strength to the stalk.
+
+8. Do you see a little growth at the base of the leaf that prevents the
+rain from flowing down between the stalk and the clasping leaf? This is
+called the rain-guard. How might it damage the plant if the water should
+get in between the leaf and stem?
+
+9. What is the structure of the leaf and direction of the ribs?
+
+10. How does this structure keep the long leaf from being torn to pieces
+by the wind?
+
+11. Note the ruffled edge of the leaf. Lay such a leaf flat on a table
+and bend it this way and that, and note how this fullness allows it to
+bend without breaking the edges. What advantage is this to the plant?
+
+12. Study the roots of a corn plant. How far do they extend into the
+ground? Describe them.
+
+13. Study the brace roots that come off the stalk an inch or more above
+the ground. Of what utility are these to the plant?
+
+14. Bend down a stalk of growing corn and place a stone on it near its
+base so as to hold it down, and note how it acts. Does it commence to
+lift itself up straight from the joint, or from a place between the
+joints?
+
+15. Cut off the water supply from a plant, or watch the corn during a
+drought and tell how the leaves behave.
+
+16. Do they offer as much surface to the air for evaporation when they
+are curled? Is this the way the plant protects itself by retaining this
+moisture during a dry time?
+
+17. Do the stalks or leaves grow after the ears begin to form?
+
+18. Do you find "suckers" growing; if so what is the variety?
+
+
+FLOWERS.
+
+    There are two kinds of flowers on the corn: the tassels bearing
+    the pollen, and the ears bearing the ovules which develop into
+    seeds. Study first the tassel. Observe the flowerets through a
+    lens if you have one and note that the pollen sacs open a little
+    at one side instead of at the tip so that the wind is needed in
+    order to shake out the pollen. It is estimated that on each corn
+    plant there may be developed eighteen million pollen grains and
+    two thousand ovules. The pollen-tube must penetrate the whole
+    length of each thread of corn-silk in order to reach the ovules.
+
+19. What agency carries the pollen grains to the ear?
+
+20. What would happen to a field of corn if the farmer cut off all the
+tassels as soon as they were formed?
+
+21. Find a tassel before it appears and study it. Secure an ear when
+only an inch or two long and study it. These should be studied as flower
+parts.
+
+22. How early can you find the ear? Look at every joint and tell how
+many ears you find on a young stalk.
+
+23. In studying the ear, take first the husk. Does it resemble the leaf
+in structure? What is the difference between the outer and the inner
+husks?
+
+24. Do you believe that the husk is a modified leaf; if so why? In the
+young ear does each thread of silk extend out to the end of the ear; if
+so why?
+
+25. Is there a thread of silk for each kernel in the ear?
+
+26. Study corn when it is in the "milk." Is the taste sweet?
+
+27. Does this sweet taste continue as the kernel matures?
+
+28. How is the stalk modified to fit the ear?
+
+
+ENEMIES.
+
+    The corn has many difficulties to contend with: there are heavy
+    winds, too much or too little rain, hail, and, worst of all,
+    frosts which not only kill it when it is first planted, but
+    also hurt it before it is matured. The corn has living enemies
+    also, such as wire-worms and cut-worms. Our forefathers were
+    much troubled with the mischief which crows did in pulling corn.
+    However, many of our observing farmers to-day say that only in
+    rare instances do the crows injure corn much. The work done by
+    cut-worms is often attributed to crows.
+
+29. Please note in your locality what difficulties the corn has to
+contend with. If possible make a special study of the damage said to be
+done by crows. Give the results.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XLIII.
+
+THE RIPENED CORN.[57]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[57] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. V, No. 1, October, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Every boy and girl living on a farm in New York State twenty-five years
+or more ago, has in memory a picture like this: a stubbly hill-side
+field beset with russet shocks of corn and constellations of orange
+pumpkins, whence might be seen wide valleys filled with purple haze, and
+far hills bedecked with autumn tapestries woven about emerald patches of
+new wheat.
+
+To such a field, after the laggard sun had changed the hoar frost to
+dew, would they hasten of an October morning, to begin the corn-husking.
+The enthusiastic youngster, who had an eye to artistic unity in the
+situation, invariably selected a pumpkin for his seat, scorning his more
+sordid fellows who had brought milking-stools from the barn, when nature
+had placed so many golden thrones at their disposal. Too soon a
+discovery was made about this that applies as well to other thrones,--it
+proved an uneasy seat, and was abandoned for a sofa constructed of
+corn-stalks. Here, leaning back with a full sense of luxury, listening
+to the rustle of the dry leaves and husks and the monotonous song of the
+cricket, enlivened now and then by the lazy call of the crow from the
+hemlocks on the hill, the sweet note of the belated meadow-lark from the
+valley, or the excited bark of the dog as he chased a squirrel along the
+fence, the busy husker passed the autumn day. On either side of him were
+evidences of his labor. On the right stood great disheveled stooks of
+corn stalks bereft of their pockets of gold; on the left lay in a heap
+the shining yellow ears, ready to be measured in the waiting
+bushel-basket; in front was always a little pile of noble ears with some
+of the husks still attached,--the seed corn. Proud was the boy when he
+had learned to select successfully "the ear of good length, cylindrical
+rather than pointed, the cob firm and well filled from butt to tip with
+grains uniformly large, of good color and in regular rows that showed no
+space between." Now-a-days, we challenge this ideal of the "perfect
+ear."
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 278. The Harvest of the Corn._]
+
+As "chore time" approached, came the wagon afield to gather the harvest
+of ears and take them to the cribs, where their gold gleaming between
+the boards gave comfortable assurance of peace and plenty. But the seed
+corn was stored in a way learned by our forefathers from the American
+Indians; the ears were braided together by their husks, by the skilled
+farmer, who could make a braid two or three feet long, strong enough to
+hold the weight of the ears that hung a heavy fringe along each side;
+this braid when completed was tied with a bit of soft, tow twine, long
+saved for the purpose, and then was hung on hooks on the granary walls.
+There, until spring, waited the elect of the cornfield, holding in
+perfect kernels all the future corn wealth of that farm.
+
+From the first day's husking a bushel of ears was reserved from the crib
+and was spread on a chamber floor to dry quickly; later this was taken
+to the mill and ground into samp, one of the prized luxuries of the
+autumn bill of fare. Other corn was ground into finer meal for the
+delicious Johnny-cake and the Indian bread, the latter reaching fullest
+perfection when baked in a brick oven.
+
+To the tenants of the farm barns the corn meant even more than to those
+in the farm house. In August the cattle in dry pastures cast longing
+eyes and expressive voices toward the pale, green leaves and waving
+tassels of the sowed-corn, and great was their joy the first day they
+tasted this delicacy; in November, they munched the dry leaves of the
+planted crop, leaving in the barn-yard an angular patterned carpet of
+bare, hard stalks. In winter the corn meal, in proper proportions, made
+for them a food that kept them warm despite the cold winds that clutched
+at them, through crevices, with fingers of drifted snow. And no less
+dependent on this important crop were the denizens of the fold, of the
+sty, and of the chicken-yard.
+
+The old-time harvesting and husking are passing from the New York farm
+of to-day. The granary is no longer frescoed with braids of model ears,
+for the seed corn is now bought by the bushel from the seedsmen. The
+corn harvester has dissolved the partnership between corn and pumpkin
+and fells the stalks by the acre, doing away with the old-time stooks or
+shocks. Corn-stalks now become silage and are fed in a green condition
+throughout the winter. How often do we lose something of picturesqueness
+when we gain the advantages of modern improvements! Let us be thankful,
+however, that the corn harvester and the silo make efficient use of the
+great fields of corn.
+
+Although there is but one species of corn recognized (_Zea Mays_), there
+have been an endless number of varieties developed from it. Seven
+hundred and seventy of these were sufficiently distinct to be recognized
+when the Department of Agriculture published its account of varieties.
+The importance of the corn crop to this country and to others is almost
+incalculable. In 1902, the United States produced more than two and a
+half billion bushels and the export price was $.60 per bushel. When the
+corn crop fails every man, rich or poor, in America, suffers from it,
+and every business is affected by it. Though the man working in the
+cornfield may think only of his own crop, yet he is the man that is
+helping maintain the prosperity of our country. He is working for us
+all.
+
+
+QUESTIONS ON THE RIPENED CORN.
+
+1. Is the corn crop in your vicinity good this year?
+
+2. What affected it, beneficially or otherwise?
+
+3. How many ears of corn are there usually on a mature stalk?
+
+4. Are they on the same side of the stalk, or how are they disposed?
+
+5. How many kinds of corn do you know?
+
+6. Describe an average ear of each in the following particulars: shape
+and color of kernel; number of rows of kernels on the cob; number of
+kernels in a row; length of cob. Are the rows in distinct pairs? Do any
+of the rows disappear near the tip; if so, how many?
+
+7. Study a cob with corn on it. Are the kernel-sockets of adjacent rows
+opposite each other or alternate?
+
+8. Cut a kernel of pop-corn and a kernel of field corn across and
+compare the texture of the two. What has this texture to do with causing
+the kernel to "pop?"
+
+9. How many foods do you know made from the grain of the corn?
+
+10. How many products do you know made from stalks of the corn?
+
+11. Do you know of any part of the corn that is used in constructing
+battleships?
+
+12. What is the corn crop of New York State worth in dollars a year?
+(See U. S. Census Bulletin, No. 179.)
+
+13. How many bushels of shelled corn are usually produced on an acre of
+well cultivated land?
+
+14. Could the corn plant itself without the agency of man?
+
+If you are able to draw, please make a sketch of a kernel of sweet corn
+and a kernel of field corn. Break an ear of corn in two and sketch the
+broken end, showing shape of the cob and its relation to the kernels.
+
+
+NOTE ON THE NEW CORN BREEDING.[58]
+
+[58] Extracted from an article by L. H. Bailey in Country Life in
+America, July, 1903.
+
+The particular materials that give the corn kernel most of its value are
+the oil, the protein and the starch. For the production of corn oil--for
+which the demand is large--a corn that has a high oil content is, of
+course, particularly valuable; while for the production of starch or for
+the feeding of bacon hogs, a relatively higher percentage of other
+materials is desirable. It is apparent, therefore, that races of corn
+should be bred for a particular content, depending on the disposition to
+be made of the grain. Equal economic results cannot be attained,
+however, in increasing the content of any of the three leading
+ingredients, since a pound of gluten is worth one cent, a pound of
+starch one and one-half cents, and a pound of oil five cents. The
+amounts of these ingredients in the corn kernel are amenable to increase
+or diminution by means of selection,--by choosing for seed the kernels
+of ears that are rich or poor in one or the other of these materials.
+Fortunately, the oil and starch and protein of the corn kernel occupy
+rather distinct zones. Next the outside hull is a dark and horny layer
+that is very rich in protein; in the center is the large germ, very rich
+in oil; between the two is a white layer of starch. It is found that the
+kernels on any ear are remarkably uniform in their content; the
+dissection of a few kernels, therefore, enables the breeder to determine
+the ears that are rich in any one of the substances. Experiment stations
+in the corn-growing States are already making great headway in this new
+breeding of corn, and one private concern in Illinois is taking it up as
+a commercial enterprise. All this recalls the remarkable breeding
+experiments of the Vilmorins in France, whereby the sugar-content of the
+beet was raised several points. It is impossible to overestimate the
+value of any concerted corn-breeding work of this general type. The
+grain alone of the corn crop is worth about one billion dollars
+annually. It is possible to increase this efficiency several
+percentages; the coming generation will see it accomplished.
+
+An interesting cognate inquiry to this direct breeding work is the study
+of the commercial grades of grains. It is a most singular fact that the
+dealer's "grades" are of a very different kind from the farmer's
+"varieties." In the great markets, for example, corn is sold as "No. 1
+yellow," "No. 2 yellow," "No. 3 yellow," and the like. Any yellow corn
+may be thrown into these grades. What constitutes a grade is essentially
+a judgment on the part of every dealer. The result is that the grain is
+likely to be condemned or criticised when it reaches its destination.
+Complaints having come to the government, the United States Department
+of Agriculture has undertaken to determine how far the grades of grain
+can be reduced to indisputable instrumental measurement. The result is
+likely to be a closer defining of what a grade is; and, this point once
+determined, the producer will make an effort to grow such grain as will
+grade to No. 1, and thereby attain to the extra price. Eventually, the
+efficiency points of the grower and the commercial grades of the dealer
+ought nearly or quite to coincide. There should come a time when corn is
+sold on its intrinsic merits, as, for example, on its starch content.
+This corn would not then be graded 1, 2 and 3, on its starch content,
+because that content would be assured in the entire product; but the
+grade 1 would mean prime physical condition, and the lower grades
+inferior physical condition. Eventually, something like varietal names
+may be attached to those kinds of corn that, for example, grade fifteen
+per cent protein. The name would be something like a guarantee of the
+approximate content, as it now is in a commercial fertilizer.
+
+The first thing that strikes one in all this new work is its strong
+contrast with the old ideals. The "points" of the plants are those of
+"performance" and "efficiency." It brings into sharp relief the
+accustomed ideals as to what are the "good points" in any plant,
+illustrating the fact that these points are for the most part only
+fanciful, are founded on a priori judgments, and are more often
+correlated with mere "looks" than with efficiency. An excellent example
+may be taken from corn. In "scaling" any variety of corn it is customary
+to assume that the perfect ear is one nearly or quite uniformly
+cylindrical throughout its length, and having the tip and butt well
+covered with kernels. Now, this ideal is clearly one of perfectness and
+completeness of mere form. We have no knowledge that such form has any
+correlation with productiveness in ears, hardiness, drought-resisting
+qualities, protein or starch content,--and yet these attributes are the
+ones that make corn worth growing at all. We only know that such ears
+may bear more kernels. An illustration also may be taken from string
+beans. The ideal pod is considered to be one of which the tip-projection
+is very short and only slightly curved. This, apparently, is a question
+of comeliness, although a short tip may be associated in the popular
+mind with the absence of "string" in the pod; but it is a question
+whether this character has any direct relation to the efficiency of the
+bean-pod. We are also undergoing much the same challenging of ideas
+respecting the "points" of animals. Now, animals and plants are bred to
+the ideals expressed in these arbitrary points by choosing for parents
+the individuals that score the highest. When it becomes necessary to
+recast our "scales of points," the whole course of evolution of domestic
+plants and animals is likely to be changed. We are to breed not so much
+for merely new and striking characters, that will enable us to name,
+describe and sell a "novelty," as to improve the performance along
+accustomed lines. It may be worth while to produce a "new variety" of
+potato by raising new plants from the seed-bolls; but it is much more to
+the point to augment the mealiness of some existing variety or to
+intensify its blight-resisting qualities. We are not to start with a
+variety, but with a plant.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XLIV.
+
+THE USES OF FOOD STORED IN SEEDS.[59]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[59] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. V, No. 4, January, 1904.
+
+  "A mystery passing strange,
+  Is the seed in its wondrous change;
+  Forest and flower in its husk concealed,
+  And the golden wealth of the harvest field."
+
+  --LUCY LARCOM.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+As is the case with our own babies, the first necessity of the infant
+plant is food close at hand to sustain this tiny speck of life until it
+shall be large and strong enough to provide for itself. If we study any
+seed whatever we shall find some such motherly provision for the plant
+baby or germ. Sometimes the germ is a mere speck with a large amount of
+food packed around it, as is the case with the nutmeg; sometimes the
+baby is larger and its food is packed in a part adjacent to it, as is
+the case with the corn (Fig. 279); and sometimes the mother stuffs the
+baby itself so that it has enough to last it until its own little roots
+and leaves bring it mature food, as is the case with the squash seed. In
+any case this "lunch put up by the mother," to use Uncle John's words,
+is so close at hand that as soon as favorable conditions occur the
+little plant may eat and grow, and establish itself in the soil.
+
+Nature is remarkable for her skill in doing up compact packages, and in
+no other place is this skill better shown than in storing food in seeds
+for the young plants. Not only is it concentrated, but it is protected
+and of such chemical composition that it is able to remain fresh and
+good for many years awaiting the favorable moment when it may nourish
+the starting germ. People often wonder why, when a forest is cleared of
+one species of trees, another species grows in its place. This often may
+have resulted from the seeds lying many years dormant awaiting the
+opportunity. This preservation of the food in the seed is largely due to
+the protecting shell that keeps out the enemies of all sorts, especially
+mould. And yet, however strong this box may be, as it is in the
+hard-shelled hickory nut, it falls apart like magic when the germ within
+begins to expand.
+
+Brain rather than brawn is the cause of man's supremacy in this world.
+Of all the beings that inhabit the earth he knows best how to use for
+his own advantage all things that exist. His progress from savagery to
+civilization is marked by his growing power to domesticate animals and
+plants. Very early in his history man learned the value to himself of
+the seeds of the cereals. He discovered that they may be kept a long
+time without injury; that they contain a great amount of nutrition for
+their bulk; that they are easily prepared for food; that, when planted,
+they give largest return. Thus, we see, the advantages the plant mother
+had developed for her young, man has turned to his own use. That the
+food put up for the young plant is so protected and constituted as to
+endure unhurt for a long time gives the cereal grains their keeping
+quality. That it is concentrated and well packed renders it convenient
+for man to transport. That the "box" is easily separated from the
+"lunch" makes the preparation of food by crushing and sifting an easy
+matter for man. That every mother plant, to insure the continuation of
+the species, develops many seeds, so that in the great struggle for
+existence at least some shall survive, makes the cereals profitable for
+man to plant, and harvest the increase. Think once, how few ears of corn
+it requires to plant an acre.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 279. Section of kernel of corn, showing the embryo,
+and the food supply at one side of it (at the right)._]
+
+Because of all these things there has grown up between domestic plants
+and man a partnership. Man relieves the plant of the responsibility of
+scattering its seeds, and in return takes for himself that proportion of
+the seeds which would have died in the struggle for existence had the
+plant remained uncultivated. This partnership is fair to both parties.
+
+Different plants store food materials in different proportions in their
+seeds; the most important of these food substances are starch, oil,
+protein, and mineral matter. All of these materials are necessary to man
+as food. In the cereals the seeds contain a large proportion of starch,
+but in the nuts, like the butternuts and walnuts, there is a
+predominance of oil. Let us for a moment examine a kernel of corn and a
+kernel of wheat and see how the food is arranged. Fig. 279 is a kernel
+of corn cut in two lengthwise; at the lower left-hand corner are the
+root parts and leaf parts of the young plant (the embryo); above the
+embryo is the loose starch material. Now we have the baby corn plant
+lying at one side, and its food packed about it. However, this food is
+in the form of starch, and must be changed to sugar before the young
+plant can partake of it and grow. There lies a connecting part between
+the germ and its food, the scutellum. This is so constituted that when
+soaked with water it ferments the starch and changes it to sugar for the
+young plant's use.
+
+The germ itself is also a very nutritious food for man; hence the seed
+is eaten, "baby and all." In the corn, those kernels with the largest
+germs have the largest food value, and, therefore, to-day corn breeders
+are developing kernels with very large embryos.
+
+If we examine the microscopic structure of the food part of a grain of
+wheat (Fig. 280), we find that there are two outer layers, _a_ and _b_.
+Next there is a row of cells _d_ that divides these outer layers from
+the flour cells within. This is the aleurone layer. At _e_ are the flour
+cells which constitute the central portion of the wheat kernel. They
+contain starch, and also gluten, and some oil, and some mineral
+substances. In grinding to make white flour, the miller tries to leave
+the aleurone layer of cells _d_ with the outer layers _a_ and _b_, for
+if it is mixed with the flour the latter spoils much sooner, and it is
+also darker in color. In the seed is a ferment that helps digest the
+food for the young plant.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 280. Section of grain of wheat._]
+
+In order to think more intelligently about our use of food, let us find
+out, if we can, which parts of the food stored up by the plant for its
+sustenance are used by us both for ourselves and our livestock. The
+intelligent farmer gives his stock a carefully balanced ration, _i. e._,
+food that is well proportioned for the growth and product of the animal.
+If he wishes his cows to give more milk he may give them more proteids
+in their food, and less starch and fat. If he wishes to fatten them he
+may give them a greater amount of starch and fat and less of the
+proteids. In order to know what these proteids and starch and fat mean,
+both to us and to the plant, we have to know a little chemistry. The
+following table may aid us in this:
+
+  Nutritive substances which   {Proteids (casein, gluten, legumen,
+  contain nitrogen.            {  etc., albuminoids, gelatine,
+                               {  white of egg, etc.).
+
+  Nutritive substances which   {The carbohydrates (sugar and
+  do not contain nitrogen.     {  starch). Fats (oils, butter).
+
+  Mineral substances.          {Lime, phosphorus, sulfur, etc.
+
+The substances mentioned in the above table are all needful to
+sustain the life of man and beast. If we compare the body to a
+steam engine, then we can see that its whole framework is built
+out of the proteids, mineral matter and water. The starch and sugar
+and fats constitute the fuel used to heat the boiler and make the
+engine move. Strictly speaking the proteids are also used somewhat
+as fuel, as well as for framework. It is easily seen from this
+that in order to be healthy we should try to give ourselves food
+containing a proper amount of building material to repair the
+breakage and wear and tear in the engine, and also give ourselves
+enough fuel to make the boiler do its greatest possible work. For
+if we do not have sufficient building material we break down, and
+if we do not have sufficient fuel we lack energy. Food thus properly
+proportioned is called a "well balanced ration."
+
+A well balanced ration per day for the average human being is
+as follows:
+
+  Proteids, - - - - - -   .40 lbs.
+  Starch, - - - - - - -  1.00  "
+  Fats, - - - - - - - -   .40  "
+  Mineral matter, - - -   .10  "
+                        -----------
+                         1.90 lbs.
+
+The above is the amount of nutriment necessary, and in addition to this
+there should be sufficient bulk to keep the digestive organs healthy. We
+are just now entering upon the era of intelligence in relation to our
+food. It seems strange that this intelligence should first be applied to
+our domestic animals rather than to man. As soon as the farmer
+discovered that to make his animals pay better he must give them the
+right proportions of building material and fuel for energy, he demanded
+that the agricultural chemists give him directions for mixing and
+preparing their food. But how few of the cooks in our land understand in
+the slightest degree this necessity for the proper proportions to our
+food! When they do we may look forward to entering upon an era of serene
+good health, when we shall have strength to bear and ability to do.
+
+In answering the following list of questions you may be obliged to
+consult with the miller, or feed-dealer, but it is to be hoped that you
+will gain a clear conception of the parts of the seed used in making
+foods from cereals.
+
+1. What is graham flour? How does it differ from white wheat flour?
+
+2. What is whole wheat flour?
+
+3. What is bran?
+
+4. What is cracked wheat?
+
+5. What are shorts, middlings, or canaille?
+
+6. Which of the above are considered the more nutritious and why?
+
+7. What part of the corn kernel is hominy?
+
+8. What is corn meal?
+
+9. Is corn bran considered good food?
+
+10. What is gluten meal?
+
+11. What is germ meal?
+
+12. Why is corn fattening to cattle?
+
+13. How much of the oat grain is contained in oat meal?
+
+14. What is a cotyledon?
+
+15. Show by sketch or describe the cotyledon in the chestnut, the walnut
+or hickory nut, and the bean.
+
+16. Describe or show by sketch the position of the germinal portion in
+each of these.
+
+If you cannot find the germ in these, soak them in water for several
+days and then observe.
+
+The following publications may be had from the Department of
+Agriculture, Washington, D. C., on application:
+
+Circular No. 46, Revised--The Functions and Uses of Food. By C. F.
+Langworthy.
+
+Circular No. 43, Revised--Food-Nutrients-Food Economy. The Cost of Food
+as Related to its Nutritive Value. By R. D. Milner.
+
+
+A PROBLEM IN FEEDING.
+
+As our knowledge increases, we give greater attention to the economical
+and efficient use of all feeds for live-stock. We cannot afford to feed
+even the corn stalks carelessly, either for the immediate concern of the
+pocket-book or for the good of the animal. The results of many
+experiments in feeding lead to the conclusion that a suitable daily
+ration for a cow giving milk and weighing 1,000 pounds should contain 24
+pounds of dry matter, of which 2.5 pounds is digestible protein; .4
+pounds digestible fat; and 12.5 pounds digestible carbohydrates. In such
+a ration, the ratio of digestible protein to digestible carbohydrates in
+the ration will be as 1 is to 5.4. In computing this ratio the amount of
+fat, multiplied by 2.4, is added to the carbohydrates. The fiber and the
+nitrogen-free extract constitute the carbohydrates. Individual animals
+vary so much in digestive capacity and in other respects that the
+foregoing standards may be frequently widely departed from to advantage.
+Thus many animals will profitably use more than 24 pounds of dry matter
+in a day and the ratio of protein to carbohydrates may vary from 1:5 to
+1:6.5 without materially affecting the amount or character of the
+product. Standards are useful as guides. The art of feeding and the
+skill of the feeder consist in determining in how far the standard
+should be conformed to or departed from in each individual case.
+
+Suppose a farmer has corn silage and timothy hay, and may purchase
+cotton seed meal, wheat bran and buckwheat middlings, how may they be
+combined so that the ration shall contain 24 pounds dry matter, and the
+ratio of protein to the carbohydrates shall be approximately 1:5.4? The
+following table gives the data:
+
+                              Water. Protein. Fiber. Nitrogen-free  Fat.
+                                                        extract.
+
+  In 100 pounds of silage[60]. 79.1     1.2     4.3       7.4         .6
+  Timothy hay                  13.2     3.4    16.8      28.4        1.2
+  Cotton seed meal              8.2    31.3     1.3      10.9       11.9
+  Wheat bran                   11.9    13.6     1.8      43.1        3.2
+  Buckwheat middlings          13.2    22.     [61]      33.4        5.4
+
+[60] Silage is often put up when the corn is more mature, and then the
+water content is less than here given.
+
+[61] Included with nitrogen-free extract.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XLV.
+
+THE LIFE HISTORY OF A BEET.[62]
+
+BY MARY ROGERS MILLER.
+
+
+[62] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. IV, No. 29, February, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+If you are fond of a dish of "greens" made of young beet leaves in early
+summer, you must see to it that there are beets in the garden. What
+shall be planted? Seeds. Certainly; but where do the seeds come from?
+Most of us buy them from a seedsman, it is true; but somebody must grow
+them. They are not manufactured articles. If the beet plant produces
+seeds it must first have flowers. Have you ever seen the beet in
+blossom? When do the flowers come and how do they look?
+
+Study the picture in Leaflet LII. Read the history beneath the picture.
+Better still, get a plump red beet from the cellar, and plant it in a
+can, a box, or a flower-pot. If no beets are to be had, a turnip, a
+carrot, or a parsnip will do as well. It seems that "plants" come from
+beet roots as well as from beet seed. The root you plant in the
+flower-pot grew last summer from a seed. When may we expect the plant to
+produce seeds of its own, thus multiplying according to its nature? If
+you keep a beet plant long enough it will answer this question.
+
+Beet seeds are rather slow in germinating. For this reason it is common
+to soak them in warm water several hours or a day before planting in the
+garden. These facts are interesting in themselves; and instead of being
+discouraged should we not try to find out some reason why the beet seed
+should take more time than the corn or the bean? From a comparative
+study of a beet seedling and of a plant which comes from a beet root
+throughout a season, one may learn the whole life history of a beet.
+This story is not written down in books. Every stage of growth noted in
+the two plants should be regarded as typical of the life of an
+individual, for each plant must pass through all these stages in its
+development from seed to seed again.
+
+The seedling beet pushes out roots and begins early to take food from
+the soil. One may even see the root-hairs through which the liquids
+enter the plant. Inquire if the plant growing from a beet root has put
+out new roots. Have not its old ones dried long ago in the cellar? It is
+a good idea to have more than one plant, so that investigation of a
+matter like this may go on without disturbing all. Where, if not from
+the soil through roots, does the food come from which nourishes those
+thick-ribbed leaves? From the stored-up material in the root, does it
+not? Is this not the plant's way of providing for the second half of its
+life, after a long resting period in the "beet" stage? When the "plant"
+or top has grown quite large, how does the old beet look?
+
+We may read in the botany that certain plants are biennials, taking two
+seasons to pass through all the phases from seed to seed; but we shall
+not know the joy of gaining knowledge from original sources nor
+experience the mental training that comes with this "finding out"
+process until we have actually planted the beets or other things and
+watched them grow.
+
+The following questions relate to the study of a beet plant. Any other
+available plant may be reported on. The important thing is that a minute
+study be made of some particular plant.
+
+What plant are you making this special study of this month?
+
+What care do you give it?
+
+What conditions of temperature and moisture do you find most beneficial
+to its growth?
+
+What other plants are related to it? (Mention a wild and a cultivated
+plant.)
+
+What leads you to think them related? (Make this clear and definite.)
+
+How do the plants which come from beet roots differ from those which
+come from the seed?
+
+Of what utility to the plant is the fleshy root of beet, turnip, or
+carrot? When is this root made use of by the plant?
+
+What becomes of the old beet as the plant grows larger and stronger?
+
+What is the natural length of life of an individual beet plant?
+
+Through how many changes of form does it pass? Which of these are
+"resting" stages?
+
+Give the events in the life history of a beet in chronological order by
+seasons, beginning with a seed in the spring of 1903, and ending with
+the first crop of ripened seed.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XLVI.
+
+PRUNING.[63]
+
+BY MARY ROGERS MILLER.
+
+
+[63] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. IV, No. 20, February, 1902.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+You should know how the trees in your school yard have been pruned. Who
+did the work, nature or a man with a saw? Some people hold to the idea
+that pruning is unnatural, and therefore should not be practiced. Let us
+see if this is true. Have you ever gone into the deep woods after a
+storm? Who has been there, tearing and wrenching at the big limbs,
+twisting the small branches until the ground is strewn with wreckage?
+Nature has been pruning a few trees and she works with a fury which is
+awe-inspiring. But the trees are much the worse for their encounter with
+the forces they must obey without question. Their branches are broken;
+mere stubs are left. With the melting snow and the April rains germs of
+decay are likely to enter at every break in the bark. In a few years the
+trunk may be weakened and the monarch of the woods lie prone upon the
+forest floor.
+
+We may learn the lesson of how not to prune by looking at this great
+pine tree torn by the storm (Fig. 281).
+
+"But why do we prune?" one asks. Let the horticulturist answer. In a
+Farmers' Reading-Course lesson on The Care of Trees, Professor Craig
+says: "Fruit trees must be pruned. If a tree in an open field is allowed
+to go unpruned, the crown soon becomes a dense mass of twigs and
+interlacing branches. Such a tree may produce as large a number of
+apples as a well-pruned, open-headed tree, but will there be the same
+percentage of merchantable fruit? The chief effort of every plant under
+natural conditions is expended in ensuring its own reproduction. This is
+chiefly effected by means of seeds. A small apple may contain as many
+seeds as a large one and even more. The orchardist wants big fruits, and
+if they are nearly seedless so much the better."
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 281. A pine tree pruned by the storm._]
+
+In a tree top there is a sharp struggle for existence. But few of the
+twigs which started from last year's buds will reach any considerable
+size. One needs only to count the dead and the dormant buds on a branch,
+and the weak, stubby, or decayed side shoots to appreciate this fact. If
+part of the branches are cut out, this struggle is reduced and energy is
+saved. By judicious pruning the tree may be shaped to suit the needs of
+the owner. If a low tree is desired to make fruit-gathering easy pruning
+keeps the head down. An open, spreading habit may be encouraged by
+cutting out such branches as tend to grow close to the main trunk. A
+careful orchardist has an ideal in his mind and knows how to prune to
+bring the tree up to his standard. He knows the habits of trees of
+different varieties. He will not prune all alike. He must prune some
+every year, or the trees will not carry out his plans.
+
+The pruner should not only know why he prunes, but how the work should
+be done. He should be able to tell why he removes one limb and leaves
+another. When I look at the trees in parks and along the streets I
+wonder at the careless pruning. Judging from the way they are treated
+one would think that a tree could be produced in "a year or two or three
+at most."
+
+Pruning should not be confined to fruit trees. It may be practiced with
+profit on all kinds of plants from shade trees to house plants. Pinching
+off the terminal bud of a young geranium makes the plant branch. Cutting
+the lower limbs of a young elm makes the tree more stately. Nature may
+do this, but broken branches leave wounds which the tree cannot heal.
+Small branches may be cut close with a sharp knife or pruning shears.
+The tree readily heals these places. It is little short of a crime to
+break or tear limbs from trees. The injury done to the trees is bad
+enough; but does not such heedless treatment of living things also have
+a baneful influence on the mutilator?
+
+For larger branches, if these must come off, no tool is better than a
+sharp saw. The cut should be smooth and clean. No ragged edges of bark
+should be left. The branch should all be cut off, and care should be
+taken not to tear the bark about the wound. If a stub six or eight
+inches long, or even one inch, be left, the tree is likely to suffer.
+The branch started years ago from a bud on the side of the main trunk,
+then but a twig itself. The fibers of the branch are continuous with
+those of the trunk. In the air are the germs of decay. These take hold
+of the bare stub and soon make their way to the center of the tree
+itself. Try as it may, the tree cannot quickly heal a wound so far from
+the main paths traveled by the sap in the trunk.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 282. Close cutting results in prompt healing._]
+
+The two illustrations (Figs. 282, 283) show the right and the wrong way
+to remove a limb. When the branch is cut close, new growth takes place
+all around the cut surface and in a few years the wound is healed.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 283. The long stub does not heal._]
+
+Bad pruning is worse than no pruning. Do you not think that nature
+students should use their influence to protect the trees in the school
+grounds, in the door yards, and along the streets? Trees have insect and
+fungous enemies enough without having to contend against carelessness
+and neglect.
