184 THE SWAN AND HER CREW. 



had given up the idea of keeping pace with naming all the 

 beautiful flowers he had found. He gathered and dried them, 

 and left to the winter evenings the tasK of arranging and 

 naming them. 



" I say," called out Frank, " around my face there are at 

 least seven different kinds ot grasses. Can you name them, 

 Jimmy? and how many different kinds of grasses are there? " 



"I can name nothing," said Jimmy dolefully, "but I will 

 look it up in my book and tell you. Here it is, but their name 

 seems legion. You must look at them for yourself. The plates 

 are very beautiful, but the quaking grass, of which there is any 

 quantity just by your head, is the prettiest." 



" They seem as pretty as ferns," said Frank. " I must learn 

 something more about them." 



A day or two after this Mr. Meredith said to them, when they 

 had assembled at his house in the morning : 



" Now, boys, from something a little bird has whispered to 

 me, I think you stand in need of a little punishment, and I 

 therefore mean to give you a lesson. You are by far too 

 desultory in your study of natural history. You attempt to do 

 too much, and so you only obtain a superficial knowledge, 

 instead of the thorough and practical one you ought to have. 

 You are trying to reach a goal before you have fairly started 

 from the toe-line. I allude more especially now to botanical 

 matters, because I know most about them, and that is all I can 

 help you in. Therefore you will be kind enough to translate 

 into Latin this Essay which I have written on the Life of a 

 Fern." 



" That is anything but a punishment, sir," said Frank, 

 laughing. 



The boys set to work with great zest at their novel lesson. 

 I set the English of it out in the next chapter, and I particularly 

 request my young readers to read every word of it. 



