66 NATURE STUDY REVIEW [8 :2— Feb., 1912 



The idea of ''Park Life" in the city of Dubuque dates 

 back a number of years. It has steadily grown and developed 

 through a natural evolution until it embraces an ever widen- 

 ing circle of interest to pupils, physically, intellectually, and 

 morally. I am prompted to present here briefly and in order 

 the steps in the development of "Park Life," at Dubuque, 

 which is an enlarged conception and a distinctive name em- 

 bracing school gardens as a fundamental. . 



I do this because of the wide publicity that has been given 

 to it through the educational and secular press of the country, 

 which has been most generous in giving space to the subject, 

 and because of the sympathetic encouragement it has thus far 

 received at the hands of educational critics, sociologists, and 

 others ; and a further reason is the large number of interested 

 inquiries w-hich come into Dubuque concerning "Park Life," 

 indicating a popular interest and a desire for particular in- 

 formation as to its purpose, plan, and progress. I make no 

 boastful claim of having conceived the full idea at the begin- 

 ning. The plan started simply with the recognized need. We 

 grew and expanded naturally, for we learned to do by doing, 

 and one step forward suggested another. 



The plan includes the continuation of pupils in outdoor work 

 during vacation, with all that this implies of regular habits, life in 

 the open air, personal comfort, avoidance of contamination 

 through the evil influence of cities, etc. ; the continuance through 

 the year of the acquisition of knowledge, and the development 

 of thought power through open air lectures, readings, conversa- 

 tional discussions, debates, etc. 



The idea of the traveling school is here carried out. By 

 this is not meant expensive trips to Europe or to Yellowstone 

 Park, but excursions to places of real interest — historical, geo- 

 logical, or otherwise scientific, literary or economic — 'places 

 reached by little journeys which ofifer opportunities for ad- 

 vancement in a multitude of ways. 



I am not a believer that everybody should learn gardening 

 for the purpose of making money, or for the purpose of get- 

 ting rich at it, but for the purpose of keeping the mind employed, 

 of creating an interest in public affairs that will lead to the estab- 

 lishment of public improvements, the conservation of the water 

 supply, and river regulation, so that all those who have homes 

 can have all the water necessary for irrigation, which, together 

 with fertilization, can bring returns that are profitable and en- 

 joyable. 



