OUR ZOOLOGICAL PARK. 



It would be unnatural to try and separate our children 

 from animal life. And what could be more harmonious than 

 their association? We older folks feel at all times called 

 upon to subject children to instruction if not to correction. 

 The association of child and animal excludes such and makes 

 the former the king of the company. A cat even, to stran- 

 gers the most perverse of domestic animals, will permit a 

 child to almost squeeze it in two. A dog is the companion 

 and full-fledged brother of the boy and the guardian and play- 

 mate of the girl. Whoever has observed the companion- 

 ship of a lamb and children will recollect how playful 

 they were in a thousand pranks, never tiring the whole, long 

 day. We, who are supposed to direct our children's ideas 

 and lead their fancies, should select the proper companion- 

 ship from amongst the animals. Let us then exclude en- 

 tirely the dog from our grounds. Only too many of them 

 are associated with our children in the streets, and no dog 

 ever displayed the proper qualities of its kind when spoiled 

 through contact with children. Neither has the cat any 

 right to be with us. There is no child which does not enjoy 

 its company at home or over at the neighbor's. But we have 

 to install a lamb in our garden. Let it assume charge of 

 the lawn-mowing and let it be fed regularly under the kin- 

 dergartner's supervision. Let the children learn, in contact 

 with all the animals which I mention, that it is unwise to 

 feed them at all times of the day. The lamb may be led 

 forth at certain hours and whichever little girl had her 



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