+
+
+QUESTIONS ON PRUNING.
+
+1. Describe the results of some of the natural forces you have seen
+pruning trees. Observe willows after a storm.
+
+2. Are all sorts of trees affected alike by wind, ice, and snow?
+
+3. From your observations which kinds suffer most? Give your opinion as
+to why.
+
+4. Nature does not always prune in this boisterous fashion. Silent
+forces are at work pruning out the weak buds and shoots, giving the
+strong ones a better chance. Select a very young tree, or a shrub like
+the lilac. Examine the tips of the branches. You will find healthy buds
+on last season's growth. See if you can find any dormant buds. Are there
+any weak-looking or dead twigs?
+
+5. Compare the number of strong healthy shoots with the number which the
+plant started to make. How many of each?
+
+6. Mention several good effects which may result from pruning.
+
+7. What are some of the bad results of over-pruning? Of insufficient
+pruning?
+
+8. Consult some orchard-owner concerning this subject. When does he
+prune to increase the production of fruit? When to increase the growth
+of the woody part of the tree?
+
+9. If the lower branches of a tree are not removed, what is the effect
+on the shape of the tree?
+
+10. For what kinds of trees is this form desirable?
+
+11. What is your opinion as to the shearing of evergreens into fantastic
+shapes?
+
+12. If a tree has a tendency to grow crooked, how should one prune to
+correct the habit?
+
+13. Would you prune an elm tree just as you would an apple tree? Why?
+
+14. Why does pinching off the terminal bud of a geranium produce a more
+bushy plant?
+
+15. Discuss in full the reasons for cutting a limb off smoothly and
+close to the main trunk or larger branch. Look at every tree you pass to
+see whether it has been pruned well. Has it been able to cover its
+wounds by the healing process?
+
+16. Is it correct to suppose that "anybody" can prune a tree?
+
+17. The cut surfaces made by pruning large limbs from trees are often
+covered with thick paint, tar, or Bordeaux mixture. What is the purpose
+of this?
+
+18. Why is it better to prune a little every year than a great deal once
+in five years?
+
+19. When is the best time to prune shade trees? Why?
+
+20. Does a tree carry the bases of its branches upward as it grows
+higher, or does the base of every branch remain at the level from which
+it started originally? Observe many trees in different situations before
+making up your mind on this point.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XLVII.
+
+A STUDY OF A TREE.[64]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[64] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. V, No. 2, November, 1903.
+
+  THE SUGAR MAPLE.
+
+  The maple puts her corals on in May,
+  While loitering frosts about the lowlands cling,
+  To be in tune with what the robins sing,
+  Plastering new log-huts 'mid her branches gray;
+  But when the autumn southward turns away,
+  Then in her veins burns most the blood of Spring,
+  And every leaf, intensely blossoming,
+  Makes the year's sunset pale the set of day.
+
+  --LOWELL.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Like a friend is a tree, in that it needs to be known season after
+season and year after year in order to be truly appreciated. A person
+who has not had an intimate, friendly acquaintance with some special
+tree has missed something from life. Yet even those of us who love a
+tree because we find its shade a comfort in summer and its bare branches
+etched against the sky a delight in winter, may have very little
+understanding of the wonderful life-processes which have made this tree
+a thing of beauty. If we would become aware of the life of our tree we
+must study it carefully. We should best begin by writing in a blank book
+week after week what happens to our tree for a year. If we keep such a
+diary, letting the tree dictate what we write, we shall then know more
+of the life of our tree.
+
+In selecting a tree for this lesson I have chosen the sugar maple, for
+several reasons. It is everywhere common; it is beautiful; it is most
+useful; and it has been unanimously chosen as the representative tree
+of the Empire State. Let each of us choose some maple tree in our
+immediate vicinity that shall be the subject for our lesson now, and
+again in the winter, and again in the spring. Our first thought in this
+study is that a tree is a living being, in a measure like ourselves, and
+that it has been confronted with many difficult problems which it must
+have solved successfully, since it is alive. It has found breathing
+space and food; it has won room for its roots in the earth and for its
+branches in the light; and it has matured its seeds and planted them for
+a new generation.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 284. Sugar maple._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 285. A sugar maple grown in an open field._]
+
+
+BRIEF PHYSIOLOGY OF THE TREE.
+
+The tree lives by breathing and by getting its daily food. It breathes
+through the numerous pores in its leaves, and green bark, and roots. The
+leaves are often called the lungs of the tree, but the young bark also
+has many openings into which the air penetrates, and the roots get air
+that is present in the soil. So the tree really breathes all over its
+active surface, and by this process takes in oxygen from the air. It
+gives off carbon dioxid as we do when we breathe.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 286. Silver maple._]
+
+While the leaves act as partial lungs they have two other most important
+functions. First, they must manufacture the food for the entire tree.
+"Starch factories" is the name that Uncle John gives to the leaves when
+he talks to children, and it is a good name. The leaf is the factory;
+the green pulp in the leaf cells is part of the machinery; the machinery
+is set in motion by sun-shine power instead of steam or water power; the
+raw materials are taken from the air and from the sap sent up from the
+roots; the first product is usually starch. Thus, it is well when we
+begin the study of our tree to notice that the leaves are so arranged as
+to gain all sunlight possible, for without sunlight the starch factories
+would be obliged to "shut down." It has been estimated that on a mature
+maple of vigorous growth there is exposed to the sun nearly a half acre
+of leaf surface. Our tree appears to us in an unfamiliar light when we
+think of it as a starch factory covering half an acre. Plants are the
+original starch factories. The manufactories that we build appropriate
+the starch that plants make from the raw materials.
+
+Starch is plant-food in a convenient form for storage; but as it cannot
+be assimilated by plants in this form it must be changed to sugar before
+it can be transported and used in building up plant tissues. Hence the
+leaves have to perform the office of a stomach in order to digest the
+food they have made for the use of the tree; they change the starch to
+sugar, and they take from the sap nitrogen, sulfur, phosphorus, and
+other substances which the roots have appropriated from the soil, and to
+these they add portions of the starch, and thus make the proteids which
+form another part of the diet of the tree. It is interesting to know
+that while these starch factories can operate only in the sunlight, the
+leaves can digest the food, transport it, and build up tissues in the
+dark.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 287. The bole of a sugar maple grown in a wood._]
+
+The autumn leaf, which is so beautiful, has completed its work. The
+green material which colors the pulp in the leaf cells is withdrawn,
+leaving there material which is useless, so far as the growing of the
+tree is concerned, but which glows gold and red, thereby making glad the
+eye that loves the varying tints in autumn foliage. It is a mistake to
+believe that the frost makes these brilliant colors: they are caused by
+the natural old age and death of the leaf, and where is there to be
+found old age and death more beautiful? When the leaf turns yellow or
+red it is making ready to depart from the tree; a thin corky layer is
+being developed between its petiole and the twig, and when this is
+finally accomplished the leaf drops from its own weight, from the touch
+of the lightest breeze, or from a frost on a cold night.
+
+
+OBSERVATIONS ON THE MAPLES.
+
+We want you to know the maples from actual observation.
+
+Discover the characteristic forms of the tree, the character of bark,
+fruits, and leaves. Verify the pictures in this lesson.
+
+Though the fruit of the sugar maple matures in midsummer, yet you may
+perhaps find beneath your tree some of the keys or seeds now partially
+planted. If the tree stands alone you may perchance see how well she has
+strewn its seeds, and how many of its progeny have been placed in
+positions where they can grow successfully.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 288. Leaves and fruits of Norway maple._]
+
+We have in New York State seven species of maple common in our forests.
+Two of these are dwarf species rarely attaining thirty-five feet in
+height, more often found as mere bushes. These two are the mountain
+maple and the striped maple or moosewood. This latter is sometimes
+called goose-foot maple, because its leaf is shaped somewhat like the
+foot of a goose. Of the maples that attain to the dignity of tall trees
+we have four species: the sugar maple, the silver or white maple, the
+red or swamp maple, and the box elder. The leaf of the box elder does
+not look like the leaf of a maple at all; it has a compound leaf of
+three or five leaflets, but the flowers and fruits are those of the
+maples. There is also a variety of sugar maple that is called black
+maple. We have planted in our parks the sycamore and Norway maples
+introduced from Europe, and also ornamental species from Japan. Our
+native species are easily distinguished from these and from each other;
+just a little observation as to the shape of the leaves, the form of the
+trees, and the character of the bark enables a person to tell all these
+species at a glance. I hope that you will become familiar with the seven
+native species. Such knowledge is not only of practical use, but gives
+real zest and pleasure. When a person walks in the morning he should be
+able to call his tree acquaintances as well as his human acquaintances
+by name.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 289. Leaves and fruits of striped maple._]
+
+
+QUESTIONS ON THE MAPLES.
+
+1. How many species of maple trees do you know and what are they?
+
+2. How do you distinguish the red maple and the silver maple from the
+sugar maple?
+
+3. What is the shape of the one tree you have chosen to study?
+
+4. What is there in its shape to tell you of its history, _i.e._, did it
+grow in the open or in the forest? Was it ever shaded on either side;
+if so, what was the effect? How have the prevailing winds affected its
+shape?
+
+5. How old do you think the tree is?
+
+6. Was the tree injured by storm or insects during the past season; if
+so, how?
+
+7. Study the leaves on this tree and note any differences in shape and
+color.
+
+8. What is the use of the skeleton of the leaf?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 290. Leaves of mountain maple, sugar maple, red
+maple._]
+
+9. Is there always a bud in the axil where the leaf stalk joins the
+twig?
+
+10. How are the leaves arranged on the twig?
+
+11. What is the color of the tree this autumn?
+
+12. When did the leaves begin to fall? Place in your note book the date
+when the tree finally becomes bare.
+
+13. Have you found any seeds from your tree? If so, describe them.
+
+14. How are they dispersed and planted?
+
+15. Are both seeds of the pair filled out?
+
+16. How high is your tree?
+
+17. How large an area of shade does it produce? If it stands alone,
+measure the ground covered by its shadow from morning until evening.
+
+18. How has its shadow affected the plants beneath it? Are the same
+plants growing there that grow in the open field?
+
+19. Make a sketch of the tree you are studying, showing its outline.
+
+20. Make a sketch of the leaf of the sugar maple.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XLVIII.
+
+THE MAPLE IN FEBRUARY.[65]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[65] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. V, No. 5, February, 1904.
+
+  SAP.
+
+  Strong as the sea and silent as the grave, it ebbs and flows unseen:
+  Flooding the earth,--a fragrant tidal wave, with mists of deepening
+      green,
+
+  --JOHN B. TABB.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+"Tapping the sugar bush" are magical words to the country boy and girl.
+The winter which was at first so welcome with its miracle of snow, and
+its attendant joys of sleighing and skating, begins to pall by the last
+of February. Too many days the clouds hang low and the swirling flakes
+make out-of-door pursuits difficult. Then there comes a day when the
+south wind blows blandly and the snow settles into hard, marble-like
+drifts, and here and there a knoll appears bare, and soggy, and brown.
+It is then that there comes just a suggestion of spring in the air; and
+the bare trees show a flush of living red through their grayness and
+every spray grows heavy with swelling buds. Well do we older folk
+remember that in our own childhood after a few such days the father
+would say, "We will get the sap buckets down from the stable loft and
+wash them, for we can tap the sugar bush soon if this weather holds." In
+those days the buckets were made of staves, and were by no means so
+easily washed as are the metal buckets of to-day. Still do we recall the
+sickish smell of musty sap that greeted our nostrils when we poured the
+boiling water in to cleanse those old, brown buckets. During the long
+winter evenings we had all had something to do with the fashioning of
+the sap spiles made from selected stems of sumac; after some older one
+had removed half of the small branch lengthwise with a draw-shave we
+younger ones had cleared out the pith, thinking thirstily meanwhile of
+the sweet liquid which would sometime flow there.
+
+With buckets and spiles ready when the momentous day came, the large,
+iron caldron kettle was loaded on a stoneboat together with the sap cask
+and log chain, the axe and various other utensils, and as many children
+as could find standing room; and then the oxen were hitched on and the
+procession started across the rough pasture to the woods where it
+eventually arrived after numerous stops for reloading almost everything
+but the kettle. When we came to the boiling-place we lifted the kettle
+into place and flanked it with two great logs, against which the fire
+was to be kindled. Meanwhile the oxen and stoneboat had returned to the
+house for a load of buckets; and the oxen blinking with bowed heads or
+with noses lifted aloft to keep the underbrush from striking their faces
+"geed and hawed" up hill and down dale through the woods, stopping here
+and there while the man with the auger bored holes in certain trees near
+other holes which had bled sweet juices in years gone by. When the auger
+was withdrawn the sap followed it and enthusiastic young tongues met it
+half way though they received more chips than sweetness therefrom. Then
+the spiles were driven in tightly with a wooden mallet.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 291. Sugar making in New York._]
+
+The next day after "tapping," those of us large enough to wear the
+neck-yoke donned this badge of servitude and with its help brought pails
+of sap to the kettle, and the "boiling" began. As the evening shades
+gathered, how delicious was the odor of the sap steam permeating the
+woods farther than the shafts of fire-light pierced the gloom! How weird
+and delightful was this night experience in the woods! and how
+cheerfully we swallowed the smoke which the contrary wind seemed ever to
+turn toward us! We poked the fire to send the sparks upward and now and
+then we added more sap from the barrel and removed the scum from the
+boiling liquid with a skimmer which was thrust into the cleft end of a
+stick to provide it with a sufficiently long handle. As the evening wore
+on we drew closer to each other as we told the stories of the Indians
+and the bears and panthers that had roamed these woods when our father
+was a little boy; and there came to each of us a disquieting suspicion
+that perhaps they were not all gone yet, for everything seemed possible
+in those night-shrouded woods; and our hearts suddenly jumped into our
+throats when nearby there sounded the tremulous, blood-curdling cry of
+the screech owl.
+
+It was the most fun to gather the sap in the warmer mornings, when on
+the mounds the red squaw-berries were glistening through a frosty veil;
+then we looked critically at the tracks in the snow to see what visitors
+had come sniffing around our buckets. We felt nothing but scorn for him
+who could not translate correctly those hieroglyphics on the film of
+soft snow that made white again the soiled drifts. Rabbit, skunk,
+squirrel, mouse, muskrat, fox: we knew them all by their tracks.
+
+After about three days of gathering and boiling the sap, came the
+"syruping down." During all that afternoon we added no more sap, and we
+watched carefully the tawny steaming mass in the kettle; and when it
+threatened to boil over we threw in a thin slice of fat pork which
+seemed to have some mysterious, calming influence. The odor grew more
+and more delicious, and finally the syrup was pronounced sufficiently
+thick. The kettle was swung off the logs and the syrup dripped through a
+cloth strainer into the carrying pail. Oh! the blackness of the material
+left on that strainer! but it was "clean woods-dirt" and never destroyed
+our faith in the maple sugar any more than did the belief that our
+friends were made of "dirt" destroy our friendship for them.
+
+Now the old stave bucket and the sumac spile are gone, and in their
+place a patent galvanized spile not only conducts the sap but holds in
+place a tin bucket carefully covered. The old caldron kettle is broken
+or lies rusting in the shed. In its place are evaporating vats placed
+over furnaces with chimneys, built in the new-fangled sugar houses. The
+maple molasses of to-day seems to us a pale and anæmic liquid and lacks
+just that delicious flavor of the rich, dark nectar which we, with the
+help of cinders and smoke and various other things, brewed of yore in
+the open woods.
+
+While sugar-making interests us chiefly as one of our own industries,
+yet we must not forget that it is based upon the life processes of the
+maple tree, and in studying about it we may be able to learn important
+facts about the tree which we have chosen for our study.
+
+
+QUESTIONS ON THE MAPLE TREE.
+
+1. How does the maple tree look in winter? Describe it or sketch it.
+
+2. Are the buds on the twigs opposite or alternate?
+
+3. Are the tips of the twigs the same color as the bark on the larger
+limbs and trunk?
+
+4. If you can draw, make a pencil sketch, natural size, of three inches
+square of bark of the maple tree trunk.
+
+5. How does the bark on the trunk differ from that on the branches?
+
+6. How does the bark on the trunk of a maple tree differ from that on
+the trunk of a soft maple or an elm?
+
+7. What work for the tree do the trunk and branches perform?
+
+8. Is the tree tapped on all sides? If not, why?
+
+9. How deep must the spiles be driven successfully to draw off the sap?
+
+10. Would you tap a tree directly above or at the same spot tapped last
+year; or would you place two spiles one above the other? Give reasons.
+
+11. Why does the sap flow more freely on warm days after cold nights?
+
+12. Is the sap of which we make sugar going up or down?
+
+13. How does the sugar come to be in the sap?
+
+14. Why is the sugar made during the "first run" better than that which
+is made later? Why cannot you make sugar in the summer?
+
+15. Does it injure trees to tap them?
+
+16. Do the holes made in earlier years become farther apart as the tree
+grows?
+
+17. What other trees besides the sugar maple give sweet sap?
+
+18. What animals, birds, and insects are to be seen in the woods during
+sugar-making time?
+
+19. Have you ever seen the tracks of animals on the snow in the woods?
+If so, make pictures of them and tell what animals made them.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET XLIX.
+
+THE RED SQUIRREL OR CHICKAREE.[66]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[66] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. V, No. 2, November, 1903.
+
+    "All day long the red squirrels came and went, and afforded
+    me much entertainment by their manoeuvres. One would approach
+    at first warily through the shrub-oaks, running over the snow
+    crust by fits and starts like a leaf blown by the wind, now a
+    few paces this way, with wonderful speed and waste of energy,
+    making inconceivable haste with his "trotters" as if it were for
+    a wager, and now as many paces that way, but never getting on
+    more than half a rod at a time; and then suddenly pausing with
+    a ludicrous expression and a gratuitous somerset, as if all the
+    eyes in the universe were fixed on him,--for all the motions of
+    a squirrel, even in the most solitary recesses of the forest,
+    imply spectators as much as those of a dancing girl,--wasting more
+    time in delay and circumspection than would have sufficed to walk
+    the whole distance,--I never saw one walk,--and then suddenly,
+    before you could say Jack Robinson, he would be in the top of a
+    young pitch-pine, winding up his clock and chiding all imaginary
+    spectators, soliloquizing and talking to all the universe at the
+    same time,--for no reason that I could ever detect, or he himself
+    was aware of, I suspect."--THOREAU.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+From contact with civilization some wild animals flourish while others
+are soon exterminated by association with man. To this latter class
+belongs the black squirrel. Within my own memory this beautiful creature
+was almost as common in the rural districts of New York State as was the
+red squirrel; but now it is seen no more except in most retired places;
+while the red squirrel, pugnacious and companionable, defiant and shy,
+climbs on our very roofs and sits there scolding us for daring to come
+within his range of vision. One reason for the disappearance of the
+black squirrel is, undoubtedly, the fact that its meat is a delicious
+food. The red squirrel is also good food at certain times of the year,
+but because of its lesser size, and its greater agility and cunning, it
+has succeeded in living not merely despite of man, but because of man,
+for now he rifles corn cribs and grain bins and waxes opulent by levying
+tribute on man's own savings.
+
+Although the red squirrel is familiar to us all, yet, I think, there are
+few who really know its habits, which are as interesting as are those of
+bear or lion. Note, for example, the way he peeps at us from the far
+side of the tree, and the way he uses his tail as a balance and a help
+in steering as he leaps. This same tail he uses in the winter as a boa
+by wrapping it around himself as he lies curled up in his snug house.
+His vocal exercises are most entertaining also; he is the only singer I
+know who can carry two parts at a time. Notice some time this autumn
+when the hickory nuts are ripe that the happy red squirrel is singing
+you a duet all by himself,--a high, shrill chatter, with a low chuckling
+accompaniment.
+
+We usually regard nuts as the main food of squirrels, but this is not
+necessarily so; for they are fond of the seeds of pines and hemlocks,
+and also hang around our orchards for apple-seeds. In fact, their diet
+is varied. The red squirrel is a great thief and keeps his keen eye on
+chipmunks and mice, hoping to find where they store their food so that
+he can steal it if he can do so without danger to his precious self.
+
+
+QUESTIONS ON THE RED SQUIRREL.
+
+We want you to make some original observations on the red squirrel.
+
+1. In summer, what is the color of the red squirrel on the upper parts?
+Beneath?
+
+2. What is the color along the side where the two colors join?
+
+3. Do these colors change in winter?
+
+4. Tell how and where the squirrel makes its nest.
+
+5. Does it carry nuts in its teeth or in its cheeks?
+
+6. Has it cheek pockets like the chipmunk?
+
+7. Does the red squirrel store food for winter use? If so, where?
+
+8. Does it spend its time sleeping in winter like the chipmunk, or does
+it go out often to get food?
+
+9. Name all the kinds of food which you know it eats.
+
+10. Did you ever see a red squirrel disturb birds' nests?
+
+11. How does a squirrel get at the meat of a hard-shelled nut like a
+black walnut, or a hickory nut? (Answer this by a sketch, if you can
+draw.)
+
+12. Do the squirrels of your neighborhood have certain paths in
+tree-tops which they follow?
+
+13. How many emotions does the squirrel express with his voice?
+
+14. What kind of tracks does the red squirrel make in the snow? (Show
+this by a sketch if possible.)
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET L.
+
+THE IMPROVEMENT OF COUNTRY SCHOOL GROUNDS.[67]
+
+BY JOHN W. SPENCER.
+
+
+[67] Supplement to Junior Naturalist Monthly, February, 1902.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+MY DEAR TEACHER:
+
+Despite all that is said and done the average school ground is far short
+of its possibilities in an artistic way. Of this you are well aware, and
+no doubt you have often wished that you might remedy this defect. Your
+hours are full of arduous work. Perhaps, however, you can interest your
+children to help you to clean and to improve the grounds, without much
+extra care or work on your part.
+
+This illustration of a schoolhouse (Fig. 292) is taken from Bulletin
+160, published by the College of Agriculture of Cornell University. The
+title of the bulletin is "Hints on Rural School Grounds." I wish you
+would send for the bulletin. It will be mailed you free if you request
+it.
+
+The picture is not an imaginary sketch, but a faithful representation of
+what stood in a prosperous rural community less than five years ago. To
+one familiar with country school buildings it will not be considered as
+a solitary "awful example," but rather as a type of many that are
+scattered over the State. I hope it is not your misfortune to be
+teaching in such a house, even though it is my desire to reach every
+teacher who is that luckless. However, to make my talk more real let us
+"make believe," as children say, that you are the priestess in a similar
+temple of learning. Together we will plan how we can make the most of
+very uncongenial surroundings.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 292. A country school property._]
+
+It would be safe to wager a red apple that the inside of the building is
+every bit as dilapidated as the outside. A community that tolerates such
+a building would not be likely to have anything but the rudest furniture
+and most of that on crutches. It would be something out of the usual if
+the box stove is not short a leg or two, with brick-bats being used as
+substitutes. You will be fortunate if the stove door has two good hinges
+and if the wood is not green. At the last school meeting, did the
+patrons instruct the trustees not to pay more than six dollars per week
+for your services? Was the proposition that the district raise five
+dollars, to which the State would add five more for the purchase of
+books for a library, unanimously voted down and the poor man who
+introduced the resolution expected to apologize for his temerity? The
+leading man in the district each Sunday during summer drives two miles
+to salt his young stock, inspect fences, and see how the yearlings are
+prospering; but he never thinks of visiting the school to see how his
+children are progressing. Yet the people of this district are not bad.
+They are counted good citizens by the bar and judge, when they are drawn
+on juries. The public buildings at the county-seat are models of their
+kind and these gentlemen do not remonstrate as to the expense. Perhaps
+it has not occurred to them that school buildings and grounds should
+have as high a standard as those of the county. A correct public ideal
+is everything. It is not a hopeless undertaking to advance such an ideal
+in the community of which we are speaking.
+
+I suggest to you as teacher in this school to undertake some
+improvements in the grounds. I consider the above sketch to be a zero
+case. If improvements can be developed here, it is reasonable to suppose
+that the same can be repeated where conditions are primarily better. The
+possibilities are sufficient to warrant the undertaking. The victory
+will add to your strength. The lives of the children will be better
+filled for the part they may do, and you will have started a public
+improvement.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 293. "The girls organized themselves into a
+tug-of-war team."_]
+
+I should not appeal to the parents for help. You have a fountain of
+power in the children. It is necessary only to inspire and guide them.
+This is no theory of mine. It is a result that has been worked out in
+many instances.
+
+The beautiful city of Rochester is proud of its schools. The development
+of the town made the construction of new school buildings necessary to
+such an extent that little money remained for the improvement of the
+grounds. Some of them were located in the breadwinners' districts. The
+grounds were as the contractor left them; your imagination can picture
+their condition. The interiors were well nigh perfect. The exterior was
+sometimes a Sahara of mud and builders' rubbish. The principal of one of
+the schools--a woman, by the way,--knowing the force in children, set
+about to apply it to the improvement of the surroundings. Her method was
+first to inspire, and then to direct. Her success was ample. Both boys
+and girls participated. The girls organized themselves into a tug-of-war
+team (Fig. 293). By fastening ropes to sticks and beams, these things
+were hauled out of sight. The boys leveled the hummocks and brought
+fertile soil from some distance. This principal confined her
+improvements to small areas--so small that the children wanted to do
+more when they were through. From the time school opened until the
+rigors of winter stopped the juvenile improvements, only part of the
+space from the front of the building to the street was graded. Some of
+the boys brought chaff from a haymow, which was raked in as lawn grass
+seed. The following spring quite as many weeds appeared as grass, but
+the children gave the weeds the personification of robbers and made
+their career short. The promoters had a just pride in what they had
+accomplished; and that meagre bit of lawn meant vastly more to them than
+had it been made by a high-salaried landscape gardener.
+
+I am acquainted with another instance, where the patrons are largely
+Polish Jews. I am credibly informed that the average head of a family
+does not have a gross annual income to exceed three hundred and fifty
+dollars. This necessitates that the mother go out for work and that the
+children leave school as soon as the law allows to take up work. Yet
+with all these unfavorable circumstances the pupils have a pride in
+their school grounds that is glorious to see. In the fall of 1901 prizes
+were offered for the greatest improvement of school grounds made by
+children. Nothing daunted, the principal entered his grounds in
+competition with those in the more wealthy part of the city. The
+committee of awards gave him the third prize. To judge from the mere
+physical side, the decision was no doubt just; but when judged on the
+score of getting the greatest results from the least material, the
+principal and his school may have deserved the first prize, plus a
+reward.
+
+The chances are that your fuel is wood, and perhaps not very
+dry at that. It is in a pile in the open. Sometimes the sticks are
+scattered over half the lot. This you can prevent by properly
+appealing to the pride of your pupils. You will find that they
+wish to be more tidy than is the school over in Whippoorwill Hollow
+or in some other district that is considered to be a little more
+in the back country than your own.
+
+About the time you hear the first spring notes of the bluebird and the
+robin, prepare public opinion in your little school community for a
+spring furnishing. You can devise many ways to inspire them. Tell them
+about Col. George R. Waring and his white brigade and what they did to
+make New York City cleaner than it had been for many decades before.
+After the Spanish war, when Cuba became a responsibility upon the United
+States, the question arose as to what could be done to make filthy
+Havana cleaner and freer from yellow fever. No one was thought by the
+Federal government so competent to solve the problem as Colonel Waring.
+He went, spared not himself, and did his duty, did it so fearlessly that
+he died the victim of the filth he had fought so valiantly. He had done
+much during previous years to commend his memory to posterity; but
+probably nothing will stand out so prominently as his great ability to
+correct municipal untidiness. Ask your pupils to be Warings in their own
+neighborhoods.
+
+By this time the ground will be bare of snow and it will be soft. Ask
+some of the pupils to bring rakes, and have them gather up the rubbish.
+You can all play gypsies when you gather about the bonfire. This will be
+a favorable time to sow grass seed; for I have no doubt the school lot
+will need it. A lawn mixture of seed would be ideal, but I hardly expect
+you to pay for it. At this stage of your improvements, I scarcely expect
+that any of the patrons of your school would do so either. Later some of
+them may feel differently. Your pupils can at least follow the plan of
+those spoken of in Rochester--get chaff from a haymow. It will
+inevitably be a mixture of grass and weeds, but the latter can be pulled
+out after germinating. It is barely possible that some farmer will give
+you some clover and timothy, such as he uses in seeding his meadow; and
+this will be far better.
+
+Next, I should put out a hitching-post. When your school commissioner
+calls it will be appreciated. If that functionary does not publicly
+compliment your school for even such small improvements, I wish you
+would report such indifference to me, giving his full address, and I
+will request him to explain this forgetfulness.
+
+Good results in landscape-gardening depend on observing certain
+principles, the same as with our wardrobe. Many a clever girl will
+accomplish more in dress with twenty-five dollars than others can do
+with twice that amount. Among the first and most important efforts is to
+make a frame or setting for the house by planting around the borders of
+the place. Sometimes the location will make this inconvenient if not
+impossible, when, for instance, the building is placed near the street
+or crowded between other buildings. Even in such cases, however, it is
+well to keep the idea clearly in mind and to approach it as nearly as
+circumstances will permit. An illustration of a normal location to which
+this principle can be applied is shown in Fig. 294. The trees and the
+higher shrubs are planted first and on the extreme borders of the lot,
+with shorter shrubs, roses, and the like in front of them. This frame
+can be given a finish by planting flowers or very low things next the
+grass. If the area be ample, let the edges be irregular (Fig. 294); but
+if very limited, straight lines become necessary.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 294. Showing how the borders may be planted._]
+
+The open space within the boundaries should be a mat of green carpeting,
+for nothing can be more beautiful than sward. Fight all influences to
+bedeck it with beds of flowers in forms of stars and moons and other
+celestial and terrestrial designs. The demands for such capers may be
+great, but hold out against them boldly. Certain small shrubs, ferns,
+and flowers may be planted along the walls of the building, particularly
+in the angles; but I beg of you to leave the green plat unscalloped and
+unspoiled, only as is necessary for drives and walks. When the buildings
+are unsightly, cover with vines and plant bushes against them. Fig. 295
+illustrates how Fig. 292 may be improved with very little effort.
+
+Now I will speak of the actual planting. In the light of unnumbered
+thousands of Arbor Day trees put out to struggle a few weeks for life
+and then die, this may seem the most important feature of my article. To
+the unsuccessful planter, let me suggest that he select shrubs and trees
+which take care of themselves under adverse conditions. We have a
+number of such. If they were imported from Japan and sold at fancy
+prices, they would be greatly appreciated. The common sumac is one of
+them. For a shrub I know of nothing of its class so sure to bear the
+ordeal of transplanting or to make more vigorous growth under adverse
+conditions. It can be pruned to suit, and nothing can rival its blaze of
+color in late autumn; yet as a farmer, I know the experience of fighting
+against its existence in fence corners, about stone piles, and on steep
+hillsides. I do this even though I am fond of the shrub and admire it.
+It encroaches on my vineyard and injures the crop. Grapes will help pay
+taxes and sumac will not. In my cherry orchard it is a weed. In my back
+yard and on the borders of my lawn it is an ornamental shrub. The same
+can be observed of people. When in their proper sphere they are helpful
+factors in a community; when out of it they are nuisances.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 295. How the grounds in Fig. 292 may be improved._]
+
+If you ask me to mention a tree most likely to live when planted by
+unskilled hands, I should name the willow. I mean the most common kind
+to be found in the northern States--the kind that stands beside the
+roadside watering-trough. The impression is common that willows will
+thrive only in wet places. It is true that a willow is very comfortable
+in places where many other trees will suffer from wet feet; yet it will
+give good results elsewhere. It is reasonable to suppose that poor soil
+goes with a poor school building, and a refined tree would probably
+find life hard in such a place. I should certainly plant a willow in
+such cases. It will thrive where a goat can, and where a sheep cannot.
+For city places, the Carolina poplar is to be recommended. If the soil
+is good enough, plant maples, elms, or other trees.
+
+A judicious planting of Virginia creeper helps the appearance of
+buildings both good and bad. I should surely plant it about the main
+building and the outbuildings and fences, if the patrons of the school
+did not object. The probabilities are that when the vines have begun to
+cover some of the deformities of the place, some finicky resident of the
+district will cut them out on the plea that they promote decay of the
+weather-beaten clap-boards; but do not be discouraged by such a
+possibility. Vines, too, usually interfere with the painting of a
+building. Although they may be taken down and put back after the
+painters are through, the first effect is not regained unless the
+process of putting back has been done with unusual care.
+
+Do not make the mistake of planting too much. A small lawn can be
+overdressed as is sometimes the case with women. Lilac, Japan quince,
+syringa, hydrangea, and like common shrubs, could be planted if the
+opportunities of space seem to warrant.
+
+I hope it will be your taste to allow the limbs of the trees to start
+low and those of the shrubs to begin as near the ground as possible. I
+am aware that among country people it is the practice to tolerate only
+the higher limbs. I can give a reason for this only on the supposition
+that they must do something in pruning, and the lower limbs are the most
+convenient to reach. I know a man who came into possession of a place
+having a fine lot of evergreens with the lower branches at the ground.
+By way of proclaiming a change of ownership he cut away the lower
+branches, leaving a bare trunk of about five feet. Before he touched
+them they were beautiful green cones and when passing the place I always
+turned my face in their direction to enjoy the beauty. When he was
+through they were standing on one leg, and a wooden leg at that. I have
+never felt kindly toward the man since.
+
+In the matter of planting I know of no better method than that of the
+experienced orchardist. As a rule he buys his trees of a nurseryman.
+They are often dug in the fall, and are planted the following spring.
