CHILDREN'S LEAFLETS.
DESIGNED TO OPEN THE EYES OF THE YOUNG.
Most of these leaflets were published as companions to the Teachers'
Leaflets and Lessons,--the teachers' lessons written in one vein and the
children's in another. Even though the subject-matter may be largely
duplicated in the two, it seems worth while to keep these separate as
showing a simple method of presentation and as suggesting a means of
procedure to those who would reach small children.
THE CHILD'S REALM.
BY L. H. BAILEY.
A little child sat on the sloping strand
Gazing at the flow and the free,
Thrusting its feet in the golden sand,
Playing with the waves and the sea.
I snatch'd a weed that toss'd on the flood
And parted its tangled skeins;
I trac'd the course of the fertile blood
That lay in its meshèd veins;
I told how the stars are garner'd in space,
How the moon on its course is roll'd,
How the earth is hung in its ceaseless place
As it whirls in its orbit old:--
The little child paus'd with its busy hands
And gaz'd for a moment at me,
Then dropp'd again to its golden sands
And play'd with the waves and the sea.
LEAFLET LI.
A SNOW STORM.[68]
BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
(Compare Leaflet VII.)
A chill no coat however stout,
Of homespun stuff could quite shut out,
* * * * *
The coming of the snow storm told.
--WHITTIER.
[68] Junior Naturalist Monthly, December, 1903.
[Illustration]
"Surely, it is going to snow," says Grandfather, as he puts an armful of
wood into the old box beside the fire; and a happy feeling comes over
you, and you like Grandfather a little better because he has promised
you a snow storm. "What a wise old Grandfather he is!" you think. He
always seems to know what is going to happen out-of-doors and you wonder
how he learned it all. Perhaps I can tell you why Grandfather is so
wise. When he was a boy he lived on a farm and was in the outdoor world
summer and winter. There he learned to know Nature day by day. This is
why he can consult her now as to wind and weather, and why he nearly
always understands what she tells him. He is a good observer.
If you hope ever to be as weather-wise as Grandfather, you must begin
right away to see and to think. The next time you hear him say, "It is
going to snow," put on your fur cap and mittens and go out-of-doors. Is
the air clear, crisp, and cold--the kind you like to be out in? Or is it
a keen cold that makes you long for the fire-place? Can you see the sun?
If so, how does it look? In what direction is the wind? How cold does
the thermometer tell you it is?
All the time that you are learning these things the storm will be
coming nearer. Then on your dark coat sleeve something soft and white
and glistening falls--a snowflake. You touch the bright thing and it
disappears. Where did it come from and whither did it go? Others follow
faster and faster, jostling each other as they whirl through the air.
Look at them closely. Are the crystals large and flowery or small and
clear? Put your head back and let them come down on your face. Is their
touch soft or do they hurt as they fall?
Perhaps by this time you are very cold and think that supper must be
nearly ready. You go into the house, and you find the gray kitten
snoozing comfortably on the hearthrug. You snuggle down beside her "to
warm your frozen bones a bit," and still the storm and outdoor world are
near; for is it not splendid music that the wind is making as it roars
down the old chimney or sways the tall pine trees?
SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY.
Answer as many of the following questions as you can from your own
observations:
1. How did the sky look before it began to snow? During the storm? After
the storm? It is always a good thing to look up at the sky.
2. In what direction did the old weather-cock tell you the wind was
blowing as the storm came on? Did the wind change during the storm? If
so, did the snow change in any way?
3. Look at snow crystals through a tripod lens if you have one. How many
points do they have?
4. After supper go to the window, raise the shade, and look out on the
stormy night. Tell Uncle John all that you see.
5. On your way to school the next day after a snow storm, have the
following in mind to write to us about:
(a) The tracks in the snow. How many do you find? Did Rover make them?
the gray kitten? a snow bird? an old crow? a rabbit? a squirrel?
(b) The way the trees and small plants receive the snow. Some hold it,
others cast it off: why?
(c) Notice the snow drifts. Where are they highest? Why does the snow
pile up in some places and not in others? Is the drift deepest close to
buildings or a little way from them? Are the drifts deepest close to the
trees, or is there a space between the tree and the drift?
LEAFLET LII.
A PLANT AT SCHOOL.[69]
BY L. H. BAILEY.
[69] Junior Naturalist Monthly, February, 1903.
[Illustration]
I dropped a seed into the earth. It grew, and the plant was mine.
It was a wonderful thing, this plant of mine. I did not know its name,
and the plant did not bloom. All I know is that I planted something
apparently as lifeless as a grain of sand and that there came forth a
green and living thing unlike the seed, unlike the soil in which it
stood, unlike the air into which it grew. No one could tell me why it
grew, nor how. It had secrets all its own, secrets that baffle the
wisest men; yet this plant was my friend. It faded when I withheld the
light, it wilted when I neglected to give it water, it flourished when I
supplied its simple needs. One week I went away on a vacation, and when
I returned the plant was dead; and I missed it.
Although my little plant had died so soon, it had taught me a lesson;
and the lesson was that it is worth while to have a plant. I wish that
every Junior Naturalist would have a plant. It matters little what the
plant is. Just drop the seed, keep the earth warm and moist, watch the
plant "come up," see it grow. Measure its height at a given time every
day. Keep a record of how many times you water it. Make a note of every
new leaf that appears. See whether it leans towards the light. If it
dies, tell why. Four weeks from the time when you plant the seed, send
Uncle John your notes.
A sheet of foolscap paper contains about twenty-eight lines, one line
for the notes of each day, and space enough at the top to write your
name, date of sowing, kind of seed, and nature of the soil. Open the
sheet and on each line at the left side write all the dates for four
weeks ahead; then fill in these lines across the two pages day by day as
the plant grows. For the first few days there will not be much to write,
but you can say whether you watered the earth or not, and where you
kept the pot or box. It will be good practice to get into the habit of
taking notes. I suppose that the record of the first few days will run
something as follows:
MYRON JOHNSON, name of school, age ----. ----, Teacher.
_Feb. 2._ Monday. Planted six cabbage seeds in loose soil from the
chip yard. I put the earth in a small old tin cup, and pressed it
down firmly. I made it just nicely moist, not wet. I planted the
seeds about equal distances apart and about one-fourth inch deep,
and pressed the earth over them.
