posal, be attained in a way that would prove 
much more beneficial. 
expression than probably any other writer 
in any language, produced all his plays with 
about fifteen thousand words. Milton's 
works are built up with eight, thousand ; and 
the Old Testament says till it has to say with 
less than six thousand different words. 
As fluency in language is greatly to be de¬ 
sired in any walk of life, teachers should en¬ 
deavor to impart an extensive vocabulary to 
their scholars. Careful attention to defini¬ 
tion, in connection with spelling, will aid in 
this respect, by furnishing a large number of 
synonyms; proper regard on the teacher's 
part, also, for the meaning of words, will be 
term dancing parties, hopping about from 
limb to limb in the wildest excitement. This 
habit enables the natives to obtain specimens 
with comparative ease. As soon as they find 
that, the birds have fixed upon a tree on 
which to assemble, they build a little shelter 
of palm leaves in a convenient place among 
the branches, and the hunter ensconces him¬ 
self in it before daylight, armed with his bow 
and a number of arrows terminating in a 
round knob. A boy waits at the foot of the 
tree, and when the birds come at sunrise, 
and a sufficient, number have assembled and 
have begun to dance, the lnmtcr shoots with 
Ids blunt arrow so strong¬ 
ly as to stun the bird, 
which drops down and is 
secured and killed by the 
f vi boy without its plumage 
^ being injured by a drop of 
^ j| blood. The rest take no 
r ' i notice, and fall one after 
another until sonic of them 
' take the alarm. 
fljf Naturalist 
Etrucatruual 
STATE TEACHERS’ CONVENTION 
THE CAPE ANT-EATER. 
CLASSIC vs. MODERN LORE 
The New York State Teachers’ Associa¬ 
tion held its annual convention in Ithaca, 
recently. The sessions, which began July 
27th and continued three days, were attended 
by about one thousand teachers, and were, 
according to all reports, even more inter¬ 
esting and profitable than usual. Ithaca 
opened its doors most hospitably to all Urn 
“ pedagogues ’’ and “ schoolma’msRev. 
The Cape Ant-Eater, of which we give a 
life-like representation below, is one of the 
most singular animals known to Natural 
History. The specimen figured has recently 
been added to the London Zoological So¬ 
ciety's collection, having been procured nt, 
Port Elizabeth, Cape Colony, South Africa. 
It differs widely from the South American 
It is the season of College Commence¬ 
ments. From all parts of this progressive 
land of ours come the reports of alumni 
gatherings, and graduating exercises. Hun¬ 
dreds of young men have made their bows to 
most worthy Presidents, have pronounced 
their closing college efforts, and have gone 
out. to astonish the good common people 
with their wonderful wis¬ 
dom. In view of this fact, 
and knowing how little 
prepared some of these 
graduates really are to take 
up the active duties of life, 
we are tempted to speak, 
as we have spoken afore¬ 
time, of the comparative 
value of classic and cur¬ 
rent lore. ^ 
Well developed, tlior- . ^ 
oughly disciplined minds 
are greatly to be desired. 
The broadest and deepest ^ ^ 
culture is the best. This >ul- - 1 
mission we frankly make 
at. the outset. But not %&_ 
every mind can be disci- -J' ^ . 
plined as we would be 
glad to see it; not every 
yout h who goes to college 
can afford to spend three v YjlNt 
or four years in simply lay- 
ing the foundation of a 
cut turn comprehensive and . y. 
deep, and then go out to 
battle bin way through the 
world lacking such educu- 
(ion as be requires for 
dailyuse. Many must deal 
solely with practicalities, 
Their scholarship must be- - 11 ^ 
such as will serve them in 
actual intercourse with -c; 1 
men. Will a scholarship ~ 
made up largely of the 
classics do this ? v. ’ 
Indirectly, it may be 
answered. But in-u.-.m 
service will nut .,.i...- l y. 
A direct, positive demand ^ ■_J 
must be met. Whatever " •— 
will meet it most fully is 
most to ho desired. Wo 
arc glad to see that some 
of our institutions of learning arc appreciat¬ 
ing this matter. A new sense of the popu¬ 
lar demand for education is dawning upon 
them. What its true nature is, and precisely 
how it can be answered, they are at last re¬ 
alizing. 
The older colleges are looking with some 
amazement at Cornell University, and are 
perhaps a little doubtful as to how so radical 
a departure from the ancient curriculum as 
that signalizes will result. Meantime they 
are quietly following the lead of the youth¬ 
ful institution, and are introducing more vig¬ 
orous, active life into their courses. Cornel] 
University is yet somewhat of an experi¬ 
ment; but it basso much vitality that it can 
hardly fail, and in its example it is already 
doing a noble work. In its estimate of 
classic and modern lore it conforms more 
nearly to the want of the ago than any other 
college in the land, Aside from its professed 
regard for practicalities, — its facilities for 
acquiring mechanical knowledge,—its devo¬ 
tion to current literature is highly commend¬ 
able, and will incite, we hope, a similar de¬ 
votion on the part of all institutions. 
