30 NATURE STUDY. 



It would seem that Mother Nature or Mother Dande- 

 lion was thinking, when she gave the seed its color, 

 how much better it would escape the sharp eyes of 

 birds and insects if it had the color of the ground where 

 it must rest for months. 



When we study the dandelion in this way, asking 

 "why" and " how "as well as u what," investigate the 

 work of its parts as well as their structure, what do we 

 gain from it? What is the educational value or aim 

 of such a study of the functional relations of the dan- 

 delion to its environment, of its dependence on and 

 adaptation to environment, as compared with the value 

 of the previous study of its structure and structural or 

 form relations ? 



First. Our interest in the dandelion is greatly in- 

 creased. We have studied it not merely for its form, 

 but as a plant endowed with life. We have given it a 

 personality somewhat akin to ourselves, and watched its 

 struggles and perseverance and triumphs. We begin 

 to feel some sympathy for the domestic weed. This 

 is particularly true of children, to whom living nature 

 appeals so strongly . 



Second. Our appreciation of the beauty of the dande- 

 lion, which may have begun with the study of structure, 

 increases greatly as we learn to see not merely the 

 beauty of form and color, but the far higher beauty 

 of function and adaptation. " Handsome is that hand- 

 some does," is as true for the dandelion as for any of 

 the human kind. 



Third. We have laid some foundation for realizing 



