32 
NATURK .STUDY. 
easier to say what elements tourmaline does not consist of 
than what it does. Black tourmaline is in great request 
for mourning jewelry .—Natitre Notes. 
Nature Study Lessons. XXVI. 
BY EDWARD J. BURNHAM. 
Plants are found almost everywhere. They cover near¬ 
ly all the land surface of the globe, and not a few are found 
in the sea. Perhaps it is because they are .so common that 
comparatively few people take the trouble to know much 
about them. Perhaps, too, botany, as it was taught in 
many schools until recently, was not made as interesting 
as it might have been. 
But it is a great pity that any child should grow up and 
go through life without being able to recognize the com¬ 
mon wild flowers and call them by their names. There is 
real pleasure in greeting them as old friends 5 ^ear after 
year, returning in a regular proce.ssion that advances stead¬ 
ily from the hobblebush and the violets of spriilgtime to 
the goldenrod and the asters of the fall. Nor is one re¬ 
stricted to the blos.soms in their brief seasons ; for the trees, 
the shrubs, the vines, and parts of many other plants re¬ 
main with us throughout the year, and may be observed 
under many widely differing a.spects. So there is alwa 5 ^s 
something in the plant world, at anytime of the year, well 
worth seeing, if we have only learned what to look for. 
There is much to be said about the great advantage of 
cultivating the facult}^ of seeing, and the ease with which 
it may be developed and expanded, at least by the young. 
But instead of talking about it, the very best way is to be¬ 
gin ; and one need not go far, unless he lives in the heart 
of .some great city. The first bit of wild roadside one 
comes to will furnish the chance for a great deal of seeing, 
with plenty to think about afterwards. 
