lO NATURE STUDY A^PD LIFE 



Cultivation of Plants. — Important as domestication of 

 animals is, the greatest advance of the race in its relations 

 toward nature is found in the cultivation of plants. This 

 has constituted the largest factor in the transition of 

 human tribes from wandering nomads to stable, populous, 

 civilized communities. In the stability of landhold we 

 have the beginning of home, as distinguished from the 

 casual camping ground ; and in the footsteps of Ceres 

 and Pomona has followed Flora, to make home beautiful. 

 With home is founded commerce, and arts, literatures, 

 philosophies, and sciences as well. 



Cultivation of plants indicated and developed elements 

 of character fundamental to civilized life. Willingness to 

 work for daily bread, intelligent provision for the future, 

 courage to fight for home, love of country, are a few 

 among the virtues attained. When we consider its uni- 

 versal and fundamental character in relation to civilization 

 and human advancement, the omission of soil lore from 

 a system of education of the young is suggestive of 

 relapse to barbarism. To allow a child to grow up with- 

 out planting a seed or rearing a plant is a crime against 

 civilized society, and our armies of tramps and hordes of 

 hoodlums are among the first fruits of an educational 

 system that slights this important matter. 



Elementary botany is chiefly cultivation of plants. We 

 shall see in its proper place, as we have already noted 

 with animals, that there are certain plants that man has 

 found worth while to domesticate. Certain other plants 

 are of great human value, though not domesticated, and 

 others, weeds and poisonous species, have been recognized 

 as enemies of the race. The nature study of plants in 