[Illustration: _Fig. 297. An egg-shell farm. The plants, from left to
right, are: cabbage, field corn, pop-corn, wheat, buckwheat._]
_Feb. 2._ Did not water to-day, for the soil seemed to be moist enough.
_Feb. 3._ Watered at 10:30 A. M. Teacher told me to be careful not to
make the soil too wet.
_Feb. 4._ Watered at noon.
_Feb. 5._ Put the cup nearer the stove so that the seeds would come up
more quickly.
_Feb. 6._ The earth is cracking in two or three places. Watered at noon.
_Feb. 7._ Went to the schoolhouse and found some of the plants coming
up.
_Feb. 9._ Four of the plants are up. (Here tell how they look, or make a
few marks to show.)
When your month's record is all complete, send the sheet, or a copy of
it, to Uncle John, and this will be your club dues. See how many things
you can find out in these four weeks.
[Illustration: _Fig. 298. A window plant that is easy to grow. It is a
common garden beet. The end of the beet was cut off so that it could be
got into the tin can. A very red beet will produce handsome red-ribbed
leaves. In all cases, be sure that the crown or top of the plant has not
been cut off too close, or the leaves may not start readily. The beet
starts into growth quickly and the growing plant will stand much abuse.
It makes a very comely plant for the school-room window. Try carrot,
turnip, and parsnip in the same way._]
Before the four weeks are past write to Uncle John and he will tell you
what next to do. By that time your plants will need transplanting, and
he will tell you how to do it. Perhaps you can set some of the plants
outdoors later on and see them grow all summer; whether you can or not
will depend on the kinds of plants that you grow. If you want to grow
asters or cabbages next summer, you can start some of them in February
and March.
Quick-germinating seeds, fit for starting in the schoolroom, are wheat,
oats, buckwheat, corn, bean, pumpkin and squash, radish, cabbage,
turnip. Perhaps some of these require a warmer place than others in
which to germinate. If you find out which they are, let Uncle John know.
You can grow the plants in egg-shells, wooden boxes (as cigar boxes),
tin cans, flower pots. If you use tin cans it is well to punch two or
three holes in the bottom so that the extra water will drain out. Set
the can or box in a saucer, plate, or dripping-pan so that the water
will not soil the desk or table. It is best not to put it in a sunny
window until after the plants are up, for the soil is likely to "bake"
or to become hard on top; or if you do put it in such a place, throw a
newspaper over it to prevent the earth from drying out.
SUGGESTIONS FOR PLANT STUDY.[70]
[70] Alice G. McCloskey, Junior Naturalist Monthly, January, 1904.
Last year hundreds of children sent us records of their plants. This
kind of work is most satisfactory to Uncle John. Following is a record
which we received in March, from a girl in the fourth grade:
Feb. 16--Monday. I planted seven cabbage seeds in an eggshell. I did not
water it.
Feb. 17--Did not see anything.
Feb. 18--Saw a little brown thing.
Feb. 19--Saw a little seed lying on top.
Feb. 20--Saw little sprout.
Feb. 21--Holiday.
Feb. 22--Holiday.
Feb. 23--Holiday.
Feb. 24--Saw two little sprouts.
Feb. 25--The egg-shell was full of sprouts.
Feb. 26--The plant was coming up and the earth was very wet, so I did
not water it.
Feb. 27--Saw six sprouts.
Feb. 28--Holiday.
March 1--Holiday.
March 2--Turned the plant around, so it would look toward the light.
March 2--That afternoon I planted the cabbage in a tin can with tissue
paper around it, because the cabbage outgrew the eggshell some time ago.
March 3--I put the plant out of the window.
March 4--I did not look at it.
March 5--One of the sprouts began to droop.
March 6--I dug the dirt up around it. Then it was put in the air out of
the window.
March 7--Holiday.
March 8--Holiday.
March 9--I put it out of the window.
March 10--It was put out of the window. It was brought in at the close
of school.
March 11--Dug the dirt out from the plant and patted it down.
March 12--Watered.
March 13--Put out of the window.
March 14--Holiday.
March 15--Holiday.
March 16--Watered and put out of the window. HELEN.
Was not this a good record for a little girl to make? I wish that she
had told something about the soil in which she planted the seeds. This
is always important. In winter you may have some difficulty in getting
soil, but in the village a florist will let you have some, and in the
country you may be able to get it in the cellar of a grocery store or
from your own cellar. Perhaps you can find some in the potato bin. When
there is a "thaw," get some soil, even if it is very wet; you can dry it
near the stove. Perhaps your schoolhouse will be too cold over Sunday in
mid-winter to allow you to grow plants. If so, plant the seeds at home.
When you have planted your seeds, unless you take them up every day, you
cannot see how the little plants are behaving down under the soil. I
want to tell you how you can know some things that the plants are doing
without disturbing them.
[Illustration: _Fig. 299. Radish seeds germinating between
blotting-paper and the side of a tumbler._]
Choose an ordinary glass (Fig. 299), roll up a piece of blotting paper
so that it is a trifle smaller than the glass, and place it inside.
Between the blotting paper and the glass, put a few radish seeds or any
kind of seed such as you planted in the soil. Keep the blotting paper
moist and watch what happens. In four or five days the plants should be
"up." Here are some things to think about as you watch them:
1. Note any change in the seeds when they have been moist for a few
hours.
2. What happens to the outer coat of the seed?
3. In what direction does the little root grow? The stem?
4. Notice the woolly growth on the root? Does this growth extend to the
tip of the root?
5. When the little plant has begun to grow, turn it around so that the
root is horizontal. Does it remain in that position?
6. How soon do the leaves appear?
It may interest some of the Junior Naturalists to see the effect of much
water on seeds. Suppose you experiment a little along this line. Choose
three glasses. In one put seeds into water, in another put them into
very wet or muddy soil, and in the third plant the seeds in moist soil,
such as seeds are ordinarily planted in. Tell us the results of the
three experiments.
A THIRD-GRADE RECORD.
