360 



THE GUIDE TO NATURE 



of being human, forgot that next day 

 I must become a part of the busy city 

 on the other side of the hill, and in 

 studying the creatures around me I felt 

 as though I too were a part of the out- 

 doors, as wild and free as they. 



This, then, was my experiment, I 

 spent the summer in a novel, inexpen- 

 sive, profitable and thoroughly enjoy- 

 able way. No doubt the idea of sleep- 

 ing on an old door in a leaky cabin will 

 fail to appeal to most people. Possibly 

 if I repeat the experiment I shall do so 

 on a more elaborate and less primitive 

 scale myself. However, the idea might 

 be elaborated at little expense, and I 

 would suggest that, in lieu of an ex- 

 pensive trip to a summer resort, we 

 thus take advantage of the opportuni- 

 ties at home. 



Camping in Nearness to Nature. 



On my reading table are a number of 

 catalogues of summer camps for boys 

 and girls. That the camping interest 

 is growing speaks well for our Ameri- 

 can civilization. It is a good thing for 

 people of all ages to leave their homes 

 and crowded cities to go to the wild 

 open by seashore, in the mountains or 

 at a camp by some lakeside in the hean 

 of untamed nature. Even if all that is 

 done is to eat, sleep, run, make fancy- 

 work, play tennis and ride horses, a 

 benefit accrues, and there is probably 

 not a camp in the land that is not do- 

 ing some great good. 



But to one who loves wild nature 

 in all her interesting details, as well as 

 in her health giving aspects, there has 

 really been, as we look over the vast 

 extent of nature interests, a conspic- 

 uous omission from some of these cat- 

 alogues, evidence that the proprietors 

 are taking the young people not to na- 

 ture but into nature, that the shell of 

 city life is carried along and that the 

 crust of artificiality and of city pur- 

 suits is in no sense broken. But things 

 are not so bad as they were. One camp 

 after another is falling into the line of 

 not the sham going to nature but the 

 real going. 



THE ALOHA CAMPS. 



Conspicuous among those who are 

 gradually developing a real interest in 

 nature are Mr. and Mrs. E. L. Gulick 

 of the Aloha Camps, of which they 

 have three, one at Pike, New Hamp- 



shire, for girls over seventeen ; one at 

 Fairlee, Vermont, for girls from four- 

 teen to seventeen ; and at The Hive, 

 Ely, Vermont, for the younger girls. 

 The nature study in these camps while 

 moderate is genuine. The editor of 

 this magazine has personal knowledge 

 of the fact that some of the councillors 

 enthusiastic naturalists and 



are 



are 



A CHIPMUNK. SO WILD IT IS TAME, COMES 

 INTO A TENT AT ALOHA EVERY NOON 



REST PERIOD. 



Photographed by Edward F. Bigelow. 



skillful in inspiring others with some 

 of their own interest. Specialists of 

 unquestioned proficiency have been 

 engaged from time to time, and a 

 really wholesome interest in nature is 

 manifested throughout all these camps. 

 Address Mrs. E. L. Gulick, */j Adding- 

 ton Road, Brookline, Massachusetts. 



A SEASHORE, CAMP. 



From the point of view of the school 

 it is evident that William Gould Vinal, 

 Instructor of Nature Study of the 

 Rhode Island Normal School, Provi- 

 dence, is putting his camp on the right 

 basis as one would naturally infer from 

 his position as nature study instructor. 



