EDITORIAL AND GENERAL 



4/1 



it saves, but in the inspiration and up- 

 lifting of life. This, alas, is a prac- 

 tical age but life is now as ever more 

 than money. 



Amidst all these enthusiastic hypo- 

 crites, who delude themselves and the 

 public, amidst all this veering' and 

 wavering from the main point, it is re- 

 freshing to discover one solid rock of 

 frankness and common sense. These 

 thoughts were inspired by reading 

 "American Education" by Andrew S. 

 Draper, Commissioner of Education of 

 the State of New York. I commend 

 what he says in the following to every 

 economic or self-deluded naturalist 

 and teacher: 



"Much is heard about nature study. 

 Its value is recognized. It is good. 

 But it is equally good for all children, 

 as cutting paper, and weaving mats, 

 and moulding clay and the like, are 

 good for all children. All of these 

 things make for all-round culture, for 

 all-round outlook, and for all-round 

 love for work and for facility in doing. 

 Nature study is quite likely to appeal 

 less to the country child than to the 

 city child, for obvious reasons, and 

 while it is to be encouraged in the 

 country as in the city, it apparently has 

 about the same relation to real agricul- 

 ture that sloyd has to laying out an 

 electric plant for a city, or laying down 

 the keel for a battleship. In other 

 words, it is a good thing, — a good 

 thing everywhere, because - it helps 

 mould the character of boys and girls, 

 and keeps the way open for what may 

 come after, but calling it agricultural 

 instruction will not increase its im- 

 portance so much as it will confuse 

 some minds and subject us to the crit- 

 icism that we are not doing what we 

 proclaim. 



"Enthusiasts want the teaching of 

 agriculture encouraged in the elemen- 

 tary schools. It is difficult to deter- 

 mine, however, what are the phases of 

 real agriculture which are adaptable 

 to the primary schools or how to install 

 them in a way that will dispose child- 

 ren to become interested in them. The 

 children of farmers are likely to find 

 interest in many things which look to 

 quickening and dignifying the different 



agricultural industries, which are not 

 incompatible with the plan and pur- 

 pose of the elementary schools and 

 these things should be introduced in- 

 to the course of study ; but there is no 

 more reason in teaching real agricul- 

 ture in the elementary schools, than 

 there is in teaching engineering or 

 medicine. Agriculture is not an ele- 

 mentary subject. 



"In some quarters the normal schools 

 are asked to train teachers of agricul- 

 ture for the elementary and secondary 

 schools. Some of the normal school 

 teachers know something about some 

 of the sciences that are fundamental to 

 agriculture, and some of them know 

 something about some of the practical 

 methods of farming. The fact is, how- 

 ever, that nine tenths of the students 

 in the normal schools who will ever 

 teach at all are girls. Doubtless it will 

 continue to be so. Ambitious men 

 who go beyond the high schools are 

 going to the colleges. And the gods 

 of the Greeks, mean and sordid as they 

 were, would laugh at the spectacle of 

 girl teachers training farmers' boys in 

 the intricacies of real agriculture. 

 Generations will come and go before 

 there is any substantial result to agri- 

 culture through the girls in the normal 

 schools." 



When, Oh When? 



When you have received either per- 

 sonally or by mail a sample copy of The 

 Guide to Nature, do not take the time 

 and trouble to express your gratitude, 

 but say, "Here's a dollar for a year's 

 subscription." 



When you observe the beauty of The 

 Guide to Nature, the care with which 

 it is edited, its illustrative and mechanical 

 excellence, when you learn of the faithful 

 work, and the sacrifice of time and 

 money by the editor and his co-workers, 

 do not take more than three pages of 

 your letter sheet to express your admira- 

 tion. Use the fourth for a list of sub- 

 scriptions that you have obtained or are 

 paying for as presents to your friends. 



It is then that the editor will be sure 

 that you mean exactly what you saw 



When, oh when, will you ''tell" us 

 the dollar or write us the list? 



