THE SPIRIT OF NATURE STUDY 67 



pupil need not believe it until seen, and then he will prob- 

 ably conclude that the teacher made too sweeping a state- 

 ment. It is a current belief, expressed by the name, that 

 all sunflowers face the sun and follow its path, and the 

 very first sunflower met may contradict this notion. It 

 is an interesting thing to collect neighborhood beliefs in 

 reference to nature and to check them up by a little exact 

 observation. It is not only interesting, but it is an ex- 

 ceedingly valuable exercise, and develops an attitude of 

 mind that is really scientific. Especially do these un- 

 founded beliefs prevail in connection with the cultivation 

 of plants, and we have seen children deliberately set to 

 violating every known superstition in the case of plants and 

 proving them worthless. 



The spirit of inquiry not only compels one to examine 

 the foundation of current statements in reference to nature, 

 but it pushes observation into investigation. An open 

 mind sees, but the spirit of inquiry wants to know why. 

 The open mind sees the veins of a leaf and is not hampered 

 by any preconceived plan for them, but the spirit of in- 

 quiry wants to know what the veins mean. It is always 

 converting the what into why, and is an endless series of 

 interrogation marks. This does not mean an endless 

 series of answers, for that is impossible, but it will mean an 

 answer now and then, and a most valuable attitude of mind. 



Do teachers encourage this sort of thing, or are they 

 inclined to suppress questions and to resent any hesitation 

 to believe? We have seen this tendency, but can hardly 

 believe that it is general. There is no surer evidence of 

 an awakened mind than the questioning which follows 

 observation. 