Are not our long established colleges a 
little slow and old-fogyish ? If they are 
fully up to the spirit of the times, why was 
it loft for Cornell to first give proper atten¬ 
tion to the English literature of to-day by 
engaging James Russell Lowell and 
George William Curtis as non-resident 
Professors, to give lectures thereon ? Why, 
with the great tide of German emigration 
setting to our shores those many years, and 
our sympathies closely interlinking with 
those of Germany, was it left for a university 
yet in its infancy to first acknowledge the 
importance of German literature by appoint¬ 
ing Bayard Taylor another non-resident 
Professor, in that special department ? 
We are not belittling the classics when 
M e urge a wider attention to live literature. 
M e are only demanding equal, and in some 
eases paramount, consideration, for that 
which has a greater bearing upon life. And 
we are moved solely by our interest in a 
large class of youth who will go to college 
any way, but who must leave tire platform 
° n graduation day, and immediately, for 
earnest labor. For those who can supple¬ 
ment their college course with two or three 
years of study on current topics, the vener¬ 
ated curricul urn of our Yales and Harvards 
is perhaps better than any other. But while 
we concede much to that mental discipline 
which is claimed for it, wc fully believe that 
such discipline could, for the class of students 
rvho have not unlimited, time at their dis- 
THE SALAMANDER 
jij The North American 
species of the genus fiala- 
mandra arc numerous. 
Among them are the sal¬ 
mon - colored, about six 
inches long, found in 
mountainous and moist 
regions from Vermont to 
vUltlsIs South Carolina; tlic red- 
I common under rocks and 
|||^ trees, from Massachusetts 
the red-backed, only three 
inches in length, abundant 
and the violet, also rang¬ 
ing over a wide habitat, 
“ The Salamander is not 
~~ V aquatic, though it, fre- 
Jo quents the water at breed¬ 
ing time, it is lizard-like, 
its tail being usually about 
halt the length of the 
body, and in some species, 
as the blue-spotted, fully as long again. The 
old notion that it, cun withstand five is only 
a notion, and is not based upon fact, being 
wholly erroneous. 
E. Sears 
THE CAPE ANT-EATER AT THE ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY’S GARDENS, REGENT’S PARK, LONDON, ENGLAND. 
Ant-Eater. In general appearance it is not 
unlike a pig. It is four feet in length, with 
body thick, hide tough and badger-like, 
covered with a few short, still' hairs of a 
brownish-red color ; head long, and remind¬ 
ing one of a kangaroo; ears long, measuring 
eight or ten inches, in length, of a milk-white 
color tinged with red; nose not. unlike that 
of a pig, the entrances to the nostrils pro¬ 
tected with a fringe of stiff hair; and mouth 
exceedingly small, looking like a simple slit 
cut in the head with a knife. 
The forelegs of tlu; Ant Eater arc short 
and very powerful; and each forefoot is 
armed by four claws as hard as iron, and 
with a Cutting edge, which is directed out¬ 
wards on three of them and inwards on the 
other, so that when the beast strikes lie 
wields, as it, were, a double-edged sword. 
There are five claws on each hind foot, 
which are somewhat spade-shaped. The 
formation of the teeth is found in no other 
animal, their substance being Composed en¬ 
tirely of several graduated tubes, shut in up¬ 
on each other, and closely soldered together. 
The animal in the Zoological Gardens is fed 
upon minced meat, of which it cuts three 
pounds a day. The Dutch Colonists at Cape 
Colony call the Ant-Eater mrd-mrk, or the 
“ earth-pig.” 
fonts 
THE WOLF-FIGHTER 
NEW PUBLICATIONS 
BY JANE NEY. 
Jin American Woman in Europe. (Boston: 
Leo & Shepard.)—Mrs. &. It. Urbino was a sensi¬ 
ble traveler the volume before us proves that. 
She sojourned two years and a half in Germany, 
Switzerland, Franco and Italy, In a sensible way, 
making no fu*s or bluster, but conforming as 
nearly as po^-dble to the custom* of those coun¬ 
tries. Having returned from her journoylngs 
she should have proved herself a wfse traveler, 
by not publishing a book. Wo regret. that she 
did not; so will many others, ir they wade 
through these three hundred and thirty-eight 
prosy pages, void of all description, having no 
merit In a literary point of view except con¬ 
densation of style, and giving In that which is 
condensed nothing of general interest. Hut for 
our innate gallantry we should pronounce the 
book Irredeemably stupid. The only tilings in 
it to (nullify such judgment are frequent details 
of room rents and cost of meals, together with 
washerwomen’s bills. 
[Concluded from pttge 510, last number.] 
CHAPTER II. 
Days came and passed. CnLOE wrestled 
on with her perplexities. She net-worked 
her poor little brain all over with plans. 
