14 Outlook to Nature 



In my boyhood the field mice were a constant 

 source of entertainment and mystery. I found 

 them scuddled in the corn shocks, burrowed in 

 the dry grass, nesting in the corn-crib. I saw 

 their faint narrow trails on new-fallen snow, 

 leading into strange pygmy caverns. 



The newspaper. 



Just now I said something of the "news." 

 It is important that we recur to this subject, 

 since we are a people of news readers, and 

 continuous reading strongly, though silently, 

 influences our outlook to nature and affairs. 



Much of what is called news is so unimpor- 

 tant that it is not worth the while of a person 

 whose time is of value ; but my chief objection 

 to it, as to some of the nature writing, is that it 

 is no way representative of human affairs, if 

 it were, I suppose it would not be new and 

 therefore would not be news. It is made up to 

 a large extent of exceptional and meaningless 

 episodes and extravagancies. 



Yesterday I saw hundreds of persons on cars 

 and ferries eagerly reading the " news." I 



