BOOK KliVIEWS 63 



on the higher plants and animals is presented simply and should 

 be of service to the average teacher although the reviewer is 

 inclined to think that the same matter given from the functional 

 view-point would be better than when thrown into systematic 

 form. However, we may welcome all these experiments in the 

 pedagogy of plants and animals in our attempts to find the really 

 good methods of procedure. 



School Agncultnral. By Milo \\'ood. Pages XV-f339, 

 Orange Judd Co. 



This book is intended as a text for rural and graded schools 

 and it seems to meet the recjuirements as such about as well as 

 any agricultural text that has yet appeared. Some fifty pages are 

 devoted to soils, including drainage, irrigation and tillage ; plant? 

 occupy 100 pages ; animals 145 ; then there are chapters on farm 

 implements, roads, beautifying the home and school grounds and 

 three pages on country life. This book is to be commended for 

 even this brief chapter for most of these texts are concerned 

 exclusivel}- with the means of getting a livelihood rather than 

 stimulating the child to think along the lines of improvement 

 in the problems of rural living. Fifty pages are given up to a 

 valuable appendix containing reference tables on nutrients, weeds, 

 fruits, insecticides and fungicides. 



The Birds' Conz'ciitioii. By Harriet Williams Mvers. 81 

 pages. Western Publishing Co., Los Angeles, Calif. 



This is a report of the first annual convention of the birds 

 called because "our human brothers hold meetings which thev 

 call conventions." It jars the nerves of the average naturalist to 

 have birds talking together, making sage remarks and gossiping. 

 The child apparently sees little incongruous in this. The pro- 

 ceedings of this "convention" impart considerable bird lore in- 

 cidentally, and the report is accompanied by numerous very good 

 illustrations from photographs bv the author, who is Secretary 

 of the California Audubon Societv. 



