1902. 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION. 



259 



practical forester, and his opportunities for 

 observation thronjjh wide traveling fit him 

 especiall}- for writing a book on forestry. 

 "Practical Forestry '" is a valuable book for 

 the general reader, and also shoidd be widely 

 used as a text-book. It is a valuable addition 

 to forest literature. 



Wild Life of Orchard and Field. Papers on 

 American Animal Life, by ErneST In- 

 GERSOLL, author of " Nature's Calendar." 

 Illustrated from photographs. Pp. 347. 

 Price, 1 1 . 40 net. Harper & Brothers, New 

 York. 



Mr. Ernest Ingersoll, the well-known natu- 

 ralist, has written a delightful book, entitled 

 " Wild Life of Orchard and Field," that tells 

 of the birds and animals near home, such as 

 the swallow^ squirrel, woodchuck, raccoon, 

 weasel, and many others well known to all. 

 Unlike many other books that treat of the 

 animals of distant lands, little known to the 



From "Wild Life of Orchard and Field.'" 



Copyright, 1880-1902, by Harper & Brothers. 



average reader, this volume gives an intimate 

 picture of the really many wild creatures that 

 still exist in the average farm community. 



The author writes of the " small deer " from 

 a deep knowledge of their habits, for Mr. Inger- 

 soll has studied in the fields these many years, 

 and he has done the public a great service in 

 producing such a readable book on the wild 

 life that is near all of us. It is quite possible 

 for every one to study the creatures mentioned 

 in this book, and readers will find much new 

 and valuable information concerning the host 

 of them mentioned. It is doubtful if the av- 

 erage reader appreciates the variety of wild 

 life still exi.sting in even our most thickl)- set- 

 tled communities. "Wild Life of Orchard 

 and Field " is a charming book, and one all 

 nature students should possess. It is splen- 

 didly illustrated from photographs. 



A bulletin entitled "The Hardy Catalpa " 

 has just been issued from the Kansas Experi- 

 ment Station. It gives a very full botanical 

 description and historical outline of Catalpa 



speciosa, and follows with a description of 

 methods of catalpa culture and brief accounts 

 of some of the larger commercial plantations, 

 among them the Tincher ])lantation at Wilsey, 

 the Yaggy plantation at Hutchinson, and the 

 Kansas City, Fort Scott and Memphis Railroad 

 plantation at Farlington, all in Kansas. Some 

 of these plantations are .shown to be very prof- 

 itable to their owners, though not more than 

 twelve or fifteen years old. The bulletin con- 

 tains 115 pages and 40 illustrations, and will 

 be very interesting and useful to those engaged 

 in catalpa culture. 



According to Season. By Frances Theodora 

 Parsons. With 32 full-page illustrations 

 in colors. i2mo, I1.75 net. Charles Scrib- 

 ner's Sons, J^ew York. 

 A new and greatly improved edition of 

 "According to Season," by Frances Theodora 

 Parsons, author of those well-known and de- 

 servedlv popular books, "How to Know the 

 Wild Flowers" and " How to 

 <h|m^h| Know the Ferns," has just 

 ^^HHp been issued by the .Scribners. 

 U^AJ^H The present edition contains 

 HH^ -' several new chapters, and de- 



scribes our birds, trees, and 

 flowers, as the title indicates, 

 "according to season." 



Why we know so little about 

 nature's works the author very 

 aptly states in the following 

 sentence : 



" That we know so little, as 

 a people, of our birds, trees, 

 rocks, and flowers is not due, I 

 think, so much to any inborn 

 lack of appreciation of the 

 beautiful or interesting as to the 

 fact that we have been obliged 

 to concentrate our energies in 

 those directions which seemed 

 to lead to some immediate ma- 

 terial advantage, leaving us 

 little time to expend upon the 

 study of such objects as promised to yield no 

 tangible remuneration." 



Happily, during late 3'ears more people can 

 and are turning to nature study. No better 

 proof of this is needed than the great demand 

 for books on nature subjects. " How to Know- 

 the Wild Flowers ' ' has sold sixty thousand 

 copies, while the sales of " Wild Animals I 

 Have Known," b)- Ernest Seton-Thompson, 

 has run up to over one hundred thousand cop- 

 ies. This is a healthful sign 



"According to Season " is well written, the 

 author's heart is in what she describes, and al- 

 together it is a most valuable book. The vol- 

 ume is beautifully and appropriately illustrated 

 by thirty-two colored plates, the work of Miss 

 Elsie Louise Shaw. There is a valuable index, 

 and marginal headings throughout the text 

 add value to the book. 



This new edition of "According to Season " 

 is a book that deserves a place in every library 

 throughout the country. It is in every way up 

 to the high standard set by the author in her 

 other books. 



