3 ° 
Nature Portraits 
COCOON OF POLYPHEMUS 
MOTH. 
couraged must be determined for each case by itself ; 
but, in general, the child should be taught to respect the 
life of every creature. Collecting should be a mere in- 
cident, particularly with very young children, and it 
should be encouraged only when it has some definite 
purpose. The wanton spirit always must be suppressed. 
I do not like to encourage young children to “catch 
things” for the mere excitement of catching them. 
Study the habits of things as they are. I have little 
sympathy with the development of mere sentimentalism 
regarding the life of animals and plants; but it is a 
safe principle, with 
children, to let 
everything live its own life. Discour- 
age the spirit of the hunter. 
Now that there are so many nature-hooks, 
how shall I choose the most useful one? 
Only by finding out what you want. 
The multitude of books may be confus- 
ing, but the greater the number the 
greater is the chance that you will find 
onetoyour liking. Some peopledeplore By L w . Br0Wliell . 
the making of many books, because they fox squirrel. 
then have more difficulty in choosing; 
but the time has already passed when one 
book, or even two, can satisfy a good teacher. 
The teacher may not be able to purchase 
several books, but the school should supply 
a reasonable number. In these days the 
library is part of the equipment of the 
school. There is a general feeling that 
a new book — particularly a new school- 
book — is made for the purpose of dis- 
placing some other book. I once wrote a 
book. It seemed to occupy a field for 
which one of my best friends also had 
written. This friend wrote that perhaps 
I was right and he was wrong. I replied 
By L. W. Brownell. 
ANGLE-WING BUTTERFLY ONE OF THE EARLY 
SPRING VISITORS. 