Following is a facsimile reproduction of a spontaneous and unpruned
record made by a child in the third grade. The child grew beans in a
tumbler against blotting paper, as shown in Fig. 299. I hope that this
will illustrate to both teacher and children the value of simple
note-taking.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
[Illustration: _Fig. 300. The bean plants that were grown by the
third-grade child._]
LEAFLET LIII.
AN APPLE TWIG AND AN APPLE.[71]
BY L. H. BAILEY.
(Compare Leaflet XXXI.)
[71] Junior Naturalist Monthly, January, 1903.
[Illustration]
Yesterday I went over into the old apple orchard. It was a clear
November day. The trees were bare. The wind had carried the leaves into
heaps in the hollows and along the fences. Here and there a cold-blue
wild aster still bloomed. A chipmunk chittered into a stone pile.
I noticed many frost-bitten apples still clinging to the limbs. There
were decayed ones on the ground. There were several small piles of fruit
that the owner had neglected, lying under the trees, and they were now
worthless. I thought that there had been much loss of fruit, and I
wondered why. If the fruit-grower had not made a profit from the trees,
perhaps the reason was partly his own fault. Not all the apples still
clinging to the tree were frost-bitten and decayed. I saw many very
small apples, no larger than the end of my finger, standing stiff on
their stems. Plainly these were apples that had died when they were
young. I wondered why.
[Illustration: _Fig 301. This is the branch that tried and failed._]
I took a branch home and photographed it. You have the engraving in Fig.
301. Note that there are three dead young apples at the tip of one
branch. Each apple came from a single flower. These flowers grew in a
cluster. There were three other flowers in this cluster, for I could see
the scars where they fell off.
But why did these three fruits die? The whole branch on which they grew
looked to be only half alive. I believe that it did not have vigor
enough to cause the fruit to grow and ripen. If this were not the cause,
then some insect or disease killed the young apples, for apples, as well
as people, may have disease.
[Illustration: _Fig. 302. These are the flowers that make the apples.
How many clusters are there?_]
Beneath the three dead apples, is still another dead one. Notice how
shrivelled and dried it is, and how the snows and rains have beaten away
the little leaves from its tip. The three uppermost apples grew in 1902;
but this apple grew in some previous year. If I could show you the
branch itself, I could make you see in just what year this little apple
was borne, and just what this branch has tried to do every year since.
This branch has tried its best to bear apples, but the fruit-grower has
not given it food enough, or has not kept the enemies and diseases away.
The lesson that I got from my walk was this: if the apples were not good
and abundant it was not the fault of the trees, for they had done their
part.
In the cellar at home we have apples. I like to go into the cellar at
night with a lantern and pick apples from this box and that--plump and
big and round--and eat them where I stand. They are crisp and cool, and
the flesh snaps when I bite it and the juice is as fresh as the water
from a spring. There are many kinds of them, each kind known by its own
name, and some are red and some are green, some are round and some are
long, some are good and some are poor.
[Illustration: _Fig. 303. The apples are usually borne one in a place,
although the flowers are in clusters. Why?_]
Over and over, these apples in the cellar have been sorted, until only
the good ones are supposed to remain. Yet now and then I find a decayed
heart or a hollow place. The last one I picked up was fair and handsome
on the outside, but a black place and a little "sawdust" in the blossom
end made me suspicious of it. I cut it open. Here is what I found (Fig.
306). Someone else had found the apple before I had. Last summer a
little moth had laid an egg on the growing apple, a worm had come from
the egg and had eaten and eaten into the apple, burrowing through the
core, until at last it was full grown, as shown in the picture. Now it
is preparing to escape. It has eaten a hole through the side of the
apple, but has plugged up the hole until it is fully ready to leave.
When it leaves it will crawl into a crack or crevice somewhere, and next
spring change into a pupa and finally come forth a small, dun-gray moth.
This moth will lay the eggs and then die; and thus will be completed the
eventful life of the codlin-moth, from egg to worm and pupa and moth.
But in doing all this the insect has spoiled the apple. The insect acts
as if the apple belonged to him; but I think the apple belongs to me. I
wonder which is correct?
[Illustration: _Fig. 304. The Baldwin apple. How many kinds of apples do
you know?_]
[Illustration: _Fig. 305. The same Baldwin apple cut in two._]
Some of these apples are sound and solid on the inside, but they have
hard blackish spots on the outside (Fig. 307). This is a disease--the
apple-scab. This scab is caused by minute plants and these plants also
claim the apple as their own. There are ways by means of which the
apple-grower is able to destroy the codlin-moth and the apple-scab; and
thereby he secures fair and sound apples.
Insects and diseases and men are all fighting to own the apple.
TEN THINGS TO LEARN FROM AN APPLE.
When you write your dues to Uncle John on the apple, answer as many of
the following questions as you can. You can get the answers from an
apple itself. He does not want you to ask anyone for the answers:
1. How much of the apple is occupied by the core?
2. How many parts or compartments are there in the core?
3. How many seeds are there in each part?
4. Which way do the seeds point?
5. Are the seeds attached or joined to any part of the core? Explain.
6. What do you see in the blossom end of the apple?
7. What do you see in the opposite end?
[Illustration: _Fig. 306. This is an apple in which a worm made its
home._]
8. Is there any connection between the blossom end and the core?
9. Find a wormy apple and see if you can make out where the worm left
the apple. Perhaps you can make a drawing. To do this, cut the apple in
two. Press the cut surface on a piece of paper. When the apple is
removed you can trace out the marks.
[Illustration: _Fig. 307. These are the apples on which other plants are
living.--The apple-scab._]
10. When you hold an apple in your hand, see which way it looks to be
bigger--lengthwise or crosswise. Then cut it in two lengthwise, measure
it each way, and see which diameter is the greater.
[Illustration: _Fig. 308. Here is where city boys and girls buy their
apples._]
LEAFLET LIV.
TWIGS IN LATE WINTER.[72]
BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
[72] Junior Naturalist Monthly, February, 1904.
[Illustration]
Along a country road, through a drifted field, over a rail fence, and
into the woods I went, gathering twigs here and there as I passed. A
February thaw had come and these first messengers of spring, reaching
out from shrub and tree, were beginning to show signs of life. Many
young people do not believe that spring is near until they hear a robin
or a bluebird. The bare little twigs tell us first. Look at them as you
go on your way to school. Are they the same color in February that they
were in the short December days?
