May 1, 1896.] 



SCIENCE. 



671 



suit. (2) The approximate number of trials 

 made of each method before reaching your 

 conclusion. 



V. How does Pretending to Cry, on the part 

 of the parent, affect the child : (a) As a deter- 

 rent from disobedience ? 



(6) In making him sorry for obedience ? (Try 

 this experiment but a few times, and only on 

 children from two to four years old.) 



VI. Observe the child's comments on hearing 

 the following stories, and endeavor to elicit his 

 moral judgment regarding each of the two in- 

 cidents : 



(a) One day a lady gave a stick of nice, red 

 candy to a little girl, named Bessie (or to a little 

 boy, named Robbie, if the child to whom you 

 are telling the story is a boy). Bessie took the 

 candy home and showed it to her mamma. Her 

 mamma said, "How nice it looks ; you must 

 give it to me, to eat." Bessie said, "I won't! 

 the lady gave the candy to me, and I want it 

 myself." Then mamma took the candy away 

 from Bessie and whipped her because she 

 wouldn't give the candy to mamma. (Will the 

 child see the arbitrariness of the command and 

 of the punishment ?) 



(6) One day mamma gave Bessie (or Bobbie) 

 a pitcher full of milk, and told her to carry it 

 into the pantry and put it on the shelf. Bessie 

 walked very carefully, so as not to spill the 

 milk ; but when she came to the pantry door 

 her little sister, Ella (or his little brother, 

 Jamie), ran against her and made her drop the 

 pitcher. The pitcher broke all to pieces, and 

 the milk ran all over the floor. Then mamma 

 scolded Bessie and sent her into the bedroom, 

 because she broke the pitcher and spilled the 

 milk. (Will the child see the injustice in the 

 mother's treatment of Bessie? If so, what 

 treatment will the child propose?) 



Remarks : (1) Tell the stories to children from 

 three to six and one-half years old. (2) Tell 

 the two stories at different times and to each 

 child separately. (3) In trying to elicit the 

 child's judgment, be careful not to suggest 

 ideas. 



General Information. By way of introduc- 

 tion to your record of the results of the above 

 experiments, state : (a) The child's nationality. 

 (6) His age in months when the several experi- 



ments are tried, (c) Whether he is a normally 

 strong and healthy child, physically and men- 

 tally. If not, in what way he is less well or 

 strong than the average child, (d) His peculiar- 

 ities of temperament, especially how far he is 

 np,turally irritable, obstinate or domineering. 



Parents who are willing to aid in the above 

 investigation are requested to send at once to 

 the undersigned : (a) their own names and ad- 

 dresses. (6) The names and respective ages (in 

 months) of the children that are to be observed. 



The information secured in response to this 

 paper will be used in a general and statistical 

 way, without publication of names. 



It is hoped your observations may be com- 

 pleted, and the report of results sent in, within 

 two, or, at most, three months after your re- 

 ceipt of this paper ; but as much time should be 

 taken as is necessary for accurate and full re- 

 sults. Address, J. F. Morse. 



Wisconsin Univeesity, Madison, Wis. 



SCIENTIFIC LITER ATUBE. 

 Frail Children of the Air. Excursions into the 

 world of butterflies. By Samuel Hubbard 

 ScuDDER. Boston and New York, Hough- 

 ton, Mifflin Co. 1895. $1 50. 

 This will prove a delightful book for the com- 

 ing summer season. Although its title may not 

 be especially descriptive of the contents, the 

 book is devoted to an account of the more in- 

 teresting peculiarities in the structure, lives, 

 and habits of our commoner butterflies. The 

 subjects treated are the following : Butterflies 

 in disguise, the struggle for existence in the 

 genus Basilarchia, deceptive devices among 

 caterpillars, butterflies as botanists, the names 

 of butterflies, color-relations of chrysalids to 

 their surroundings, the White Mountains of 

 of New Hampshire as a home for butterflies, 

 butterfly sounds, nests and other structures 

 made by caterpillars, postures of butterflies at 

 rest and asleep, the eggs of butterflies, psycho- 

 logical peculiarities in our butterflies, social 

 caterpillars, the fixity of habit in butterflies, 

 how butterflies pass the winter, the oldest but- 

 terfly inhabitants of New England, protective 

 coloring in caterpillars, aromatic butterflies, the 

 ways of butterflies, and similar topics, Those 



