FERNS AS A HOBBY 



light to the eye and interest to the mind, these 

 players who had come abroad solely for instruction 

 and pleasure could not be enticed from their tables, 

 and I thanked my stars that I had not fallen under 

 the stultifying sway of cards. Much the same grati- 

 tude is aroused when I see men and women spending 

 precious summer days indoors over the card-table 

 when they might be breathing the fragrant, life- 

 giving air, and rejoicing in the beauty and interest 

 of the woods and fields. 



All things considered, a hobby that takes us out 

 of doors is the best. The different open-air sports 

 may be classed under this head. The chief lack in 

 the artificial sports, such as polo, golf, baseball, etc., 

 as opposed to the natural sports, hunting and fish- 

 ing, is that while they are invaluable as a means of 

 health and relaxation, they do not lead to other and 

 broader interests, while many a boy-hunter has de- 

 veloped into a naturalist as a result of long days in 

 the woods. Hunting and fishing would seem almost 

 perfect recreations were it not for the life-taking 

 element, which may become brutalizing. I wish 

 that every mother who believes in the value of 

 natural sport for her young boys would set her 

 face sternly against any taking of life that cannot be 

 justified on the ground of man's needs, either in the 

 way of protection or support. 



The ideal hobby, it seems to me, is one that keeps 

 us in the open air among inspiring surroundings, 

 with the knowledge of natural objects as the end in 

 view. The study of plants, of animals, of the earth 