When I reached home with my bundle of twigs, it was "fun" to sit by the
window and study the strange little things. They were so different one
from another, and so interesting in every way, that I decided to ask our
boys and girls to gather some winter twigs and tell us about them.
Select your twigs from the butternut, willow, hickory, horsechestnut,
apple, plum, plane-tree, maple, or any other tree that you come across.
Here are some suggestions that will help you in your study:
1. How many colors do you find in one twig? Count the tints and shades.
I found eight colors on a small maple branch (Fig. 309).
[Illustration: _Fig. 309. Red or swamp maple._]
2. Notice the differences in several twigs as they lie on the table.
What makes them look so different: size, shape, color, arrangement of
buds, the size or shape of the buds?
3. On how many twigs are the buds opposite each other? Note the opposite
buds on the horsechestnut (Fig. 310). On how many are they alternate?
Are the buds opposite on the butternut (Fig. 311)?
4. Which twigs bear the buds singly?
5. When you find two or more buds growing together on a stem, is there
any difference in the size of the buds?
6. On how many of the twigs can you see a scar left by the leaf when it
dropped off (Fig. 310 and Fig. 311 _a, a_)? Compare the leaf scars on
different twigs. Notice the strange scar on the butternut (Fig. 311). It
looks like the face of an old sheep.
[Illustration: _Fig. 310. Horsechestnut._]
[Illustration: _Fig. 311. Butternut._]
7. Do you see any cocoons on your twig?
8. You all know the rings on an apple twig that tell how much it grew
each year. Do you find rings on other twigs? Do you see them on any of
these pictures?
9. What do you suppose makes these rings? Do you think there was once a
large terminal bud where these rings are?
LEAFLET LV.
PRUNING.[73]
BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
(Compare Leaflet XLVI.)
[73] Extended from Junior Naturalist Monthly, February, 1901.
[Illustration]
First snow, then sleet, and then a down-pour of rain--it stormed all
day. At night-fall it grew colder. The wind blew fiercely. The twigs and
branches fell on the white crust which covered the earth. Nature was
pruning the trees.
Have you ever seen your father go into the orchard and prune his trees?
Why did he do it? Compare the work done by nature and that which your
father does. Which seems to be the more careful pruner?
Let us experiment a little. It will please Uncle John. He always wants
his boys and girls to find out things for themselves. Select a branch of
lilac or some other shrub. Mark it so that you will always know it.
Count the buds on the branch. Watch them through the spring and the
summer. Note the number that become branches. You will then know that
nature prunes the trees.
If you think a minute, you will see that pruning is necessary in the
plant world. Suppose a branch has thirty buds, and that every bud should
produce thirty branches, each of which in turn should produce thirty
more,--do you think there would be any room left in the world for boys
and girls? Would a tree be able to hold so many branches?
You certainly have noticed decayed holes in trees. Did you ever wonder
why they were there? I suppose that most persons never wonder about it
at all; or if they do give it any passing thought, they say it is only
"natural" for trees to have rotten spots. But these rotten spots mean
that once the tree was injured. Perhaps the injury was the work of a
careless or thoughtless man who pruned the tree. Very few persons seem
really to know how to remove the limbs of a tree so that the wound will
heal readily.
As you go and come, observe how the trees have been pruned. Do you see
long "stubs" left, where limbs have been cut? Yes; and that is the wrong
way to cut them. They should be cut close to the main branch or trunk,
for then the wounds will heal over better (Fig. 312). If we abused our
cows and horses, as we sometimes abuse our shade trees, what would
become of the animals?
[Illustration: _Fig. 312. The wrong way and the right way to remove a
limb._]
Did you ever see trees that were mutilated to allow of the stringing of
telephone and telegraph wires?
Who owns the shade trees along a street or public highway?
LEAFLET LVI.
THE HEPATICA.[74]
BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
(Compare Leaflet XL.)
[74] Junior Naturalist Monthly, March, 1903.
[Illustration]
Something new and pleasant happened in my life this year. In February,
while the wood was snow-covered and the roadsides piled high with
drifts, I saw hepaticas in bloom.
Oh, no! I did not find them out of doors. I had all the fun of watching
them from my warm chimney-corner. Then when winds blew fiercely I often
went to the window where they grew and buried my head in the sweet
blossoms. What do you suppose they told me? If some winter day you feel
their soft touch on your face, and smell their woodsy fragrance, you
will hear the message.
Perhaps you want to know how the hepaticas found their way into my
window-box. Last fall as I walked through a leafy wood I gathered a few
plants, roots and all, that I had known and loved in spring and summer
days. Among them were hepaticas. These I laid away in the cellar until
the first of February. Then I planted them in a corner of the window-box
that I had left for them.
Since the little woods plants have come to live with me I have learned
to know them well. Perhaps the most important lesson they have taught me
is this: The blossoms may be the least interesting part of a plant. Will
you find out what hepaticas have to tell as the seasons pass?
Even before you hear the first robin, go into the woods, find one of the
hepaticas, and mark it for your own. You will know it by the old brown
leaves. Then watch it day by day. The following questions will help you
to learn its life story:
1. Where do hepaticas grow, in sunny or shady places? During which
seasons do they get the most sunlight?
2. Watch the first sign of life in the plant. Do the new leaves or the
flowers come first?
3. Look at the hepatica blossom a long time. How many different parts
can you see in it? Whether you know the names of these parts now does
not matter. I want you to see them.
4. Notice the three small, green, leaf-like parts that are around the
flower bud. As the flower opens see whether they are a part of it, or
whether they are a little way from it on the stem.
5. Observe the stem closely. Is it short or long? Hairy or smooth?
6. As the new leaves appear find out whether they are fuzzy on the
inside as well as on the outside. Notice how they are rolled up and
watch them unroll.
7. In how many different colors do you find hepaticas?
8. Do some smell sweeter than others? If so, does color seem to have
anything to do with it?
9. Look at a hepatica plant at night or very late in the afternoon. Also
watch it early in the morning and in cloudy weather. Then look at it in
bright sunshine. Do you see any change in the flowers? I think you will
discover something of much interest.
