downing] THE SUMMER OUTING 229 



We succeeded in raising seventeen caterpillars from the eggs 

 laid, and had five brought in just as ours had begun to spin. In 

 about ten days the last of the twenty-two was spinning. For 

 several days after the cocoons were apparently finished we often 

 heard a queer noise, as though the caterpillars were turning over 

 and over inside of the cocoons, so we decided that they must still 

 be at work on the inner layers. When the cocoon is finished, the 

 caterpillar again, and for the last time, sheds his skin and forms the 

 pupa case. Here it remains during the winter and until the trees 

 are in leaf the next spring; then the pupa skin is shed and the 

 moth creeps out of its queer winter home. 



The Summer Outing 



Elliot R. Downing 



With the coming of the enticing spring days, all mankind feels 

 the " wanderlust" more or less. The small boy is prone to play 

 hookey, the irresponsible man becomes a hobo, and even the sedate 

 and hard-working pedagogue looks forward to the coming outing. 



Many people deny themselves the pleasure of a vacation because 

 of its expense. They feel that they can not leave home on an 

 extensive journey, for railroad fares and hotel bills soon count up 

 into prohibitive sums. Even the nearby summer resort is beyond 

 the sum that has been saved to be spent in recreation. I therefore 

 write to urge the feasibility of the vacation that is spent close to 

 Nature — a return to the simple life of our nomadic forbears. This 

 may not seem attractive to many adults, but there is no reason 

 why boy or girl, and man and woman who are still such at heart, 

 should not enjoy a real outing with very little expense. A tramp- 

 ing trip, a boat trip down the near-by-river, or just a drive across 

 country behind the family horse, can be made to yield untold joys, 

 if done in a simple way. 



It is imperative that the luggage of the journey be reduced to 

 very simple terms. If you are going to tote your bed and board on 

 your back, every ounce counts. Even if the boat or carriage is 

 going to carry it, it must be handled frequently, carried around 

 obstructions in the stream, or stowed away under the scats of the 

 wagon, where it will be out of the way, for the sake of comfort. 



