FRACTIONS 



FRACTIONS 



grasses introduced into America from Europe. 

 The mountain species, 

 found in the rich soil 

 along streams in the 

 Rocky Mountains, 

 yields a large amount 

 of excellent hay and is 

 proving valuable for 

 cultivation in the New 

 England and north 

 Middle States. A few 

 other species are dry 

 and harsh and some- 

 times troublesome as 

 weeds. 



r Foxtail millets, which 

 are closely related to 

 the grasses, found in all 

 the warmer and tem- 

 perate regions, are very 

 valuable for forage, and 

 some species as food 

 for man. See MILLET. 



FOX TER'RIER, a small, lively, short- 

 haired dog, probably the most popular of all 



FOXTAIL, GRASS 



terriers. It is a very quick, intelligent and 

 tireless animal, and is of the species most 

 frequently seen in dog performances. It was 

 formerly em- 

 ployed to drive 

 foxes from their 

 holes for hunters, 

 and this accounts 

 for,its name; but 

 it is now chiefly 

 kept as a pet. In 

 color it is usually 

 White, With black SMOOTH FOX TERRIER 



and tan markings on the head. In a thorough- 

 bred the head should be flat and rather nar- 

 row, with strong jaws, small eyes, small 

 V-shaped ears carried close to the head, and 

 nose black and tapering. The legs should be 

 straight and strong. Carried gaily is a high- 

 set tail, which is usually docked. Some fox 

 terriers have smooth coats, but others have 

 hair hard and wiry. The average weight of 

 one of these animals is twenty pounds, and its 

 length of life is about fifteen years. It is a 

 very affectionate animal. 



THE STORY OF FRACTIONS 



.RACTIONS, COMMON. A fraction is one 

 or more of the equal parts into which a unit 

 is divided. There are two general classes of 

 fractions, common and decimal fractions. The 

 former are written with one number above a 

 dividing line and one number below. (For 

 the discussion of decimal fractions see the 

 article DECIMAL FRACTIONS.) Let Fig. 1 (be- 

 low) represent a piece of cardboard 16 inches 

 1 o n g a n d 5 



tire piece. The portions designated as % are 

 each equal to two of these parts; that is, each 

 is one-half of the entire piece. 

 Five boys in a manual training shop have a 



rectangular piece of leather which is to be 

 divided equally among them . for their work 

 (see Fig. 2). Each boy takes one-fifth of the 

 piece. He knows that this portion is his share 

 because he sees that each boy can take a piece 

 the same size as his. The boys must have 

 some measure by 

 which they can 

 divide the piece 

 into five equal 

 parts. They 

 probably use a 

 measure which 

 they all recognize 

 as a standard, 

 such as the inch. Having decided on this 

 standard, they may measure the length of the 

 piece and find it 20 inches, while the width is 

 the same throughout. In the drawing are 

 shown the divisions. 



H 



FIG. 2 



