INTRODUCTION. 



BY PROFESSOR J. ARTHUR THOMSON, UNIVERSITY OP 

 ABERDEEN. 



THIS book is intended to help teachers in their Nature- 

 Study courses in school^ and I wish to commend it strongly 

 to their consideration since I have seen for many years 

 now the excellent results reached by the author in teaching 

 along the lines here indicated, and since I believe in the 

 educational soundness of the aims and methods which he 

 has ably illustrated in the pages that follow. The con- 

 clusions I have come to as the result of many experi- 

 ments in Nature Study are in close agreement with 

 Dr. Eemiie's, so it is at the risk of slightly overlapping 

 his first chapter that I propose to state some of them in 

 this Introduction. 



What is Nature Study but the old broad wholesome 

 Natural History the study of our natural surroundings 

 and what goes on there ? It is as high as the heavens 

 and as deep as the sea, but in any particular case it should 

 not be as wide as the world, for, like charity, it begins at 

 home ! 



Just as there is one big science the Science of the 

 Order of Nature so we cannot tie down Nature Study. 

 It is just an inquisitive, appreciative, intelligent outlook 

 on Natural Phenomena ; it is learning to interpret natural 

 happenings ; it is an application of many sciences with a 

 particular purpose. 



