viii INTRODUCTION. 



special contrivances for dispersal. Thus they would 

 be accumulating materials for the School Museum. 



Of course, all success depends upon the teachers, 

 who must teach con amorc, advise, encourage, and 

 reward the children's efforts by any means they may 

 think best. 



If they do this, they will find the subject not 

 only interesting to themselves, but fascinating to their 

 pupils. 



The school should have a small Museum of Fruits 

 and Seeds, and a Herbarium of dried plants of the 

 neighbourhood, containing selected types of the different 

 genera, when such have v^idJij species. The pupils should 

 be encouraged to collect the specimens, which should 

 be properly dried and mounted under the superin- 

 tendence of the teacher. 



The teacher, or elder pupils, should make enlarged 

 drawings of everything of importance in the structure 

 of flowers. These should be inserted with and by the 

 side of the dried specimens. Wall- drawings and the 

 blackboard should be freely employed. 



It is impossible to make Botany so simple that 

 a child will be able to follow the details without 

 assistance. It is, indeed, quite a mistake to suppose 

 that it can be written like a Story-book, or even 

 like History. Botany requires a considerable effort, 

 as much as any other subject — say. Grammar — taught 

 at school. In fact, the teacher should in all cases 



