comstock] TOPICS FOR DECEMBER NATURE-STUDY 409 



ground; what bird built it. The latter may be guess work ; if so, 

 it should be followed by a question mark. Afterward, each nest 

 may be made the topic of a lesson following the outline given in 

 obs. 1-8, p. 147. 



The Fox\ — Of all the wild animals which have survived the 

 enmity of man, the fox is among the cleverest, and is in many ways 

 the most interesting. He is a near cousin of the dog and has many 

 of the habits which the wild ancestors of the dogs must have had. 

 If the school is in a rural district many items of interest may be 

 added by the pupils as to the habits of the fox, and consultations 

 with old fox-hunters will afford much interesting material for the 

 lesson. However, to make the lesson as vivid and real as possible 

 I would suggest the reading by the pupils of the following stories : 

 Red Fox by C. G. D. Roberts, which is one of the best animal 

 stories in print. The Springfield Fox in Wild Animals I have 

 Known by Thompson-Seton is very interesting, but rather harrow- 

 ing. Silver Fox by the same author is a fascinating story. Bur- 

 roughs gives an interesting account of the fox in his Squirrels 

 and Other Fur-bearers. 



After reading one or all of the above stories, the questions in 

 LXII, p. 259 may be asked. Obs. 4 and 6 suggest topics for 

 stories or themes. 



The Turkey. — This truly American bird which Benjamin 

 Franklin wished the United States to adopt as its symbol instead 

 of the eagle, has its place on the Christmas table, and therefore 

 it is well for us to know more about it than merely how it tastes. 

 For this study a live bird is quite desirable, or access to a flock of 

 turkeys is still more so. If this is not possible, I still believe the 

 lesson is worth while even though gathered from books. Almost 

 all of the bird books give an account of the turkey. A very excel- 

 lent account of it is given in Birds that Hunt and are Hunted by 

 Neltje Blanchan. Much of what is known of this bird is sum- 

 marized on p. 143-5 °f the Handbook of Nature-Study. The 

 poultry books will give a description of domesticated varieties. 

 After the pupils have become conversant with the habits of the 

 turkey, it may be made the subject of an essay. The wild turkey 

 and its habits is one topic ; the varieties of the domesticated turkey 

 and how to care for them is another very practical topic. 



Our domesticated turkey has a most interesting history: It 

 was a native of Mexico and was partially domesticated by the 



