Gboreau 



considered, the idea of his slaying a red man 

 is indeed remarkable. Then this critic claims 

 that others who have a fancy for the outdoor 

 world are " more humane," and enter the woods 

 with "more civilized" souls; but we must re- 

 member that these "improved" outdoorists say 

 we must not ogle a bird but shoot it, to determine 

 its identity. This is the humanity so much admired 

 of late. If the bird-butchers, weighed down with 

 " humanity " and " civilization," were extinct, and 

 Thoreaus dotted the landscape in every direction, 

 the world would be better off. 



A word more concerning Thoreau as a natural- 

 ist. He was busied with the wild life about Con- 

 cord when " Science " was still occupied with the 

 hunt for new species, and content with a mere de- 

 scription of form and color. Evolution was but 

 little discussed, and in New England much disre- 

 garded, because of the efforts of Agassiz to make 

 it appear untrue. Thoreau made no practice of 

 haunting museums, objects in alcohol or stuffed 

 with tow not appealing strongly to him ; but he 

 did care to know, and was successful in ascertain- 

 ing, the habits of the animals he saw. It is true 

 he was anxious to know the scientific name of a 

 plant that he had found, and, learning it, felt 

 his interest grow ; but this does not seem to have 

 been a need as to animal life. It was enough to 

 know that a given fish was a chub or a perch. 

 The bream built a nest, scooping a hollow in the 



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