CALIFORNIA FISII AND GAME. 



79 



MAPS FOR YOUR SUMMER VACATION. 



The government wisely provides help 

 for those who seek it. The agriculturist 

 is furnished with information as to 

 methods of growing larger and better 

 crops. The mariner is furnished with 

 information as to weather conditions. 

 Even the summer vacationist has at his 

 command information on the locality 

 chosen for a summer camp. The quad- 

 rangle maps issued by the United States 

 Geological Survey are almost indispens- 

 able to the person who desires informa- 

 tion on the contour of the country and 

 the location of points of interest. By 

 the use of these maps the average camper 

 can tell with fair certainty just where he 

 is. These maps are available at cost 

 price and can be obtained either in Wash- 

 ington or in nearly all the large cities. 

 Most of California has been thus mapped, 

 but there are many other states that are 

 not so fortunate. The present movement 

 to expedite the completion of the topo- 

 graphical maps of the United States is 

 therefore commendable. Those sufficiently 

 interested should bring pressure to bear 

 upon the authorities in Washington, D. C, 

 that more of these important maps may 

 be made available to the people. 



Attention is called also to the excellent 

 recreation maps furnished by the United 

 States Forest Service. These maps give 

 dependable guidance regarding trails, 

 roads, streams, settlements, etc., of each 

 national forest, together with a descrip- 

 tion of the resources of the forest. 



SALISBURY FISH AND GAME FILMS 

 NOW AVAILABLE. 



The Fish and Game Commission is now 

 in possession of a set of the famous Salis- 

 bury Fish and Game Pictures. The six 

 thousand feet of film depicts the fish cul- 

 tural work of the commission, showing the 

 operations from the taking of the eggs to 

 the planting of the young fish in the 

 streams, illustrates the life history of 

 many birds and animals and vividly por- 

 trays many of the fundamental aspects of 

 wild life conservation. Schools, sports- 

 men's clubs and other organizations desir- 

 ing to have these films shown under their 

 auspices should write the Bureau of Edu- 

 cation, Publicity, and Research, Museum 

 of "Vertebrate Zoology, Berkeley, Cali- 

 fornia, 



NATURE STUDY IN LOS ANGELES 

 PUBLIC SCHOOLS. 



Under the direction of Dr. Charles 

 Lincoln Edwards, nature study has be- 

 come an important part of the curriculum 

 of the Los Angeles public schools. The 

 whole system of nature study is built up 

 on the theory that children should not be 

 told the things which they can find out 

 for themselves and that nature play, 

 rather than nature study, is the key to 

 a wonderful fairyland of which the child 

 is a part. Without formal lessons and 

 examinations and stimulated only by the 

 spirit of play, the child may get an under- 

 standing of the other animals that live in 

 the world about him. 



According to Dr. Edwards ("Nature 

 Play" in Popular Science Monthly, April, 

 1914) : "Nature play is the true basis for 

 all knowledge. Through this dominant 

 interest the child is led to know of the 

 living things about him. Not merely are 

 the facts of nature important, but much 

 more valuable is the fascinating story of 

 how and why these facts came to be. It 

 is of much import to learn that the ani- 

 mals which bear scales and those covered 

 with feathers, or fur, are all wearing sim- 

 ilar clothing, but of the different fashions 

 best suited to their needs. It is still more 

 significant to realize that fundamentally 

 the minds of all animals are as allied as 

 are their digestive and respiratory sys- 

 tems. The great end of nature play for 

 the child is not simply to learn of the 

 rest of nature, but better to know himself 

 as a part of nature." 



lu the Los Angeles system the field 

 trip is given rightly an important place. 

 Knowledge of the birds and animals 

 about us is acquired best through a first- 

 hand acquaintance rather than through 

 the medium of a picture or a written 

 description. The whole educational sys- 

 tem should be more closely associated with 

 natural objects seen out of doors. It is 

 to be hoped that many other cities of the 

 state will inaugurate nature study field 

 trips. When nature study is more widely 

 taught in our public schools the principles 

 of wild life conservation will become so 

 imbedded in future generations that there 

 will be no lack of champions of the con- 

 servation cause. 