10. Seed-time among hepaticas is very interesting. Notice what becomes
of the three small, leaf-like parts that were underneath the flower. How
many seeds are there?
11. How long do you think the leaves of hepatica remain on the plant? Do
you suppose they remain green all winter?
12. What becomes of the hepatica plant after it blossoms? Did you ever
see one in summer? Describe.
LEAFLET LVII.
JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT.[75]
BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
(Compare Leaflet XLI.)
[75] Junior Naturalist Monthly, April, 1903.
[Illustration]
They call him Jack-in-the-Pulpit, he stands up so stiff and so queer
On the edge of the swamp, and waits for the flower-folk to come and
hear
The text and the sermon, and all the grave things that he has to say;
But the blossoms they laugh and they dance, they are wilder than ever
to-day;
And as nobody stops to listen, so never a word has he said;
But there in his pulpit he stands, and holds his umbrella over his
head,
And we have not a doubt in our minds, Jack, you are wisely listening,
To the organ-chant of the winds, Jack, and the tunes that the sweet
birds sing!
LUCY LARCOM.
"It is Indian turnip," said I.
"No," said Grandmother, "it's memory root. If you taste it once you will
never forget it." And what Grandmother said to me so long ago, I say to
every boy and girl, "If you taste it once you will never forget it."
But of all the names for this strange little wood plant, I like
Jack-in-the-pulpit best. Though never a word has it said in our lifelong
acquaintance, it has been a helpful little "country preacher" to me. As
we go into the woods this year, let us make up our minds that we will
know more than we ever have known before of its interesting life.
Where do you find the Jack-in-the-pulpit? In what kind of soil does it
grow? How does it first come up?
What is the shape of the root? One is enough for the whole class to
study and it should be planted again. We do not want the
Jack-in-the-pulpit to disappear from our woods.
Does the little hood fold over at first?
The hood or "umbrella" is not the flower. You will find the flowers on
the little central stalk that you call "Jack." See whether the blossoms
are alike. Look at the blossoms on several plants. Place a stick by the
side of one of these plants so that you will know it later in the year
when the Jack-in-the-pulpit has disappeared.
Notice whether there are insects in the lower part of the flower stalk.
If so, can they get out?
When the blossom has gone, look for the seeds. What color are they in
June? In August?
Have you any house plant that you think is related to
Jack-in-the-pulpit?
[Illustration: _Fig. 313. Tubers of Jack-in-the-pulpit, or Indian
turnip._]
LEAFLET LVIII.
THE DANDELION.[76]
BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY and L. H. BAILEY.
[76] Supplement to Junior Naturalist Monthly, May, 1904.
[Illustration]
The first warmth of spring brought the dandelions out of the banks and
knolls. They were the first proofs that winter was really going, and we
began to listen for the blackbirds and swallows. We loved the bright
flowers, for they were so many reflections of the warming sun. They soon
became more familiar, and invaded the yards. Then they overran the
lawns, and we began to despise them. We hated them because we had made
up our minds not to have them, not because they were unlovable. In spite
of every effort, we could not get rid of them. Then if we must have
them, we decided to love them. Where once were weeds are now golden
coins scattered in the sun, and bees revelling in color; and we are
happy! L. H. BAILEY.
SUGGESTIONS FOR STUDY.
I. Ask your teacher to let you go out of doors for ten minutes to look
at dandelions. In your note books write answers to the following
questions:
1. At what time of day are you looking for the dandelions? Is the
sun shining, or is the sky overcast? Make up your mind to notice
whether dandelions behave the same at all hours of the day and in
all kinds of weather.
2. How many dandelions can you count as you stand on the
school-ground? The little yellow heads can be seen a long distance.
3. Where do they prefer to grow,--on the hillsides, along the
roadsides, in the marshes, or in your garden?
II. Gather a basket full of blossoming dandelions, roots and all, take
them to school, and ask the teacher to let you have a dandelion lesson.
Here are some suggestions that will help you:
1. Each pupil should have a plant, root and all. Describe the
plant. Is it tall or short? How many leaves are there? How many
blossoms?
2. Hold the plant up so that you can see it well. How many
distinct colors do you find? How many tints and shades of these
colors?
3. Look carefully at the blossom. How many parts has it? How much
can you find out about the way in which the yellow head is made up?
III. Mark a dandelion plant in your garden. Watch it every day. Keep a
record of all that happens in its life. Later in the year send Uncle
John a little history or account of the plant you have watched.
[Illustration: _Fig. 314. Blow the dandelion balloon!_]
DANDELION.
Dear common flower, that grow'st beside the way,
Fringing the dusty road with harmless gold,
First pledge of blithesome May,
Which children pluck, and, full of pride uphold,
High-hearted buccaneers, o'erjoyed that they
An Eldorado in the grass have found,
Which not the earth's ample round
May match in wealth, thou art more dear to me
Than all the prouder summer-blooms may be.
--LOWELL.
LEAFLET LIX.
MAPLE TREES IN AUTUMN.[77]
BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
(Compare Leaflets XLVII and XLVIII.)
The hills are bright with maples yet,
But down the level land
The beech leaves rustle in the wind,
As dry and brown as sand.
The clouds in bars of rusty red
Along the hill-tops glow,
And in the still sharp air the frost
Is like a dream of snow.--ALICE CARY.
[77] Junior Naturalist Monthly, November, 1903.
[Illustration]
The hills are bright with maples about the time Jack Frost appears, and
many people say that he makes the leaves turn red and yellow. Wise folk
tell us, however, that Jack Frost is not the artist; that leaves change
to autumn tints when their work is completed.
Boys and girls may not know that leaves "work;" yet all through the long
summer days when you have been playing in the shade of some old maple,
the leaves over your head have been very busy. Uncle John says that each
leaf is a "starch factory," and this is true. Starch is necessary for
plant food and it is manufactured in the leaves. The green leaves and
stems are the machinery, which is run by sunlight. Look at a large
branch of maple and see how the leaves are arranged to catch every
sunbeam. The more light the green parts of the tree get, the more plant
food can be made and the sturdier and handsomer the tree.