+During the interval they are stored in specially constructed cellars,
+and at no time are the roots permitted to become dry. When packed for
+shipment damp moss is placed about the roots. When the orchardist
+removes them from the packing box he "heels" them in, which is a kind of
+probationary planting in shallow furrows where they stand until ready to
+be set out permanently. When that time comes the trees are taken from
+the trench and the roots plunged in a tub of thin mud or doused with
+water and covered with a blanket. An orchardist counts a tree lost if
+the roots have been allowed to remain in the sun until the small
+rootlets have so dried that they have a gray appearance.
+
+In taking the young tree from the nursery row only a fraction of the
+original roots go with the tree, and these are badly bruised at the
+point of cleavage. These ragged ends should be dressed smoothly by means
+of a slanting cut with a knife. All mutilated roots should be removed.
+You must bear in mind that the roots you find with the trees are capable
+of performing but a small part of what was done by all the roots when
+growing in their native place.
+
+The hole in which the tree is set should be large enough to accommodate
+the roots without cramping them out of their natural positions. It is
+important that the earth used for filling should be fertile, and it is
+doubly important that it should be fine--even superfine. Clods, even
+small clods like marbles, will not snuggle up to the bark of the root as
+closely as is absolutely necessary. Set the tree about an inch deeper
+than you think it originally stood, so that when planted and the earth
+settles, it will really be about the same depth. All the earth should
+not be dumped in at once and then the surface pressed firm with the
+feet. A close examination will show that the soil has "bridged" in
+places, leaving many roots in tiny caverns. It is important that fine
+soil should be snuggled close to each little rootlet, not for warmth but
+for moisture. Fill the hole by installments of one-third at each
+filling. Sprinkle the fine earth about the roots. Then dash in a third
+of a pail of water. This will give the roots much needed moisture and,
+best of all, will wash the earth about each root fiber. I urge the
+adoption of this careful method for all trees and shrubs, not excepting
+the sumac and willow. Even wallows will show their gratitude for such
+considerate treatment, even though they are able to survive rougher
+usage. They will pay for it when the drought and neglect of summer come.
+
+The most common mistake made in the selection of trees is in taking
+those that are too large. For the conditions that we have under
+consideration, I suggest that a tree no larger than a broom-handle be
+chosen. I know that the common feeling is, "we shall have to wait too
+long for our shade." Unless the larger tree is in the hands of an
+expert, the smaller will be the more desirable at the end of five years.
+I much prefer, moreover, the selection of a tree or shrub growing in the
+sunshine, rather than one from the shade.
+
+I have one final request to make, which to the novice will be the most
+difficult of all and one which he is quite likely to fail in performing
+because of lack of moral courage. I mean the cutting back of the top of
+the tree or shrub after planting. Before the removal of the tree, the
+roots probably found pasturage in a cart load of soil. After planting,
+the root pasturage is not more than half a bushel of soil. What follows
+when the forces of plant growth begin? A demand for soil products, with
+a very much restricted means of supply. The top must be cut back to
+match the shortened root system. Thousand of trees die every year
+because this principle is not duly observed and the failure is often
+attributed to the nurseryman. The amount necessary to cut back differs
+with different trees and shrubs. No hard and fast rules can be given.
+With willows and sumacs one-third to one-half of everything bearing leaf
+buds can be cut away. With a maple having a diameter of one and a half
+inches at the butt, I should suggest that about one-third of the branch
+area be left to grow.
+
+In this article I have had in mind the improvement of school grounds
+where all the conditions are at zero--where the building would be a
+discredit to any owner, where the patrons are totally indifferent, and
+where the only resource is to awaken a public spirit on the part of the
+children. With better school buildings, more ample grounds, and a small
+number of patrons favorable to improvement, the foregoing ideas need not
+be followed closely. However, they do contain principles and some
+details that deserve careful consideration, even in landscape planting
+of the highest form. The first step should be the development of local
+pride. Something may be accomplished among the parents; but it is a
+problem as to what extent that may be done. To the true teacher the
+pupils may be counted upon as the mainstay in such an undertaking. To
+such a teacher I should say, Do not for a moment believe that the
+improvements seen about the school grounds will be all the good that is
+wrought. Fifty years from now there will be a few gray-haired
+men and women who take more interest in the appearance of their
+"front-door-yard," and give their children encouragement in having a
+posy bed "all their own," and who extend sympathy and service to the
+better appearance of the school grounds, because of your altruism when
+you taught district school.
+
+We have some aids that may be helpful to you and to which you are
+welcome. Bulletin 160, spoken of at the beginning, specifically treats
+of this work, and Bulletin 121, on "Planting of Shrubbery," has been
+very popular. We have published a number of articles on children's
+gardening, all of which will be sent you free if you request it. If you
+have specific problems we shall be glad to have you write and we will
+help you all we can by correspondence.
+
+The most efficient help we can give you is through the organizing of
+your pupils into Junior Naturalist clubs. We give these clubs especial
+instruction in gardening and the improvement of home and school grounds.
+Children receive great inspiration from large numbers doing the same
+thing, while we can give instruction to ten thousand as easily as to one
+child. Many hundreds of teachers and thousands of children find the
+study of nature a beam of sunshine in the schoolroom and a great aid in
+the English period without being a burden to the teacher.
+
+
+
+
+PART II.
+
+CHILDREN'S LEAFLETS.
+
+DESIGNED TO OPEN THE EYES OF THE YOUNG.
+
+
+Most of these leaflets were published as companions to the Teachers'
+Leaflets and Lessons,--the teachers' lessons written in one vein and the
+children's in another. Even though the subject-matter may be largely
+duplicated in the two, it seems worth while to keep these separate as
+showing a simple method of presentation and as suggesting a means of
+procedure to those who would reach small children.
+
+
+
+
+THE CHILD'S REALM.
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+  A little child sat on the sloping strand
+    Gazing at the flow and the free,
+  Thrusting its feet in the golden sand,
+    Playing with the waves and the sea.
+
+      I snatch'd a weed that toss'd on the flood
+        And parted its tangled skeins;
+      I trac'd the course of the fertile blood
+        That lay in its meshèd veins;
+
+      I told how the stars are garner'd in space,
+        How the moon on its course is roll'd,
+      How the earth is hung in its ceaseless place
+        As it whirls in its orbit old:--
+
+  The little child paus'd with its busy hands
+    And gaz'd for a moment at me,
+  Then dropp'd again to its golden sands
+    And play'd with the waves and the sea.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LI.
+
+A SNOW STORM.[68]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflet VII.)
+
+  A chill no coat however stout,
+  Of homespun stuff could quite shut out,
+       *       *       *       *       *
+  The coming of the snow storm told.
+
+  --WHITTIER.
+
+
+[68] Junior Naturalist Monthly, December, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+"Surely, it is going to snow," says Grandfather, as he puts an armful of
+wood into the old box beside the fire; and a happy feeling comes over
+you, and you like Grandfather a little better because he has promised
+you a snow storm. "What a wise old Grandfather he is!" you think. He
+always seems to know what is going to happen out-of-doors and you wonder
+how he learned it all. Perhaps I can tell you why Grandfather is so
+wise. When he was a boy he lived on a farm and was in the outdoor world
+summer and winter. There he learned to know Nature day by day. This is
+why he can consult her now as to wind and weather, and why he nearly
+always understands what she tells him. He is a good observer.
+
+If you hope ever to be as weather-wise as Grandfather, you must begin
+right away to see and to think. The next time you hear him say, "It is
+going to snow," put on your fur cap and mittens and go out-of-doors. Is
+the air clear, crisp, and cold--the kind you like to be out in? Or is it
+a keen cold that makes you long for the fire-place? Can you see the sun?
+If so, how does it look? In what direction is the wind? How cold does
+the thermometer tell you it is?
+
+All the time that you are learning these things the storm will be
+coming nearer. Then on your dark coat sleeve something soft and white
+and glistening falls--a snowflake. You touch the bright thing and it
+disappears. Where did it come from and whither did it go? Others follow
+faster and faster, jostling each other as they whirl through the air.
+Look at them closely. Are the crystals large and flowery or small and
+clear? Put your head back and let them come down on your face. Is their
+touch soft or do they hurt as they fall?
+
+Perhaps by this time you are very cold and think that supper must be
+nearly ready. You go into the house, and you find the gray kitten
+snoozing comfortably on the hearthrug. You snuggle down beside her "to
+warm your frozen bones a bit," and still the storm and outdoor world are
+near; for is it not splendid music that the wind is making as it roars
+down the old chimney or sways the tall pine trees?
+
+
+SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY.
+
+Answer as many of the following questions as you can from your own
+observations:
+
+1. How did the sky look before it began to snow? During the storm? After
+the storm? It is always a good thing to look up at the sky.
+
+2. In what direction did the old weather-cock tell you the wind was
+blowing as the storm came on? Did the wind change during the storm? If
+so, did the snow change in any way?
+
+3. Look at snow crystals through a tripod lens if you have one. How many
+points do they have?
+
+4. After supper go to the window, raise the shade, and look out on the
+stormy night. Tell Uncle John all that you see.
+
+5. On your way to school the next day after a snow storm, have the
+following in mind to write to us about:
+
+(a) The tracks in the snow. How many do you find? Did Rover make them?
+the gray kitten? a snow bird? an old crow? a rabbit? a squirrel?
+
+(b) The way the trees and small plants receive the snow. Some hold it,
+others cast it off: why?
+
+(c) Notice the snow drifts. Where are they highest? Why does the snow
+pile up in some places and not in others? Is the drift deepest close to
+buildings or a little way from them? Are the drifts deepest close to the
+trees, or is there a space between the tree and the drift?
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LII.
+
+A PLANT AT SCHOOL.[69]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[69] Junior Naturalist Monthly, February, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+I dropped a seed into the earth. It grew, and the plant was mine.
+
+It was a wonderful thing, this plant of mine. I did not know its name,
+and the plant did not bloom. All I know is that I planted something
+apparently as lifeless as a grain of sand and that there came forth a
+green and living thing unlike the seed, unlike the soil in which it
+stood, unlike the air into which it grew. No one could tell me why it
+grew, nor how. It had secrets all its own, secrets that baffle the
+wisest men; yet this plant was my friend. It faded when I withheld the
+light, it wilted when I neglected to give it water, it flourished when I
+supplied its simple needs. One week I went away on a vacation, and when
+I returned the plant was dead; and I missed it.
+
+Although my little plant had died so soon, it had taught me a lesson;
+and the lesson was that it is worth while to have a plant. I wish that
+every Junior Naturalist would have a plant. It matters little what the
+plant is. Just drop the seed, keep the earth warm and moist, watch the
+plant "come up," see it grow. Measure its height at a given time every
+day. Keep a record of how many times you water it. Make a note of every
+new leaf that appears. See whether it leans towards the light. If it
+dies, tell why. Four weeks from the time when you plant the seed, send
+Uncle John your notes.
+
+A sheet of foolscap paper contains about twenty-eight lines, one line
+for the notes of each day, and space enough at the top to write your
+name, date of sowing, kind of seed, and nature of the soil. Open the
+sheet and on each line at the left side write all the dates for four
+weeks ahead; then fill in these lines across the two pages day by day as
+the plant grows. For the first few days there will not be much to write,
+but you can say whether you watered the earth or not, and where you
+kept the pot or box. It will be good practice to get into the habit of
+taking notes. I suppose that the record of the first few days will run
+something as follows:
+
+    MYRON JOHNSON, name of school, age ----. ----, Teacher.
+
+    _Feb. 2._ Monday. Planted six cabbage seeds in loose soil from the
+    chip yard. I put the earth in a small old tin cup, and pressed it
+    down firmly. I made it just nicely moist, not wet. I planted the
+    seeds about equal distances apart and about one-fourth inch deep,
+    and pressed the earth over them.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 297. An egg-shell farm. The plants, from left to
+right, are: cabbage, field corn, pop-corn, wheat, buckwheat._]
+
+_Feb. 2._ Did not water to-day, for the soil seemed to be moist enough.
+
+_Feb. 3._ Watered at 10:30 A. M. Teacher told me to be careful not to
+make the soil too wet.
+
+_Feb. 4._ Watered at noon.
+
+_Feb. 5._ Put the cup nearer the stove so that the seeds would come up
+more quickly.
+
+_Feb. 6._ The earth is cracking in two or three places. Watered at noon.
+
+_Feb. 7._ Went to the schoolhouse and found some of the plants coming
+up.
+
+_Feb. 9._ Four of the plants are up. (Here tell how they look, or make a
+few marks to show.)
+
+When your month's record is all complete, send the sheet, or a copy of
+it, to Uncle John, and this will be your club dues. See how many things
+you can find out in these four weeks.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 298. A window plant that is easy to grow. It is a
+common garden beet. The end of the beet was cut off so that it could be
+got into the tin can. A very red beet will produce handsome red-ribbed
+leaves. In all cases, be sure that the crown or top of the plant has not
+been cut off too close, or the leaves may not start readily. The beet
+starts into growth quickly and the growing plant will stand much abuse.
+It makes a very comely plant for the school-room window. Try carrot,
+turnip, and parsnip in the same way._]
+
+Before the four weeks are past write to Uncle John and he will tell you
+what next to do. By that time your plants will need transplanting, and
+he will tell you how to do it. Perhaps you can set some of the plants
+outdoors later on and see them grow all summer; whether you can or not
+will depend on the kinds of plants that you grow. If you want to grow
+asters or cabbages next summer, you can start some of them in February
+and March.
+
+Quick-germinating seeds, fit for starting in the schoolroom, are wheat,
+oats, buckwheat, corn, bean, pumpkin and squash, radish, cabbage,
+turnip. Perhaps some of these require a warmer place than others in
+which to germinate. If you find out which they are, let Uncle John know.
+
+You can grow the plants in egg-shells, wooden boxes (as cigar boxes),
+tin cans, flower pots. If you use tin cans it is well to punch two or
+three holes in the bottom so that the extra water will drain out. Set
+the can or box in a saucer, plate, or dripping-pan so that the water
+will not soil the desk or table. It is best not to put it in a sunny
+window until after the plants are up, for the soil is likely to "bake"
+or to become hard on top; or if you do put it in such a place, throw a
+newspaper over it to prevent the earth from drying out.
+
+
+SUGGESTIONS FOR PLANT STUDY.[70]
+
+[70] Alice G. McCloskey, Junior Naturalist Monthly, January, 1904.
+
+Last year hundreds of children sent us records of their plants. This
+kind of work is most satisfactory to Uncle John. Following is a record
+which we received in March, from a girl in the fourth grade:
+
+Feb. 16--Monday. I planted seven cabbage seeds in an eggshell. I did not
+water it.
+
+Feb. 17--Did not see anything.
+
+Feb. 18--Saw a little brown thing.
+
+Feb. 19--Saw a little seed lying on top.
+
+Feb. 20--Saw little sprout.
+
+Feb. 21--Holiday.
+
+Feb. 22--Holiday.
+
+Feb. 23--Holiday.
+
+Feb. 24--Saw two little sprouts.
+
+Feb. 25--The egg-shell was full of sprouts.
+
+Feb. 26--The plant was coming up and the earth was very wet, so I did
+not water it.
+
+Feb. 27--Saw six sprouts.
+
+Feb. 28--Holiday.
+
+March 1--Holiday.
+
+March 2--Turned the plant around, so it would look toward the light.
+
+March 2--That afternoon I planted the cabbage in a tin can with tissue
+paper around it, because the cabbage outgrew the eggshell some time ago.
+
+March 3--I put the plant out of the window.
+
+March 4--I did not look at it.
+
+March 5--One of the sprouts began to droop.
+
+March 6--I dug the dirt up around it. Then it was put in the air out of
+the window.
+
+March 7--Holiday.
+
+March 8--Holiday.
+
+March 9--I put it out of the window.
+
+March 10--It was put out of the window. It was brought in at the close
+of school.
+
+March 11--Dug the dirt out from the plant and patted it down.
+
+March 12--Watered.
+
+March 13--Put out of the window.
+
+March 14--Holiday.
+
+March 15--Holiday.
+
+March 16--Watered and put out of the window. HELEN.
+
+Was not this a good record for a little girl to make? I wish that she
+had told something about the soil in which she planted the seeds. This
+is always important. In winter you may have some difficulty in getting
+soil, but in the village a florist will let you have some, and in the
+country you may be able to get it in the cellar of a grocery store or
+from your own cellar. Perhaps you can find some in the potato bin. When
+there is a "thaw," get some soil, even if it is very wet; you can dry it
+near the stove. Perhaps your schoolhouse will be too cold over Sunday in
+mid-winter to allow you to grow plants. If so, plant the seeds at home.
+
+When you have planted your seeds, unless you take them up every day, you
+cannot see how the little plants are behaving down under the soil. I
+want to tell you how you can know some things that the plants are doing
+without disturbing them.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 299. Radish seeds germinating between
+blotting-paper and the side of a tumbler._]
+
+Choose an ordinary glass (Fig. 299), roll up a piece of blotting paper
+so that it is a trifle smaller than the glass, and place it inside.
+Between the blotting paper and the glass, put a few radish seeds or any
+kind of seed such as you planted in the soil. Keep the blotting paper
+moist and watch what happens. In four or five days the plants should be
+"up." Here are some things to think about as you watch them:
+
+1. Note any change in the seeds when they have been moist for a few
+hours.
+
+2. What happens to the outer coat of the seed?
+
+3. In what direction does the little root grow? The stem?
+
+4. Notice the woolly growth on the root? Does this growth extend to the
+tip of the root?
+
+5. When the little plant has begun to grow, turn it around so that the
+root is horizontal. Does it remain in that position?
+
+6. How soon do the leaves appear?
+
+It may interest some of the Junior Naturalists to see the effect of much
+water on seeds. Suppose you experiment a little along this line. Choose
+three glasses. In one put seeds into water, in another put them into
+very wet or muddy soil, and in the third plant the seeds in moist soil,
+such as seeds are ordinarily planted in. Tell us the results of the
+three experiments.
+
+
+A THIRD-GRADE RECORD.
+
+Following is a facsimile reproduction of a spontaneous and unpruned
+record made by a child in the third grade. The child grew beans in a
+tumbler against blotting paper, as shown in Fig. 299. I hope that this
+will illustrate to both teacher and children the value of simple
+note-taking.
+
+[Illustration]
+[Illustration]
+[Illustration]
+[Illustration]
+[Illustration]
+[Illustration]
+[Illustration]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 300. The bean plants that were grown by the
+third-grade child._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LIII.
+
+AN APPLE TWIG AND AN APPLE.[71]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflet XXXI.)
+
+
+[71] Junior Naturalist Monthly, January, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Yesterday I went over into the old apple orchard. It was a clear
+November day. The trees were bare. The wind had carried the leaves into
+heaps in the hollows and along the fences. Here and there a cold-blue
+wild aster still bloomed. A chipmunk chittered into a stone pile.
+
+I noticed many frost-bitten apples still clinging to the limbs. There
+were decayed ones on the ground. There were several small piles of fruit
+that the owner had neglected, lying under the trees, and they were now
+worthless. I thought that there had been much loss of fruit, and I
+wondered why. If the fruit-grower had not made a profit from the trees,
+perhaps the reason was partly his own fault. Not all the apples still
+clinging to the tree were frost-bitten and decayed. I saw many very
+small apples, no larger than the end of my finger, standing stiff on
+their stems. Plainly these were apples that had died when they were
+young. I wondered why.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig 301. This is the branch that tried and failed._]
+
+I took a branch home and photographed it. You have the engraving in Fig.
+301. Note that there are three dead young apples at the tip of one
+branch. Each apple came from a single flower. These flowers grew in a
+cluster. There were three other flowers in this cluster, for I could see
+the scars where they fell off.
+
+But why did these three fruits die? The whole branch on which they grew
+looked to be only half alive. I believe that it did not have vigor
+enough to cause the fruit to grow and ripen. If this were not the cause,
+then some insect or disease killed the young apples, for apples, as well
+as people, may have disease.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 302. These are the flowers that make the apples.
+How many clusters are there?_]
+
+Beneath the three dead apples, is still another dead one. Notice how
+shrivelled and dried it is, and how the snows and rains have beaten away
+the little leaves from its tip. The three uppermost apples grew in 1902;
+but this apple grew in some previous year. If I could show you the
+branch itself, I could make you see in just what year this little apple
+was borne, and just what this branch has tried to do every year since.
+This branch has tried its best to bear apples, but the fruit-grower has
+not given it food enough, or has not kept the enemies and diseases away.
+
+The lesson that I got from my walk was this: if the apples were not good
+and abundant it was not the fault of the trees, for they had done their
+part.
+
+In the cellar at home we have apples. I like to go into the cellar at
+night with a lantern and pick apples from this box and that--plump and
+big and round--and eat them where I stand. They are crisp and cool, and
+the flesh snaps when I bite it and the juice is as fresh as the water
+from a spring. There are many kinds of them, each kind known by its own
+name, and some are red and some are green, some are round and some are
+long, some are good and some are poor.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 303. The apples are usually borne one in a place,
+although the flowers are in clusters. Why?_]
+
+Over and over, these apples in the cellar have been sorted, until only
+the good ones are supposed to remain. Yet now and then I find a decayed
+heart or a hollow place. The last one I picked up was fair and handsome
+on the outside, but a black place and a little "sawdust" in the blossom
+end made me suspicious of it. I cut it open. Here is what I found (Fig.
+306). Someone else had found the apple before I had. Last summer a
+little moth had laid an egg on the growing apple, a worm had come from
+the egg and had eaten and eaten into the apple, burrowing through the
+core, until at last it was full grown, as shown in the picture. Now it
+is preparing to escape. It has eaten a hole through the side of the
+apple, but has plugged up the hole until it is fully ready to leave.
+When it leaves it will crawl into a crack or crevice somewhere, and next
+spring change into a pupa and finally come forth a small, dun-gray moth.
+This moth will lay the eggs and then die; and thus will be completed the
+eventful life of the codlin-moth, from egg to worm and pupa and moth.
+But in doing all this the insect has spoiled the apple. The insect acts
+as if the apple belonged to him; but I think the apple belongs to me. I
+wonder which is correct?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 304. The Baldwin apple. How many kinds of apples do
+you know?_]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 305. The same Baldwin apple cut in two._]
+
+Some of these apples are sound and solid on the inside, but they have
+hard blackish spots on the outside (Fig. 307). This is a disease--the
+apple-scab. This scab is caused by minute plants and these plants also
+claim the apple as their own. There are ways by means of which the
+apple-grower is able to destroy the codlin-moth and the apple-scab; and
+thereby he secures fair and sound apples.
+
+Insects and diseases and men are all fighting to own the apple.
+
+
+TEN THINGS TO LEARN FROM AN APPLE.
+
+When you write your dues to Uncle John on the apple, answer as many of
+the following questions as you can. You can get the answers from an
+apple itself. He does not want you to ask anyone for the answers:
+
+1. How much of the apple is occupied by the core?
+
+2. How many parts or compartments are there in the core?
+
+3. How many seeds are there in each part?
+
+4. Which way do the seeds point?
+
+5. Are the seeds attached or joined to any part of the core? Explain.
+
+6. What do you see in the blossom end of the apple?
+
+7. What do you see in the opposite end?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 306. This is an apple in which a worm made its
+home._]
+
+8. Is there any connection between the blossom end and the core?
+
+9. Find a wormy apple and see if you can make out where the worm left
+the apple. Perhaps you can make a drawing. To do this, cut the apple in
+two. Press the cut surface on a piece of paper. When the apple is
+removed you can trace out the marks.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 307. These are the apples on which other plants are
+living.--The apple-scab._]
+
+10. When you hold an apple in your hand, see which way it looks to be
+bigger--lengthwise or crosswise. Then cut it in two lengthwise, measure
+it each way, and see which diameter is the greater.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 308. Here is where city boys and girls buy their
+apples._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LIV.
+
+TWIGS IN LATE WINTER.[72]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
+
+
+[72] Junior Naturalist Monthly, February, 1904.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Along a country road, through a drifted field, over a rail fence, and
+into the woods I went, gathering twigs here and there as I passed. A
+February thaw had come and these first messengers of spring, reaching
+out from shrub and tree, were beginning to show signs of life. Many
+young people do not believe that spring is near until they hear a robin
+or a bluebird. The bare little twigs tell us first. Look at them as you
+go on your way to school. Are they the same color in February that they
+were in the short December days?
+
+When I reached home with my bundle of twigs, it was "fun" to sit by the
+window and study the strange little things. They were so different one
+from another, and so interesting in every way, that I decided to ask our
+boys and girls to gather some winter twigs and tell us about them.
+Select your twigs from the butternut, willow, hickory, horsechestnut,
+apple, plum, plane-tree, maple, or any other tree that you come across.
+Here are some suggestions that will help you in your study:
+
+1. How many colors do you find in one twig? Count the tints and shades.
+I found eight colors on a small maple branch (Fig. 309).
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 309. Red or swamp maple._]
+
+2. Notice the differences in several twigs as they lie on the table.
+What makes them look so different: size, shape, color, arrangement of
+buds, the size or shape of the buds?
+
+3. On how many twigs are the buds opposite each other? Note the opposite
+buds on the horsechestnut (Fig. 310). On how many are they alternate?
+Are the buds opposite on the butternut (Fig. 311)?
+
+4. Which twigs bear the buds singly?
+
+5. When you find two or more buds growing together on a stem, is there
+any difference in the size of the buds?
+
+6. On how many of the twigs can you see a scar left by the leaf when it
+dropped off (Fig. 310 and Fig. 311 _a, a_)? Compare the leaf scars on
+different twigs. Notice the strange scar on the butternut (Fig. 311). It
+looks like the face of an old sheep.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 310. Horsechestnut._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 311. Butternut._]
+
+7. Do you see any cocoons on your twig?
+
+8. You all know the rings on an apple twig that tell how much it grew
+each year. Do you find rings on other twigs? Do you see them on any of
+these pictures?
+
+9. What do you suppose makes these rings? Do you think there was once a
+large terminal bud where these rings are?
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LV.
+
+PRUNING.[73]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflet XLVI.)
+
+
+[73] Extended from Junior Naturalist Monthly, February, 1901.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+First snow, then sleet, and then a down-pour of rain--it stormed all
+day. At night-fall it grew colder. The wind blew fiercely. The twigs and
+branches fell on the white crust which covered the earth. Nature was
+pruning the trees.
+
+Have you ever seen your father go into the orchard and prune his trees?
+Why did he do it? Compare the work done by nature and that which your
+father does. Which seems to be the more careful pruner?
+
+Let us experiment a little. It will please Uncle John. He always wants
+his boys and girls to find out things for themselves. Select a branch of
+lilac or some other shrub. Mark it so that you will always know it.
+Count the buds on the branch. Watch them through the spring and the
+summer. Note the number that become branches. You will then know that
+nature prunes the trees.
+
+If you think a minute, you will see that pruning is necessary in the
+plant world. Suppose a branch has thirty buds, and that every bud should
+produce thirty branches, each of which in turn should produce thirty
+more,--do you think there would be any room left in the world for boys
+and girls? Would a tree be able to hold so many branches?
+
+You certainly have noticed decayed holes in trees. Did you ever wonder
+why they were there? I suppose that most persons never wonder about it
+at all; or if they do give it any passing thought, they say it is only
+"natural" for trees to have rotten spots. But these rotten spots mean
+that once the tree was injured. Perhaps the injury was the work of a
+careless or thoughtless man who pruned the tree. Very few persons seem
+really to know how to remove the limbs of a tree so that the wound will
+heal readily.
+
+As you go and come, observe how the trees have been pruned. Do you see
+long "stubs" left, where limbs have been cut? Yes; and that is the wrong
+way to cut them. They should be cut close to the main branch or trunk,
+for then the wounds will heal over better (Fig. 312). If we abused our
+cows and horses, as we sometimes abuse our shade trees, what would
+become of the animals?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 312. The wrong way and the right way to remove a
+limb._]
+
+Did you ever see trees that were mutilated to allow of the stringing of
+telephone and telegraph wires?
+
+Who owns the shade trees along a street or public highway?
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LVI.
+
+THE HEPATICA.[74]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflet XL.)
+
+
+[74] Junior Naturalist Monthly, March, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Something new and pleasant happened in my life this year. In February,
+while the wood was snow-covered and the roadsides piled high with
+drifts, I saw hepaticas in bloom.
+
+Oh, no! I did not find them out of doors. I had all the fun of watching
+them from my warm chimney-corner. Then when winds blew fiercely I often
+went to the window where they grew and buried my head in the sweet
+blossoms. What do you suppose they told me? If some winter day you feel
+their soft touch on your face, and smell their woodsy fragrance, you
+will hear the message.
+
+Perhaps you want to know how the hepaticas found their way into my
+window-box. Last fall as I walked through a leafy wood I gathered a few
+plants, roots and all, that I had known and loved in spring and summer
+days. Among them were hepaticas. These I laid away in the cellar until
+the first of February. Then I planted them in a corner of the window-box
+that I had left for them.
+
+Since the little woods plants have come to live with me I have learned
+to know them well. Perhaps the most important lesson they have taught me
+is this: The blossoms may be the least interesting part of a plant. Will
+you find out what hepaticas have to tell as the seasons pass?
+
+Even before you hear the first robin, go into the woods, find one of the
+hepaticas, and mark it for your own. You will know it by the old brown
+leaves. Then watch it day by day. The following questions will help you
+to learn its life story:
+
+1. Where do hepaticas grow, in sunny or shady places? During which
+seasons do they get the most sunlight?
+
+2. Watch the first sign of life in the plant. Do the new leaves or the
+flowers come first?
+
+3. Look at the hepatica blossom a long time. How many different parts
+can you see in it? Whether you know the names of these parts now does
+not matter. I want you to see them.
+
+4. Notice the three small, green, leaf-like parts that are around the
+flower bud. As the flower opens see whether they are a part of it, or
+whether they are a little way from it on the stem.
+
+5. Observe the stem closely. Is it short or long? Hairy or smooth?
+
+6. As the new leaves appear find out whether they are fuzzy on the
+inside as well as on the outside. Notice how they are rolled up and
+watch them unroll.
+
+7. In how many different colors do you find hepaticas?
+
+8. Do some smell sweeter than others? If so, does color seem to have
+anything to do with it?
+
+9. Look at a hepatica plant at night or very late in the afternoon. Also
+watch it early in the morning and in cloudy weather. Then look at it in
+bright sunshine. Do you see any change in the flowers? I think you will
+discover something of much interest.
+
+10. Seed-time among hepaticas is very interesting. Notice what becomes
+of the three small, leaf-like parts that were underneath the flower. How
+many seeds are there?
+
+11. How long do you think the leaves of hepatica remain on the plant? Do
+you suppose they remain green all winter?
+
+12. What becomes of the hepatica plant after it blossoms? Did you ever
+see one in summer? Describe.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LVII.
+
+JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT.[75]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflet XLI.)
+
+
+[75] Junior Naturalist Monthly, April, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+  They call him Jack-in-the-Pulpit, he stands up so stiff and so queer
+  On the edge of the swamp, and waits for the flower-folk to come and
+      hear
+  The text and the sermon, and all the grave things that he has to say;
+  But the blossoms they laugh and they dance, they are wilder than ever
+      to-day;
+  And as nobody stops to listen, so never a word has he said;
+  But there in his pulpit he stands, and holds his umbrella over his
+      head,
+  And we have not a doubt in our minds, Jack, you are wisely listening,
+  To the organ-chant of the winds, Jack, and the tunes that the sweet
+      birds sing!
+
+  LUCY LARCOM.
+
+"It is Indian turnip," said I.
+
+"No," said Grandmother, "it's memory root. If you taste it once you will
+never forget it." And what Grandmother said to me so long ago, I say to
+every boy and girl, "If you taste it once you will never forget it."
+
+But of all the names for this strange little wood plant, I like
+Jack-in-the-pulpit best. Though never a word has it said in our lifelong
+acquaintance, it has been a helpful little "country preacher" to me. As
+we go into the woods this year, let us make up our minds that we will
+know more than we ever have known before of its interesting life.
+
+Where do you find the Jack-in-the-pulpit? In what kind of soil does it
+grow? How does it first come up?
+
+What is the shape of the root? One is enough for the whole class to
+study and it should be planted again. We do not want the
+Jack-in-the-pulpit to disappear from our woods.
+
+Does the little hood fold over at first?
+
+The hood or "umbrella" is not the flower. You will find the flowers on
+the little central stalk that you call "Jack." See whether the blossoms
+are alike. Look at the blossoms on several plants. Place a stick by the
+side of one of these plants so that you will know it later in the year
+when the Jack-in-the-pulpit has disappeared.
+
+Notice whether there are insects in the lower part of the flower stalk.
+If so, can they get out?
+
+When the blossom has gone, look for the seeds. What color are they in
+June? In August?
+
+Have you any house plant that you think is related to
+Jack-in-the-pulpit?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 313. Tubers of Jack-in-the-pulpit, or Indian
+turnip._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LVIII.
+
+THE DANDELION.[76]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY and L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[76] Supplement to Junior Naturalist Monthly, May, 1904.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+The first warmth of spring brought the dandelions out of the banks and
+knolls. They were the first proofs that winter was really going, and we
+began to listen for the blackbirds and swallows. We loved the bright
+flowers, for they were so many reflections of the warming sun. They soon
+became more familiar, and invaded the yards. Then they overran the
+lawns, and we began to despise them. We hated them because we had made
+up our minds not to have them, not because they were unlovable. In spite
+of every effort, we could not get rid of them. Then if we must have
+them, we decided to love them. Where once were weeds are now golden
+coins scattered in the sun, and bees revelling in color; and we are
+happy! L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY.
