II 



Who First Used the Term Nature-Study? 



A BRIEF history of the origin of the con- 

 temporary nature-study movement will 

 clarify our ideas as to its spirit and purpose. I 

 am aware that the history that follows is incom- 

 plete, and that persons who were connected with 

 the beginnings of it are not mentioned; but I 

 think that the account will be useful in giving 

 us perspective, and in establishing an approxi- 

 mate date for the first use of the term. 



I have engaged in a large correspondence for 

 the purpose of discovering something of the 

 history of the nature-study movement in North 

 America. Oftenest, perhaps, I have been re- 

 ferred to the teaching of Agassiz at Penikese as 

 the beginning, at least in this country. Agassiz, 

 however, did not teach nature-study in the 

 school sense in which we use the term, although 

 he gave us the motto, "Study nature, not books." 

 He taught the study of nature by the "natural 

 method." His instruction was given from the 



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