ic>4 



THE GUIDE TO NATURE. 



plant parasites — all are realms which 

 any one with a pocket magnifier may 

 invade with profit. The magnifier does 

 away with the trouble of taking parts of 

 the object under study to one's home and 

 allows the observation to be made where 

 the material is natural and growing. 



"Seeing by aid of the lens"-— the pocket 

 magnifier — broadens one's view of 

 things, makes the world more enjoyable 

 and gives us some insight into the mar- 

 velous structure of the universe. The 

 agriculturist, the horticulturist the geol- 

 ogists, other scientists and nature stu- 

 dents have long appreciated the pocket 

 magnifier for its faithful service. We 

 who go abroad in fields and wood for 

 recreation, pleasure and health should 

 become better acquainted with these won- 

 der-working lenses. They add both 

 profit and pleasure at all seasons of the 

 vear. 



PLANT OVARIES AND OYULES AS A 

 BOTANICAL STUDY. 



Any natural science may be made a 

 pleasing, instructive and beneficial re- 

 creation. To accomplish such commend- 

 able purposes it is not necessary for the 

 student to make himself a professional 

 investigator, and pursue the study of any 



* * 



':■ " ^'"- // \ I* MPS 





*-■ '*:J^ 



No. 2. OVARA OF BEGONIA 



particular department in order to teach 

 it to others, nor as a means by which to 



train a livelihood. 



As an amateur he 



No. i. OVARY OF NIGHT-BLOOMING 

 CEREUS. 



may not only inform himself, but may 

 prolong his life, increase his happiness, 

 and cultivate his aesthetic tastes by de- 

 voting his leisure time to the study of 

 some department of nature, toward 

 which he may feel an inclination, toward 

 which his reading may direct, or ob- 

 servation lead him to follow a friend's 

 example. Of all the natural sciences, 

 botany perhaps combines more real sat- 

 isfaction with mental and physical re- 

 creation, than any other. The pleasure 

 of finding a flower new to the student 

 is a delightful experience. The exhil- 

 aration of the open air, of the compan- 

 ionship with the humble favorites of 

 nature, the physical exercise, the sensa- 

 tion of freedom, and especially the men- 

 tal rest obtainable from a new train of 

 thought, and relief from other and per- 

 haps not entirely congenial work for 

 daily bread, together give the student a 

 longer lease of life and a firmer hold on 

 the spiritualities of existence. 



The human being of any number of 

 years may be felicitated if he have a nat- 

 ural liking for botany, as most persons 

 find that they have when, perhaps by 

 accident or by a casual remark of an 