+
+I. Ask your teacher to let you go out of doors for ten minutes to look
+at dandelions. In your note books write answers to the following
+questions:
+
+    1. At what time of day are you looking for the dandelions? Is the
+    sun shining, or is the sky overcast? Make up your mind to notice
+    whether dandelions behave the same at all hours of the day and in
+    all kinds of weather.
+
+    2. How many dandelions can you count as you stand on the
+    school-ground? The little yellow heads can be seen a long distance.
+
+    3. Where do they prefer to grow,--on the hillsides, along the
+    roadsides, in the marshes, or in your garden?
+
+II. Gather a basket full of blossoming dandelions, roots and all, take
+them to school, and ask the teacher to let you have a dandelion lesson.
+Here are some suggestions that will help you:
+
+    1. Each pupil should have a plant, root and all. Describe the
+    plant. Is it tall or short? How many leaves are there? How many
+    blossoms?
+
+    2. Hold the plant up so that you can see it well. How many
+    distinct colors do you find? How many tints and shades of these
+    colors?
+
+    3. Look carefully at the blossom. How many parts has it? How much
+    can you find out about the way in which the yellow head is made up?
+
+III. Mark a dandelion plant in your garden. Watch it every day. Keep a
+record of all that happens in its life. Later in the year send Uncle
+John a little history or account of the plant you have watched.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 314. Blow the dandelion balloon!_]
+
+  DANDELION.
+
+  Dear common flower, that grow'st beside the way,
+    Fringing the dusty road with harmless gold,
+  First pledge of blithesome May,
+    Which children pluck, and, full of pride uphold,
+  High-hearted buccaneers, o'erjoyed that they
+    An Eldorado in the grass have found,
+  Which not the earth's ample round
+    May match in wealth, thou art more dear to me
+  Than all the prouder summer-blooms may be.
+
+  --LOWELL.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LIX.
+
+MAPLE TREES IN AUTUMN.[77]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflets XLVII and XLVIII.)
+
+  The hills are bright with maples yet,
+    But down the level land
+  The beech leaves rustle in the wind,
+    As dry and brown as sand.
+  The clouds in bars of rusty red
+    Along the hill-tops glow,
+  And in the still sharp air the frost
+    Is like a dream of snow.--ALICE CARY.
+
+
+[77] Junior Naturalist Monthly, November, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+The hills are bright with maples about the time Jack Frost appears, and
+many people say that he makes the leaves turn red and yellow. Wise folk
+tell us, however, that Jack Frost is not the artist; that leaves change
+to autumn tints when their work is completed.
+
+Boys and girls may not know that leaves "work;" yet all through the long
+summer days when you have been playing in the shade of some old maple,
+the leaves over your head have been very busy. Uncle John says that each
+leaf is a "starch factory," and this is true. Starch is necessary for
+plant food and it is manufactured in the leaves. The green leaves and
+stems are the machinery, which is run by sunlight. Look at a large
+branch of maple and see how the leaves are arranged to catch every
+sunbeam. The more light the green parts of the tree get, the more plant
+food can be made and the sturdier and handsomer the tree.
+
+But the story of the way in which the plant food is made is a long one
+and not easy for young people to understand. This can come later when
+you have become familiar with the many interesting things that you learn
+by watching the tree and by studying with the microscope.
+
+If I should to go into your school-room and should ask how many boys and
+girls know a sugar maple, I suppose every hand would be raised. But if I
+should ask: "When does the sugar maple blossom?" "What do the blossoms
+look like?" "When do the winged seeds fall?" I wonder how many could
+give me satisfactory answers to my questions!
+
+Choose some fine old maple for study. The one that stands near the door
+will be best, since you can see it every day. Write in a note book all
+that you can find out about it as the weeks go by.
+
+
+SUGGESTIONS FOR FALL STUDY.
+
+1. Notice how the leaves turn to the sunlight.
+
+2. Try to find two leaves exactly alike in color, form, size, length of
+stem, etc. If you succeed send them to Uncle John.
+
+3. How many different tints can you find in a single leaf?
+
+4. As you look at two sugar maple trees, do they seem to be colored
+alike?
+
+5. Are all sugar maples that you know the same shape?
+
+6. How are the leaves arranged on the branch?
+
+7. Can you find any winged seeds near the tree? If so, plant one in a
+box of earth and see whether it will grow.
+
+8. If you find any plants growing beneath the maple tree, describe them
+or tell what they are.
+
+9. Do you know any other kinds of maples? How do you distinguish them?
+
+[Illustration: _Child's drawing of a maple leaf. Fifth grade.
+(Reduced.)_]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LX.
+
+A CORN STALK.[78]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflets XLII and XLIII.)
+
+
+[78] Junior Naturalist Monthly, May, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+"Tom," said I to a young friend who stood by the window tossing a
+ten-cent piece into the air, "what plant is used for part of the design
+on that coin?"
+
+The boy did not answer right away. I do not believe he had ever looked
+at it closely; yet this is one of the prettiest of our silver pieces.
+After a few minutes he said, "It is corn, isn't it?"
+
+Hearing a note of surprise in his voice, I told him something about
+corn-raising in this country. We then decided that it is a good thing to
+represent corn on one of the United States coins, since it is a source
+of much of our wealth.
+
+But aside from its value, Indian corn should interest us because it is a
+wonderful plant. Boys and girls do not know much more about it than does
+any old black crow. You have watched the farmer plant corn and you like
+to eat it. Jim Crow has watched the farmer plant corn and he likes to
+eat it, too. The time has come, however, when you can get ahead of him
+if you care to; and to get ahead of crows on the corn question is worth
+the while. Let me tell you how to do it.
+
+1. Secure a kernel of corn, cut it in halves, and note the food inside
+it. This food was stored in the seed by the parent plant. Uncle John
+would say that it is the "lunch" that the mother puts up for her
+children. What must happen before the food can be used by the little
+plant?
+
+2. Place some moist soil in a tumbler, and put a kernel of corn in it
+near the side so that you can watch it grow. How soon does the root
+appear? The leaves? How many leaves come up at one time?
+
+3. Ask your father to give you a small piece of ground in the garden.
+Plant a few kernels of corn so that you will have some plants of your
+own to study this summer. Other people's plants are never so interesting
+as our own.
+
+4. As your corn plants push their way up into the light and air, watch
+them every day. Notice how the new leaves are protected by the next
+older ones.
+
+5. Is the stem hollow or solid? In which way would it be stronger?
+
+6. Notice the joints. Are they the same distance apart throughout the
+length of the stem? Does the distance between the joints always remain
+the same? Measure them some day; then in a week measure them again.
+
+7. Where does the stalk break most easily?
+
+8. Where does the leaf clasp the stalk?
+
+9. Notice how strong the leaf is. In what direction do the ribs extend?
+If these long narrow leaves were not strong what would happen to them as
+they wave back and forth in the wind?
+
+10. Have you ever noticed the ruffled edges of the leaves? As you bend
+them you will see that the edges do not tear.
+
+11. There are two kinds of blossoms on a corn plant. The ear bears one
+kind, the tassel the other. If you were to cut all the tassels from the
+plants in your garden, the kernels would not grow on the ears. Later on
+you will learn why.
+
+12. Watch the ear closely as it grows.
+
+13. Follow a thread of silk to the place where it is attached. Notice
+whether there is one silk for each kernel.
+
+14. When the corn is in the milk stage it is preparing to store up food
+for the young plants. How does it taste at this time?
+
+15. Look closely at the base of the corn stalk and you will see roots
+extending obliquely into the soil. These are the brace roots. Of what
+use do you think they are to the corn stalk?
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXI.
+
+IN THE CORN FIELDS.[79]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflets XLII and XLIII.)
+
+
+[79] Junior Naturalist Monthly, October, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+"Caw caw!" said Jim Crow as he flew over our heads. "Was he jeering at
+us?" we wondered, the children and I. Perhaps he was inquisitive to know
+what business we had in the open country and in the fields of corn.
+Perhaps he was not concerned with us at all. Very likely crows are less
+concerned with us than we think they are.
+
+Jim Crow flew on out of sight, but we stayed among the ripening corn.
+The ears were filling out. The ends of the silk were turning brown. We
+saw many things that we had planned to look for in vacation: the tall
+stem, the brace roots, the long strong leaves and the way the ribs
+extend in them, the ruffled edges of the leaves, the two kinds of
+blossoms, and where each silken thread is attached. The whole story was
+before us.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 315. Over the fields in corn-harvest time._]
+
+But this is the harvest time and we are ready to learn a new lesson from
+the corn fields. As we watch them now let us answer the following
+questions:
+
+1. How is the corn cut?
+
+2. How many ears do you find on a stalk?
+
+3. Are the ears on the same side of the stalk or on opposite sides?
+
+4. Take into the school room as many kinds of corn as you can find and
+describe each as follows:
+
+  a--The shape and color of the kernel.
+  b--Number of rows of kernels.
+  c--The number of kernels in each row.
+
+5. Perhaps the girls will pop some corn and bring it to the
+Junior Naturalist Club meeting. Let them try to pop field corn.
+Cut kernels in two of field corn and pop-corn, and report whether
+they differ. Why does pop-corn pop?
+
+6. Make a list of the foods for which corn is used.
+
+7. Why are pumpkins planted among corn?
+
+8. Why not make for your school room some decorations from
+ears of corn?
+
+[Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXII.
+
+THE ALFALFA PLANT.[80]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY and JOHN W. SPENCER.
+
+(Compare Leaflet XXXIV.)
+
+
+[80] Junior Naturalist Monthly, October, 1904.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+All the things that the farmer sells are produced by plants and animals.
+The animals live on the plants. It is important that we know what some
+of these plants are.
+
+Some plants are grown for human food. Such are potato, wheat, apple,
+lettuce. Some are grown only to feed to animals. Such are grasses and
+clover,--plants that are made into hay.
+
+Hay is the most important crop in New York State. In fact, New York
+leads all the States in the value of the hay and forage. This value is
+more than 66 millions of dollars.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 316. Sprig of the alfalfa plant._]
+
+Hay is important in New York also because there are so many dairy cattle
+in the State. There are more than one and one-half millions of dairy
+cattle in New York. In the value of the milk and butter and cheese, New
+York also leads all other States. There are also great numbers of beef
+cattle, horses, mules, and sheep. All these millions of animals must be
+supplied with hay in our long cold winters.
+
+Hay is made in New York State from grasses and clover. Suppose we could
+find some plant that would yield twice as much hay as clover yields, and
+yet be as nutritious,--you can readily see how valuable such a plant
+would be to the State. It would be better than a gift of millions of
+dollars. Such a plant is alfalfa.
+
+Now that you know something about alfalfa in a general way, I want you
+to know how the plant looks and how it grows. It is not yet very well
+known even among farmers, but its cultivation is increasing every year.
+You will probably know where there are fields of it. Sometimes it grows
+along roadsides as a weed. Last spring Uncle John offered to send a
+small packet of alfalfa seeds to any Junior Naturalist who wrote for it.
+He sent about 5,000 packets. But if you do not know the plant or cannot
+find it, _write at once to Uncle John and he will send you some by mail
+from the University farm_.
+
+Let us see how many school children in New York State will know what
+alfalfa is between now and Thanksgiving time. When writing to Uncle John
+about alfalfa, try to answer as many of the following questions as
+possible from your own observation:
+
+1. Does the plant remind you of any other plant that you ever saw? Of
+what?
+
+2. How does it grow,--straight up or spreading out on the ground?
+
+3. How many stalks come from one root?
+
+4. What are the leaves like? Mark out the shape with a pencil.
+
+5. What are the flowers like? Do you know any other flowers of similar
+shape? What is the color?
+
+6. If possible, dig around a plant and describe how the root looks. Does
+it branch into many fibres, as grass roots or corn roots do?
+
+
+UNCLE JOHN'S LETTER ABOUT THE ALFALFA GARDENS.
+
+_My Dear Boys and Girls:_
+
+Do you know much about the alfalfa plant? Do you remember that last
+spring we promised to send a packet of seed to each of you who asked for
+it? Did you send your name asking that you be served? We received the
+names of several thousand children asking for seed and I am wondering
+whether you are one of them. If so, did you sow the seed? Will you write
+me a letter telling me what became of it?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 317. What leaf is this? Is it enlarged?_]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 318. Leaf of alfalfa. What significance have the
+spots?_]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 319. Flowers of the alfalfa. Are they natural
+size?_]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 320. Alfalfa pods. How much enlarged?_]
+
+
+I am very fond of children's letters. Each year I receive more than
+thirty thousand of them. I sometimes wonder whether there is another man
+who is honored by so many letters from young people, for I count it an
+honor to be so remembered.
+
+As large as that number is, I cannot spare one letter. I always want a
+few more. All your letters are read and I take great pains to answer all
+questions. If, by any oversight, you have been missed I am sorry. I know
+what it costs a boy or girl to write a letter. I never open one without
+feeling that the writer is a friend of mine, otherwise he would not have
+expended so much hard work to write it.
+
+School has now begun and of course you are very busy, and so is your
+teacher. One of the best opportunities to write letters is in school.
+Please ask your teacher whether you may not write me during your
+language period. You may say that she may make authors of all of you if
+she can, but I will do all I can to help you become good letter writers.
+Ask her whether a letter to me may not be a substitute for a
+composition.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 321. Crown of the alfalfa plant, showing how root
+and top start off._]
+
+In your letter you may tell me your experience with alfalfa. Tell me
+your failures as well as your successes. Even though you received your
+seeds and did not sow them, tell me that. I shall never find fault with
+you for telling me the truth. If you sowed the seed and the plants did
+not do well, tell me that also. The plants may look very small and
+uninteresting to you this year, but next year they may surprise you.
+
+In some parts of the United States the alfalfa crop is of great value
+and the loss of it would bring distress to many farmers. I am wondering
+whether the crop, as raised in all parts of our country, is not worth
+more money than all the gold found in the Klondike, taking the two year
+by year. I do not know how that may be. I am wondering. Men by the
+thousand have gone to the gold mines and endured many hardships and
+later returned with less money than those who had remained at home and
+took care of their alfalfa.
+
+It may be that a mine of wealth lies very near you, and to get it you
+may have to ask alfalfa to find it and bring it to you. Gold cannot be
+found in all places in a gold country and alfalfa may not feel
+comfortable and grow in all parts of a good farming country. What we
+asked of you last spring was that you become alfalfa prospectors and
+later tell us what you found.
+
+JOHN W. SPENCER.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXIII.
+
+THE RED SQUIRREL.[81]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflet XLIX.)
+
+_The squirrel came running down a slanting bough, and as he stopped
+twirling a nut, called out rather impudently, "Look here! just get a
+snug-fitting fur coat and a pair of fur gloves like mine and you may
+laugh at a northeast storm."_--THOREAU.
+
+
+[81] Junior Naturalist Monthly, November, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+For a cheery companion give me the red squirrel! I enter the woods and
+there the little fellow is, ready to welcome me. "What a fine day it is
+for gathering nuts!" he seems to say, and straightway, as I listen to
+his merry chatter, I think it is a fine day for any sport that includes
+him and the brown November woods.
+
+Young naturalists may think it is a difficult thing to become acquainted
+with red squirrels, but you will often find them willing to be sociable
+if you show them a little kindness. I have many times watched two or
+three squirrels playing about a friend as she sat in her garden. They
+seemed to find her nearly as interesting as the old pine tree near by.
+They are inquisitive animals.
+
+"How did you tame them?" I asked.
+
+"I fed them occasionally," she replied. "At first I put some nuts on the
+grass several feet away from me. Then I gradually placed a tempting meal
+nearer and nearer until the little fellows seemed to lose all fear of
+me."
+
+If we care to, you and I, we can learn a great deal about red squirrels
+before another year has passed. If you live on a farm you should know
+the habits of all the wild creatures about you. You can then be just to
+them, and decide whether or not you can afford to let them continue to
+be tenants on your farm. You will find that all of them have interesting
+lives.
+
+  THE RED SQUIRREL.
+
+  A. B. C.
+
+  Just a tawny glimmer,
+    A dash of red and gray,--
+  Is it a flitting shadow,
+    Or a sunbeam gone astray?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 322. In the haunts of the red squirrel._]
+
+  It glances up a tree trunk,
+    And from some branch, I know
+  A little spy in ambush
+    Is measuring his foe.
+
+  I hear his mocking chuckle;
+    In wrath he waxes bold,
+  And stays his pressing business
+    To scold and scold and scold.
+
+QUESTIONS ABOUT THE RED SQUIRREL.
+
+1. What is the color of the red squirrel? Is he really red? Is his
+entire coat of one color? Does he wear different colors in winter and
+summer?
+
+2. Did you ever see a red squirrel's nest? If so, describe it.
+
+3. Does the red squirrel hibernate; that is, does he sleep all winter as
+the chipmunk does?
+
+4. What does a red squirrel eat? Did you ever see him getting the winged
+seeds out of a pitch pine cone?
+
+5. Do you believe a squirrel ever planted an oak? Give a reason.
+
+6. If you live in the country, you have seen red squirrels running on
+the rail fences. Why do they like rail fences? Do you see them so often
+on other kinds of fences?
+
+7. Notice the tracks made in the snow in winter woods. Try to find
+whether the red squirrel's is among them.
+
+8. If you know any other kinds of squirrels, tell how they differ from
+the red squirrel.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXIV.
+
+ROBIN.[82]
+
+BY L. H. BAILEY.
+
+
+[82] Introduction printed in Junior Naturalist Monthly, March, 1901.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+The drifts along the fences are settling. The brooks are brimming full.
+The open fields are bare. A warm knoll here and there is tinged with
+green. A smell of earth is in the air. A shadow darts through the apple
+tree: it is the robin!
+
+Robin! You and I were lovers when yet my years were few. We roamed the
+fields and hills together. We explored the brook that ran up into the
+great dark woods and away over the edge of the world. We knew the old
+squirrel who lived in the maple tree. We heard the first frog peep. We
+knew the minnows that lay under the mossy log. We knew how the cowslips
+bloomed in the lushy swale. We heard the first soft roll of thunder in
+the liquid April sky.
+
+Robin! The fields are yonder! You are my better self. I care not for the
+birds of paradise; for whether here or there, I shall listen for your
+carol in the apple tree.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Our lesson on robin shall be a lesson out of doors. We shall leave the
+books behind. We shall see the bird. We shall watch him and make up our
+minds what he is doing and why. We shall know robin better; and robin
+lives in the fields.
+
+Perhaps you think you know robin. Suppose that one of your friends never
+saw a robin; do you think you could close your eyes and describe him so
+that your friend would know how the bird looks?
+
+Then tell me where robin builds its nest, and of what materials; and how
+many eggs are laid and their color; and how long the mother bird sits;
+and how long the fledglings remain in the nest. You can readily find a
+family of robins in some near-by tree, or perhaps even on the porch; and
+you can learn all these things without ever disturbing the birds.
+
+I want you to watch a bird build its nest. You may think that you know
+how robin builds, but can you really tell me just how the bird carries
+the mud, and where it finds the other materials, and how long the
+building operation continues? Do both birds take part in the building?
+
+Then I want to know whether you can tell the difference between father
+robin and mother robin. Did you ever notice whether robins that come
+first in the spring have brighter breasts than those that come later?
+And can you explain?
+
+Tell me, too, what robin does with his year. You know when he comes in
+spring and when he builds and when the speckled young ones fly. But
+where is he in summer and fall and winter? And what is he about all this
+time? Does he build another nest and rear another family, or does he go
+vacationing? And does he gather the same kind of food in spring and
+summer? Does he gather cherries for his family or for himself? Did you
+ever see robin in winter in New York?
+
+What can you tell me about the song of robin? Does he sing all the year?
+Or does he have a different note for summer? Not one of you can tell how
+many different notes and calls robin has. I sometimes think that robin
+knows several languages.
+
+I have seen many more springs than you have seen: and yet I always wait
+for robin on the lawn. I often wonder whether the same robins come back
+to my lawn. They seem to go to business at once. They hop with the most
+confident air, and day after day pull strings out of the ground. You
+know what these strings are: but do you know how robin finds them? Is it
+by smell, or sight, or feeling, or hearing? Do you suppose he is
+listening when he cocks his head to one side and then to the other? Or
+is he merely making motions? And I wonder whether birds and animals
+usually make motions just for the sake of making them?
+
+I have asked you many questions, and not one of you can answer. Perhaps
+I cannot answer. You ask, "What's the use?" If you can see robin, and
+learn why, you can also learn other things. But I like robin just
+because he is robin.
+
+There is one thing more. You will read about robin redbreast. Who is he?
+Find out for me whether robin redbreast of Europe and of English poetry
+is the same as our American bird.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXV.
+
+CROWS.[83]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflet XXIV.)
+
+
+[83] Junior Naturalist Monthly, February, 1904.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+At a wigwam in the Adirondack Mountains a tame crow lives with a family
+of Indians. These Indians make baskets of birch bark and other things
+that they find out of doors, and sell them to visitors who spend their
+summer in the mountains. The little crow helps in the business. He makes
+himself so interesting to the passers-by that they stop to watch him.
+The Indians then have an opportunity to show their baskets, and very
+often sell them.
+
+But we need not go to the Adirondacks to find a crow that earns his
+living. Mr. F. E. L. Beal, who has studied crows a long time, speaks of
+them as valuable farm hands; and Neltje Blanchan says that they are as
+much entitled to a share of the corn as the horse that plows it. This
+may surprise boys and girls who have heard crows spoken of as thieves
+and rascals. Let us look into their story so that we can find out for
+ourselves whether to the farmer the crow is a friend or an enemy.
+
+_How Jim Crow does harm:_--
+
+1. By killing toads, frogs, small snakes, and salamanders ("lizards").
+Why are these little creatures first rate farm hands?
+
+2. By pulling up sprouting corn. Some farmers prevent this by tarring
+the corn.
+
+3. By stealing eggs, small chickens, and tiny birds. It is said that the
+crow is rarely guilty of these wrongs. What do you know about it?
+
+_How Jim Crow does good:_--
+
+4. By eating large numbers of insects: grasshoppers, caterpillars
+(including army worms and cut worms), June bugs, and other insects. So
+many insects does he devour that he earns more than he destroys. A half
+bushel of corn scattered on a field is said to be sufficient in many
+cases to prevent Jim Crow from pulling the growing corn.
+
+_To study crows:_--
+
+Watch the crows to find out just what they do. Do you ever see them
+flying in large numbers? If so, at what time of day do they fly? Where
+are they going? Notice how they use their wings.
+
+Do they come from the same direction each morning? Would it not be a
+great experience to make up a party and visit the place from which they
+come? What do you think you would find there?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 323. Who's afraid!_]
+
+When you see crows feeding in a field try to learn what they are eating.
+
+You can often find crows' tracks in the snow. There the prints of their
+feet and wings may be seen. What do you think interested the crows in
+the snow-covered field?
+
+Determine whether the caw is always the same. Is it sometimes short,
+sometimes long? Can you associate these differences with the actions of
+the birds?
+
+I wish you would read John Hay's poem, "The Crows at Washington."
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXVI.
+
+A FRIENDLY LITTLE CHICKADEE.[84]
+
+BY ALICE G. MCCLOSKEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflet XXIV.)
+
+  This scrap of valor just for play
+  Fronts the north wind in waistcoat gray.
+
+  --EMERSON.
+
+
+[84] Junior Naturalist Monthly, December, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+One cold December day a chickadee found himself alone in a wood. He
+looked very much like other chickadees, a small, gray bird, wearing, as
+someone has said, "a black hood with white side pieces and a black
+vest." He was like others of his kin, too, in that he was a skillful
+acrobat. He could stand right side up on a twig or cling to it upside
+down--one position seemed as easy as the other.
+
+But I am not sure that this little chickadee was like his fellows in one
+respect. I have wondered whether they are all as friendly as he. I shall
+tell of something that he did, and leave it to young naturalists to find
+out whether other chickadees will show as friendly a spirit.
+
+It happened on the cold December day when the chickadee was alone in the
+"snow-choked wood" that a Senior Naturalist wandered along that way.
+Whether or no the little bird knew that the tall man was there I cannot
+say. At any rate, he called out "phoe-be," the plaintive little pipe of
+two notes, clearer and sweeter than the real phoebe bird can make. The
+tall man answered the call, whistling two notes as plaintive and sweet
+as the chickadee's own. Again and again the whistle was repeated and
+every time it was answered. Nearer and nearer came the fluffy midget,
+until finally he alighted on a tree directly over the tall man's head.
+
+And then a remarkable thing happened! You will scarcely believe it, yet
+it is true. Knowing how near the chickadee was, the tall man whistled
+"phoe-be" very softly, and the little bird flew down and rested on his
+arm. How pleased the Senior Naturalist must have felt when he had gained
+the confidence of this wild bird! I wish that our boys and girls would
+try to do the same thing and tell Uncle John whether the experiment is
+successful.
+
+
+STUDY OF A CHICKADEE IN WINTER.
+
+1. Keep a sharp lookout for chickadees. Can you tell one when you see
+it? They are often with nuthatches and downy woodpeckers. If you tie a
+piece of suet in a tree near your house these winter birds may visit
+you.
+
+2. Listen to the notes of all the winter birds. Some day you will hear
+one say "Chick-a-dee-dee-dee-dee." Then he may sing "phoe-be," and you
+will try to imitate the notes. He may answer you. Tell us how near you
+can get to one of these friendly little birds.
+
+3. Watch a chickadee searching for his breakfast on a twig. What kind of
+a bill has he? What do you think he is finding to eat?
+
+4. If I lived on a farm I should have suet hung in my orchard to
+encourage the chickadees to stay there. Can you tell why?
+
+5. Do you see chickadees in summer? Where are they then?
+
+6. If I were to ask you to find a deserted chickadee's nest, where would
+you look?
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXVII.
+
+THE FAMILY OF WOODPECKERS.[85]
+
+BY ALICE G. MCCLOSKEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflet XXIV.)
+
+
+[85] Junior Naturalist Monthly, January, March, April, and May, 1903.
+
+I. THE RED-HEADED WOODPECKER.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+The story goes that, once upon a time, a naturalist found a great many
+grasshoppers wedged into an old fencepost. They were alive but could not
+get away. Bye and bye their jailor appeared. He was neither somber nor
+ugly, as you might suppose, but a merry red-headed woodpecker. With
+never a thought of cruelty in his little red head, he had used the
+fencepost as a cold-storage place, and had filled it with a good supply
+of food.
+
+Now I am sure our boys and girls will ask, "Is this story true?" I
+cannot say. The best way to decide whether it may be true is to study
+the habits of a red-headed woodpecker. Do you think that we shall find
+him capable of so clever a trick?
+
+The red-head is not uncommon. Keep on the lookout for him. His head,
+neck, throat, and upper breast are red; the rest of his body is
+blue-black and white. He is a handsome fellow, a bright bit of color in
+wood, garden, orchard, or field. Let us see what we can learn about him.
+
+
+SUGGESTIONS.
+
+1. Try to get a nearer view of any bird that you see sitting on a
+telegraph pole or fencepost. It may be a red-headed woodpecker.
+
+2. Is this little fellow as good a drummer as his relatives?
+
+3. His mate likes his music. If she comes near, the better to hear him
+drum, notice whether she has a red head.
+
+4. Do you find beech-nuts or other food stored in decayed trees? Under a
+bit of raised bark? In cracks in bark? In gate posts? If so, a red-head
+may be about.
+
+5. These woodpeckers eat more grasshoppers than any of the others. Find
+out whether they eat them on the ground.
+
+6. Have you ever seen one fly into the air after a passing insect?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 324. The red-headed woodpecker._]
+
+7. Do red-headed woodpeckers ever visit your chicken yard? Watch them
+closely and find out why they are there.
+
+8. Do you see them later in the year eating fruit on your farm?
+
+9. It has been found that they eat ants, wasps, beetles, bugs,
+grasshoppers, crickets, moths, spiders, and caterpillars. If you find
+them doing harm on your farm will you not compare it with the good they
+do?
+
+10. What plants do they visit?
+
+11. Where is red-head's nest?
+
+
+II. DOWNY WOODPECKER.--A LITTLE ORCHARD INSPECTOR.[86]
+
+[86] Junior Naturalist Monthly, January, 1903.
+
+Rap! rap! rap! the little inspector has come to look at our apple trees.
+"You are welcome, downy woodpecker," say we every one. "Stay as long as
+you like. We want to look at you closely so that we shall know you every
+time we see you."
+
+A bird about three inches shorter than a robin, black above, white
+below, white along the middle of the back, and the male red on the nape
+of the neck: this is the way downy looks. A hardworking, useful,
+sociable tenant of the farm: this is what downy is.
+
+Let us see how this little woodpecker is useful. If you live on a farm,
+you have probably heard of borers--grubs that get into trees and injure
+them. Your father does not like these grubs, but downy does. He seems to
+like any kind of grub. Watch him on a tree sometimes when he is looking
+for one. He knows where to find it, although neither you nor I might
+suspect that an insect is living beneath the smooth bark. Then he bores
+into the tree, and spears the grub with his long tongue. His tongue is a
+remarkable weapon. He can stretch it two inches beyond the tip of his
+bill, and it is barbed on both sides.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 325. Cocoons of the codlin-moth as they were found
+attached to a piece of loose bark, natural size._]
+
+Downy does not stop work, you must remember, when borers are not plenty.
+Beetles nibble no more plants after his eyes light on them. They are
+trespassers, and as judge, jury, and executioner, he proves his right
+to be considered a most useful farm hand. Ants, too, provide him with a
+good meal occasionally.
+
+Among the helpful deeds of the downy woodpecker, we must not forget to
+mention that he destroys great numbers of the larvæ or worms of the
+codlin-moth in winter, when these worms have tucked themselves away in
+the crevices of the bark, all wrapped in their cocoons. (Figs 325, 326.)
+Perhaps your father has shown you these little cocoons along the body
+and in the crotches of the apple tree. If not, you can find them
+yourself. Open some of them and see whether the worm is still there. If
+he is not, downy has probably taken him. I suppose you know that the
+larvæ of the codlin-moth are the worms you find in apples. See Leaflet
+LIII.
+
+You must not confound the downy woodpecker with that other woodpecker,
+the sap-sucker, that often drills rings of holes in the trunks of apple
+trees. The sapsucker has yellow on his under parts. I shall tell you
+about him some other time.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 326. Pupæ of the codlin-moth in cocoons,
+enlarged._]
+
+You have learned that insects and apple-scab and yourselves all try to
+see who shall own the apple fruit. Now you know that birds, and insects
+that feed on leaves and in the wood, are also concerned in this quarrel
+about the apple.
+
+
+A FEW THINGS TO OBSERVE.
+
+1. Does the downy woodpecker travel down a tree head first or does he
+hop backward?
+
+2. Try some day to see his feet. You will find that two of his toes are
+turned forward and two backward. Are there other birds that have this
+arrangement of toes?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 327. The downy woodpecker._]
+
+3. Notice that he braces himself with his tail as he works.
+
+4. Do you ever see the downy woodpecker eat seeds of plants that the
+farmers do not like to have on their land?
+
+5. Hang a bone or piece of unsalted suet out of doors for the
+woodpeckers. They will enjoy an unexpected feast.
+
+6. Where does downy make his nest?
+
+
+III. THE SAPSUCKER.[87]
+
+[87] Junior Naturalist Monthly, March, 1903.
+
+If you are walking through an orchard or wood and see a jolly little
+woodpecker with red on its head, do not say at once that it is a
+downy woodpecker. Look again. Has it yellow on the underparts, black on
+the breast, a red throat, and red on the crown instead of on the nape?
+Then it is a sapsucker, a new arrival. (Fig. 328.) It is larger than the
+downy. The female has no red on the throat.
+
+And to think that such a merry little fellow has such a bad reputation
+among farmer-folk! You will be surprised to find how unkindly
+woodpeckers are treated throughout the country, because of the misdeeds
+of the sapsucker. Even the downy has suffered much abuse. This is
+unfortunate, for I am sure downy woodpeckers have done much more good
+than sapsuckers have done harm.
+
+I wish that all Junior Naturalists would try to find out whether even
+the sapsucker deserves all that has been said against him. He does harm
+by boring holes in trees, but how much? Let us learn. As woodpeckers are
+not shy, it is not difficult to get near them. I have stood within a few
+feet of a sapsucker, and he did not mind a bit. He kept on boring holes
+in a tree without a thought that any one might object.
+
+1. How many trees can you find that have holes bored by the sapsucker?
+
+2. How are the holes arranged; here and there on the trunk, or in rings
+around it? Have you ever found a complete ring of holes?
+
+3. Keep a record of the months in which you find the sapsucker.
+
+4. Notice how the sap runs down into the holes that have been newly made
+by a sapsucker.
+
+5. It is said that this woodpecker eats the inner bark of the tree as
+well as the sap. What can you find out about this?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 328. The sapsucker. Compare this picture with that
+of the downy woodpecker in Fig. 327._]
+
+6. Do you ever find insects near the holes made by the sapsucker? Do you
+think he eats them?
+
+7. Find out where the sapsucker has his nest.
+
+
+IV. THE FLICKER.[88]
+
+[88] Junior Naturalist Monthly, May, 1903.
+
+Three woodpeckers have been introduced to you in these leaflets: the
+red-head, the hard working downy (Fig. 327), the sapsucker (Fig. 328).
+There is one more that we ought to add to the list for summer study,
+since he is very likely to cross our path,--the flicker (Fig. 329).
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 329. The flicker._]
+
+This woodpecker has a great many names, probably because he lives
+in a great many States. The most common are: flicker, highhole,
+yellow-hammer, and golden-winged woodpecker. I like the name flicker
+best of all.
+
+He is a good-sized bird, about two inches longer than a robin. His
+colors are: brownish with black spots above, whitish spotted with black
+underneath, a black crescent on the breast, and a scarlet crescent on
+the back of the neck. When he flies you will notice two things: the rich
+golden color of the inside of his wings, and the white patch on the back
+just above the tail.
