l82 THE NATURE-STUDY REVIEW [i, 5, sept. 1905 



from one point of view, while from another point of view they are 

 clearly geographic. 



The carrying out of experiments in evaporation, solution, and 

 crystallization is nature-study, but when this is done in connection 

 with the study of the great deserts of the world it aids in the 

 acquirement of real geographic knowledge. The deposits of salt 

 soda, borax, and nitre are governed in their formation and dis- 

 tribution by the principles exemplified in the physical phenomena 

 referred to. Numberless other examples could be given if it were 

 necessary, to show how nature-study can support and elucidate 

 the facts of geography. 



If the infinite detail, too often present, could be omitted from 

 all courses of nature-study, as well as all those topics which cannot 

 appeal to the child mind, and the work be so shaped, particularly 

 in the upper grades, as to throw light upon the geography the 

 work in both subjects will be made more satisfactory. 



Nature-study dealing with the phenomena of our environment; 

 geography beginning with the same phenomena, but ultimately 

 extending its scope to take in their world relations ; and history, 

 the development of man under various physical and sociological 

 conditions; should be considered as practically one subject in 

 the earlier half of the elementary-school course, and as closely 

 related subjects in the later half. Although we are still very far 

 from being perfect in practice, yet one important step has been 

 gained in the growing consciousness that the only way in which 

 the child can gain any real benefit from his study of the facts of 

 the phenomenal world is to deal with them in their natural 

 settings. 



With the differentiation of nature-study and geography at the 

 beginning of the grammar-school period there are new problems 

 to be solved. How shall the geography of distant regions be 

 treated so as to produce the most distinct and permanent mental 

 images? In the first place we must abandon the method of the 

 present text-books, and cease skimmirg over the world in a 

 formal and almost meaningless manner. We must, rather, take 

 up the study of the world as a living organism whose parts and 

 functions are mutually dependent. 



The relief, climate, the plants and animals of the home district 

 and man's relation to them must be made the starting point for 

 the study of similar things in remote districts that the child has 



