350 NATHANIEL SOUTHGATE SHALER 



for a chance to solve some of the problems of agriculture with 

 which, under his father's and grandfather's guidance, he had 

 been more or less concerned from his youth. More than this, he 

 had an almost sentimental affection for the earth, "knowing 

 earth for a mother," and firmly believed that the universe of 

 matter so far from being hostile, as the old view of nature taught, 

 was a close ally to the world of spiritual things. He somewhere 

 says: "With a bit of land any one may play the part of a god. 

 ... In this day of experiments, when men see deeper in the 

 world about them, a new field of enjoyment is opened to those 

 who are privileged to possess the earth." In his opinion the tiller 

 of the soil, owing to his relations to the functions of the earth, 

 is preeminently a naturalist, and more than any other kind of 

 man is in a position to gain the spiritual profit which may come 

 from an intimate relation with the forces which control the de- 

 velopment of the world. He deplored in agricultural commu- 

 nities the influence at work tending to separate the youth from 

 the fields and turn his longings and ambitions away from the 

 occupations of the soil-tiller. He urged that the master who is to 

 teach the ways of Nature must be intimately acquainted with 

 the work of the farmer. " My own experience," he says, " shows 

 me how a man with moderate labor and ordinary capacities 

 may keep himself somewhat familiar with the agricultural art 

 and at the same time know enough of natural science to be a 

 teacher in that department of knowledge. ... I have never 

 essayed the task, but I feel confident that I could take a class 

 of farmers' sons and daughters and lead them through a course 

 of natural science where every point and every illustration 

 would be taken from the facts with which they are intimately 

 familiar, without the least risk of loss of attention in the work. 

 I believe this could be done by any fairly competent teacher." 

 Fortunately for his own peace of mind, he undertook no 

 teaching while in the country. For several summers the en- 

 gineering class of the Lawrence Scientific School camped on his 

 grounds and made use of them for practice in their work. 