+
+Now, since he is a woodpecker, you will probably expect to find the
+flicker in trees; but you are quite as likely to find him on the ground.
+About half of his food consists of ants, and these he finds afield. He
+also eats other insects, as well as a good deal of plant food.
+
+I hope that you will see a flicker this year and hear him call out,
+"a-wick-a-wick-a-wick-a-wick-a-wick-a." Possibly some of you may find a
+nest that these birds have dug out in an old apple tree. They do not
+always make new nests, however, but live in the deserted homes of other
+woodpeckers.
+
+
+QUESTIONS.
+
+1. Has the flicker a straight bill like the downy woodpecker?
+
+2. Have you seen the flicker's mate? If so, in what way does she differ
+from him in color or marking?
+
+3. Where does the flicker build its nest? What color are the eggs?
+
+4. Try to watch a flicker feeding its young. Describe.
+
+5. Do you know the call of the flicker? Can you imitate it, or write it
+so that Uncle John can recognize it?
+
+6. Do flickers remain all winter? If not, when do they come? When do
+they leave?
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXVIII.
+
+DESERTED BIRDS'-NESTS.[89]
+
+BY ALICE G. MCCLOSKEY.
+
+
+[89] Junior Naturalist Monthly, February, 1901.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+There is a wagon trail which I like to follow; it is always a pleasant
+walk. There is no foot path; so I do not think many people pass that
+way. Perhaps this is why many little wild creatures of the field and
+wood like to live there. I do not know any other place where the birds
+sing so sweetly, where the wild flowers grow so thick, and where the
+insects are so numerous.
+
+By the side of this road I found the little vireo's nest which you see
+in the picture. It was about five feet from the ground, and hung near
+the end of a long branch. It was interesting to find out what it was
+made of,--grasses, strips of bark, hair, pine needles, plant fibres, and
+bits of paper. On the outside were lichens and spiders' webs. The pieces
+of paper were dropped along the way, I think, by the leader in a
+cross-country run. Even the little vireos have an interest in the
+outdoor sports of the college men.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 330. The vireo's nest._]
+
+One of the most interesting bird homes is the oriole's nest. Uncle John
+will like to know whether you find one. The young orioles must have
+happy times in their cradle, which hangs between the earth and the sky.
+
+Winter is the best time of year to hunt for birds' nests. It is hard to
+find them in the spring and the summer. The parent birds intend it shall
+be. If you succeed in getting a nest, take it into the school room so
+that the other members of your club can study it with you.
+
+
+SUGGESTIONS.
+
+Where did you find the nest? What is its size and shape? Name it, if you
+can.
+
+Was it built on the horizontal crotch of the branch, or on an upright
+crotch?
+
+How was it fastened to the branch?
+
+Notice the materials of which it is made.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 331. The hanging nest of the oriole. A cord is
+woven into the nest._]
+
+In the oriole's nest you will see that there is a difference in the way
+in which the upper and lower parts are made. What is it?
+
+How deep is the oriole's nest which you find? Compare the material on
+the outside with that on the inside.
+
+How is the nest fastened to the twigs?
+
+Where does a catbird build its nest? Robin? Bluebird? Swallow? Hen?
+Turkey?
+
+[Illustration: _What?_]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXIX.
+
+THE POULTRY YARD: SOME THANKSGIVING LESSONS.[90]
+
+BY ALICE G. MCCLOSKEY and JAMES E. RICE.
+
+
+[90] Extended from Junior Naturalist Monthly, November, 1902.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+A rosy-cheeked girl, a freckled-faced boy and a little bald-headed baby
+were the only young persons at the Thanksgiving dinner. The baby was not
+old enough to be invited, but we were so thankful to have her with us
+that we could not resist drawing her chair up to the table.
+
+The turkey was a big one and "done to a turn." We old folks thought so,
+the freckled-faced boy thought so, and the rosy-cheeked girl thought so.
+The baby, so far as I could judge, thought not at all. She chewed
+energetically on a spoon and left the discussion of the turkey to her
+elders.
+
+Having known for a long time that children like to chatter, I decided
+that I would give the little lad and lassie opposite me an opportunity
+to talk about turkeys, ducks, chickens, and the like. "These," thought
+I, "are good Thanksgiving topics, and a boy and girl who have lived on a
+farm all their lives can tell me some interesting things about them."
+
+But this world is full of many strange surprises! It was not long before
+I learned that those little folk could not answer some very simple
+questions about poultry. They did not even know why a chicken does not
+fall off the roost when it sleeps. To be sure, they could tell the exact
+moment when, in the process of carving, the wish-bone would appear: but
+you will admit that this is very little. I certainly was disappointed.
+The bald-headed baby cheered things up a bit, however, by crowing
+lustily. I rejoiced in the fact that apparently she had heard sounds
+from the barn-yard.
+
+Now there are many reasons why children, Junior Naturalists especially,
+should know something about poultry. It may be that you live on a farm
+and will want to raise chickens, ducks, and turkeys some day; and the
+farmer who knows his poultry best will be most successful in raising it.
+But whether you live in country or city you will like to study these
+interesting birds. Let us see what we can find out about them in the
+next three or four weeks. November, the month of Thanksgiving, is a good
+time to begin.
+
+
+TURKEYS.
+
+Let us first pay our respects to the king of the poultry yard. We may
+never know His Royal Highness, the old gobbler, very well, because it is
+said he will not often permit folks to meet him on his own ground. I am
+told that a visitor is more sure of a welcome within his domain if he
+wear sombre garb. Although gaily dressed himself the old fellow objects
+to bright colors on others.
+
+There is one thing that we can do if the gobbler does not let us near
+him,--we can peek at him through the fence. Then, too, at Thanksgiving
+time many a slain monarch will hang in a nearby market. Following are a
+few suggestions that will help us to learn something about turkeys. I
+hope that you know all these things now, and, therefore, will not need
+to be asked. If you do, please write Uncle John. How many letters do you
+think he will get from such persons?
+
+In the study of any bird, learn to describe it fully: the size, the
+shape, the bill, the length of legs, the feet, and the color. Is there
+more than one color of turkey?
+
+Observe the head, face and wattles of the turkey gobbler.
+
+Notice the strong, curved beak; the bright, clear, hazel eyes.
+
+How many colors does he wear?
+
+When the turkey is being prepared for the Thanksgiving dinner, ask
+mother for the foot. Are there any feathers on it? Has it the same
+number of toes that you find on a rooster's foot? Is the arrangement of
+the toes the same?
+
+Perhaps you find scales on the legs of the turkey. Do you find them also
+on hens' legs? On which side of the leg,--front or back--are the scales
+the larger?
+
+When I was a little girl I liked to pull a tendon that I found in the
+turkey's foot after it had been cut off. It was amusing to see the toes
+curl up. I did not know then that when birds roost at night this tendon
+is stretched as they bend their legs. Then the toes grasp the perch and
+hold the bird on. When it stretches its leg to leave the roost the toes
+spread out, but not until then Because of this birds can go to sleep
+without the least fear of falling. What kind of perch do they choose, a
+wide one or a narrow one? Why?
+
+Can you tell which is the hen turkey and which the gobbler? Explain. On
+which one do you find a hairy tuft on the breast?
+
+Did you ever hear of the caruncle on the head of the turkey? Compare
+this with the comb in domestic fowls. Does it differ in shape? Do ducks
+and geese have combs?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 332. A turkey likes to roam through the fields._]
+
+What is the color of the turkey's face? Does it change color? Do you
+notice any difference in color when the turkey is angry? What are the
+turkey's wattles?
+
+Notice the fourth toe. Why is it placed in opposite direction to the
+others? I wonder whether it enables the fowl to grip the perch; and
+whether it gives the turkey a wide span for support in running over
+loose brush.
+
+Turkeys and chickens and other animals have habits, as boys and girls
+do, only that they are not bad habits. Did you ever watch turkeys
+hunting grasshoppers? And did they go in flocks or alone? How do
+chickens hunt,--in flocks or alone? Which roams farther from home,
+turkeys or chickens? Do turkeys lay their eggs in the barn or poultry
+house, as chickens do? Did you ever see a turkey's nest, and where was
+it?
+
+We have Junior Naturalists in many parts of the world: England,
+Scotland, Australia, Egypt. Will they have an opportunity to study
+turkeys? See what you can find out in answer to this question.
+
+
+A TIME-HONORED RACE--GEESE.
+
+Geese, as you know, come of a very distinguished race. This is no
+advantage to them in a social way in the poultry yard, however. There is
+not a duck nor a turkey nor even a wise rooster, that knows or cares
+whether in times gone by geese saved a Roman city, or whether they were
+recognized in ancient Egypt.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 333. Geese; "a very distinguished race."_]
+
+The story of the old gray goose was the one I liked best long ago,--the
+goose that died before Aunt Nabby had enough feathers to make a bed. How
+often you and I have listened to mother sing about her! And what an
+inconsiderate old gray goose we thought she was, to die before the
+feather bed was finished.
+
+Some things for Junior Naturalists to think about come into my mind in
+connection with Aunt Nabby's goose and others of its kind:
+
+Why do goose feathers make the best beds?
+
+Do you think an old grandmother goose would give enough feathers in her
+lifetime to make a good bed? I have heard of one that lived sixty years.
+
+Are feathers ever taken from live geese for beds?
+
+Compare the feathers of land-fowls and water-fowls.
+
+Probably one or more of our Junior Naturalists will have a goose for his
+Thanksgiving dinner. If so, I wish that the wing feathers might be
+brought to school. See whether you can find out why the wing feathers of
+a goose were preferred for making quill pens. Make a pen if you can and
+write a letter to Uncle John with it. The five outer wing feathers are
+most useful for writing, and of these the second and third are best.
+Why? Do you think that the Declaration of Independence was signed with a
+quill pen? Do goose quills make good holders for artists' brushes?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 334. A happy family._]
+
+What kind of food do geese like best?
+
+Is the tongue of a goose similar to that of a turkey or chicken?
+
+Is the old gander as cross as the turkey gobbler?
+
+Have you ever seen a flock of wild geese flying northward or southward?
+Which way are they going in the fall? Observe that nearly always they
+keep their V-shaped ranks unbroken. There is, of course, a leader whose
+call the flock follows. Whether the leader is some chosen member of the
+number or whether he takes his position by chance I do not know. What
+time of day do the wild geese fly? Do you like to hear them honking as
+they go on their way? I wish you would find out whether our farmyard
+geese are only these common wild geese tamed.
+
+
+CHICKENS AND DUCKS; AND THE STORY OF TWO MOTHER HENS.
+
+One mother hen had her own brood of fluffy little chicks (Fig. 334).
+When they were old enough they scratched for worms and ate gravel as
+obediently as any one could desire. How happy they were underneath the
+hemlocks in the long afternoons!
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 335. Mother hen and baby ducks._]
+
+The other mother hen had to take care of ducks (Fig. 335). Pretty as any
+chicks they were, but troublesome as only little ducks can be with a
+nervous old hen for their adopted mother. The family in the picture
+looks very contented. Do you suppose that the photographer told them to
+look pleasant? When we come to know ducks and chickens better, we shall
+learn why the little ducks are often such a trial to the hen mother.
+
+It may be that when we ask boys and girls to study chickens and ducks
+they will say that there is nothing new to learn about them. I am not so
+sure. The freckled-faced boy thought he knew all about them, too. Let us
+see whether we can suggest some new things to think about, as you look
+over the fence into the poultry yard, or watch the cook preparing a hen
+or duck for the Thanksgiving dinner.
+
+As I looked at the chickens in a barn-yard the other day, I was
+interested in the different kinds that I saw: some brown, some white,
+some black, some speckled; some had feathers on their feet, others had
+not; some had combs with many points, in others the comb was close to
+the head; some had long tails, some short tails, some no tails at all to
+speak of. If I were to name the differences that I noticed you would not
+get through reading them in time to write your November dues. How many
+unlike marks or characters can you find in chickens or ducks?
+
+Have you ever seen two chickens or two ducks exactly alike?
+
+Compare the feet of a hen and a duck. Their bills. Do you think that a
+duck can scratch for worms?
+
+What do ducks eat? What kind of food do hens like best?
+
+How do a hen's feathers differ from a duck's?
+
+Note the scales on a hen's foot. Snakes have scales on their bodies,
+too. Some day you may learn a wonderful story that these similar
+features of hen and snake suggest.
+
+Touch a hen's eye lightly with a pencil. Does she cover it with a thin
+eyelid? A turtle does this. Has a turtle scales also? If so, may be it
+will come into the wonderful story connected with hens and snakes.
+
+Look closely at a hen's ear.
+
+Watch chickens as they make their toilet. A farmer told me that among
+the tail feathers of barn-fowls there is an oil sac that they find
+useful in cleaning their clothes. I wonder whether this is true?
+
+While I was watching some chickens the other day, I saw one jump up into
+the air several times. She was a skillful little acrobat. What do you
+think she was trying to catch?
+
+Watch the cook as she prepares a chicken or turkey for dinner. Find the
+crop into which the food passes after it has been swallowed. From the
+crop it passes on to the gizzard. Look closely at the gizzard. See what
+strong muscles it has. It needs them to grind the grain and gravel
+stones together. It is a very good mill, you see.
+
+Try to find out whether a duck has a crop and a gizzard. Do not ask any
+one. Wait until there is to be a duck for dinner some day. Would you
+suppose from the kind of food ducks eat that they need a crop and a
+gizzard?
+
+Do little chickens have feathers when they are hatched? What is the
+cover of their bodies called? Are they always of the same color when
+they are hatched that they are when they are grown up? What kinds of
+poultry change their color when their feathers grow? Notice the chickens
+of Black Minorcas (if you know any one who has that kind), then write
+Uncle John about their color. Did you ever see fowls without feathers?
+When you go to the fair be sure to look for some "Silkies." Did you ever
+see fowls whose feathers were all crinkled up toward their head? Look
+for "Frizzles" when you go to the fair.
+
+
+A LESSON ON EGGS.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 336. A coop of chickens._]
+
+What is the color of the turkey's egg? Do the first-laid turkey's eggs
+differ in color from those that are laid later? How do these eggs differ
+in color from the eggs of ducks, geese, and hens? Do eggs from different
+breeds of hens differ in color? Do eggs from different kinds of poultry
+differ in shape? Can you not make some drawings of eggs showing how they
+differ, and send to Uncle John? Not one of you can tell how much a
+turkey's egg weighs, nor a hen's egg. Do you think that eggs from all
+kinds of hens weigh the same? And if they do not, do you think that they
+are worth the same price the dozen?
+
+Did you ever look through an egg at a strong light? What did you see?
+Was there an air space? Was it on the big end or the little end? Leave
+the eggs in a dry room for a few days. Does the air space increase in
+size? Boil an egg. Remove the shell carefully over the air space. Do you
+notice a membrane? Are there two membranes? Boil an egg until it is very
+hard; does the white of the egg separate in layers? Break the yoke
+carefully; do you notice layers of light and dark color? Is there a
+little soft light colored spot in the centre? Write to Uncle John and
+ask him what this is.
+
+
+SOME QUESTIONS IN GENERAL.
+
+How many varieties of fowls can you name? How do they differ in size and
+color?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 337. What kind of hens are these?_]
+
+Have you ever seen ducks, geese, hens, and turkeys standing on the snow
+or ice? If so, how did they behave? Which seemed to enjoy it? Why should
+a duck or goose be able to swim in ice water without apparently
+suffering from cold? When mother dresses a duck or goose for dinner, ask
+her to let you see the layers of fat under the skin and inside the body.
+Write to Uncle John and tell him what the fat in the body is for. Ask
+him how this fat came in the body; also whether there is such a thing as
+fat in the food which the ducks eat.
+
+Did you ever see hens and ducks out in the rain? Did they all enjoy it?
+Did you ever see anything wetter than a wet hen? Why do they look so
+disconsolate?
+
+Examine the feathers of different kinds of poultry. How do the feathers
+of ducks, geese, turkeys and fowls differ? Try wetting the various
+feathers, then let them dry out. Make drawings of these feathers,
+showing, if you can, the different colors and shapes.
+
+Do turkeys think? Did you ever watch a turkey steal her nest? Where did
+she go? How long did you watch her before you found the nest? Did she
+cover up her eggs? With what? Why do they cover the eggs when they leave
+the nest? Do ducks, geese, turkeys, and hens all cover their eggs? Why
+do hens differ in this respect from the turkeys? Do all kinds of ducks
+cover their eggs?
+
+Did you ever watch ducklings and little chickens eat? Did you notice any
+difference in their appetites? Which grow faster, little chickens or
+little ducks?
+
+Do you know that some hens do not pay their board? Sometimes hens eat
+more than they are worth. It may be the fault of the hen or it may be
+that she is not provided with the proper kind of food or given the
+proper care. A hen cannot make eggs unless she has the proper kind of
+food. Some persons so feed and handle their hens that they are able to
+produce eggs for six cents the dozen; other persons expend more than a
+dollar to get the dozen.
+
+How does the farmer make his money from fowls (that is, what kind of
+products does he sell)?
+
+You should learn to classify chickens according to the uses for which
+they are grown. (1) Some kinds of hens excel in egg-laying. These kinds
+are known as the "egg breeds." One of the leading egg breeds is the
+Leghorn. (2) Others produce much meat, and are known as the "meat
+breeds," as the Brahma. (3) Others are fairly good fowls for both eggs
+and meat, and are called "general-purpose breeds," of which Plymouth
+Rock and Wyandotte are good examples. (4) Then there are "fancy breeds,"
+grown as pets or curiosities or as game birds. Now, try to find out
+whether there are any general differences in form and looks to
+distinguish one class of breeds from another. And find out whether
+turkeys, geese, and ducks may be similarly classified.
+
+
+HOW FRANK AND HENRY RAISED CHICKENS.
+
+Frank and Henry wanted to keep chickens all by themselves. They thought
+they might sell the eggs and the fowls and get spending money. They knew
+little about chickens, but then, it did not matter, for chickens will
+take care of themselves. All there is to do is to give them corn and
+water every day,--at least, so the boys thought.
+
+Both boys had a hard time the first year, but they kept at it. Frank
+finally made a success. Henry lost money; his hens died or did not lay,
+and he had to give up. One boy turned out to be a good farmer and the
+other a poor farmer. You have seen such farmers living side by side.
+
+I will tell you why Frank succeeded. 1. He provided warm and pleasant
+quarters for the chickens, so that the fowls were comfortable and
+contented. 2. He learned to like the chickens, so that he spent many of
+his extra hours watching them and caring for them. 3. He learned that
+something more is required in feeding a hen than merely to satisfy her
+appetite. Some kinds of food may be best for growing chicks and others
+for laying hens. 4. He soon found that some hens lay more and larger
+eggs than others, and he saved eggs from these hens for hatching. Henry
+said that "eggs are eggs" and that there was "no sense in being so
+fussy." 5. He learned that eggs and poultry sell best when they really
+are best and when they are carefully cleaned and neatly packed. Frank
+had learned the first lessons in good farming.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 338. At the drinking fountain._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXX.
+
+LITTLE HERMIT BROTHER.[91]
+
+BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
+
+
+[91] Nature-Study Quarterly, June, 1899.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+In far Thibet exists a class of Buddhist monks who are hermits and who
+dwell in caves. I was told about these strange people by a Senior
+Naturalist, who has spent his life going around the world and finding
+the countries upon it as easily as you Junior Naturalists find the same
+countries on the globe in the schoolroom. A real naturalist is never
+contented with maps of places and pictures of things, but always desires
+to see the places and things themselves.
+
+The Senior Naturalist told me that he found Thibet a dreary land
+inhabited by queer people; and the hermit monks were the queerest of
+all. Each one dwelt in his solitary cave, ate very little, and worked
+not at all, but spent his time in thought. Could we read his thoughts we
+should be none the wiser, since they are only mysterious thoughts about
+mysterious things.
+
+Now it is a surprising fact that we have hermits of similar habits here
+in America; only our hermits are little people who dress in a white garb
+and live in cells underground; they also eat little and work not at all,
+and probably meditate upon mysteries. However, they are equipped with
+six legs while the monks of Thibet have only two, a difference of little
+importance since neither hermit travels far from his cave.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+There are in eight or nine counties in New York State places that may
+surely expect visitors on certain years. The connection between these
+guests and the hermits of Thibet may not seem very close at first sight;
+but wait and see.
+
+The reason why these New York counties expect company is that they
+entertained a large number of similar guests in 1882, 1865, 1848, 1831,
+1814, in 1797, and probably at intervals of seventeen years long before
+that; in 1797, however, was the first record made of the appearance of
+these visitors. Every time they came they probably outstayed their
+welcome; yet they had the good quality of allowing their hosts sixteen
+years of rest between visits.
+
+In order that the Junior Naturalist may recognize these visitors I will
+describe their methods of arrival. Sometime in the latter part of May or
+in early June you may hear a great buzzing in some trees, as if there
+were a thousand lilliputian buzz saws going at once. If you examine the
+trees you will find on them many queer-looking insects, with black
+bodies about an inch long, covered with transparent wings folded like a
+roof. Naturally you will wonder how such great numbers of large insects
+could appear one day when they were nowhere to be seen the day before.
+But if you look at the ground beneath the trees you will find in it many
+small holes. You will also find clinging to the trees many whitish
+objects, which at first sight seem like pale, wingless insects, but
+which on closer examination prove to be merely the cast skins of insects
+(Fig. 339). These are the cowls and robes which our little American
+hermits cast off after they come out of their underground cells, and
+which they must shed before they can free their wings. Our little
+American hermits we call the seventeen-year locusts. However, this name
+is a most confusing one, since we also call our grasshoppers locusts,
+and to them the name truly belongs. These seventeen-year locusts are
+really cicadas, and they belong to a different order from the locusts.
+The real locusts have mouth-parts formed for biting, while the cicadas
+have mouth-parts grown together in the form of a tube, through which
+they suck juices of plants. So we hope the Junior Naturalists will call
+our little hermits by their right name, cicadas; and will not permit
+them to be spoken of as locusts.
+
+In order that you may know the mysterious lives of these wonderful
+insects, I will tell you the story of one of them.
+
+
+THE STORY OF LITTLE HERMIT BROTHER, CICADA SEPTENDECIM.
+
+Once a cicada mother made with her ovipositor a little slit or cavity in
+an oak twig, and in this slit placed in very neat order two rows of
+eggs. Six weeks later there hatched from one of these eggs a pale,
+lively little creature, that to the naked eye looked like a tiny white
+ant. If, however, we could have examined him through a lens we should
+have found him very different from an ant; for his two front legs were
+shaped somewhat like lobsters' big claws, and instead of jaws like an
+ant, he had simply a long beak that was hollow like a tube. After he
+came out of his egg he ran about the tree and seemed interested for a
+time in everything he saw. Then, suddenly, he went to the side of a limb
+and deliberately fell off. To his little eyes the ground below was
+invisible; so our small cicada showed great faith when he practically
+jumped off the edge of his world into space. He was such a speck of a
+creature that the breeze took him and lifted him gently down, as if he
+were the petal of a flower; and he alighted on the earth unhurt and
+probably much delighted with his sail through the air. At once he
+commenced hunting for some little crevice in the earth; and when he
+found it he went to the bottom of it and with his shovel-like fore-feet
+began digging downward. I wonder if he stopped to give a last look at
+sky, sunshine, and the beautiful green world before he bade them
+good-bye for seventeen long years! If so, he did it hurriedly, for he
+was intent upon reaching something to eat. This he finally found a short
+distance below the surface of the ground, in the shape of a juicy
+rootlet of the great tree above. Into this he inserted his beak and
+began to take the sap as we take lemonade through a straw. He made a
+little cell around himself and then he found existence quite blissful.
+He ate very little and grew very slowly, and there was no perceptible
+change in him for about a year; then he shed his skin for the first
+time, and thus, insect-wise, grew larger. After a time he dug another
+cell near another rootlet deeper in the ground; but he never exerted
+himself more than was necessary to obtain the little food that he
+needed. This idle life he found entirely satisfactory, and the days grew
+into months and the months into years. Only six times in the seventeen
+years did our hermit change his clothes, and this was each time a
+necessity, since they had become too small. Judging from what the Senior
+Naturalist told me, I think this is six times more than a Thibetan
+hermit changes his clothes in the same length of time.
+
+What may be the meditations of a little hermit cicada during all these
+years we cannot even imagine. If any of the Junior Naturalists ever find
+out the secret they will be very popular indeed with the scientific men
+called psychologists. However, if we may judge by actions, the sixteenth
+summer after our hermit buried himself he began to feel stirring in his
+bosom aspirations toward a higher life. He surely had no memory of the
+beautiful world he had abandoned in his babyhood; but he became suddenly
+possessed with a desire to climb upward, and began digging his way
+toward the light. It might be a long journey through the hard earth; for
+during the many years he may have reached the depth of nearly two feet.
+He is now as industrious as he was shiftless before; and it takes him
+only a few weeks to climb out of the depths into which he had fallen
+through nearly seventeen years of inertia. If it should chance that he
+reaches the surface of the ground before he is ready to enjoy life, he
+hits upon a device for continuing his way upward without danger to
+himself. Sometimes his fellows have been known to crawl out of their
+burrows and seek safety under logs and sticks until the time came to
+gain their wings. But this is a very dangerous proceeding, since in
+forests there are many watchful eyes which belong to creatures who are
+very fond of bits of soft, white meat. So our cicada, still a hermit,
+may build him a tall cell out of mud above ground. How he builds this
+"hut," "cone," or "turret" as it is variously called, we do not know;
+but it is often two inches in height, and he keeps himself in the top of
+it. Under ordinary circumstances our cicada would not build a hut, but
+remain in his burrow.
+
+Finally there comes a fateful evening when, as soon as the sun has set,
+he claws his way through the top of his mud turret or out of his burrow
+and looks about him for further means of gratifying his ambitions to
+climb. A bush, a tree, the highest thing within his range of vision,
+attracts his attention and he hurries toward it. It may be he finds
+himself in company with many of his kind hurrying toward the same goal,
+but they are of no interest to him as yet. Like the youth in the famous
+poem, "Excelsior" is his motto and he heeds no invitation to tarry. When
+he reaches the highest place within his ken he places himself, probably
+back downward, on some branch or twig, takes a firm hold with all his
+six pairs of claws, and keeps very still for a time. Then his skeleton
+nymph-skin breaks open at the back and there pushes out of it a strange
+creature long and white, except for two black spots upon its back; on he
+comes until only the tip of his body remains in the old nymph-skin; then
+he reaches forward and grasps the twig with his soft new legs and pulls
+himself entirely clear from the old hermit garb. At once his wings begin
+to grow; at first they are mere pads on his back, but they soon expand
+until they cover his body and are flat like those of a miller. The many
+veins in the wings are white and he keeps the wings fluttering in order
+that they may harden soon. If, in the moonlight of some June evening, a
+Junior Naturalist should see a tree covered with cicadas at this stage
+he would think it had suddenly blossomed into beautiful, white,
+fluttering flowers.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 339. The cicada is full grown at last, and his
+empty nymph skin is hanging to a branch._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 340. The cicada's drum._]
+
+As the night wears on, the color of our hero changes and his wings
+harden; until when the sun rises we behold him in the glory of a black
+uniform with facings of orange and with beautiful glassy wings folded
+roof-like above his body. (Fig. 339.) Great is the change wrought in his
+appearance during this one marvelous night, and greater still the change
+wrought in his habits! He is now no longer a hermit; there are thousands
+of his kind about him, a fact which he realizes with great joy. So happy
+is he that he feels as if he must burst if he does not find some
+adequate means for expressing his happiness in this beautiful world of
+sunshine. Then suddenly he finds in himself the means of expression and
+bursts into song. Yet, it is not a song exactly, for he is a drummer
+rather than a singer. On his body just behind each of his hind wings is
+a kettle drum. The head to this drum is of parchment thrown into folds
+and may be seen with a lens if you lift his wings and look closely.
+(Fig. 340.) Instead of drum sticks he uses a pair of strong muscles to
+throw the membranes into vibration and there is a complex arrangement of
+cavities and sounding boards around these drum heads so that the noise
+he gives off is a great one indeed for a fellow of his size. So fond is
+he of making music that he has no time to eat or to do aught else but to
+sound fanfares all the sunshiny day. He is not the only musician on the
+tree; there are many others and they all join in a swelling chorus that
+has been described as a roar like that made by the "rushing of a strong
+wind through the trees."
+
+If our cicada could talk to one of you Junior Naturalists he would tell
+you that there was a good reason for all this music. He would explain
+that only the men of the cicada world possess drums and that the object
+and reason of all their music is the entertainment of the lady cicadas,
+who are not only very fond of this drumming, but are good critics of
+cicada music as well. He would perhaps tell you also that he had his eye
+on a certain graceful maiden perched on the leaf between him and the
+sun; but she, on the other hand, seemed to give about equal attention to
+him and three other drummers situated near by. Excited by the
+competition and by her indifference, he rattled his drum faster and
+faster until he rose to the heights of cicada melody and harmony that
+left his rivals far behind. Then the lady of his choice listened
+spellbound and pronounced him the greatest of all musicians, and thus he
+won his bride. However, we may safely predict that their wedded life
+will be too full of happiness to last. After a few weeks the sunshine,
+the music, the happiness of wooing and winning will prove too much for
+our hero and one day he will beat his drum in a last mad ecstacy and
+fall to earth and die from happy exhaustion. His little wife may survive
+him only long enough to cut slits in some of the twigs of the home tree
+and place in them rows of eggs from which shall develop a family of
+hermits which shall come forth and fill the world with their music
+seventeen years hence.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+There are many broods of cicadas in the United States, so that they
+appear in different localities in different years. New York State has
+five well-marked broods.
+
+There are several other species of cicada peculiar to America. One is
+called _Cicada tredecim_, since it appears every thirteen years.
+However, this species is limited to the South.
+
+The dog-day harvest fly, or lyreman, is the cicada that is best known to
+us through the northern and middle States. This appears in small numbers
+every year and is a distinct addition to the summer chorus of insect
+singers. He is larger and much more dignified in appearance than is his
+cousin _septendecim_. He wears a black suit embroidered with scrolls of
+dark olive green and the whole lower surface of his body is covered with
+white powder. His drums are situated above plates which may be seen on
+the lower side of the body, one behind each hind leg. He hides in trees
+and his shrill music is so associated with the heat of summer noons that
+the sound itself makes one drowsy. The hermit life of the lyreman in
+underground cells is supposed to last only two years.
+
+While the cicadas of which we have spoken are the children of an ancient
+race which inhabits America, Europe also has her ancient races of
+cicadas, although they are not the kind which live hermit lives for
+seventeen years. We have evidence that their music was held in high
+esteem by the ancient races of men--especially the Greeks. When Homer
+complimented his orators he compared them with cicadas. Thus it may lend
+a special interest to the study of the cicada by our Junior Naturalists
+when they know that his kettle drums have been celebrated instruments of
+music by poets who wrote three thousand years before America was
+discovered by Columbus.
+
+
+QUERIES FOR SHARP EYES.
+
+1. When did you first see one of the cicadas?
+
+2. What was it doing when you found it?
+
+3. Did it do anything to attract your notice to it, or did you find it
+by accident?
+
+4. Where did you find it?
+
+5. See whether you can determine which are the father and which the
+mother cicadas.
+
+6. Try to find where a mother cicada has laid eggs.
+
+7. If you find where the cicada emerged from the ground, or from a hut,
+give a brief description of the location, as to kind of soil, etc.
+
+8. Where did you find the most of the cast-off nymph skins?
+
+9. Did you discover animals or birds feeding upon the cicada?
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXXI.
+
+A HOME FOR FRIENDLY LITTLE NEIGHBORS.[92]
+
+BY ALICE G. MCCLOSKEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflet XVII.)
+
+
+[92] Junior Naturalist Monthly, October, 1902.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Last year when vacation days were over our young people found it hard to
+leave the acquaintances that they had made during the summer,--the
+garden-folk, the road-side-folk, and the wood-folk. Let us take them
+indoors with us this year. It will not be difficult to provide a home
+for some of the more friendly ones and they will help to make the
+schoolroom a cheerful place. How pleasant it will be in the long
+afternoons to hear the cricket's merry tune or see the flutter of a
+butterfly's wings! The quiet woods and the green fields will then seem
+nearer and we shall feel a little touch of their mystery and beauty.
+
+It is not necessary to have a fine home for the outdoor-folk. They will
+not object if it is not an up-to-date dwelling. Fig. 341 illustrates a
+very convenient terrarium, as the home is called. The sides and top are
+covered with fine wire screening and the front is glass. By raising the
+cover, which is fastened to one side by means of hinges, new visitors
+can be admitted easily.
+
+Another terrarium is shown in Fig. 126, page 208. This is made from an
+old berry crate. It does not look quite so well as the other, but, as I
+said before, the inmates will not mind a bit. The toads will give their
+high jump as gracefully and the crickets fiddle as merrily as in the
+finer one.
+
+When the terrarium is ready to furnish, you can have some nature-study
+trips in search of materials for it. Cover the floor with stones and
+place about three inches of good soil over them. Then you will be ready
+to select the carpet. Let this be of soft green moss, the prettiest bits
+that you can find on the forest floor. Leave one corner free for sods
+on which tall grasses grow, so that there will be a cozy nook for the
+orchestra (crickets, grasshoppers, katydids, and the like). What a fine
+concert there will be! Will the most conceited toad in the terrarium
+ever dare to raise his voice in song again after hearing it? Perhaps
+next spring we shall know.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 341. A shower for the little neighbors._]
+
+Even before the home is completed, you can gather your small guests
+about you. Temporary lodgings can be provided without much trouble. Fig.
