60 A FIELD GUIDE IN NATURE-STUDY 



what is being done and what it is done for. Secure from them at the close 

 of the work a statement of the experiment and its result. 



Uses. Tell what you can of the uses of the cat, dog, cow, horse, rabbit, 

 and squirrel. What service do the St. Bernard and Eskimo dogs render ? 



The following are a few suggestions of sources of good stories : Nesbitt's 

 Pussy and Doggy Tales, Houlis ton's Cat Tails and Other Tales, De la Ramee's 

 Dog of Flanders, Mother Goose Rhymes. Old files of the Youth's Companion 

 and St. Nicholas will afford good stories of these animals. Many of the 

 child's poems of animal life have been set to music and may appropriately 

 be used in connection with the nature-study. Mother Goose Melodies, 

 published by McLaughlin Brothers, contains " Pussy Cat, Pussy Cat," 

 "Poor Dog Bright," "I Had a Little Doggy," and others. Equally good 

 songs may be found in any standard collection suited to the lower grades. 



Familiarize yourself with some of the good animal pictures and their 

 artists. The following are suggestions: Adam's " Kittens," Landseer's 

 " Dignity and Impudence," Holmes's "Kiss Me," Troyon's "Oxen Going 

 to Work," Bonheur's "Cattle of Brittany" and "Horse Fair." 



Need of protection. Need a squirrel be afraid of a cow ? of a cat ? of a 

 dog? of a rabbit? Why? (Recall food and feeding habits already 

 studied.) Need a cat be afraid of a squirrel ? of a dog ? of a cow ? Need 

 a dog fear a horse? Need a wolf fear a horse? a cow? Why? It is 

 presumed that many of this series of questions will be answered from the 

 observations that pupils have made. 



Need a dog be afraid of another dog ? a cat of another cat ? Have you 

 ever seen squirrels or rabbits or horses fight? Such questions make clear 

 the fact that animals frequently need protection from others of the same 

 kind quite as much as from their mutual enemies. 



Why does not a rabbit freeze in the winter ? Have you ever found a 

 dead bird? What do you think killed it? Have you ever found other 

 wild animals dead, such as squirrels, field mice, frogs, etc. ? As a result 

 of such questions it will be shown how essential it is that animals be pro- 

 tected from adverse physical conditions, such as cold, rain, and storms. 

 It is well for the child to realize, not how strenuous the struggle for existence 

 is among the animals afield, but that it is strenuous. It will lead to many 

 kindly acts. Crumbs thrown out at the door, a handful of corn deposited 

 weekly in the same spot, a few nuts left always on the same stump, a crust 

 of bread left every few days in the same place in the woods will not only 

 help develop a thoughtful care for the unfortunate, but it will acquaint the 

 child with the many unfamiliar birds that will come to his dooryard for 

 food. It will give him autographical sketches, unconsciously written in 

 the tracks in sand or snow, about the spot he may choose for his beneficence. 



