232 NATURAL SCIENCE. April, 1895 



uncertainty of the subject that attracts so many of our keener youth 

 to its study. But why should the glacialists, as they delight to call 

 themselves, introduce a similar uncertainty of date into the publication 

 of their own magazine ? Has not the cold of the past winter satiated 

 them, that they must try to make us believe it is yet December, 

 though March is drawing to its close ? We can scarcely trust the 

 chronology of writers who bring out a November number, we believe, 

 in February, and at any rate containing a letter dated " 27th December, 

 1894." The October number, too, did not reach us from the publisher 

 till January 23, and was found to contain the report of a meeting of 

 the Belfast Naturalists' Field-Club, which, we have since learned, 

 was held on November 10. Fortunately, the Glacialists' Magazine has 

 not yet published any descriptions of new genera or species, so that 

 we can hardly attribute this misdating to any evil intent. Neverthe- 

 less, such a practice is confusing to the worker, and is quite easily 

 remedied by the insertion of the actual date of publication on the 

 wrapper. See to it, Mr. Percy F. Kendall, before your glaciers all 

 melt beneath the heat of a righteous indignation. 



Children and Museums. 



We have so often urged the importance of museums for educa- 

 tional purposes that we are bound to welcome an addition just made 

 to the Educational Code. This permits the time spent in visits to 

 museums under proper guidance to be counted to the children as time 

 spent in school-work. This may possibly have the effect of further 

 improving the educational exhibits in various provincial museums, 

 and so will do good to both sides. It is, however, to be hoped that 

 the children will not come to regard museums with that horror which 

 naturally clings to everything in the form of lessons. The visits 

 should be made as attractive as possible. Some day we may see this 

 wise license extended to the benefit of those who live too far from 

 museums to avail themselves of it in its present form. If a collection 

 of fossils or a herbarium are thought to be of value to the growing 

 mind, surely the quarry and the flowering meadow have even greater 

 claims on the consideration of our educational legislators. Mr. 

 Acland has made so many changes in the direction of humanising 

 education, that we confidently expect to see in the near future the 

 children of board schools marching with their masters into the country 

 as they do in Germany. 