She took as mauy thoughts as she did 
stitches. Once Ctn.oE decided to take 
hoarders; but in all the highways, hedges 
and by-lanes of that village, no boarders 
were to be found. Another time she was 
convinced that the sale of chickens would 
greatly increase their income, if she had any 
chickens to sell. In that dismal house, with 
a monomaniac above filling the very atmos¬ 
phere with the breath of another world, she 
must have grown morbid, had not such cares 
stirred up her little bosom. 
Captain Ryder often brought healthy 
sunshine there. Sometimes he offered a 
basket of fruit, assuring Chi.oe lie was 
ashamed to come again without an excuse 
for coming. Again, lie had a new book, 
which he would tempt the recluse to come 
and hear while he read it uloud in Chloe’s 
sewing - room. Or he wanted a medical 
opinion of Dr. Ward, who must walk 
abroad with him to hear the case more fully 
stated. 
But Dr. Ward could never be tempted 
further than the bounds of his own premises. 
And he would sometimes then be startled to 
recollection in the midst of a lively chat, and 
leaving his friend abruptly, would fly through 
the ragged shrubbery, leaving a piece of Ids 
dressing-gown here and there, as if his ears 
were filled with the reproaches of a dying 
world. Charm as he would, Captain Ryder 
could never quite exorcise the demon that 
possessed his friend. 
One autumn day Joe Arnold came and 
tapped on the sill by which Chloe sat sew¬ 
ing, and cried, 
“Has anything ‘turned up’ yet, little 
wolf-fighter?” 
“ Nothing, except r> very insolent fellow," 
replied Chloe, with reproachful severity. 
Rhetoric, (New York: Harper & Brothers.)— 
A live, practical work on Rhetoric, which could 
be made use of as a text-book, and also be 
perused to ad vantage by the general reader, has 
long been needed. Itev.Dr. Haven, well known 
as President of the University of Michigan, has 
here admirably supplied the ncecf. Ho says the 
work grew; and we nan well believe the state¬ 
ment true- It is a healthy, natural, not a forced 
growth. There is nothing superfluous in it. 
The student will find in it no lengthy disserta¬ 
tions or quotations, but only such treatises upon 
the different portions of the subject as will 
most benefit. .Some minor faults the book has, 
which we would point, out did space permit; yet 
they are such as will readily admit of correction, 
and will doubtless not appear to a second edition. 
fHE BIRD OF PARADISE 
In a late number of Harper’s Magazine this 
bird is described as nearly as large as a crow, 
and of a rich coffee-brown color. The head 
and neck are of a pure straw-yellow above, 
and rich metallic-green beneath. The long 
plumy tufts of golden-orange feathers spring 
from the sides beneath each wing, and when 
the bird is in repose it is partly concealed by 
them. At the time of its excitement, how¬ 
ever, the wings are raised vertically over the 
back, the head is bent down and stretched 
out, and the long plumes are raised up and 
expanded till they form two magnificent 
golden fans, striped with deep red at the 
base, and fading off into the pale brown 
tint of the finely divided and softly waving 
points. The whole bird is then overshad¬ 
owed by them, the crouching body, yellow 
head and emerald-green throat forming but 
the foundation and setting to the golden 
glory which waves above. When seen in 
this at I i Uu I :* the Bird of Paradise really de¬ 
serves its name, and must be ranked as one 
of the most beautiful and most wonderful of 
living things. 
A dozen or twenty of the full pluniaged 
male birds frequently assemble on some wide- 
spreading tree, and hold what the natives 
Fantou* London .Merchant*. (New York: 
Harper & Brothers.)—“A Book lor Boys" is tbo 
sub-title of this handsome lU-mo. of two hun¬ 
dred and nine-five pages; and for boys it Is em¬ 
phatically a good book—Instructive, interesting, 
Inciting. There arc thirteen biographies, begin¬ 
ning with Sir Richard Whittington, of the 
Fourteenth Century, and ending with benevo¬ 
lent George Peabody, of to-day, wIiobo por¬ 
trait forms a worthy frontispiece to the volume. 
USE OF WORDS 
Professor Max Muller quotes the state¬ 
ment of a clergyman, that some of the la¬ 
borers in his parish had not three hundred 
words in their vocabulary. A well educated 
person seldom uses more than about three 
or four thousand words in actual conversa¬ 
tion; accurate thinkers, and close reasoners, 
who select with great nicety the words that 
exactly fit their meaning, employ a much 
larger stock; and eloquent speakers may 
rise to a command of ten thousand. Shak- 
speaue, who displayed a greater variety of 
Wedlock i Or , The Right Relation* of the 
Sexe*. (Now York: S. It. Wells.)—There Is noth¬ 
ing new in this tasty volume, but it contains 
much that is true, — true, not judging from the 
phrenological standpoint or the writer, Mr. S. It. 
Wki.ls, but from a comm on-sen so point of view 
alone. It Is alike interesting, and may be ren¬ 
dered alike profitable, to both sexes. We oan 
endorse much of Its contents. 
