i6o The Field Naturalist's Quarterly Aug. 



the practical and sound botany of those schoolmasters pos- 

 sessed of backbone and a farm or glebe whose cultivation 

 was largely the outcome of compulsory labour, — these con- 

 stitute in this subject the whole tale of day-school work. 



Agriculture and its teaching depended so much upon the 

 whim of the inspector, who might look on unconcerned 

 while violets were fed with extract of beef, but would shudder 

 at the wrong scansion of " arma virumque cano," that 

 teachers who could do this nature work well were forbidden 

 to touch it, or had grants reduced so that it did not pay. 

 Obviously the education of the inspector was the first de- 

 sideratum ; and while the Education Department now com- 

 pel teachers to qualify themselves, it is quite within the 

 bounds of possibility that the inspectorate need not know 

 the work so well as the teacher, the value of whose instruc- 

 tion they are intrusted to appraise. 



The solution of the problem, in our opinion, lies in a uni- 

 versity degree for teachers, the curriculum to include a group 

 of sciences. At the present time Nature Study is, through- 

 out Scotland, compulsory, — gently, indeed optionally, com- 

 pulsory : just in so far as the particular district inspector is 

 interested in the work he is sent to criticise. Excursions to 

 gardens, museums, places of industry and interest, walks by 

 the wayside, with here and there some practical gardening 

 or farming, are all permissible and considered as school- 

 work. We regret, however, that while in certain parts ex- 

 ceptionally good work is done in country districts, where 

 land is easily got, school-gardens are practically non-existent 

 — we apologise for being unable to name the exceptions 

 here ; and in the cities and towns the teaching of the sub- 

 ject on rational lines is often a dead letter, again with 

 honourable exceptions. 



The Schemes of Instruction are drawn up by the head of 

 each school, and usually include Physics, Dynamics, Chem- 

 istry, Zoology, Entomology, Geology, Botany, Local Indus- 

 tries, Practical Measuring, and Weather Observing ; but all 

 in such infinitesimal quantities that the sum-total is absol- 

 utely negative as serious training. It would be interesting 

 to have the following questions answered by inspectors and 

 teachers : What average percentage per month of children 