But the story of the way in which the plant food is made is a long one
and not easy for young people to understand. This can come later when
you have become familiar with the many interesting things that you learn
by watching the tree and by studying with the microscope.
If I should to go into your school-room and should ask how many boys and
girls know a sugar maple, I suppose every hand would be raised. But if I
should ask: "When does the sugar maple blossom?" "What do the blossoms
look like?" "When do the winged seeds fall?" I wonder how many could
give me satisfactory answers to my questions!
Choose some fine old maple for study. The one that stands near the door
will be best, since you can see it every day. Write in a note book all
that you can find out about it as the weeks go by.
SUGGESTIONS FOR FALL STUDY.
1. Notice how the leaves turn to the sunlight.
2. Try to find two leaves exactly alike in color, form, size, length of
stem, etc. If you succeed send them to Uncle John.
3. How many different tints can you find in a single leaf?
4. As you look at two sugar maple trees, do they seem to be colored
alike?
5. Are all sugar maples that you know the same shape?
6. How are the leaves arranged on the branch?
7. Can you find any winged seeds near the tree? If so, plant one in a
box of earth and see whether it will grow.
8. If you find any plants growing beneath the maple tree, describe them
or tell what they are.
9. Do you know any other kinds of maples? How do you distinguish them?
[Illustration: _Child's drawing of a maple leaf. Fifth grade.
(Reduced.)_]
LEAFLET LX.
A CORN STALK.[78]
BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
(Compare Leaflets XLII and XLIII.)
[78] Junior Naturalist Monthly, May, 1903.
[Illustration]
"Tom," said I to a young friend who stood by the window tossing a
ten-cent piece into the air, "what plant is used for part of the design
on that coin?"
The boy did not answer right away. I do not believe he had ever looked
at it closely; yet this is one of the prettiest of our silver pieces.
After a few minutes he said, "It is corn, isn't it?"
Hearing a note of surprise in his voice, I told him something about
corn-raising in this country. We then decided that it is a good thing to
represent corn on one of the United States coins, since it is a source
of much of our wealth.
But aside from its value, Indian corn should interest us because it is a
wonderful plant. Boys and girls do not know much more about it than does
any old black crow. You have watched the farmer plant corn and you like
to eat it. Jim Crow has watched the farmer plant corn and he likes to
eat it, too. The time has come, however, when you can get ahead of him
if you care to; and to get ahead of crows on the corn question is worth
the while. Let me tell you how to do it.
1. Secure a kernel of corn, cut it in halves, and note the food inside
it. This food was stored in the seed by the parent plant. Uncle John
would say that it is the "lunch" that the mother puts up for her
children. What must happen before the food can be used by the little
plant?
2. Place some moist soil in a tumbler, and put a kernel of corn in it
near the side so that you can watch it grow. How soon does the root
appear? The leaves? How many leaves come up at one time?
3. Ask your father to give you a small piece of ground in the garden.
Plant a few kernels of corn so that you will have some plants of your
own to study this summer. Other people's plants are never so interesting
as our own.
4. As your corn plants push their way up into the light and air, watch
them every day. Notice how the new leaves are protected by the next
older ones.
5. Is the stem hollow or solid? In which way would it be stronger?
6. Notice the joints. Are they the same distance apart throughout the
length of the stem? Does the distance between the joints always remain
the same? Measure them some day; then in a week measure them again.
7. Where does the stalk break most easily?
8. Where does the leaf clasp the stalk?
9. Notice how strong the leaf is. In what direction do the ribs extend?
If these long narrow leaves were not strong what would happen to them as
they wave back and forth in the wind?
10. Have you ever noticed the ruffled edges of the leaves? As you bend
them you will see that the edges do not tear.
11. There are two kinds of blossoms on a corn plant. The ear bears one
kind, the tassel the other. If you were to cut all the tassels from the
plants in your garden, the kernels would not grow on the ears. Later on
you will learn why.
12. Watch the ear closely as it grows.
13. Follow a thread of silk to the place where it is attached. Notice
whether there is one silk for each kernel.
14. When the corn is in the milk stage it is preparing to store up food
for the young plants. How does it taste at this time?
15. Look closely at the base of the corn stalk and you will see roots
extending obliquely into the soil. These are the brace roots. Of what
use do you think they are to the corn stalk?
LEAFLET LXI.
IN THE CORN FIELDS.[79]
BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
(Compare Leaflets XLII and XLIII.)
[79] Junior Naturalist Monthly, October, 1903.
[Illustration]
"Caw caw!" said Jim Crow as he flew over our heads. "Was he jeering at
us?" we wondered, the children and I. Perhaps he was inquisitive to know
what business we had in the open country and in the fields of corn.
Perhaps he was not concerned with us at all. Very likely crows are less
concerned with us than we think they are.
Jim Crow flew on out of sight, but we stayed among the ripening corn.
The ears were filling out. The ends of the silk were turning brown. We
saw many things that we had planned to look for in vacation: the tall
stem, the brace roots, the long strong leaves and the way the ribs
extend in them, the ruffled edges of the leaves, the two kinds of
blossoms, and where each silken thread is attached. The whole story was
before us.
[Illustration: _Fig. 315. Over the fields in corn-harvest time._]
But this is the harvest time and we are ready to learn a new lesson from
the corn fields. As we watch them now let us answer the following
questions:
1. How is the corn cut?
2. How many ears do you find on a stalk?
3. Are the ears on the same side of the stalk or on opposite sides?
4. Take into the school room as many kinds of corn as you can find and
describe each as follows:
a--The shape and color of the kernel.
b--Number of rows of kernels.
c--The number of kernels in each row.
5. Perhaps the girls will pop some corn and bring it to the
Junior Naturalist Club meeting. Let them try to pop field corn.
Cut kernels in two of field corn and pop-corn, and report whether
they differ. Why does pop-corn pop?
6. Make a list of the foods for which corn is used.
7. Why are pumpkins planted among corn?
8. Why not make for your school room some decorations from
ears of corn?
[Illustration]
LEAFLET LXII.
THE ALFALFA PLANT.[80]
BY L. H. BAILEY and JOHN W. SPENCER.
(Compare Leaflet XXXIV.)