+342 illustrates a good insect cage, and a box containing damp moss and
+covered with mosquito netting will make fairly comfortable quarters for
+salamanders ("lizards") and toads.
+
+The first visitor that you welcome will probably be a little
+woolly-bear, a brown and black caterpillar that you see so often in your
+autumn walks (Fig. 343). He is one of my favorite insect friends, and I
+really like to have him snuggle up in a furry ball in my hand. You will
+find woolly-bear a very restless little creature. You never know what he
+is going to do next. He may spin a cocoon this fall or "he may curl up
+like a woodchuck," as Uncle John says, and sleep until spring. Then, if
+all goes well, he will spin his cocoon and come out an Isabella
+tiger-moth (Fig. 344). No matter how fast woolly-bear may be hurrying
+along the highway when you meet him, put him into the terrarium, for you
+will find that he is a most entertaining little fellow.
+
+If you have an insect net, sweep it among shrubs and weeds. I am hoping
+that when you look into it you will find "golden-eyes" or the
+lace-winged-fly. When you see the pretty little green creature you will
+wonder that her children can be called aphis-lions, for they are not at
+all like their mother (Fig. 345); but when you have watched them among
+the aphids or plant-lice, you will understand how they have earned their
+name. They have very long jaws and very large appetites.
+
+No one knows better than golden-eyes what her children are capable of
+doing when on a foraging tour. For this reason she places her eggs high
+on silken stalks (Fig. 345). If she laid them on the leaf close
+together, the first aphis-lion hatched would not give the other members
+of his family a chance to open their eyes, nor to know how pleasant it
+is to live on a green leaf. As it is he walks down the silken stalk and
+finds himself among the aphids. Then, when he has proved himself the
+gardener's friend by devouring a great many of the small green insects,
+he spins a pearly white cocoon and out of this comes a lace-winged-fly
+with glistening golden eyes. If one of these dainty creatures comes to
+live in your terrarium, you may notice some day that it has a
+disagreeable odor. This is a characteristic that many insects possess,
+and owing to it the birds do not like to eat them.
+
+There is another insect out in the garden that ought to be an inmate of
+every terrarium this fall, the green cabbage-worm. Some Junior gardeners
+will object to calling this a friendly little neighbor, but you will
+find that he will teach you many new things, in this way proving himself
+friendly to you as a naturalist. You must remember that these green
+caterpillars did not know that you had planted the garden in which they
+worked destruction. They did not know that you wanted to send the very
+best cabbage to the State fair. They knew only that when they opened
+their eyes they were on a green leaf and it was good to eat.
+
+Probably you will find the eggs of the cabbage butterfly on the under
+side of the leaves. Then you can feed the young caterpillars when they
+hatch. They will, of course, prefer cabbage leaves. If you miss them
+some day, search in the terrarium for the chrysalids into which they
+have changed. These chrysalids sometimes imitate the color of the
+support from which they hang, and you may have difficulty in finding
+them. For this reason it may be well to keep one of the caterpillars
+under a lamp chimney, the top of which has been covered with mosquito
+netting (Fig. 342), so that you may know how the chrysalids look.
+
+The cabbage butterflies are familiar to most boys and girls; yet as they
+come out of the chrysalid state in your terrarium, you will be able to
+observe them more closely. Notice that the wings are dull white on the
+upper sides, while on the under side the apex of the fore wings and the
+entire surface of the hind wings are pale lemon yellow. In the female
+you will find that there are two black spots besides the tip on each of
+the fore wings, and in the male there is but one.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 342. An insect cage._]
+
+Now that I have put you in the way to find a few members of the insect
+world for your terrarium, I am going to ask you to think about some
+other outdoor-folk that naturalists learn to like.
+
+Have you ever turned over stones or broken off pieces of an old stump in
+the woods or along the bank of a stream? If so, you may have seen
+salamanders ("lizards") making their escape as quickly as possible. If
+you can get a few for your terrarium you will learn to like them, for
+they are harmless and have very interesting ways. Do not catch them by
+their tails as they try to get away, or you may find that you have
+captured the tails but lost the salamanders.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 343. Woolly-bear, natural size._]
+
+Let the excursion in search of these little fellows be one of the
+jolliest of the year. You will find them in moist places and should
+therefore, carry a box containing damp moss to put them in. I would
+suggest that you take two boxes along, one for the smaller salamanders,
+the other for their larger brothers. Why? I will tell you.
+
+It happened this summer that a party of little folks went out with me on
+a salamander hunt. We found three kinds: the _Spotted Salamander_, which
+is black with yellow spots on each side of the back; the _Red-back
+Salamander_, which usually has a reddish brown band along the back; and
+a black one covered with whitish spots. This black one with whitish
+spots was named "Freckles" by one of our number, a much more attractive
+name than his own, which is _Pleth'-o-don glu-ti-no'-sus_.
+
+We placed the three in a box, and as I closed it the large spotted
+salamander seemed very well satisfied (no wonder!), while the other two
+raised their heads in a most appealing way. I was firm, however, and
+made them prisoners, feeling sure that they would be comfortable in the
+nice large terrarium.
+
+When morning came we opened the box, for we were ready to put our little
+neighbors into their new home. What was our surprise to find the spotted
+salamander alone! As to countenance he was well content; as to sides he
+was much bulged out. Poor little "Freckles" and poor little Red Back! I
+wish I had listened to your appeal!
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 344. Isabella tiger moths, male and female. The red
+and black woolly-bear is the larva or caterpillar of this moth. The
+smaller moth is the male._]
+
+
+SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY.
+
+1. A terrarium is "an inclosed bit of earth on which things may live and
+grow." Do not think that it is necessary to have one as well made at
+first as that in the illustration. (Fig. 341.) Uncle John will be well
+pleased to know that you have made some arrangement for having
+outdoor-folk live in the schoolroom. Any such home will be a terrarium.
+
+2. Every one can have grasshoppers for study. How many different kinds
+can you find? Do all have the feelers or antennæ the same length?
+Observe the growth of the wings in the nymph, as the young grasshopper
+is called. In the grown-up ones notice that the narrow wing is on the
+outside and the pretty ones underneath.
+
+3. Every one can also find crickets, and no terrarium will be complete
+without them. In the warm schoolroom or home they will make music until
+late in the year. Watch the black cricket make music with his wings.
+
+Notice a tiny light speck near the elbow of the cricket's front leg.
+This is the ear; so you see the little fellows "listen with their
+elbows."
+
+The mother cricket has a spear at the end of her body. With this she
+makes a hole in the ground in which to place her eggs. She cannot chirp,
+but the father makes enough music for the family. You will see that the
+mother seems to enjoy it.
+
+Plant fresh grass seed and grain occasionally in the cricket corner of
+your terrarium.
+
+4. If you do not own an insect net, try to find a lace-winged fly
+without one. It will not be difficult for young naturalists to see the
+flies resting on the bushes along the roadside. These insects are
+valuable to farmers because their children, the aphis-lions, eat so many
+plant-lice and other insects.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 345. Golden-eyes or lace-winged fly; eggs, larva or
+aphis-lion, cocoon, adult._]
+
+Look on the under side of the leaves for the cocoon illustrated in Fig.
+345. It has the appearance of a small pearl. The first time I found one
+I did not know what it was. I left it on my desk hoping that something
+interesting would come out of it. The next morning there was a pretty
+green insect trying to get out of the window and I wondered how it had
+come there. While thinking about it my eye fell on the cocoon lying on
+my desk. I noticed that a lid had been raised on it and suspected at
+once how golden-eyes had found her way into my room. Who will succeed
+in getting the eggs, an aphis-lion, a cocoon, or a lace-winged fly? Let
+us know.
+
+5. The larger the number of butterflies you can bring into the
+schoolroom, the gayer will be the terrarium world. Gather fresh thistles
+or other flowers from which they can suck the nectar or give them
+sweetened water in a dish. Notice their long mouth-parts as they eat.
+
+One of the most common of all butterflies is the large brown and black
+one. This is called the monarch butterfly. Notice that many of these fly
+together on autumn days. They are going south with the birds.
+
+6. Be sure to keep the moss damp for the salamanders and add
+occasionally fresh pieces in which they will get food. Perhaps you can
+teach them to eat raw meat after they have been with you awhile.
+
+7. The terrarium will not be complete without a toad or two. You can
+feed them flies, other insects, and earthworms, and they may then leave
+the salamanders alone. You need not be afraid to handle the toads for
+_they cannot give you warts_. When they have been in the terrarium
+awhile they will show you how they like to spend the winter.
+
+[Illustration: _A terrarium in School No. 23, Buffalo._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXXII.
+
+MOTHS AND BUTTERFLIES.[93]
+
+BY ALICE G. MCCLOSKEY.
+
+
+[93] Junior Naturalist Monthly, March, 1902.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Of all the insects that interest boys and girls, moths and butterflies
+seem to hold the first place. I find, however, that young people are not
+always able to distinguish these insects one from another, and do not
+know very much of the strange lives they lead. Perhaps you may have
+found out a few facts about them in books, but this is not _knowing_. To
+know, one must see some of the wonderful things that they do. When you
+have watched the whole life-story of a moth or butterfly, you will have
+a far greater interest in these animals than their handsome wings and
+graceful flight have ever given you.
+
+The most important thing to remember in the study of moths and
+butterflies is that they appear in four different forms during their
+lives. These forms are:
+
+  _The egg._   _The larva._   _The pupa._   _The adult._
+
+
+THE EGGS.
+
+The eggs are laid singly or in clusters. They are usually found on the
+plant which is the favorite food of the young. Look for the shining
+masses of the eggs of the tent-caterpillar on apple and wild cherry
+trees; also for the yellow eggs of potato beetles on potato leaves.
+
+
+THE LARVA.
+
+The larva or "worm" hatches from the egg. During this period in its
+history the insect _eats_ and _grows_. If you doubt that they have good
+appetites, undertake to feed a few healthy caterpillars this spring. If
+you doubt that they are particular as to the kind of food they have,
+find out for yourselves whether the apple tree "worm" will eat
+milk-weed leaves or whether the milk-weed caterpillar will eat leaves
+taken from an apple tree.
+
+One of the most interesting things to notice in the study of larvæ or
+caterpillars is that they occasionally appear in bright new coats, and
+we find the old ones have been cast aside. It is necessity, not pride,
+that leads them to do this. You see, an insect's skeleton is on the
+outside of its body; and if it could not be shed once in a while how
+would there be room for the little creature to grow?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 346. Chrys'-a-lids of the mourning-cloak
+butterfly._]
+
+
+THE PUPA.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 347. Cocoon of the cecropia moth. It is often
+attached to the twig of a fruit tree._]
+
+Of all the forms in which moths and butterflies appear, the pupa is the
+strangest. Although we speak of this period in the life of the insect as
+one of rest or sleep, it is the time when the most wonderful changes
+take place in its body.
+
+The queer little objects that you see illustrated in Fig. 346 are the
+pupæ of the mourning-cloak butterfly. When the caterpillars were about
+to shed their coats for the last time, they hung themselves head
+downward from a twig by means of a silk button which they had spun. Then
+they cast off their skins, leaving the chrysalids or naked pupæ hanging;
+protected from birds by their spiny form and protected from many
+enemies, even from young naturalists, by their wood-brown color which so
+closely resembles the support from which they are suspended.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 348. The cecropia pupa inside the cocoon. Nearly
+natural size._]
+
+Let us next look at the pupa of a moth. This is often inside a covering
+which is called a cocoon. If you look on the fruit trees or shade trees
+about your home you may find a cocoon of the ce-cró-pi-a moth. You will
+see that it is made of silk. This covering was spun by the giant
+silkworm as a protection against the storms of winter. How snug the pupa
+is inside, and how firmly the cocoon is fastened to the twig on which
+you found it! Figs. 347, 348, 349 show this interesting insect.
+
+When you are studying pupæ remember that butterflies do not come out of
+cocoons. Their chrysalis or pupa is always uncovered. In the case of
+moths, however, the pupa is either inside a cocoon or protected by being
+underground or in some well sheltered place. These facts suggest a
+question. Is there any reason why the one should be better fitted to
+endure cold and storms than the other?
+
+
+THE ADULT.
+
+We now come to the fourth period in the lives of moths and butterflies,
+a period which has ever had and ever will have an interest for young and
+old. Since there are many persons, little and big, who cannot
+distinguish the two groups, butterflies and moths, let us learn the
+marks by which they may be known.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 349. Cecropia moth just emerged from the cocoon, on
+which it hangs. The moth comes from the pupa._]
+
+Butterflies have uncovered pupæ. They fly by day. The wings are folded
+over the back when at rest. The antennæ or feelers have _knobs_ on the
+ends. (Fig. 350 B.) The body is slender.
+
+Moths have pupae either inside cocoons or protected by being underground
+or in some sheltered place. Many moths fly at night. The antennæ are
+never knobbed. (Fig. 350 M M.) leave the wings spread when they are at
+rest. The body is stout.
+
+Occasionally you may come across insects that very closely resemble
+butterflies, yet have some characters that are similar to those of
+moths. They are the skippers, so named because of their strong and rapid
+flight. The antennæ have knobs, but these knobs are drawn out and turned
+back in the form of a hook. (Fig. 350 S.) The body is rather stout. The
+pupa is covered by a thin cocoon. In some species the wings are held
+vertically, in others horizontally.
+
+
+SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY.
+
+Cocoons and butterfly chrysalids are very hard to find because they so
+closely resemble the withered leaves that cling to shrubs and trees.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 350. Antennæ or feelers._]
+
+You will probably find cocoons of the ce-cro-pi-a and pro-mé-the-a
+moths. The former, illustrated by Figs. 347 to 349, is commonly found on
+fruit trees; the latter swings loosely from a branch of ash, wild
+cherry, or lilac. The promethea cocoon is enfolded in a leaf which the
+caterpillar fastened to a twig by means of silk before it spun the
+cocoon. If you are rewarded for your search by finding some of these
+winter homes, leave a few of them in a cool place and occasionally dip
+them in water that they may not become too dry. Look at them carefully
+from time to time and note any changes that take place. Following are a
+few suggestions that will help you in the study of cocoons:
+
+1. Observe the covering of the pupa closely. Is it made of other
+material beside silk? When the woolly-bear, that many of you have cared
+for all winter, spins his cocoon, he will use some of his own hair as
+well as silk.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 351. Luna moth and swallow-tail butterfly._]
+
+2. Open the cocoon. Is the pupa free from it? Are the threads of silk
+woven in the same direction in all parts of the covering?
+
+3. Out of which end do you think the moth will come?
+
+4. Describe the inside of the cocoon. Do you find anything in it beside
+the pupa?
+
+5. The cocoons of the Chinese silkworm are soaked in hot water or
+softened by steam before the thread can be unwound. Put one of the
+cocoons that you find in hot water and see whether you can unwind the
+silk. I wish you could secure some cocoons of the real silkworm.
+
+Boys and girls often ask us what they shall feed moths and butterflies.
+Many of the adult insects do not eat at all. Some, however, sip the
+nectar of flowers or sap of trees. Oftentimes they will drink sweetened
+water or the juice of fruit. If you have an opportunity, watch one while
+it eats. Notice the long "tongue" through which it takes its food. This
+is made of two pieces grooved on the inner side, and when held together
+they form a tube. When the insect is not eating these mouth-parts are
+coiled.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 352. The life-story of an insect, the forest tent
+caterpillar. m, male moth; f, female; p, pupa; e, egg-ring recently
+laid; g, hatched egg-ring; c, caterpillar. Moths and caterpillars are
+natural size, and eggs and pupa are slightly enlarged._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXXIII.
+
+THE PAPER-MAKERS.[94]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
+
+
+[94] Junior Naturalist Monthly, February and March, 1901.
+
+A CASTLE MADE OF PAPER.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Many school rooms in the State have a hornet's nest which some boy or
+girl has brought to show the teacher. It is usually hung on the wall or
+used as an ornament on top of the bookcase. Let us take it down some day
+this month and learn something about it.
+
+Do you think the nest can be called a castle? Why not? Look inside. Is
+it not several stories high? Are there not spacious galleries in it? Is
+it not as well guarded when the wasps are at home as if an army of
+soldiers stood outside?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 353. The paper castle._]
+
+Let us see how this castle is built. You have heard that wasps were the
+first paper makers. In the early summer you will see them around wood
+that has been worn by the weather. They take off loose fibres and by
+means of their mouth-parts work them into pulp. Can the rain get through
+this paper? Find out whether it is waterproof.
+
+Some of the nests made by vespa (Fig. 353), as the hornets or
+yellow-jackets are called, are very large. Do you think a wasp could
+make one alone? No, these are social wasps; that is, a great many live
+together. There are males, females, and workers. Some day we shall tell
+you how the wasps form their colony, but for this lesson we want you to
+study the nest.
+
+Notice the envelope which covers the cells. How many layers of paper are
+there in it? We might call each layer a clapboard.
+
+Can you see any difference in the direction of the outside layers on top
+of the nest and those which are below?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 354. Interior arrangement of white-faced hornet's
+nest._]
+
+How many stories high is the nest?
+
+Note the difference in the size of the stories. Where do you find the
+smallest?
+
+Count the rooms or cells in each.
+
+You know, of course, that an egg is placed in each cell. When the larvæ,
+as the young of the wasps are called, are hatched, they still live in
+the cells.
+
+How do they manage to keep in their cells? You see the nest is really
+turned upside down. Their little heads must hang where the worker wasps
+can feed them easily. I wonder whether you can tell me why the young
+wasps do not fall out?
+
+The workers chew all the food which they give the little ones. When in
+summer you see hornets about your flower beds or feeding on other
+insects, it may be that they are preparing breakfast for the young.
+Notice the flowers which they visit.
+
+
+POLISTES, THE PAPER-MAKER.
+
+In the previous lesson I spoke of vespa wasps that make homes of paper.
+You learned that they bite off pieces of weather-worn wood with their
+jaws and chew it until it is made into pulp. Were you interested in
+these social wasps? If so, you may like to hear about another member of
+the same family.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 355. Home of polistes, the paper-maker._]
+
+Hiding in some crevice about your house or the school building there is
+probably a wasp which naturalists call po-lis´-tes. She has been there
+ever since the cold weather came. In the spring you may see her tearing
+off pieces of wood from some unpainted building or weather-worn fence.
+Let us see what she is going to do.
+
+This wasp is the founder of a colony. The first thing she does is to
+select a place for her home. Then she makes a few cells--only a few, for
+she has no help. When you find a nest like the one in the picture (Fig.
+355), you will see how the comb is fastened to the roof or to a tree or
+to the under side of a stone.
+
+As soon as the cells are completed, the mother lays an egg in each. From
+these eggs little grubs or larvæ are hatched. They are fed by the mother
+until they become pupæ. The cells are sealed over while the wasps are in
+the pupa state. They have to break open the seals before they can come
+out.
+
+All members of the first brood are workers. As soon as they are hatched
+the mother has nothing to do but to provide eggs. They clean out the
+cells in which they passed their early days; they make additions to the
+nests; they take care of the young. Do you remember how the vespa
+workers prepared food for the larvæ in their colony and what they fed
+them? The young polistes are cared for in the same way.
+
+You may see the workers flying about in your garden this summer, getting
+the sweets from the various flowers that you have planted. You will know
+why they are so busy through the long sunny days. You will think of the
+hungry little wasps waiting for their dinner. You will wonder whether
+they put their heads out of the cells when the workers feed them.
+
+
+NEST OF POLISTES.
+
+1. Compare the nest of polistes with that of vespa.
+
+2. In what ways do they differ?
+
+3. Where did you find the nest?
+
+4. How was it held in place?
+
+5. How many cells are there in it?
+
+6. Notice the pieces of the seals which still remain on the nest. Tell
+us whether they are made of the same material as the cells. Of what
+utility are the seals?
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXXIV.
+
+SOME CARPENTER ANTS AND THEIR KIN.[95]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
+
+(Compare Leaflet XXI.)
+
+
+[95] Junior Naturalist Monthly, October, 1903.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+One bright August morning, as we were walking along the edge of a wood,
+we found an old tree trunk lying on the ground. I am sure it had been
+there a long time. Large pieces of bark were loose enough to be lifted
+up; being naturalists, we took advantage of this fact to see whether
+anything was living underneath.
+
+What queer little outdoor folk we found: "thousand-legged worms,"
+sow-bugs, a black beetle that looked as if its back were made of
+patent-leather, and best of all a colony of ants! These ants were large
+black ones known as carpenter ants. They had made very comfortable
+quarters in this old log. How alarmed they were when we so rudely
+exposed them to the light!
+
+One brave ant impressed me more than any other member of the colony. I
+wish that all of our girls and boys might have seen it. With my knife I
+commenced to cut down the wall of one of the rooms to see what was
+inside. The soldier-like ant stood near and, instead of running away, it
+attacked the large steel blade with its jaws. Was not that a brave thing
+to do? Are you surprised that I closed the knife and put it into my
+pocket?
+
+During all this time there was great commotion in the colony. The worker
+ants were scurrying off with the younger members of the family, trying
+to find a safe place for them. Some of these little brothers and sisters
+were tiny white legless creatures; some were covered up in what looked
+like little bags; others were ghost-like things, very white and
+apparently lifeless.
+
+Now before you can understand what is going on in an ant's nest, you
+must know four things:
+
+1. The white oblong eggs are very small. You will not see them readily.
+
+2. The little legless creatures, or larvæ, hatch from the eggs and are
+fed by the workers. Mrs. Comstock says that an ant larva looks like a
+crook-neck squash.
+
+3. The larvæ either spin cocoons or rest awhile without any covering
+before they become fully grown ants. In their resting form they are
+called pupæ. Children usually think the little sack-like pupæ are the
+eggs.
+
+4. The fully grown ants come from the pupæ.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 356. Making a home for ants._]
+
+We want every Junior Naturalist Club to have an ant's nest in the school
+room and to observe the following:
+
+In time of danger do the ants look to their own safety first?
+
+Watch the workers feed and clean the young.
+
+Try to see an ant help a younger relative out of the pupa skin.
+
+Notice how many uses the ants seem to have for their antennæ or feelers.
+
+Has it ever seemed to you that ants carry on a conversation when they
+meet?
+
+See how many different kinds of ants you can find out-of-doors, Tell us
+about their homes.
+
+
+HOW TO MAKE AN ANT'S NEST.
+
+In the illustration (Fig. 356) you will see an ant's nest. For this kind
+of nest you will need a plank, near the outside edge of which is a deep
+groove. The plank should be painted; can you tell why? In the center use
+two pieces of glass laid flat and separated by narrow sticks along each
+side, so that they are about one-eighth of an inch apart. The sticks
+should not come close together at one corner. This leaves a little
+doorway for the ants. Cover the top glass with black paper or cloth so
+that the space between the two pieces of glass may seem a nice, dark,
+safe room in which ants may live. It will be a good thing to keep a
+small piece of damp blotting paper in one corner of this room in case
+the workers want a moist place for the young ones. Fill the groove in
+the plank with water and the nest is ready.
+
+The best ant colony to take indoors is the one that you find under
+stones in a pasture. With a trowel lift up the ants, pupæ, larvæ, and
+sand and put the contents carefully into a pint can. When you reach the
+schoolroom put the contents of the can on the plank and watch what
+happens. If the ants do not find the room you have made for them, place
+a few larvae and pupæ within it. They will probably find them.
+
+Do not neglect to provide food for the colony. Ants like to eat cracker
+soaked in sweetened water, bread, cake, berry jams, sugar, bits of raw
+meat, yolk of hard-boiled egg, and custard.
+
+[Illustration: _Junior naturalist museum in the school. District No. 2,
+Sheridan, N. Y._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXXV.
+
+A GARDEN ALL YOUR OWN.[96]
+
+BY JOHN W. SPENCER.
+
+
+[96] Junior Naturalist Monthly, May, 1904.
+
+MY DEAR NEPHEWS AND NIECES:
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Would you like to have a garden this summer--a garden all your very own?
+If so, you can surely have one. A man up in a balloon could have one if
+he were to try; a man living down in a coal mine could not, because
+there would be no sunlight. Plants must have light from the sun, which
+is the vital source of all light. I consider that anyone who cares for a
+plant, growing either in a window box or in a tomato can, has a garden.
+Yes; a plant growing in an eggshell constitutes a garden.
+
+
+A LITTLE GIRL'S GARDEN.
+
+Near my desk is a picture of a little girl, holding in her arms a big
+pumpkin that she raised in a garden all her own. I do not know how many
+pies could have been made from that pumpkin, but, at any rate, it was a
+big pumpkin. The seed from which the vine started was planted in an
+egg-shell in the school-room. When the bright May days came the
+egg-shell had become too small for the plant or the plant had become too
+large for the egg-shell, so the little girl planted it in the open
+ground at her home. She must have been a tiny girl or the soil in her
+garden must have been very hard, for without help she was unable to
+spade it and make it fine. She hired her father to do it for her and
+paid him by carrying his dinner every day for a week to the shop where
+he worked. When lunch time came, papa and she had a little picnic all by
+themselves. There is no prettier picture than is made by such strong
+comradeship between a little girl and her father.
+
+
+MAKE A BARGAIN WITH YOUR TEACHER.
+
+I hope your teacher will permit you to have some boxes of earth (I mean
+_soil_) in the windows of your school-room, in which you may plant
+flower or vegetable seeds. In early June, just before the close of
+school, you can divide the plants among yourselves and set them out in
+the open ground or in window boxes at your home. Ask your teacher
+whether you may have such a privilege. Promise that if she will grant
+this favor you will be just as good as the "little girl who had a little
+curl that hung in the middle of her fore-head," and if at any time you
+become "horrid" the teacher may give your share of the plants to some
+one better behaved than yourself. If she is a wise teacher she will
+consent, but not until she has made a bargain with you that you are to
+do all the work and to ask nothing from her but advice when you need it.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 357. Sweet peas._]
+
+
+A PLANT NURSERY.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 358. A nest of window pots._]
+
+Your first garden should be in a shallow box, called a "flat," which you
+may consider a kind of nursery for the plants. Let this nursery, or
+cradle, be as long and as wide as a soap box, and not more than three or
+four inches deep. You can make a "flat," as gardeners do, by sawing a
+soap box in two. In the bottom of the box make some small auger holes
+for drainage. Some of you may be so fortunate as to be able to gather
+from the woods and fields the material for fitting up the flat. Some
+moss,--say about an inch of it,--should first be laid in the bottom.
+When moss cannot be found, use stones or pieces of broken pottery to
+cover the drainage holes. This is to prevent the soil from washing
+through. The remainder of the flat should be filled with good woods
+earth. Pack the soil firmly. Fill the flat not even full, but to within
+half an inch of the top. Those who cannot go to the fields must get the
+best garden soil to be found. A few children may be unable to get even
+garden soil. They will be obliged to go to the florist's for soil, as
+they must do when they fill their window boxes. Because of the frequent
+waterings required by all plants growing in boxes, it is important to
+get soil that is not sticky and that will not pack hard.
+
+
+SOWING THE SEED.
+
+When the time comes for the sowing of seeds, you had better ask your
+teacher to look over your shoulder to see that you do it correctly. In
+sowing, put the seeds in straight rows. These rows may be made by
+denting the soil with the sharp edge of a stick or ruler. Let the rows
+extend the entire width of the flat. Into the dent, drop the seeds at
+regular intervals. If any seeds drop outside of the dent, gently push
+them into place with a toothpick. Half a dozen rows of one variety of
+flowers or vegetables having small seeds will give a large number of
+plants. One flat may accommodate a number of varieties.
+
+At the point where one variety stops and another begins, a neat label of
+wood should be stuck. This affords a good chance for a boy to bring his
+new jack-knife into use. On the label should be written the name of each
+variety. This will give an excellent opportunity for one who writes a
+good vertical hand to make himself useful. Begin at the very top of the
+label and write towards the lower end; then if the lower part of the
+label rots off or becomes discolored, you will still have the first and
+most important part of the name left. The label should never be
+disturbed, for a careless boy or girl might not put it back into the
+exact place where it was found, which would be indeed unfortunate. The
+Smiths and Joneses of that plant community would become so mixed that
+the Joneses would be called Smiths and the Smiths would be known as
+Joneses. It would be as bad as changing door-plates.
+
+When the seeds have been evenly distributed in rows like houses along a
+street there comes another very important step,--the covering of the
+seeds. If seeds are covered too deep they will rot because of too much
+moisture; if the covering is too thin, the soil will dry so rapidly that
+the seeds will fail because of insufficient moisture. The size of the
+seed usually determines the amount of covering necessary. As a broad
+general rule, the soil covering should be about four times the thickness
+of the seed.
+
+Having been covered, the earth must be thoroughly watered. This must be
+done gently and carefully. If done with a rush, the water will wash the
+covering away and many of the seeds will be left bare. Whenever such an
+accident occurs, the seed may be pushed into the soil with a toothpick.
+At most times when watering, continue to apply the water until it just
+begins to drain through the bottom of the flat. This should be
+practiced even after the seeds have germinated and become growing
+plants. Keep the flats shaded until the plants begin to push their heads
+through the soil. After this time strong light should gradually be given
+them that the plants may not become tall and spindling, or "leggy," as
+gardeners say.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 359. Transplanted into a pot._]
+
+If the seed boxes are in a sunny or windy place, the soil may dry out
+too rapidly. This can be prevented by laying a newspaper over the flat
+when the sun strikes it. As the plantlets grow, care must be taken not
+to shade them too much.
+
+
+A PLANT KINDERGARTEN.
+
+In some plants the first leaves are called the "seed-leaves," and, like
+children's milk teeth, soon disappear. The next set are the true leaves.
+After the true leaves appear, if the plants seem crowded and
+uncomfortable, like three boys trying to sleep in a narrow bed,
+transplant them into other flats prepared similarly to the one into
+which the seeds were sown. You may think of this as the promotion of the
+young plants from the cradle to the kindergarten. Here the plants should
+be placed about an inch from each other, in squares. Wet the plants
+thoroughly before taking them up and also the soil into which they are
+to make their second home. After this is done, the soil should be
+pressed firmly about the roots, as you snuggle the bedclothes about your
+neck on a cold winter's night. It is entertaining practice to transplant
+the plants into pots, if you happen to have any florist's pots of small
+size.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 360. A soap box put to use._]
+
+This transplanting of plants in the school-room gives a quiet occupation
+to boys and girls who for a time may not be engaged in study. The
+disobedient child or the would-be "smart" one might better be denied
+the privilege. I say "privilege," because the wise teacher will make
+window gardening a privilege and not required work. After the
+transplanting has been completed and the plants thoroughly soaked with
+water, they must be shaded for about twenty-four hours, after which they
+had better receive the strong light once more, when they will resume
+their growth.
+
+
+PLANTS NEED WATER.
+
+If plants could feel and talk, they would tell of periods when they had
+endured great suffering because of thirst: suffering as great as that
+sometimes experienced by travelers in crossing a desert. Often it has
+been so great as almost to ruin a plant's constitution. I am often
+asked, "How frequently shall I water plants?" It is as difficult to give
+a fixed rule for watering as to determine how often a boy should be
+allowed a drink. During cool cloudy weather, plants do not require as
+much water as when the sun shines bright and hot on them. I can give no
+better general direction than this:--water plants when the surface of
+the soil seems dry and powder-like, when a pinch of it rolled between
+the thumb and finger does not form a little ball. Under conditions in
+which the drainage is good, plants should receive water until the
+surplus begins to trickle out of the holes at the bottom. If you follow
+these directions carefully, your schoolroom garden should afford a good
+lot of plants for cultivation at home in the open ground or in boxes.
+
+
+WHAT YOU MAY PLANT.
+
+As to the kind of seeds to sow, you must be governed by what you most
+desire to have in your home garden for summer cultivation. If you are
+able to have a garden in the open ground, I would have you make a
+selection of both flowers and vegetables. Do not choose a large variety
+of either, for children are but little men and women and must shape
+their tasks to fit their shoulders. It would be better to have a garden
+the size of a horse blanket and have it in good condition all summer
+than to have a larger one and allow it to become a wilderness of weeds.
+
+In the vegetable line, you can have radishes and lettuce that may be
+harvested by the Fourth of July. After the first crop has been removed
+the ground should be spaded and wax beans planted in rows about eighteen
+inches apart and the beans six inches apart in the rows. These give the
+juiciest of pods, excellent for pickling. Kings and princes could have
+none better. This plan gives you two crops from the same ground in one
+summer. Plant radishes in rows twelve inches apart and about two inches
+apart in the row. Pull them for the table when the roots are
+three-quarters of an inch or a little more in diameter. Set lettuce
+about three inches apart in the row, which is twice or more as thick as
+the plants should be when full grown. When half grown or more every
+other plant may be pulled out for table use and the remaining ones will
+soon fill the vacancies.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 361. A window-garden of one's own._]
+
+In suggesting your selection of flowers, I shall mention but a few. I
+have chosen the following kinds because they are not too particular or
+exacting as to care, while some are equally well adapted for cultivation
+either in the open ground or in window boxes. I hope you will include
+sweet peas, dahlias, and gladioli in your selection. I have not named
+them in this list because they are not suitable for planting in flats,
+but are planted directly in the open ground where they are to spend
+their lives. Gladioli and most dahlias you will not raise from seeds.
+
+The following is a list from which you may make a selection for planting
+in your school-room, to divide later with your mates for home
+planting:--
+
+  Petunia       }
+  Nasturtium    } Suitable for planting either in
+  Sweet Alyssum }  window boxes or in the open ground.
+  Mignonette    }
+
+  Bachelor's Button       }
+  Salvia (Flowering Sage) }
+  Phlox                   }  To be planted in
+  Aster                   }  the open ground.
