20 HOW NATURE STUDY SHOULD BE TAUGHT 



" Vat ish dat ? " shouted the belligerent visitor. 



" Why-wh-y, that, madam, is a lobster, but " 



" How many leegz has it ? " 



" Strictly speaking there are ten, but only eight 

 are " 



" How many claws has it? 



" The first pair of the ten legs have large claws, 

 the next pair have small claws, and the other two 

 have only " 



" How many eyeez has it ? " 



" The lobster has two eyes " 



" Vat color is ? " 



" But wait, madam ; before I answer any more 

 questions, please explain why " 



" Dat's vat I vant to know — vat for ish dat your 

 teacher ask my Shonny all dese fool questions. 

 I vork so hard at mine vash-tub all the day long, 

 send my boy Shonny here to larn, and your 

 teacher tell him all dat shtuff, and ax him all dese 

 fool questions. Vat for ish dat f " 



The reporter who described this interview in 

 his daily paper saw only the humor of the situ- 

 ation. He did not record the principal's expla- 

 nation, nor the further interrogations of the ex- 

 cited parent. For him it was enough to show the 