[80] Junior Naturalist Monthly, October, 1904.
[Illustration]
All the things that the farmer sells are produced by plants and animals.
The animals live on the plants. It is important that we know what some
of these plants are.
Some plants are grown for human food. Such are potato, wheat, apple,
lettuce. Some are grown only to feed to animals. Such are grasses and
clover,--plants that are made into hay.
Hay is the most important crop in New York State. In fact, New York
leads all the States in the value of the hay and forage. This value is
more than 66 millions of dollars.
[Illustration: _Fig. 316. Sprig of the alfalfa plant._]
Hay is important in New York also because there are so many dairy cattle
in the State. There are more than one and one-half millions of dairy
cattle in New York. In the value of the milk and butter and cheese, New
York also leads all other States. There are also great numbers of beef
cattle, horses, mules, and sheep. All these millions of animals must be
supplied with hay in our long cold winters.
Hay is made in New York State from grasses and clover. Suppose we could
find some plant that would yield twice as much hay as clover yields, and
yet be as nutritious,--you can readily see how valuable such a plant
would be to the State. It would be better than a gift of millions of
dollars. Such a plant is alfalfa.
Now that you know something about alfalfa in a general way, I want you
to know how the plant looks and how it grows. It is not yet very well
known even among farmers, but its cultivation is increasing every year.
You will probably know where there are fields of it. Sometimes it grows
along roadsides as a weed. Last spring Uncle John offered to send a
small packet of alfalfa seeds to any Junior Naturalist who wrote for it.
He sent about 5,000 packets. But if you do not know the plant or cannot
find it, _write at once to Uncle John and he will send you some by mail
from the University farm_.
Let us see how many school children in New York State will know what
alfalfa is between now and Thanksgiving time. When writing to Uncle John
about alfalfa, try to answer as many of the following questions as
possible from your own observation:
1. Does the plant remind you of any other plant that you ever saw? Of
what?
2. How does it grow,--straight up or spreading out on the ground?
3. How many stalks come from one root?
4. What are the leaves like? Mark out the shape with a pencil.
5. What are the flowers like? Do you know any other flowers of similar
shape? What is the color?
6. If possible, dig around a plant and describe how the root looks. Does
it branch into many fibres, as grass roots or corn roots do?
UNCLE JOHN'S LETTER ABOUT THE ALFALFA GARDENS.
_My Dear Boys and Girls:_
Do you know much about the alfalfa plant? Do you remember that last
spring we promised to send a packet of seed to each of you who asked for
it? Did you send your name asking that you be served? We received the
names of several thousand children asking for seed and I am wondering
whether you are one of them. If so, did you sow the seed? Will you write
me a letter telling me what became of it?
[Illustration: _Fig. 317. What leaf is this? Is it enlarged?_]
[Illustration: _Fig. 318. Leaf of alfalfa. What significance have the
spots?_]
[Illustration: _Fig. 319. Flowers of the alfalfa. Are they natural
size?_]
[Illustration: _Fig. 320. Alfalfa pods. How much enlarged?_]
I am very fond of children's letters. Each year I receive more than
thirty thousand of them. I sometimes wonder whether there is another man
who is honored by so many letters from young people, for I count it an
honor to be so remembered.
As large as that number is, I cannot spare one letter. I always want a
few more. All your letters are read and I take great pains to answer all
questions. If, by any oversight, you have been missed I am sorry. I know
what it costs a boy or girl to write a letter. I never open one without
feeling that the writer is a friend of mine, otherwise he would not have
expended so much hard work to write it.
School has now begun and of course you are very busy, and so is your
teacher. One of the best opportunities to write letters is in school.
Please ask your teacher whether you may not write me during your
language period. You may say that she may make authors of all of you if
she can, but I will do all I can to help you become good letter writers.
Ask her whether a letter to me may not be a substitute for a
composition.
[Illustration: _Fig. 321. Crown of the alfalfa plant, showing how root
and top start off._]
In your letter you may tell me your experience with alfalfa. Tell me
your failures as well as your successes. Even though you received your
seeds and did not sow them, tell me that. I shall never find fault with
you for telling me the truth. If you sowed the seed and the plants did
not do well, tell me that also. The plants may look very small and
uninteresting to you this year, but next year they may surprise you.
In some parts of the United States the alfalfa crop is of great value
and the loss of it would bring distress to many farmers. I am wondering
whether the crop, as raised in all parts of our country, is not worth
more money than all the gold found in the Klondike, taking the two year
by year. I do not know how that may be. I am wondering. Men by the
thousand have gone to the gold mines and endured many hardships and
later returned with less money than those who had remained at home and
took care of their alfalfa.
It may be that a mine of wealth lies very near you, and to get it you
may have to ask alfalfa to find it and bring it to you. Gold cannot be
found in all places in a gold country and alfalfa may not feel
comfortable and grow in all parts of a good farming country. What we
asked of you last spring was that you become alfalfa prospectors and
later tell us what you found.
JOHN W. SPENCER.
LEAFLET LXIII.
THE RED SQUIRREL.[81]
BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
(Compare Leaflet XLIX.)
_The squirrel came running down a slanting bough, and as he stopped
twirling a nut, called out rather impudently, "Look here! just get a
snug-fitting fur coat and a pair of fur gloves like mine and you may
laugh at a northeast storm."_--THOREAU.
[81] Junior Naturalist Monthly, November, 1903.
[Illustration]
For a cheery companion give me the red squirrel! I enter the woods and
there the little fellow is, ready to welcome me. "What a fine day it is
for gathering nuts!" he seems to say, and straightway, as I listen to
his merry chatter, I think it is a fine day for any sport that includes
him and the brown November woods.
Young naturalists may think it is a difficult thing to become acquainted
with red squirrels, but you will often find them willing to be sociable
if you show them a little kindness. I have many times watched two or
three squirrels playing about a friend as she sat in her garden. They
seemed to find her nearly as interesting as the old pine tree near by.
They are inquisitive animals.
"How did you tame them?" I asked.
"I fed them occasionally," she replied. "At first I put some nuts on the
grass several feet away from me. Then I gradually placed a tempting meal
nearer and nearer until the little fellows seemed to lose all fear of
me."