+  Marigold                }
+  Candytuft               }
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 362. Plan of the improvement of the school ground,
+shown in Fig. 365._]
+
+
+MAKE A GARDEN IN A BOX.
+
+There is no reason why you cannot have a window-box as attractive as the
+one shown in Fig. 361. Plants will grow as well for you as for the
+richest or the greatest man of whom you ever heard. All they require is
+to be made comfortable. The two things most necessary for their comfort
+are water as often as they need it, and fertile soil that will not
+become hard from frequent watering. Plants in boxes need water much
+oftener than those in the open ground. I once knew of a window-box on a
+tin roof on the south side of the house that was watered morning, noon,
+and night. Those plants must have been comfortable, for they made
+thrifty growth.
+
+When you have learned how to make plants comfortable in a flat, you will
+know what is necessary for their comfort in a window-box. They should
+have the same kind of earth, but more of it. The box should never be
+less than eight inches wide and eight inches deep and as long as you can
+afford to fill with earth and plants. There must be holes in the bottom
+for drainage, and moss or small stones placed over the holes to prevent
+the soil from washing away.
+
+The plants should be set four to six inches apart in the box. At first,
+this will seem too great a distance, but after a few weeks of growth,
+the plants will cover all bare spots. When transplanting either to
+window-boxes or to the open ground, do it the same way as when changing
+plants from the cradle flat to the kindergarten flat.
+
+I know of a brother and a sister who found enough soil to fill some
+egg-shells. The shells had small drainage holes in the bottom. In time
+the plants grew and became too large for the egg-shells. Then the
+children went in search of more soil. They found enough to fill a few
+tomato cans. These cans also had drainage holes in the bottom. In each
+can they set a plant. They then put the cans into a soap box. Then they
+packed excelsior into all the vacant places in the soapbox. The
+excelsior helped to hold the moisture. The box stood on a back veranda
+where the plants had plenty of sunshine. So long as they were
+comfortable they did their best, which is as much as they could have
+done if they had been in expensive vases in the grounds of the White
+House at Washington.
+
+
+CONSIDER YOUR SCHOOL GROUNDS.
+
+On the last page of this leaflet are two pictures of a school-house. The
+first shows how it looked when it had not a friend. The second shows
+what the friendship of the teacher and the children could do for it. In
+both cases the building remains the same. Look at one picture and then
+at the other. See, if you can, what one thing has been done to make the
+difference--a difference as great as that between a tramp and a
+gentleman. A few shrubs have been planted by the friends, but the
+greatest thing they did was to clean up. They took away everything that
+looked untidy and shabby.
+
+At this time of the year you see many beautiful crocuses, tulips,
+daffodils, and hyacinths. Nothing children can plant will give so much
+for the labor as these bulbs. Why not have some on the school grounds?
+When school begins next September, write me for directions how to grow
+them.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 363. Product of a child's garden._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 364. School premises before improving._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 365. School premises after improving._
+
+_Could you not do as much for your school grounds?_]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXXVI.
+
+THE GARDENS AND THE SCHOOL GROUNDS.[97]
+
+BY JOHN W. SPENCER.
+
+
+[97] Junior Naturalist Monthly, June, 1903.
+
+MY DEAR BOYS AND GIRLS:
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Of course you believe that Columbus discovered America, even though you
+were not with him. If you had been on the deck of his ship when San
+Salvador raised its head on the rim of the sea, you would be talking
+about it every day of your life. As it is, your knowledge comes to you
+through books, and you think you are fortunate if you are able to answer
+questions correctly on examination. This leads me to remark that there
+is much more interest in things that we have helped to "make happen"
+than in things that we read about and that were "made to happen" by some
+one else.
+
+There is a chance for each of you boys and girls, in a way, to become a
+Columbus. It is true that, not counting the north and south poles, all
+the continents are discovered, but there is much pleasure and "fun" in
+discovering facts. I am now speaking from experience. I think that James
+Buchanan was President when I learned, in such a way that I could
+explain to others, the principles of a suction-pump. Some of the
+suggestions led me to make a squirt gun from a bit of elder stalk.
+Sometimes when I made a demonstration the water would fly in the faces
+of my audience. I started a squirt gun factory, but the teacher stopped
+the enterprise because it made too much litter in the school-room.
+
+I have a suggestion that will start you on a voyage of discovery. When
+you have gone as far as you can I wish you would write me, telling what
+you have learned. Writers of agricultural books sometimes use the
+expression, "There is fertility in tillage." Is that true?
+
+By fertility is meant the power of the soil to furnish plant-food.
+Fertile soil is "rich" soil. By tillage is meant frequent stirring of
+the soil. For example, Billy Boy and his chum each have a flower garden
+side by side of equal size. Each boy sows seeds from the same bag. The
+same sunshine and the same rains give vigor to each flower-bed alike.
+Billy Boy spades the soil deep and makes it fine. His chum stirs the top
+and leaves clods on the surface. With the end of a sharp stick Billy
+makes a straight drill for the seed. On the bottom of the drill the soil
+is fine like meal, and the seed is sown with great care and is covered
+with the finest soil. If the seed is small he makes the soil covering
+very thin. The last thing he does is to firm the soil by patting it with
+either his hand or the flat part of a hoe, and he does it in an
+affectionate way as if he were patting a dog. His chum makes the drill
+for the seed in a hasty way, leaving in the bottom little clods of earth
+as large as hickory nuts. He sows the seed as if he were glad to get rid
+of it, and he covers it as if he wanted it out of sight as soon as
+possible.
+
+Which of the two boys gave the better tillage to the soil? During the
+summer you will see how others care for their plants and you will see
+instances of good tillage and poor tillage. You must observe and write
+me which of the two had the better success in having the seed come up.
+The difference between the two ways does not end in sowing and
+germination of seed, but continues all summer until the end of the
+season. Billy Boy will care for the soil by combing it with a rake
+several times a week, with the same care and affection with which the
+lover of a horse will groom the animal each morning. The chum will think
+the plants are all like goats, and ought to live with almost any chance.
+Billy Boy will have no weeds among his plants and his chum will have
+them in great numbers. The chum may say that weeds shade the plants and
+thereby protect them from drought. I have known grown-up farmers to say
+that. Is it true? Go on a voyage of discovery and find out.
+
+I hope your garden may be of the Billy Boy kind, receiving plenty of
+tillage. You will have no trouble to find any number of the other kind
+of gardens growing to weeds and receiving no tillage. It will please me
+very much if you will write me, giving as many reasons as you can why
+tillage makes the soil more fertile (or "rich") and able to produce
+better plants and flowers. Each letter will be carefully read.
+
+
+AN EXPERIMENT.
+
+Perhaps you can answer the questions by watching your garden or some
+one's else garden; but you can answer them better if you will grow a few
+"hills" of corn. In the fall I shall have many questions to ask you
+about corn, and I want you to be able to answer by telling me what you
+have seen with your own eyes. Those of you who are Junior Naturalists
+have done well with your dues this year, but we must always do better
+next year than we did last; so I want you to know many things about
+Indian corn when you come back to school in the fall. Your teacher has
+also been asked to study corn, and I am going to study it myself. I am a
+farmer and I have grown corn all my life. Once I thought that I knew all
+about it; but frequently some one asks me a question about it that I
+cannot answer.
+
+Now, I hope that you can plant at least ten "hills" of corn, or, if you
+do not plant it in "hills," you may make two rows, each of them five or
+ten feet long. I want you to plant part of these hills (or one of the
+rows) in good rich soil. Perhaps your father will let you plant them in
+the best part of the garden along with the cabbages or other crops; or,
+perhaps, your mother will let you plant them at the back part of the
+flower garden. Then I want you to keep down the weeds and break or
+cultivate the ground often with a hoe or rake so that the soil is always
+loose. Then I want you to plant the other part of the corn in a poor or
+dry piece of ground, where the weeds grow. This part you need not
+cultivate. I think that before the summer is half over you will learn a
+very great lesson by looking at these two pieces of corn. Some of you
+will say that you know beforehand what will happen; but I want you to
+grow the corn nevertheless.
+
+By fall I hope you will be able to write me whether you can tell a rich
+soil when you see it, and also why you think it is rich. I want everyone
+of the Junior Gardeners to tell me that much when school opens.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+_To the Teacher:_
+
+We must depend upon your courtesy to help in reporting what has been
+done by you and your pupils in improvement of school grounds. In
+addition to this we hope it may be your pleasure to ask all the children
+who are able to write to tell us in detail, at some language period,
+what they have done. We are never able to get reports of all this good
+work. Many teachers feel that nothing but heroic deeds in the planting
+of school grounds are worthy of mention. This is a mistake. Some grounds
+may be more improved by attention to simple tidiness than by expensive
+planting, and they are equally worthy of mention.
+
+The attendance at some schools is small and the pupils are young. Small
+efforts from them are relatively great when compared with what is done
+by schools with ample facilities. We know a teacher who began her first
+teaching in the fall of 1902. The pupils were eight in number and most
+of them were small. The school was in the country. The interior of the
+building was shabby. The teacher was courageous and resolute. With her
+small handful of not over-competent pupils, she had school "exercises"
+and the children sold tickets. By this means enough paper was bought to
+cover the walls, and the teacher and the children put the paper on. Then
+they made other sales, for which they received as commission three
+pictures creditably framed. They were hung on the walls of the
+school-house. By this time, the tide of civic improvement in that
+community began to turn towards the improving of the school building and
+grounds. We are eagerly awaiting reports to know what was done on Arbor
+Day. Under such conditions, it was no small thing that the teacher and
+children accomplished.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 366. Making a school-garden in Massachusetts._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXXVII.
+
+SOMETHING FOR YOUNG FARMERS.[98]
+
+BY JOHN W. SPENCER.
+
+
+[98] Supplement to Junior Naturalist Monthly, April, 1902.
+
+MY DEAR NEPHEWS AND NIECES:
+
+[Illustration]
+
+I wish to make farmers of you all. I will try to tell you how to have
+farms all your own--farms on which you can plant seeds and see the
+plants grow. Once a little girl in Buffalo, who is one of my Junior
+Naturalists, asked me whether I would call at her home and see the
+harvest from seeds she planted on one of her farms the spring before.
+The principal of the school went with me, for he knew all about the
+little girl's success, and seemed proud of what she had accomplished.
+What do you think it was she had raised? It was something that filled
+her lap and was good to eat. It was a fine pumpkin. It weighed
+twenty-two pounds. I wish I could have a photograph of her holding the
+pumpkin, her face glowing with pride and satisfaction.
+
+You are surely able to do as much as this little girl did. Perhaps you
+would prefer some other crop to pumpkins, in which case you have many
+kinds of seeds from which to choose.
+
+Last spring, in school, this little girl with other boys and girls began
+planting and caring for egg-shell farms. It costs no money and but
+little trouble to own several such farms. The greatest pleasure and
+profit is to be found in having them in school, for then you have the
+opportunity of seeing how others manage their farms, and there is a spur
+in doing what others are doing. When you have read all about my plan I
+wish you would ask your teacher whether you cannot have some egg-shell
+farms in your grade. When your plants are large enough to put
+permanently in the open ground, you can plant them in a garden or
+window-box at your home. If it is not convenient to have egg-shell
+farms at school, ask your parents if you cannot have some at home.
+
+Please give me your ears and your attention while I tell you how to get
+your farms.
+
+In April you have eggs at some one of the three meals of the day, and
+the empty shells can be easily obtained. The end of the shell to be
+broken is the sharp or "peaked" end. Break away about a quarter or a
+third of it and pour out the white and the yolk that is inside. This
+empty shell is to hold the soil of your farm, and you can have as many
+farms as may be convenient to care for. On each egg-shell you may write
+your name, for the same reason that people have door plates on the doors
+of their houses or signs on their places of business. Some very
+methodical boys and girls write also the names of the kind of seeds
+sown, and the dates of planting and sprouting. Do not forget to put a
+hole through the bottom of each one of your farms for drainage. I wish I
+could be with you when you get your soil; we would go out to the
+pastures and the woods for a supply. I should be able to tell you much
+about different soils, and how they have been made. It is an interesting
+story that I must tell you when we are past the hurry of spring's work.
+If we could go afield we should find the best soil for your egg-shell
+farms about the roots of rotted stumps or in rotted leaves. It is
+necessary that the soil shall not bake hard because of frequent
+waterings, shall not dry out quickly, and shall have plenty of
+plant-food. I fancy the most convenient plan will be for all of you who
+wish soil to form a syndicate by contributing a cent each and go to a
+florist and buy your soil. Tell the florist you wish it for your use and
+the probabilities are that he will be so much interested in your plants
+that you will get more for the same amount of money than I could if I
+were to go for you.
+
+The next difficulty will be to keep your farms right side up. That is
+easily accomplished by putting some sand or sawdust in a shallow box and
+making a dent where you wish each farm to stand. If you have your farms
+in the school-room, Tom, Dick, and Harry can have all their farms in the
+same box. There will be no trouble in separating them if the owner's
+name is written on each one.
+
+Next comes the planting of seeds and the problem of the amount of earth
+to put over them. Big seeds require more covering than little seeds.
+Seeds like peas, beans, and corn may be thrust into the middle of your
+farm. Small seeds, like those of the petunia, which are almost like
+dust, require only the gentlest sprinkling of soil. Seeds as large as
+those of the aster and the balsam should be covered with a layer of
+earth as thick as a lead pencil. I advise you to plant twice as many
+seeds as you wish to have grow. Many accidents may happen and if all
+grow, the surplus plants can be replanted later or thrown away. The
+earth covering should be sprinkled or sifted over the seeds, and then it
+must be patted or pressed down firmly. By this means the particles of
+soil are snuggled close together, and the seed and the soil hold
+moisture much better than when the particles lie loose and far apart.
+
+The next thing to do after planting is to sprinkle water over your
+farms. Do this as gently as possible, for with all your care some seeds
+may be uncovered. Look over the ground carefully, and those you find
+exposed poke into the earth with the point of a pencil or a stick.
+
+The soil of your farms must be kept moist at all times. This is a point
+that will require your continued attention. When your Uncle John
+attended school, many years ago, there was a passage in his reader that
+taught him that "Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty." The
+attention required to keep plants suitably watered does not fall much
+short of eternal vigilance. This need not scare you. If you care for
+your farms you will find it a pleasure to wait on your plants.
+
+If you have your egg-shell farms in the school-room, there will be no
+opportunity to water your plants Saturday or Sunday, when school is not
+in session. I think if you make your farms soaking wet Friday at the
+close of school, and then set them back from the window out of the
+direct rays of the sun, no harm will come from dryness before Monday
+morning.
+
+You must watch to see whether all members of the same family do the same
+thing precisely alike. After sowing your seeds and watering your farms
+you will go to them many times to see whether anything has happened. You
+will not be able to see anything or hear anything, and you will conclude
+that nothing is going on in the soil.
+
+In this you will be mistaken, for some active changes are taking place.
+They are of a kind that you can neither see nor hear. In days to come,
+when you are men and women, you will be able to appreciate the fact that
+some of the most important events come about silently and some of the
+least important come with a racket.
+
+The first leaves that appear on most plants are called the seed-leaves.
+If your plants are comfortable, but a few days will pass before true
+leaves develop. You will find the latter very different from the
+seed-leaves. Before the first or seed-leaves appear it is not important
+that your farms have the strong sunlight. In fact I always put my
+egg-shell farms in the shade while the seeds are germinating, but at the
+first peep of a leaf or stem I put them in the full sunshine.
+
+Most of you will no doubt have your farms on the window ledge. Among the
+first things you will observe is a way all the leaves have of looking
+out of doors. If you turn your farms around so the leaves are looking in
+the room, the time will not be long before all of them will be faced out
+of doors again. Once on a time one of my Junior Naturalists told me that
+plants take to sunshine as a duck does to water. A duck is never so
+comfortable as when in water; and I am certain that sunshine is
+important to the comfort of most plants. Some of my nephews and nieces
+will understand why light is so necessary to plants, for I have spoken
+of this before.
+
+I hope you will this moment decide to have some egg-shell farms, and sow
+some seed immediately after getting your soil. Later, when the plants
+are large enough to plant in the open ground, we will talk of what is
+best to do with them. In Leaflet LII you will find a picture of an
+egg-shell farm.
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXXVIII.
+
+BULBS.[99]
+
+BY JOHN W. SPENCER.
+
+
+[99] Nature-Study Quarterly, October, 1899.
+
+A BULB GARDEN.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+  "It's rather dark in the earth to-day,"
+  Said one little bulb to his brother;
+  "But I thought that I felt a sunbeam ray--
+  We must strive and grow till we find the way?"
+  And they nestled close to each other.
+  Then they struggled and toiled by day and by night
+  Till two little snowdrops in green and white,
+  Rose out of the darkness and into the light,
+  And softly kissed one another.--_Boston Journal._
+
+To succeed with the cultivation of flowers, the first thing to have in
+mind is to make the plant comfortable. This condition should be not only
+the first thought, but also the last thought. If you can do this
+successfully, the plant will do the rest of the work and your results
+will be abundant.
+
+What plant comfort is, is a question more easily suggested than
+answered, for it is a very large subject--about as large as the surface
+of the earth. As a venture we will say that there are as many different
+kinds of plants as there are people. It is at least safe to say that
+plants have as many different notions as to their conditions of life as
+have the people of the different nations and tribes of the world.
+
+If you were to have a birthday party and should invite as your guests
+the children from the four corners of the earth, and by magic could
+bring them to you in a jiffy, the boys and girls from Greenland would
+come enfolded in seal-skin, and those from Hawaii would bring only their
+bathing suits. You would have a busy time keeping them comfortable, for
+when you opened the door to cool off the little Greenlanders, the little
+Kanakas would complain of too much draft; and at the table the former
+would ask if you happened to have some tallow candles for dessert, and
+the latter would ask for bread-fruit and bananas.
+
+Many of our flowering plants have been brought together from such remote
+quarters as that. We have bulbs from Holland, and pansies from England,
+and phlox from the dry atmosphere of Texas.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 367. The Snow-drop._]
+
+There is as much difference in the conditions necessary for comfort in
+these different plants as there is in the requirements of the little
+Eskimos and little Polynesians. To some extent, plants can change their
+manner of living, but in the main they are happiest when they can have
+their own way, just as you and I are.
+
+We cannot bring about the foggy, damp weather of Holland and England
+when we want it; neither can we bring the dry atmosphere of Texas--air
+so dry that meat will cure hard in the hottest weather without tainting.
+It so happens, however, that from one Fourth of July to the next we have
+many kinds of weather, and if one could not find conditions suited to
+almost any kind of plant it would be strange. If we cannot make the
+weather accommodate itself to the best comfort of the plant, we must set
+the plant so as to accommodate itself to the weather.
+
+Pansies from foggy England and bulbs from the lowlands of Holland should
+be planted to bloom in the cool days of spring, and the phlox from Texas
+will prosper in the heat and drought of July and August.
+
+With this idea well fixed in your mind, you will easily see that when
+you know the country from which a plant has come, a knowledge of the
+physical geography of that country will be helpful in knowing how to
+make the plant happy and prosperous.
+
+We must also make the plant comfortable in the soil. There is great
+difference in what plants require to make them comfortable. Some, like
+thistles or mullein or ragweed, will thrive on almost any soil and are
+no more exacting as to food than a goat or a mule; but other plants are
+as notional as children reared in the lap of luxury. As a rule,
+flowering plants belong to the "lap-of-luxury" class.
+
+Soil covers the land as thin skin covers an apple or as a thin coat of
+butter covers bread, and it holds more or less plant-food. When men
+erect school buildings and afterwards grade the ground they usually turn
+a part of the soil upside down. There is also considerable rubbish of
+the builders left scattered about, such as brick-bats, chips of stone,
+and the like, that go to make the place an uncomfortable one for
+notional plants. For this reason I wish particularly to call your
+attention to the manner in which you should prepare the ground on which
+you intend to plant. The first thing to do is to spade the ground
+thoroughly to the depth of at least ten inches. All stones as large as a
+big boy's fist should be thrown out, and all lumps given a bat with the
+back of the spade to break them into fine particles. This is to be a
+flower-bed and should be soft like your own bed. It would be better to
+make it up more than once. After the first spading it would be well to
+cover the bed with a coat of stable fertilizer to a depth of six to
+eight inches, which will give additional plant-food; and in spading the
+second time, this fertilizer will become thoroughly mixed with the soil.
+The surface should next be raked smooth, and your flower-bed will then
+be ready for planting.
+
+We all admire the bright bulb flowers that are among the first to
+blossom in the spring. These mostly come from Holland, or at least
+attain their perfection there. We have just spoken of the importance of
+planting flowers at such a time that they may live their career when our
+climate is most like that from which they come. In the case of bulbs,
+spring and early summer is the most favorable time for them in this
+country, and fall is the proper time for planting.
+
+The exact time in the fall to plant, how to plant, what bulbs to plant,
+when to put a winter overcoat on the bed, and other details, I will
+leave for Mr. Hunn to tell in the following Leaflet. He has had many
+years' experience in the management of flowers, and I advise you to read
+carefully what he says.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 368. A bulb bed at the school house._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXXIX.
+
+A TALK ABOUT BULBS BY THE GARDENER.[100]
+
+BY C. E. HUNN.
+
+
+[100] Nature-Study Quarterly, October, 1899.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+Perhaps you would like to hear from the gardener. Your Uncle John has
+told you something about preparing a bed for your plants. His advice is
+very good; but the bulbs we are to talk about are like those notional
+children whom he mentions and they do not want tallow candles for any
+part of their meal.
+
+You should know that bulbs do not want to come into direct contact with
+the stable fertilizer. They want the fertilizer below them where the
+feeding roots may nibble at it when the bulb is hard at work developing
+the leaves and flower. You know that all the leaves and the flowers were
+made the year before, and the bulb simply holds them until the new roots
+have formed. No kind of treatment will make a bulb produce more flowers
+than were formed in the year it grew (last year); but the better the
+treatment the larger and finer the flowers will be.
+
+If I wanted to make a bulb bed, I should choose, if possible, a sandy
+soil and throw out the top soil to the depth of six inches. Then I
+should put into the bottom of the bed about two inches of well rotted
+manure and spade it into the soil. Then I should throw back half of the
+top soil, level it off nicely, set the bulbs firmly on this bed, and
+then cover them with the remainder of the soil; in this way you will
+have the bulbs from three to four inches below the surface. It is dark
+down there and in the fall months the top of the ground is cooler than
+at the depth of five or six inches and the top of the bulb will not want
+to grow, while the bottom, which is always in a hurry, will send out
+roots, to push out the leaves and flowers the next spring.
+
+When the weather is cold enough to freeze a hard crust on the soil, the
+bed should have its winter overcoat. This may be straw, hay, cornstalks,
+or leaves spread over the bed to the depth of six inches if the material
+is coarse; but if you use leaves, three inches will be enough, because
+the leaves lie close together and may smother out the frost that is in
+the ground and let the bulbs start. What we want is to keep them asleep
+until spring, because if they start too early the hard freezes of March
+and early April will spoil their beauty if the leaves or flowers are
+near or above the surface. Early in April the covering may be removed
+gradually and should all be off the beds before the leaves show above
+the ground.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 369. Simple designs for bulb beds._]
+
+Perhaps many of you cannot find a sandy place for your beds; if not,
+make your beds as has been told you, leaving the stones in the bottom of
+the bed for drainage. Then, when you are ready to set the bulb, place a
+large handful of sand where your bulb is to go and set your bulb on it;
+this will keep the water from standing around the bulb. Very good
+results may be obtained on heavy soil by this method.
+
+What kind of bulbs shall we put into these beds? Choose hyacinths,
+tulips, narcissus, or daffodils, with snowdrops or crocuses of various
+colors around the edge.
+
+If you use hyacinths you can have the national colors, red, white, and
+blue, or many shades of either color, as shown in the diagrams (Fig.
+369). Of tulips you can have stars or ribbons of yellow, white, or
+crimson, or in fact almost any color except true blue. In narcissus,
+yellow, sulfur, and white are the colors. The little crocuses come in
+yellow, blue, white, and striped colors, and are in bloom and gone
+before the large flowers take your attention. Many other bulbs are fine
+for spring flowering; but as most of them are more difficult to grow
+and many of them rather expensive, I do not think we will discuss them
+now.
+
+Suppose we want a bed of red, white, and blue hyacinths (Fig. 369), and
+make it six feet in diameter: how many bulbs would you want? Now,
+hyacinths should be planted six inches apart each way, and the outside
+row should be at least three inches from the edge of the bed. You see
+you will want a little over one hundred bulbs, which, if one person had
+to buy them, would cost him a considerable sum; but if fifty or more
+boys and girls would club together it would be easy for everyone.
+
+If you want a bed of tulips, they should be planted four or five inches
+apart instead of six inches. So you will need more bulbs; but they are
+cheaper than hyacinths. The narcissus bulbs, being still smaller than
+tulips, may be planted three inches apart; and the little crocuses, the
+first flowers of spring, should touch one another, as should also the
+snowdrops.
+
+Perhaps many of you do not wish to wait until spring for your bulbs to
+flower, in which case we must try to persuade them to bloom through the
+winter, say at Christmas. Nearly all bulbs are good-natured, and may be
+coaxed to do things that nature never asks them to do; so if we go at it
+right we shall find it very easy to make them think their time to bloom
+has come, even if the ground is covered with snow and the ice is thick
+on the ponds. Hyacinths, narcissus, and crocus can all be made to flower
+in the winter by starting this way. Get the bulbs so as to be able to
+pot them by the middle or last of October, or if earlier all the better.
+The soil should be rich, sandy loam if possible; if not, the best you
+can get, to which add about one-fourth the bulk of sand and mix
+thoroughly. If ordinary flower pots are to be used, put in the bottom a
+few pieces of broken pots, charcoal, or small stones for drainage; then
+fill the pot with dirt so that when the bulbs are set on the dirt the
+top of the bulb is even with the rim of the pot. Fill around it with
+soil, leaving just the tip of the bulb showing above the dirt. If the
+soil is heavy, a good plan is to sprinkle a small handful of sand under
+the bulb to carry off the water, the same as is done in the beds
+outdoors. If you do not have pots you may use boxes. Starch boxes are a
+good size to use as they are not heavy to handle; and I have seen
+excellent flowers on bulbs planted in old tomato cans. If boxes or cans
+are used, care must be taken to have holes in the bottoms to let the
+water run out. A large-size hyacinth bulb will do well in a five-inch
+pot. The same size pot will do for three or four narcissuses or eight to
+twelve crocuses.
+
+After the bulbs are planted in the pots or other receptacles, they
+should be placed in a cool place, either in a cold pit or cellar or on
+the shady side of a building, or, better yet, plunged or buried up to
+the rim of the pot in a shady border. This is done to force the roots to
+grow while the top stands still; as only the bulbs with good roots will
+give good flowers. When the weather gets cold enough so that a crust is
+frozen on the soil, the pots should be covered with a little straw, and
+as the weather gets colder more straw must be used. From six to eight
+weeks after planting, the bulbs should have made roots enough to grow
+the plant, and the pots may be taken up and placed in a cool room for a
+week or so; after which, if the plants have started into growth, they
+may be taken into a warmer room where they can have plenty of light.
+They will grow very rapidly now and will want lots of water; after the
+flowers begin to show, the pots may stand in a saucer of water all the
+time. When just coming into bloom the plants may have full sunlight part
+of the time to help bring out the color of the flowers. Fig. 370 shows a
+pot of tulips.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 370. Pot of tulips._]
+
+I want to tell you of two bulbs that do not need so much fussing with to
+get them to bloom for Christmas. One of them is called freesia (Fig.
+371) and if I could have but one kind of bulb to flower in the winter, I
+should choose this. The little bulbs are not half as large as crocus
+bulbs and you will be astonished at the large leaves and flowers such a
+bulb can produce. The bulbs are about the cheapest of all winter bulbs
+and they grow without putting them away to make roots, as the tops do
+not seem as impatient to start as those of most other bulbs, but wait
+until there are roots to help them along. The flowers are borne on a
+slender stem and look very graceful, either on the plant or in bouquets.
+They are also very fragrant, and a pot with five or six bulbs will
+perfume a large room. All they need is good light soil, sunlight, water,
+and warmth to make glad the heart of anyone who plants them.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 371. Pot of the freesia._]
+
+The other bulb I should select is the oriental narcissus or Chinese
+sacred lily. This grows in water without any soil whatever. Just take a
+bowl or glass dish about three times the size of the bulb; put some
+pretty stones in the bottom; set in the bulb and build up around it with
+stones so as to hold it stiff when the leaves have grown; tuck two or
+three small pieces of charcoal among the stones to keep the water sweet;
+then fill up the dish with water and add a little every few days, as it
+evaporates. Set the dish in a warm, light place. In about six weeks the
+fragrant, fine white flowers will fill the room with perfume and you
+will have the pleasure of watching the roots start and grow, the top
+throw up long green leaves, and the flower clusters develop and open
+their flowers. Hyacinths may also be grown in water, but not as easily
+as this narcissus, or in such inexpensive dishes.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 372. Winter box of bulbs._]
+
+The picture (Fig. 372) of a bulb box was taken last winter from a box of
+mixed bulbs grown at Cornell. The calla in the center and the Kenilworth
+ivy trailing over the front were planted in the box in September, and
+pots of geraniums and other plants set on the dirt to fill the space.
+When the bulbs that were in pots were ready to be started they were
+taken out of the pots and set in the dirt in the box, where they grew
+and flowered; the tall stems are paper white narcissus, the best variety
+for winter. On each side there is a hyacinth just starting and in front
+a little freesia in bloom. When these bulbs were done flowering, small
+pots of blooming plants were set on the box and a charming window box
+was obtained with many different things in it through the winter.
+
+
+WHERE TO PLANT BULBS; AND OTHER ADVICE FOR THE OUTDOOR GARDEN.
+
+A large part of the beauty of the flower-bed lies in its position. A
+flower-bed in the middle of the lawn is usually out of place. It has no
+"setting," as the artists say. It lacks background. It is merely an
+incidental thing dropped into the sward. It is out of place. A
+flower-bed should belong to some part of the general planting of the
+grounds, or it should be a part of the border or boundary surrounding
+the place. The center of any grounds should be left open, or free from
+heavy planting. A few trees may be planted in the center, if one desires
+shade; but all the masses of foliage and flowers should be somewhere
+near the sides or else near the foundations of the house or near other
+definite boundary lines. In such places the flower-bed is supported by
+other herbage. It has relation to something else. It forms a part of a
+general picture; and every good yard should be a picture.
+
+Along the borders the beds are usually more easily cared for than they
+are in the center of the lawn. In the latter place they are in danger of
+being trampled over, and the roots of the grass run underneath the bed
+and absorb the food and moisture which the flowers need. The beauty of a
+formal bed in the center of the lawn is destroyed if some of the plants
+are injured or do not develop. Symmetry is part of its merit. If,
+however, the bed is along the border, a few vacant places in the bed do
+not attract great attention. In school grounds it is well to have the
+beds somewhat near together or continuous, in order that the labor of
+taking care of them may be less.
+
+It is always well to plant profusely. Much of the beauty of a flower-bed
+lies in an abundance of color. One must consider, also, that some of the
+roots, seeds, or bulbs may fail. Some of them may not grow in the first
+place, and others may be injured by weather or by accidents. It is well
+to provide for all these contingencies.
+
+One of the best plants to use for the school bulb garden is the crocus,
+because the bulbs are cheap and very hardy. The mixed bulbs, comprising
+all the common colors, can be had for forty or fifty cents per hundred
+at retail, and if one should buy them in considerable quantities, they
+could be had for less than this. A thousand bulbs of mixed crocuses
+should be got for three dollars or a little more, and these would make a
+great display along the fence or walks of any school garden. One of the
+ways to grow crocuses is to plant the bulbs in the grass, not cutting
+out the grass where they are planted. That is, they grow right in the
+sod. By the time the lawn needs to be mown in the spring, the flowers
+are gone and the crocuses can be cut with the grass. The crocuses will
+not last so long in a mown sod as they will in beds which are especially
+prepared for them, but they will ordinarily give good results for two or
+three years if the land is good; and they are so cheap that they can be
+renewed from time to time.
+
+Other good, hardy bulbs for fall planting out-of-doors, aside from
+lilies, are hyacinth, snowdrop, snowflake, tulip, narcissus of various
+kinds (including daffodils and jonquils), grape hyacinth, squill. All
+these are early spring bloomers and will delight the children's eyes.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 373. A good arrangement of shrubbery and
+flower-beds._]
+
+
+
+
+LEAFLET LXXX.
+
+HORSES.[101]
+
+BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY and I. P. ROBERTS.
+
+
+[101] Junior Naturalist Monthly, December, 1904.
+
+[Illustration]
+
+A few minutes ago I went into the stable to see Peg and Nan, the two bay
+horses. On the outside of each stall I found a door-plate, with _Nan_
+written in large, black letters on one, _Peg_ on the other. I visited
+each old friend in turn.
+
+They are quite different in disposition, these two horses. Nan is
+gentle, affectionate, patient; Peg is spirited, unfriendly, restless. I
+am very fond of them both and as yet have not been able to decide which
+I enjoy the more, quiet Nan or spirited Peg.
+
+All horses are interesting to me. As I take my daily walk, I like to
+look at the different ones I meet along the way. There is the baker's
+horse and the butcher's; the doctor's horse, sleek and active; the heavy
+gray horses that haul loads of coal up the hill all through the winter
+weather; "Old Speckle," the postman's horse; and the friendly bay I so
+often see feeding in the meadow.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 374. Nan._]
+
+Of all these wayside acquaintances, I like best the one I meet in the
+meadow. Perhaps I associate him with the meadow-lark's song, the fresh,
+green grass, and the gay little dandelions that were about when I first
+crossed his path; or, perhaps our friendship progressed more rapidly
+than city streets ever will permit. He seems to know when I am
+approaching and raises his head in welcome. I always pet him and talk to
+him a bit, and we both know that two friends have met.
