THE GUIDE TO NATURE 
176 
Congratulations to The Audubon 
Societies. 
It is encouraging to note as an- 
nounced in our last number that the 
National Association of Audubon So- 
cieties is coming into its own some- 
where near the deserved status of a 
natural history association. The re- 
cently announced endowment of $200,- 
000 brings the amount up to $675,000. 
That gives a fairly good working basis 
but more could be used to advantage. 
It is, however, a puzzle to know why 
The Agassiz Association in its forty- 
seven years of existence has not had a 
dollar of endowment although we cover 
all nature, including a general natural 
history interest in birds. It is true 
that we have inculcated the law of love 
rather than the love of law, and have 
not tried to obtain legislative protec- 
tion for birds or for any other phase 
of nature. We believe in the student 
point of view and aim at the human 
being rather than at the birds, plants 
or quadrupeds. In some respects this 
point of view is good and in some it is 
evidently bad. It surely does not ap- 
peal to the wealthy contributor as 
much as does lawmaking, reservations, 
etc. But after all we in our field have 
perhaps been instrumental in bringing 
about this fairly good endowment to 
the Audubons because of the sentiment 
which we have steadily inculcated for 
about a half century. We have tried to 
do our part in making a popular de- 
mand for laws for protection. It seems 
to us as if our point of view is the best 
but that is probably what everybody 
thinks of his own outlook. It would 
seem as if there were no need of laws 
for protection, preservation or kind- 
ness, but so long as human nature is as 
it is, laws are necessary. It is a good 
and encouraging thing to learn that 
financiers are willing strongly to back 
up societies that say, “Thou shalt not.” 
But then there is another phase of 
the Audubon Societies — they as well as 
ours are educational. They have done 
an immense amount of work in chang- 
ingpublie sentiment. We congratulate 
them UDon having the ways and means 
to carry on their good work. Let some 
financier come to the aid of The Agas- 
siz Association and other organiza- 
tions dealing largely with the educa- 
tional aspects of nature. But over on 
the extreme we find such well endowed 
organizations as the Carnegie Institu- 
tion dealing with technical science. It 
seems to me as if both ends of the line, 
“Thou shalt not” to the wrong doers 
and “Thou shalt know more” also to 
the extreme, are well endowed, but in 
the middle ground occupied by The AA 
there is need of more money and more 
workers. The extremes are so well 
provided for that the next duty is to 
bring the great masses of humanity 
into a proper appreciation, a proper 
amount of protection and a proper 
amount of knowledge — in other words, 
let us popularize the study of nature. 
In Union Is Strength. 
The ideal union for all local organ- 
izations of nature study is The Agassiz 
Association, because of the fundamen- 
tal principles back of this organization 
that have been demonstrated to be 
practical for its almost half century of 
existence. A local company is known 
as a Chapter and is essentially free to 
carry on its work on its own way. It 
is, however, better to be a part of a 
large federation of nature Chapters 
rather than to be an isolated local club 
or society. In The Agassiz Associa- 
tion there has always been a spirit of 
camaraderie and helpfulness. By its 
clearing house, ArcAdiA, at Sound 
Beach, Connecticut, it is able to inter- 
change observations and give informa- 
tion on every question that may arise in 
nature study. 
This is a day of doing things in a col- 
lective manner. No longer is the labor- 
er any more isolated from his fellows 
than is the capitalist. Organizations 
of women, men and the young folks are 
coming into touch with one another. 
Woodcrafters, Boy Scouts and Camp 
Fire Girls have found it of advantage 
to be working throughout the country 
in one harmonious whole. AVe there- 
fore strongly advise every isolated club 
and society of nature study to become 
affiliated with the larger organizations. 
Those who are limited to bird study 
naturally take the Audubons; those 
who are interested in kindness to ani- 
mals take the Humane Societies, but 
when it comes to a general interest in 
