I'.Dri'ORlAT. 



345 



MRS. LUTHER BURBANK. 



only assist in home-keeping but in 

 plant study. 



Papers throughout the country have 

 heralded his intellectual activity as an 

 astonishing fact, yet why should it be? 

 We often read of wonderful achieve- 

 ments by men long after they are fifty 

 years of age. I once knew a microsco- 

 pist who became famous and added 

 much to microscopical science yet never 

 saw a microscope until he was fifty-six 

 years of age. So here are words of con- 

 gratulation to this enthusiastic plant 

 lover and best wishes for his life's part- 

 nership to be long, happy and prosper- 

 ous in all things that make life worth 

 living. 



The accompanying illustration shows 

 Mr. Burbank with two other happy 

 boys who also can well afiford to smile 

 a smile of satisfaction at what they 

 have achieved. Can one find in all the 

 country three happier boys than 

 Thomas A. Edison, Luther Burbank 

 and Henry Ford? Think what this 

 world would have been if these three 

 had not existed. To them all we may 

 assign the term plant lovers. When I 

 was lecturing in the Cincinnati schools, 

 I asked the pupils of a high school, 



"W hat is the most faniuus plant in Cin- 

 cinnati?" Imagine my surprise at the 

 general shout, "The Ford automobile 

 ])lant." Had 1 asked the same thing in 

 West Orange, the answer would have 

 l)een, "The hidison plant." 



"Gosh— That Stuff!" 



One of our subscri])ers in Long Is- 

 land sends us the following letter : 



"For Christmas we sent The Guide 

 TO N.ATURE to a small cousin in the 

 west, and we think you would like to 

 hear what his mother wrote us about 

 it: 



" 'We had quite a joke on Keith when 

 your magazine came. It opened to 

 Ornithology. Keith's face fell, and he 

 said, "Gosh— that stuff! I thought it 

 was going to be about birds !" How- 

 ever, the reaction when he learned that 

 ornithology would help him was worth 

 the shock. And he isn't the only one 

 who is looking forward to it. I'm quite 

 as eager.' " 



The dismay of our young friend is 

 typical of that of many another and 

 even older nature student when con- 

 fronted by a scientific term. However, 

 if there is some one at hand to explain 

 that the term is only another word to 

 designate some well-known and belov- 

 ed phase of nature, the reaction is, as 

 with Keith, "worth the shock." 



To the great mineral collection at 

 Harvard University has lately been ad- 

 ded some two thousand pieces native 

 to the State of New Jersey. The col- 

 lection was the work of the late Elwood 

 P. Hancock, a resident of the state. 

 Many of the finest specimens come 

 from the region of Franklin Furnace. 



A famous scientist was present at a 

 dinner at which one of the guests be- 

 gan to deride philosophy. He went on' 

 rudely to express the opinion that the 

 word "philosopher" was but another 

 way of spelling "fool." 



"What is your opinion, professor?" 

 he asked, smiling. "Is there much dis- 

 tance between them?" 



The professor surveyed his vis-a-vis 

 keenly for a moment, then, with a po- 

 lite bow, responded : 



"Sometimes only the width of a ta- 

 ble."— Tit-Bits. 



