BROOKLYN BOTANIC GARDEN RECORD 
VOL. XVIII JULY, 1929 No. 4 
PUBLIC EDUCATION 
ANP AP BE, 
BROOKLYN BOTANIC GARDEN 
1910-1928 
By C. Sruarr Gacer, Director 
Preliminary Statement 
“For the giving of instruction in botany to the residents of the 
City of New York.” + 
The following pages contain a brief survey and report of the 
public educational work of the Brooklyn Botanic Garden with 
some attempt to set forth the fundamental principles upon which 
it is founded. The educational program includes anything scien- 
tific or educational based upon plant life. 
The Botanic Garden Recorp for July, 1927, contained a report 
on Research at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, r9t0-1927. In- 
vestigation is fundamental to all education since it is the source of 
all knowledge. 
Public education is the most important activity in which a 
botanic garden can engage, just as education, by and large, is the 
most important function of civilized society. Of what use to 
extend the borders of knowledge if the new knowledge is not made 
available to the public? Knowledge is power only when put into 
circulation, otherwise it is only potential energy, producing no 
results. 
1 Agreement of 1909 between the City of New York and the Brooklyn 
Institute of Arts and Sciences concerning the establishment of the Brooklyn 
Botanic Garden. Paragraph Fourth. The quotation on the front cover 
page is from the Laws of New York, 1897. Chapter 509. Section 1. 
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