MCQUADE CHILDREN'S INTEREST IN NATURE-STUDY 213 



on their knees and began to scrape the grain up with their hand' 

 When asked why they were working in the dirt, they said ** Here' 

 wheat, we can carry it to the chickens." They made three trips 

 to the pens before they were satisfied that their pets were sufficient- 

 ly fed. 



The next day six of the children brought rice, breakfast food, 

 cucumbers, apples and buns and one boy filled the pockets of his 

 trousers with wheat and vexed the souls of his teachers by le aving 

 a trail of it after all his footsteps in the class-room.s and halls 

 that morning. 



This boy on a later occasion brought some sorrel for the rabbits 

 but the hours in the school room were long and the temptation 

 great so he ate it him.self. When the children in their indignation 

 told m.e of this sad occurrence I looked as sorry as I could under 

 the circum^stances as G — .handed me three or four straggly roots and 

 said eagerly "It was dus a leetle bit anyhow, Mrs. M — ." 



From, this time on the children were very faithful in bringing 

 food. They were reminded frequently of this necessity. Even 

 the m.ost careless child remembered sometim.es and w.hen he did 

 rem.ember his joy in the victory and in being permitted to feed 

 the pets seemed to be greater than that of the more thoughtful 

 children. 



But even with all their care some would forget or mothers 

 would refuse to be bothered and rations would fall s.hort especially 

 on Friday when three days m.eals must be provided. Here was 

 another problem, what could be done to tide over the times of 

 shortage? After a good deal of thought and a few suggestive 

 questions the children decided to prepare and plant some gardens. 

 In the m.eantim_e the search for rabbits was carried on vigorously 

 by all hands but as yet with no results. But the desire for them 

 only waxed stronger with every discouragement. D — said that 

 she had a picture of a rabbit in her story book "and oh how I 

 wish he were alive so we could have hini" she said. 



The market price for rabbits, it appeared from what t.he children 

 told me was one dollar a pair. On my expressing my willingness 

 to pay even more than that for a pair G — immediately began to 

 organize a party to go up a ''hig can^^on" and trap rabbits. The 

 result of the expedition he generously offered me at the quoted 

 market price. The other children speedily changed his views on 

 high finance and he sheepishly offered to give me all the rabbits 

 he could trap. 



