C( )RRESP( >NDENCE AND [NFORMATION. 



31 



great fun to see the fowls devour them. 

 One day when I was out after grass- 

 hoppers I noticed an insect which had 

 just alighted on a flower and I im- 

 mediately gave up the grasshopper 

 business and went after the insect, 

 which was new to me, and captured 

 it. Its color was velvety black and 

 golden yellow, a handsome insect. No 

 sooner had 1 caught it in my bare 

 hand than something happened for 

 which I was not prepared. It was a 

 bumblebee and as soon as I captured 

 him I was stung. I ran home crying 

 and told my father that I had caught 

 a new insect which had hot feet. Then 

 my father explained to me what it was 

 and told me not to catch any more. 

 If there is anvbodv who does not 



fields and forests on a nature study 

 trip making observations on animal 

 life. I collected insects and preserved 

 them lor winter stud}- when the snow 

 was so deep I could not get into the 

 forests. During the summer J col- 

 lected caterpillars and fed with the 

 plant foliage that 1 found them eating, 

 and carried them through their differ- 

 ent stages which I found very interest- 

 ing. I have raised various species of 

 insects from the egg to the adult and 

 while making observations of this 

 kind I learned the life histories of the 

 species. 



From my early boyhood I was never 

 afraid of snakes and during my life 

 I have captured and handled alive 

 every species of snake found in Essex 





III 



w 



*4i :- *.~ 



t ■ 



MR. C. A. CLARK AT 



Photograph by 



know the difference between a bum- 

 blebee and a grasshopper, let him hold 

 a grasshopper in his right hand and 

 a bumblebee in his left hand and he 

 will quickly learn. About the time 

 when I discovered wdiat a bumblebee 

 is we moved to the northern part of 

 the city near the great Lynn woods 

 reservation and I then had a large 

 tract of forest land for nature study. 

 During my early school days in this 

 locality I had two half holidays each 

 week, and then I went out into the 



THE CANNON BOULDER 

 L. A. Wentworth. 



County, including the deadly rattle- 

 snake. During my earl)- school days 

 I captured snakes without harming 

 them and brought them home in small 

 bags made of heavy duck cloth which 

 I carried with me for that purpose. I 

 placed them in large boxes covered 

 with wire screening which made suit- 

 able places for studying them. But 

 as I was very young and as my parents 

 did not like the idea of my catching 

 snakes and bringing them home alive 

 for study, thinking I might get bitten, 