+
+There are many things about horses that everyone ought to know. If we
+were to ask Junior Naturalists how coach horses differ from roadsters
+and how roadsters differ from draft horses, how many would be able to
+tell us?
+
+Perhaps you will ask, "What is a draft horse?" The draft horse has short
+legs, a heavy body, a short, thick neck, broad deep chest and shoulders,
+strong hocks and moderately large feet. It may be that your father owns
+a draft horse. Ask him whether it is a Percheron, a Clydesdale, or an
+English Shire. These are the most familiar breeds of draft horses. The
+Percherons came from France and at first they were gray. Now they are
+often black or dark brown. The Shires, commonly bay, brown or sorrel,
+came from England; and the Clydesdales, similar in appearance to the
+Shires but smaller and more active, came from Scotland.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 375. A typical draft horse._]
+
+All boys and girls know coach horses. As you stand by the school-room
+window, you may see one pass. They have long arched necks and fine
+heads. Their bodies are rounded and well proportioned.
+
+Roadsters, trotters, and saddle horses are usually not so large as
+coachers. Their necks are inclined to be longer and their chests
+narrower than in the coach horse; however, their muscles and tendons are
+strong.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 376. Welsh pony and its mother._]
+
+Now you must not think that just because a horse is drawing a load he is
+a draft horse; nor because a horse is hitched to a coach he is a coach
+horse; nor because he is driven on the road he is a roadster. These
+three names,--draft horses, coach horses, roadsters,--represent types or
+classes. They mean kinds of horses that are supposed to be best adapted
+for drawing, or for coaches and carriages, or for fast driving,
+providing the horse has no other work to do. But the horses that you
+usually see are just mere common horses of no particular type, and are
+used for a great variety of purposes. They are "nondescripts," which
+means "undescribed" or "unclassified." You would not think of putting a
+true draft horse, like the animal in Fig. 375, on a light carriage; nor
+of hitching a coacher like that in Fig. 377 to a coal wagon. Do you
+think there is any real roadster, or coach horse, or draft horse in your
+neighborhood? If not, perhaps you can tell, as the horses pass you,
+whether they are nearest like one type or another. Try it.
+
+If you will observe horses closely you will find that some are large,
+heavy, and strong, and that they are seldom made to move rapidly, while
+others may be nearly as tall but they are slim, and carry their heads
+high and their necks arched. You should also notice that the heavy draft
+horse does not lift his feet high nor walk with a proud and lofty tread,
+while the coach horse lifts his feet high, carries his head high, and
+moves very proudly.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 377. A good coacher._]
+
+There are several breeds of draft or heavy horses. Fig. 375 shows a fine
+Clydesdale horse imported from Scotland. Notice how nicely he is marked.
+The horseman would say that he has four "white stockings" and plenty of
+"feather" on his fetlock; strange, is it not, that this long hair should
+be called feather?
+
+If you should see a large, smooth gray horse similar to the Clyde,
+without the "white stockings" or the "feather," you may conclude that he
+is a Percheron horse. As we have said before, the Percheron breed of
+horses came from France. It is not always gray in color. It is slightly
+smaller than the Clydesdale.
+
+After you have learned that a draft horse should be large and strong,
+study the picture of the coach horse (Fig. 377). Compare him with the
+draft horse. The coach horse is not a fast trotter nor even a fast
+roadster, but he is usually very beautiful, strong, and stylish.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 378. Arabian horse._]
+
+Now I shall ask you to compare the neck shown in Fig. 380 with that
+shown in Fig. 381. Which do you think is the more beautiful? The horse
+with the long, slim neck is a noted trotter. If the neck and head were
+large, would it help or hinder the trotter? Compare the neck of the
+trotter with that of the draft horse and see whether you can explain why
+one is heavy and the other light. Can you explain to your parents why
+the draft horse should weigh more than the coach horse?
+
+Do you admire the head and neck shown in Fig. 380? Wherein does it
+differ from the others? This type is called "ewe-neck." Can you tell
+why? Tell me whether you think this horse would be a safe driver.
+
+What do you think of the head and neck of the Arabian horse (Fig-378)?
+You like it, do you? Why? Can you imagine what kind of horse belongs to
+that head and neck? Describe it.
+
+Probably the Arabian horse would be too spirited for you so I shall show
+you a Shetland pony. (Fig. 379.) Where is Shetland? Why are horses so
+small in the country where this little fellow came from? How does he
+differ from the other horses shown in the Leaflet? Note _all_ of the
+differences.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 379. Shetland pony._]
+
+In Fig. 376 you will see the picture of a Welsh pony, and she has a
+ponyette, a baby only a few days old. Which is the larger, the Shetland
+pony or the Welsh pony? Which one would you prefer if the baby were left
+out? Could you raise a calf until it became a grown cow and then trade
+it for a pony? Just a plain little pony can be bought for the price of
+a good cow. It is part of a good education to know how to raise and
+handle cows and horses.
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 380. Ewe-neck, a poor horse._]
+
+With this Leaflet in your hand, you should go to the stable, or, better
+still, out on the street, and see whether you can find as good horses
+and ponies as the pictures represent. As you study horses try to answer
+the following questions:
+
+1. Where is the horse's knee joint? Which way does the knee bend?
+
+2. Where is the hock joint? Which way does it bend?
+
+3. Can a horse sleep when standing?
+
+4. How are the legs placed when a horse lies down?
+
+5. How does a horse get up,--front legs first or hind legs first? How
+does a cow get up?
+
+6. When a horse starts, after standing, what foot does he put forward
+first,--the left or the right? Fore or back? What foot moves next?
+
+7. When a horse trots, do the two feet on one side move together? Or do
+lefts and rights move together?
+
+8. What does a driver mean when he says that a horse "forges" or
+"over-reaches?"
+
+9. Name the things that a horse commonly eats. What is a good feed for a
+day,--how much of each thing, and when given?
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 381. Neck of a trotter._]
+
+[Illustration: _Fig. 382. At pasture._]
+
+
+
+
+INDEX.
+
+
+    ["Fig." means that the page referred to contains the figure only,
+    no text reference.]
+
+                                                                  PAGE.
+
+  Agassiz, glacial hypothesis                                       105
+    making of surveys and maps                                 202, 203
+
+  Agriculture, its place in schools                               45-47
+
+  Agricultural education, what it is                              45-53
+
+  Air                                                      87, 123, 124
+
+  Alfalfa                                40, 354, 355, 357-360, 489-493
+
+  Alluvial fans                                                     132
+
+  Annual rings                        321, 327, 328, 329, 330, 335, 474
+
+  Ants                       62, 64, (Fig.) 224, 243-251, 274, 508, 513
+
+  Ant-lions                                                         250
+
+  Aphids                                           62, 68, 248-251, 539
+
+  Aphis-lion                                         249, 539, 540, 543
+
+  Apple, buds                                                  328, 329
+    fruit                                                       467-472
+    grafting of                                                374, 375
+    shape of tree                                                   304
+    twigs                                                       317-325
+
+  Apple-scab                                            470, (Fig.) 471
+
+  Apricot                                                 328, 375, 377
+
+  Aquaria                                     59, 60, 141-156, 165, 166
+
+  Arborvitae                                              345, 346, 347
+
+  Asters                                                        379-383
+
+  Azalea                                                            331
+
+
+  Back-swimmers, see "Bugs."
+
+  Bagworms                                                           61
+
+  Balsams                                                           383
+
+  Barngrass                                                         362
+
+  Bass, black                                                       162
+
+  Basswood leaf-roller, see "Moths."
+
+  Beans                                          291, 460-466, 563, 564
+
+  Begonias                                                     372, 373
+
+  Bees, wings of                                             (Fig.) 224
+    bumble                                             65, 68, 351, 352
+    carpenter                                                        61
+    honey                                               62, 64, 65, 353
+
+  Beet                                                    257, 415, 416
+    sugar                                                           405
+
+  Beetles                                            210, 223, 224, 507
+    engraver                                                         61
+    plum curculio                                                    68
+
+  Beetles, potato                                            62, 63, 68
+    predaceous diving                                               151
+    snapping                                                 (Fig.) 223
+    tiger                                                            61
+    water scavenger                                                 152
+    whirligig                                                       135
+    wood-boring                                              (Fig.) 223
+
+  Bibliography of nature-study                                   76-79
+
+  Biennial                                                          416
+
+  Birds, leaflets on                        253-290, 503, 504, 515, 516
+    suggestions for study                                        70, 71
+      See special birds.
+
+  Black bass, see "Bass."
+
+  Blackberry                                              305, 370, 375
+
+  Blackbird, redwing                                                263
+
+  Black-fly, see "Flies."
+
+  Bluebells                                                         362
+
+  Bluebird                                                     238, 261
+
+  Black-nosed dace, see "Dace."
+
+  Bordeaux mixture                                        381, 382, 389
+
+  Breeding cage                                                     228
+
+  Brook, The, insects of                                        135-140
+    suggestions for study                                           125
+    work of                                                     126-134
+
+  Brownie-bugs, see "Bugs."
+
+  Budding                                                      376, 377
+
+  Buds
+    apple                                                       317-325
+    apricot                                                         328
+    azalea                                                          331
+    butternut                                                       474
+    dormant                                           318, 314-320, 329
+    elm                                                             330
+    flower                                                319, 328, 330
+    hepatica                                                        392
+    hickory                                             329, (Fig.) 330
+    horse-chestnut                                           (Fig.) 474
+    leaf                                                  319, 328, 330
+    maple                                                      329, 473
+    peach                                                           328
+    pear                                                            328
+    pussy-willow                                                    330
+    terminal                                                   318, 474
+    winter                              72, 331, 332, 327-336, 473, 474
+
+  Bugs,                                                             223
+    brownie                                                  (Fig.) 223
+    back-swimmers                                         136, 152, 153
+    giant water                                                137, 153
+    June                                                            288
+
+  Bugs, lady                                                   210, 250
+    stink                                                           223
+    water boatmen                                              136, 152
+    water scorpions                                            152, 153
+    water-striders                                                  137
+
+  Bulbs                                           567, 577-580, 581-583
+    see special bulbs.
+
+  Burdock                                                           362
+
+  Butterflies                             58, 59, 61, 62, 224, 238, 544
+    cabbage                              208, 209, 210, (Fig.) 224, 540
+    common blue                                                     248
+    milkweed                                                   208, 209
+    monarch                                                     63, 544
+    viceroy                                                          63
+
+  Butternut                                                  (Fig.) 474
+
+
+  Cabbage butterfly, see "Butterflies."
+
+  Caddice-worm                                             61, 136, 155
+
+  Cambium                                                           375
+
+  Cankerworms                                                        68
+
+  Carnations                                            (Fig.) 370, 372
+
+  Carrot                                                            257
+
+  Caterpillars                                              58, 62, 501
+    apple-tree tent                                     59, 69, 227-235
+    of cecropia moth                                           167, 168
+    cabbage                                       63, 68, 208, 209, 210
+    of codlin-moth                                                  470
+    of common blue butterfly                                        248
+    of fall web-worm                                                 61
+    of promethea moth                                          168, 169
+    "woolly-bear"                             210, 238, 539, (Fig.) 541
+
+  Catfish                                                      150, 161
+
+  Cat-tails                                                         364
+
+  Cecropia moth, see "Moths."
+
+  Cereals, food value of                                        409-414
+
+  Chara                                                 (Fig.) 148, 149
+
+  Charcoal                                                          144
+
+  Cherry, grafting of                                               377
+
+  Chestnut, grafting of                                             374
+
+  Chickadee                                      279-281, 285, 503, 504
+
+  Chickens                                   70, 522-524, 525, 526, 527
+
+  Child's Realm, The (poem)                                         451
+
+  Chinese lily, see "Narcissus."
+
+  Chipmunk                                                           69
+
+  Choke-cherries                                                    362
+
+  Chrysalids                                                     58, 59
+    of apple-tree tent caterpillar                                  233
+    cabbage butterfly                                          209, 540
+
+  Chrysalids, codlin-moth                                           470
+    milkweed butterfly                                              208
+
+  Cicada                                   66, 210, (Fig.) 223, 529-535
+    dog-day harvest fly                                        534, 535
+    seventeen-year locust                                       529-535
+
+  Cion                                                              374
+
+  Clam                                                              150
+
+  Clarkias                                                          383
+
+  Clay                                                         117, 118
+
+  Clothes moth, see "Moths."
+
+  Clouds                                                 84, 85, 88, 90
+
+  Codlin-moth, see "Moths."
+
+  Clover                                                   124, 349-360
+    alsike                                                          353
+    buffalo                                                    352, 353
+    crimson                                                         352
+    hop, see yellow.
+    hop trefoil, see low hop.
+    least hop                                                       354
+    low hop                                                         354
+    rabbit foot                                         (Fig.) 353, 354
+    red                                                        351, 352
+    scarlet, see crimson.
+    stone, see rabbit-foot.
+    zig-zag                                                         352
+    See, also, "Alfalfa," "Medics," "Melilots."
+
+  Cocoons                                               58, 59, 167-169
+    of cecropia moth                                           167, 168
+    codlin-moth                                                     508
+    lace-winged fly                                       539, 540, 543
+    promethea moth                                             168, 169
+    tent caterpillar                                    (Fig.) 233, 235
+    "woolly-bear"                                              211, 539
+
+  Cockle                                                            363
+
+  Cold-blooded animals                                              199
+
+  Coleus                                                       370, 372
+
+  Common blue butterfly, see "Butterflies."
+
+  Cones, of arborvitae                                         345, 347
+    hemlock                                                    344, 347
+    balsam fir                                                 343, 347
+    Austrian pine                             338, 339, (Fig.) 340, 346
+    pitch pine                                            337, 338, 346
+    Scotch pine                                           338, 339, 346
+    white pine                                     (Fig.) 335, 336, 346
+    black spruce                                          341, 342, 346
+    Norway spruce                                  341, (Fig.) 342, 346
+    red spruce                                                 342, 347
+    white spruce                                               342, 346
+
+  Corn, Indian                           397-407, 409-414, 485-488, 571
+
+  Coreopsis                                                         383
+
+  Corydalis,                                                        138
+
+  Cowbird                                                      261, 262
+
+  Crane-fly, see "Flies."
+
+  Crayfish                                                          150
+
+  Creek chub                                                        165
+
+  Crickets                                                  59, 66, 543
+
+  Crocus                                                  582, 583, 588
+
+  Crow                                      197, 284, 287-290, 501, 502
+
+  Cross-fertilization, see "Pollination."
+
+  Currants                               305, 370, 373, (Fig.) 374, 375
+
+  Currant-worms                                                      68
+
+  Cuttings                                                      369-378
+
+  Cutworms                                                288, 400, 501
+
+  Cyanide bottle                                               216, 217
+
+
+  Dace, black-nosed                                                 159
+
+  Daffodils                                                     582-588
+
+  Dahlia                                                            564
+
+  Dairy products, value in N. Y. State,                             489
+
+  Damping-off                                                  370, 371
+
+  Damsel-flies                                                 136, 154
+
+  Dandelion                                          362, 363, 481, 482
+
+  Darter, Johnny                                                    163
+
+  Delta                                              103, 131, 132, 133
+
+  Dew                                                                83
+
+  Dobson                                                       137, 138
+
+  Dock                                                         362, 380
+
+  Dodder                                                            360
+
+  Dog-day harvest fly, see "Cicada."
+
+  Domestic animals                                              70, 414
+    See, also, "Horses," "Poultry."
+
+  Doves                                                   254, 261, 264
+
+  Dragon-flies                                       136, 154, 155, 222
+
+  Ducks                                               522-524, 525, 526
+
+  Duck-weed                                                         148
+
+
+  Eel-grass                                                    147, 148
+
+  Eggs, of ants                                                     246
+    caterpillars                              210, 229, 230, (Fig.) 235
+    cicada                                                     530, 534
+    frogs                                                           188
+    grasshoppers                                                    210
+    lace-winged fly                                            539, 543
+    mosquito                                                   238, 239
+    domestic fowls                                             524, 525
+    salamanders                                                     188
+    spiders                                           181-183, 211, 288
+    toads                                                  186-189, 200
+
+  Egg-shell farms                                     456, 566, 573-576
+
+  Electric-light bug, see "giant water bug" under "Bugs."
+
+  Elm, American                 300, 303, (Fig.) 308, 309, 310-316, 330
+    slippery                                  (Fig.) 299, 300, 301, 303
+    struggle for existence                                          361
+
+  Entomological supplies, dealers in                                226
+
+  Evaporation                                                        82
+
+  Evergreens                                                    333-347
+    See special kinds.
+
+
+  Fall web-worm, see "Caterpillars."
+
+  Ferns                                                         76, 362
+
+  Finch, grass, see "vesper sparrow" under "Sparrows."
+    purple                                                261, 265, 266
+
+  Fir, balsam                                                  343, 347
+
+  Fireweed                                                          364
+
+  Fish                                            69, 149, 150, 157-166
+    See special fish.
+
+  Flicker, see "Woodpeckers."
+
+  Flies                                                         62, 224
+    black                                                           139
+    crane                                                    (Fig.) 223
+    hellgrammite                                                    138
+    horse                                                           210
+    house                                                            63
+    pomace                                                   (Fig.) 222
+
+  Flood-plain                                                  104, 130
+
+  Flowers, pistillate                                               400
+    staminate                                                       400
+    study of                                                     71, 72
+
+  Fog                                                    83, 86, 88, 89
+
+  Foods, value of various kinds                                411, 412
+    bulletins on                                                    413
+
+  Forestry                                                           75
+
+  Fossils                                                           107
+
+  Frog                                          150, 151, 188, 189, 501
+
+  Frost                                                        426, 427
+
+  Fruits                                                         71, 72
+
+
+  Galls                                                              61
+    pine-cone willow                                           135, 136
+
+  Gardens, children's    36, 37, 40, 379-383, 559-566, 569-571, 573-576
+
+  Geese                                               520-522, 525, 526
+
+  Geraniums                                               370, 372, 419
+
+  Giant water-bug, see "Bugs."
+
+  Germination                                     560-562, 566, 573-576
+    of bean                                                291, 460-466
+    squash                                                      291-295
+
+  Glacial scratches                      (Fig.) 104, 105, 108, 109, 110
+
+  Glacier                                           (Fig.) 100, 104-113
+
+  Gladiolus                                                         564
+
+  Gold-fish                                                         150
+
+  Gooseberries                                            305, 373, 375
+
+  Grackle, bronzed                                        261, 262, 263
+
+  Grafting                                                      374-378
+
+  Grape                                  (Fig.) 363, 364, 370, 373, 375
+
+  Grape hyacinth                                                    588
+
+  Grass                                              362, 363, 364, 380
+
+  Grasshoppers                        56, 59, 62, 63, 66, 210, 288, 524
+
+  Guinea-pigs                                                        70
+
+
+  Hail                                                           88, 89
+
+  Hawthorn                                                          374
+
+  Hay, value as crop in N. Y. State                                 489
+
+  Hellgrammite fly, see "Flies."
+
+  Hemlock                                                  343-345, 347
+
+  Hepatica                                            391-393, 477, 478
+
+  Hibernation, of butterflies                                   61, 238
+    mosquitoes                                                      238
+    toad                                                       199, 200
+    "woolly-bear"                                                   539
+
+  Hickory, buds                                         329, (Fig.) 330
+    small-fruited shagbark                              (Fig.) 298, 300
+    pignut                                              (Fig.) 298, 300
+
+  High-hole, see "flicker" under "Woodpeckers."
+
+  Horse-chestnut                                             (Fig.) 474
+
+  Horse-fly, see "Flies."
+
+  Horses                                                        589-594
+    See, also, "Domestic Animals."
+
+  Horticulture                                                       75
+
+  House-fly, see "Flies."
+
+  Hyacinth                                           582, 583, 586, 588
+
+
+  Ichneumon flies                                                   210
+
+  Imperial moth, see "Moths."
+
+  Indian turnip, see "Jack-in-the-Pulpit."
+
+  Insects, cage for                                     539, (Fig.) 540
+    how to collect and preserve                                 213-226
+    of a brook                                                  135-140
+    suggestions for study                                         58-69
+
+  Isabella moth, see "Moths."
+
+
+  Jack-in-the-Pulpit                                 395, 396, 479, 480
+
+  Johnny Darters, see "Darter."
+
+  June bug, see "Bugs."
+
+
+  Katydid                                                            66
+
+  Kingfisher                                                   261, 266
+
+  Knotweed                                                          262
+
+
+  Lace-winged fly                                    539, 540, 543, 544
+
+  Lady-bugs, see "Bugs."
+
+  Leaf-miners                                                        60
+
+  Leaf-rollers                                                       60
+    basswood                                                 (Fig.) 224
+
+  Leaf-scars                                                        474
+    of evergreens                                                   334
+
+  Leaves, autumn colors                               71, 426, 427, 483
+    fall of                                                         427
+    functions of                                     424, 425, 426, 483
+
+  Lenses                                                            228
+
+  Lettuce                                                      563, 564
+
+  Lightning                                                      89, 91
+
+  Lilac                                                             305
+
+  Lime                                                              118
+
+  Lobster                                                            50
+
+  Locusts, mouth parts                                              530
+    seventeen-year, see "Cicada."
+
+  Lucerne, see "Alfalfa."
+
+  Luna moths, see "Moths."
+
+
+  Maple, black                                                      428
+    box elder                                                       428
+    goose-foot, see striped.
+    mountain                                            427, (Fig.) 429
+    Norway                                                     329, 428
+    planting of                                                     446
+    red                                     428, (Fig.) 429, (Fig.) 473
+    silver                                                          428
+    striped                                             427, (Fig.) 428
+    sugar                                          73, 74, 329, 423-430
+    swamp, see red.
+
+  Maple sugar                                                   431-434
+
+  Maps, construction of                                         202-205
+
+  Martins                                                           254
+
+  May-flies                                                    138, 139
+
+  Meadow-lark                                        261, 263, 264, 274
+
+  Medics                                                       350, 351
+    black                                                           355
+    hop, see black
+    toothed                                                         355
+    spotted                                                         355
+    See, also, "Alfalfa."
+
+  Melilots                                                     350, 351
+    white sweet clover                                              356
+    yellow sweet clover                                             356
+    Bokhara clover                                                  356
+
+  Mice                                                               69
+
+  Milkweed butterfly, see "Butterflies."
+
+  Mineral matter, in seeds                                     410, 411
+    in soils                                                        100
+
+  Minnows                                                      149, 165
+
+  Monarch butterfly, see "Butterflies."
+
+  Moraine                                                           110
+
+  Mosquitoes                         58, 59, 62, 153, 154, 237-241, 272
+
+  Moths, how to collect                                             222
+    how to distinguish from butterflies                             224
+    life cycle                                                      169
+    basswood leaf-roller                                     (Fig.) 224
+    cecropia                                                   167, 168
+    clothes                                                          68
+    codlin                                             68, 468-471, 508
+    imperial                                                 (Fig.) 225
+    Isabella tiger                                      539, (Fig.) 542
+    luna                                                     (Fig.) 226
+    promethea                                             167, 168, 169
+    scallop-shell                                                    61
+    tussock                                                          68
+    underwing                                                (Fig.) 225
+
+  Moulting, of caterpillars                                         232
+    cicada                                                          531
+    snake                                                           198
+    toad                                                       198, 199
+
+  Mudwasps, see "Wasps."
+
+  Mulching, of soil                             120, 121, 122, 380, 381
+
+  Mullein                                                      362, 579
+
+  Museum pests                                                 219, 220
+
+  Mushrooms                                                          74
+
+
+  Narcissus                                               582, 583, 588
+    oriental                                                   585, 586
+
+  Nature-study, outline of movement                               21-29
+    suggestions for (graded course and bibliography)              55-79
+    what it is                                                    11-20
+
+  Nettles                                                           364
+
+  N. Y. Teachers, An appeal to                                    31-43
+
+  N. Y. State Teachers' Library                                     148
+
+  Nitella                                               (Fig.) 148, 149
+
+  Nitrogen                                                     350, 360
+
+  Note-taking                                455-457, 458, 459, 460-466
+
+  Nuthatch, white-breasted                                      283-286
+    red-breasted                                                    285
+
+  Nutmeg                                                            409
+
+
+  Oaks, grafting of                                                 374
+    scarlet                                                         300
+    swamp white                                                     300
+
+  Oil, in seeds                                           398, 405, 410
+
+  Oriole                                                       515, 516
+
+
+  Parsley                                                           363
+
+  Parsnips                                                          257
+
+  Parrot's feather                                      (Fig.) 148, 149
+
+  Peaches                                                 328, 375, 377
+
+  Pear                                                         374, 375
+
+  Pepperidge                                         300, 301, 304, 309
+
+  Petunias                                                          383
+
+  Phlox                                                             383
+
+  Phoebe                                                  280, 361, 363
+
+  Pigeons                                                           254
+
+  Pigweeds                                                     362, 367
+
+  Pines, Austrian                             338, 339, (Fig.) 340, 346
+    pitch                                                  336-338, 346
+    Scotch                                                338, 339, 346
+
+  Pitchforks                                                        362
+
+  Plantain                                                          362
+
+  Plants, breeding of                            389, 390, 405-407, 411
+    planting of                                                367, 368
+    physiology of                              72, 73, 74, 142, 424-427
+    societies of                                                361-365
+
+  Plums                                                        375, 377
+
+  Plum curculio, see "Beetles."
+
+  Pokeweed                                                          364
+
+  Pollination                                             351, 352, 400
+
+  Polliwogs, see "Tadpoles."
+
+  Pomace flies, see "Flies."
+
+  Ponies                                                       593, 594
+
+  Pop-corn                                                          488
+
+  Poplar, Carolina                                                  444
+    cutting of                                                      373
+    Lombardy                                       301, (Fig.) 303, 304
+
+  Poppies                                                           383
+
+  Potatoes                                       370, 374, 385-390, 407
+
+  Pot-holes                                                         133
+
+  Poultry                                                       517-527
+    See, also, "Domestic Animals."
+
+  Predaceous diving beetles, see "Beetles."
+
+  Promethea moth, see "Moths."
+
+  Protective coloration                                          62, 63
+
+  Protein                                                      398, 405
+
+  Pruning                                        417-421, 444, 475, 476
+
+  Pumpkin                                                           401
+
+  Pupa, of ants                                           244, 245, 246
+    butterflies, see "Chrysalids."
+    mosquitoes                                                 239, 240
+    moths, see "Chrysalids."
+
+
+  Quince                                                            374
+
+
+  Rabbit                                                         56, 70
+
+  Radish                                                       563, 564
+
+  Ragweed                                                      362, 579
+
+  Raindrops                                              86, 88, 89, 90
+
+  Rainfall                                                     119, 123
+
+  Raspberry                                                    305, 375
+
+  Robin                                              238, 261, 499, 500
+
+  Rock flour                                                        110
+
+  Roots, growing point of                                      293, 294
+
+  Rose                                                       (Fig.) 371
+
+  Rust, on asters                                              381, 382
+
+
+  Salamanders                                    188, 197, 501, 539-544
+
+  Sand                                                         117, 120
+
+  Sapsucker, see "Woodpeckers."
+
+  Sassafras                                        301, (Fig.) 302, 309
+
+  Scale insects                                                      68
+
+  Scallop-shell moth, see "Moths."
+
+  School grounds, improvement of  35, 38-41, 437-447, 566-568, 571, 572
+
+  Schoolroom, The                                                     9
+
+  Scion, see "Cion."
+
+  Seed, dispersal of                                                 72
+    dormant                                                    409, 410
+    uses of stored food                                         409-414
+    See, also, "Germination."
+
+  Shiner                                                       162, 165
+
+  Shower, A Summer                                                81-91
+
+  Silage                                                            403
+
+  Siphon                                                            144
+
+  Skipper, silver spotted                                            61
+
+  Sleep, of flowers                                                  72
+
+  Slug                                                              149
+
+  Smartweed                                                    362, 380
+
+  Snakes                                                  197, 198, 501
+
+  Snails                                                  143, 148, 149
+
+  Snow                                          84, 85, 93-97, 453, 454
+
+  Snowball bush                                                     305
+
+  Snowdrops                                               582, 583, 588
+
+  Snowflakes                                                        588
+
+  Soil                                                           99-114
+    value of various kinds                                      115-124
+    in school gardens                      560, 570, 571, 574, 579, 581
+
+  Sparrows, fox                                                264, 265
+    song                                                       261, 265
+    tree                                                            265
+    white-crowned                                                   265
+    white-throated                                             261, 265
+    vesper                                                          265
+
+  Spiders                        65, 66, 68, 69, 171-183, 211, 249, 288
+
+  Spraying                                                       68, 69
+
+  Springs                                                           126
+
+  Spruce, black                                            341-343, 346
+    Norway                                     339-341, (Fig.) 342, 346
+    red                                                   342, 343, 347
+
+  Squash                                                   291-295, 407
+
+  Squill                                                            588
+
+  Squirrel, red                                                435, 436
+    black                                                           435
+    how to study                                                     69
+
+  Starch                              331, 386, 387, 398, 405, 410, 483
+
+  Stems, growing point of                                           295
+
+  Stickleback                                                       163
+
+  Stink-bugs, see "Bugs."
+
+  Stock, for grafting                                               374
+
+  Stone-flies                                                  138, 140
+
+  Storms, snow                                          93-97, 453, 454
+    thunder                                                  86, 87, 90
+
+  Stratification                                                    133
+
+  Stream-cutting                                           127-129, 133
+
+  Stream deposition                                       104, 130, 133
+
+  Struggle for existence                          74, 75, 361, 410, 418
+
+  Sumac                                                   431, 433, 466
+
+  Sunfish                                                           161
+
+  Sweet clover, see "Melilots."
+
+  Sweet-peas                                               379-383, 564
+
+  Swallow, tree                                                     254
+
+
+  Tadpoles                                                 135, 189-193
+
+  Tape-grass                                                   147, 148
+
+  Terrarium                                            207-212, 537-544
+
+  Thistle                                                      364, 579
+
+  Thunder                                                            89
+
+  Thorn-apple                                      301, (Fig.) 303, 309
+
+  Tillage                                                      570, 571
+
+  Tomato                                                            374
+
+  Trees, winter aspect of                                       297-305
+    how to draw                                                 307-316
+    how to plant                                                444-446
+    see special kinds.
+
+  Tree-toads                                              188, 189, 210
+
+  Tussock moth, see "Moths."
+
+
+  Underwing moth, see "Moths."
+
+
+  Virginia creeper                                                  444
+
+  Vireo                                                             515
+
+  Verbena                                                           372
+
+  Vegetables                                                         71
+
+  Viceroy butterfly, see "Butterflies."
+
+
+  Walking-sticks                                                     63
+
+  Warm-blooded                                                      199
+
+  Wasps                                              62, 63, (Fig.) 224
+    mud                                                             136
+
+  Water                                                        120, 126
+
+  Water boatmen, see "Bugs."
+
+  Watercress                                                        148
+
+  Waterfalls                                                   129, 133
+
+  Water-milfoil                                         (Fig.) 148, 149
+
+  Water-purslane                                        (Fig.) 148, 149
+
+  Water-scavenger beetle, see "Beetle."
+
+  Water-scorpion, see "Bugs."
+
+  Water-strider, see "Bugs."
+
+  Water-tiger                                                       152
+
+  Weeds                                                              74
+
+  Wheat                                                             411
+
+  Whirligig beetle, see "Beetles."
+
+  Willows                                            305, 373, 443, 446
+    pussy                                                           330
+
+  Wire-grass                                                        362
+
+  Wire-worms                                                        400
+
+  Woodpeckers                                          269-277, 505-513
+    downy                                   269, 270, 271, 284, 507-510
+    flicker                                           274-277, 512, 513
+    golden-winged, see flicker.
+    hairy                                            269, 270, 271, 284
+    red-head                                               272, 505-507
+    sapsucker                                    270, 271, 272, 510-512
+
+  Wrens                                                             254
+
+
+  Yarup, see "flicker" under "Woodpeckers."
+
+  Yellow-hammer, see "flicker" under "Woodpeckers."
+
+
+  Zinnias                                                           383
+
+
+
+
+[Transcriber's Note:
+
+Alternative spelling retained.
+
+Punctuation normalized without comment.
+
+Spelling change
+
+Page 108, "moivng" was changed to read "moving"
+
+Page 155, "caddice-warm" was changed to read "caddice-worm."
+
+Page 178, "entangeled" was changed to read "entangled."
+
+Page 190, "grow a a great" was changed to read "grow a great."
+
+Page 223, "Snappping beetle" was changed to read "Snapping beetle."
+
+Page 274, "Ornothology" was changed to read "Ornithology."
+
+Page 284, "I pounded on the widow" was changed to read "I pounded on the
+window."
+
+Page 285, "Audobon" was changed to read "Audubon."
+
+Page 288, "omniverous" was changed to read "omnivorous."
+
+Page 321, "histery" was changed to read "history."
+
+Page 363, "open ones eyes" was changed to read "open one's eyes."
+
+Page 383, "motherworth and Virginia creeper" was changed to read
+"motherwort and Virginia creeper."
+
+Page 396, "Is is pleasant" was changed to read "Is it pleasant."
+
+Page 530, "thousand liliputian" was changed to read "thousand
+lilliputian."
+
+Page 510, "once that it it is" was changed to read "once that it is."
+
+Page 592, "Is you should" was changed to read "If you should."]
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's Cornell Nature-Study Leaflets, by Various
+
+*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 43200 ***