30 
BY THE WAYSIDE 
BY TH E WA YSIDE 
Published on the tenth of each month except July 
and August. 
The official organs of the Wisconsin and Illinois 
Audubon Societies. 
Twenty-five cents per year. Single Copies 3 cts. 
All communications should be sent to Miss Ruth 
Marshall, Appleton, Wis. 
NATURE STUDY IN SCHOOLS. 
V. Earthworms. 
In the earthworm we have a conspicuous il¬ 
lustration of the fact that lowly, despised, and 
seemingly insignificant animals are some¬ 
times among the most useful to man. Charles 
Darwin says in the conclusion of his book, “The 
Formation of Vegetable Mould,” which after 
twenty years is still the classic on earth¬ 
worms,” The plow is one of the most ancient 
and most valuable of man’s inventions; but 
long before he existed the land was in fact reg¬ 
ularly plowed, and still continues to be plow¬ 
ed, by earthworms. It may be doubted wheth¬ 
er there are many other animals which have 
played so important a part in the history of 
the world as have these lowly-organized crea¬ 
tures.” This is the conclusion of the great 
scientist after patient observations extending 
over a period of twenty years, and from data 
collected from various parts of the world. 
Hence it would seem worth our while to know 
something about this humble friend of man. 
One use for the earthworm every school boy 
has demonstrated practically, the cruel one 
which' has given it its other names, the angle- 
worm or the fish-worm. That it has any other 
use in the world, few people know. Perhaps 
there is no common animal of which most peo¬ 
ple are so ignorant. Its very name “worm,” 
is often incorrectly used. It is time that at 
least this much zoology be known, that every¬ 
thing that is long and crawls is not necessarily 
a worm, and beneath our notice. It is time, 
too, that certain popular fancies be cleared 
away, such as the fable that worms rain down. 
A little observation will point to a reason why 
they are often found on the walks after a 
rain. 
Earthworms tunnel into the earth some dis¬ 
tance to make their burrows. In doing this 
they swallow large amounts of dirt, from 
which they extract th'e organic matter, their 
food. Tfieir castings are thrown out at the 
mouths of the burrows in little mounds which 
may easily be found. They will also drag in 
pieces of dead leaves for food or to line their 
holes. All this work helps to make better soil. 
The tunnels loosen the earth so that water 
and air may more easily enter; organic mat¬ 
ter from the surface is carried down, and the 
soils are mixed, and the castings enrich the 
surface layer. Darwin calculated that an aver¬ 
age layer one-fifth of an inch thick, or ten tons 
per acre, was added each year to the surface. 
In making their burrows they may injure 
young roots, so that they are not wanted in 
flower pots. 
It is very easy to keep earthworms in the 
school-room, and very profitable work can be 
done with’ them. In the fall ask the pupils to 
bring in a number, the largest they can find. 
Put the collection in a box of good earth or in 
flower pots, and give them moisture. Let the 
children examine them in the nature study 
period. This can be done without breaking up 
th'e school or making much work for the teach¬ 
er. The children will be greatly interested; 
they will show little if any repugnance for 
them. Let them find out how many rings or 
segments the body has, how the upper and 
lower sides differ, and the two ends. Do they 
notice the upper lip by which it feeds; can 
they tell you how it moves; and where its lit¬ 
tle bristles are—and many other interesting 
facts? The teacher should know all of these 
things, and more, and be able to tell the pu¬ 
pils something of the life history, and most 
important of all, show them h'ow to find out 
for themselves the economic value. 
A simple piece of apparatus will enable the 
teacher to demonstrate to the pupils the effect 
of the earthworm upon the soil. Have a tin¬ 
smith make a frame of zinc which will support 
two pieces of window glass vertically and hold 
them about an inch apart, with' an opening at 
the top. In the case thus formed carefully 
pack some fine soil from the vacinity—clay and 
sand and vegetable mould in successive lay¬ 
ers. Put a half dozen worms on the surface, 
and they will begin operations at once. The 
frame may now be placed in a support. The 
sides of tlie glass must be covered with black 
cloth, as earthworms do not like the light. 
Keep the soil moist. Let the pupils lift up the 
cloth occasionally, and in the course of a few 
weeks they will see that th'e dirt has been tun¬ 
neled through and mixed. Some of the bur¬ 
rows will be right up against the glass. This 
model is from Dr. C. F. Hodge, of Clark Univer¬ 
sity. R. M. 
