10 



THE FARMER AND NATURE 



HEAD OF Fox. 



Foxes serve a useful purpose in de- 

 stroying animals, such as rabbits, that 

 bark young trees and eat vegetables. 



ought to be very cautious in deciding that any plant or 



animal is more harmful than useful. We do feel justified 



in exterminating such plants as the poison ivy. quack- 

 grass, and the Can;ul:i 

 thistle, and such animals 

 as wolves, rattlesnakes, 

 and disease-bearing nms- 

 quitoes and flies. On 

 the other hand, the 

 farmer is just beginning 

 to recognize some of his 

 best friends in nature. 



Many of these friends 

 long escaped notice be- 

 cause of their micro- 

 scopic size. There lives 

 in the soil a low form 



of life which we call bacteria. These microscopic bacteria 



enrich the soil by breaking down the complex bodies of 



larger animals and 



plants and making them 



over into plant food. 



Fertile soil teems with 



them. The role they 



play has been the subject 



of much recent study. 



It has been learned, for 



instance, that alfalfa will 



not usually grow well 



in a new district until 



the right kinds of bac- 

 teria have been placed 



in the soil. These small 



agents, our invisible co- 



1 , RATTLESNAKE ; 2, COPPERHEAD ; 

 3, GARTER SNAKE ; 4, WATER SNAKE. 



Snakes render important service by de- 

 stroying vermin, mice, and so on. 