If we care to, you and I, we can learn a great deal about red squirrels
before another year has passed. If you live on a farm you should know
the habits of all the wild creatures about you. You can then be just to
them, and decide whether or not you can afford to let them continue to
be tenants on your farm. You will find that all of them have interesting
lives.
THE RED SQUIRREL.
A. B. C.
Just a tawny glimmer,
A dash of red and gray,--
Is it a flitting shadow,
Or a sunbeam gone astray?
[Illustration: _Fig. 322. In the haunts of the red squirrel._]
It glances up a tree trunk,
And from some branch, I know
A little spy in ambush
Is measuring his foe.
I hear his mocking chuckle;
In wrath he waxes bold,
And stays his pressing business
To scold and scold and scold.
QUESTIONS ABOUT THE RED SQUIRREL.
1. What is the color of the red squirrel? Is he really red? Is his
entire coat of one color? Does he wear different colors in winter and
summer?
2. Did you ever see a red squirrel's nest? If so, describe it.
3. Does the red squirrel hibernate; that is, does he sleep all winter as
the chipmunk does?
4. What does a red squirrel eat? Did you ever see him getting the winged
seeds out of a pitch pine cone?
5. Do you believe a squirrel ever planted an oak? Give a reason.
6. If you live in the country, you have seen red squirrels running on
the rail fences. Why do they like rail fences? Do you see them so often
on other kinds of fences?
7. Notice the tracks made in the snow in winter woods. Try to find
whether the red squirrel's is among them.
8. If you know any other kinds of squirrels, tell how they differ from
the red squirrel.
LEAFLET LXIV.
ROBIN.[82]
BY L. H. BAILEY.
[82] Introduction printed in Junior Naturalist Monthly, March, 1901.
[Illustration]
The drifts along the fences are settling. The brooks are brimming full.
The open fields are bare. A warm knoll here and there is tinged with
green. A smell of earth is in the air. A shadow darts through the apple
tree: it is the robin!
Robin! You and I were lovers when yet my years were few. We roamed the
fields and hills together. We explored the brook that ran up into the
great dark woods and away over the edge of the world. We knew the old
squirrel who lived in the maple tree. We heard the first frog peep. We
knew the minnows that lay under the mossy log. We knew how the cowslips
bloomed in the lushy swale. We heard the first soft roll of thunder in
the liquid April sky.
Robin! The fields are yonder! You are my better self. I care not for the
birds of paradise; for whether here or there, I shall listen for your
carol in the apple tree.
* * * * *
Our lesson on robin shall be a lesson out of doors. We shall leave the
books behind. We shall see the bird. We shall watch him and make up our
minds what he is doing and why. We shall know robin better; and robin
lives in the fields.
Perhaps you think you know robin. Suppose that one of your friends never
saw a robin; do you think you could close your eyes and describe him so
that your friend would know how the bird looks?
Then tell me where robin builds its nest, and of what materials; and how
many eggs are laid and their color; and how long the mother bird sits;
and how long the fledglings remain in the nest. You can readily find a
family of robins in some near-by tree, or perhaps even on the porch; and
you can learn all these things without ever disturbing the birds.
I want you to watch a bird build its nest. You may think that you know
how robin builds, but can you really tell me just how the bird carries
the mud, and where it finds the other materials, and how long the
building operation continues? Do both birds take part in the building?
Then I want to know whether you can tell the difference between father
robin and mother robin. Did you ever notice whether robins that come
first in the spring have brighter breasts than those that come later?
And can you explain?
Tell me, too, what robin does with his year. You know when he comes in
spring and when he builds and when the speckled young ones fly. But
where is he in summer and fall and winter? And what is he about all this
time? Does he build another nest and rear another family, or does he go
vacationing? And does he gather the same kind of food in spring and
summer? Does he gather cherries for his family or for himself? Did you
ever see robin in winter in New York?
What can you tell me about the song of robin? Does he sing all the year?
Or does he have a different note for summer? Not one of you can tell how
many different notes and calls robin has. I sometimes think that robin
knows several languages.
I have seen many more springs than you have seen: and yet I always wait
for robin on the lawn. I often wonder whether the same robins come back
to my lawn. They seem to go to business at once. They hop with the most
confident air, and day after day pull strings out of the ground. You
know what these strings are: but do you know how robin finds them? Is it
by smell, or sight, or feeling, or hearing? Do you suppose he is
listening when he cocks his head to one side and then to the other? Or
is he merely making motions? And I wonder whether birds and animals
usually make motions just for the sake of making them?
I have asked you many questions, and not one of you can answer. Perhaps
I cannot answer. You ask, "What's the use?" If you can see robin, and
learn why, you can also learn other things. But I like robin just
because he is robin.
There is one thing more. You will read about robin redbreast. Who is he?
Find out for me whether robin redbreast of Europe and of English poetry
is the same as our American bird.
LEAFLET LXV.
CROWS.[83]
BY ALICE G. McCLOSKEY.
(Compare Leaflet XXIV.)
[83] Junior Naturalist Monthly, February, 1904.
[Illustration]
At a wigwam in the Adirondack Mountains a tame crow lives with a family
of Indians. These Indians make baskets of birch bark and other things
that they find out of doors, and sell them to visitors who spend their
summer in the mountains. The little crow helps in the business. He makes
himself so interesting to the passers-by that they stop to watch him.
The Indians then have an opportunity to show their baskets, and very
often sell them.
But we need not go to the Adirondacks to find a crow that earns his
living. Mr. F. E. L. Beal, who has studied crows a long time, speaks of
them as valuable farm hands; and Neltje Blanchan says that they are as
much entitled to a share of the corn as the horse that plows it. This
may surprise boys and girls who have heard crows spoken of as thieves
and rascals. Let us look into their story so that we can find out for
ourselves whether to the farmer the crow is a friend or an enemy.
_How Jim Crow does harm:_--
1. By killing toads, frogs, small snakes, and salamanders ("lizards").
Why are these little creatures first rate farm hands?
2. By pulling up sprouting corn. Some farmers prevent this by tarring
the corn.
3. By stealing eggs, small chickens, and tiny birds. It is said that the
crow is rarely guilty of these wrongs. What do you know about it?
_How Jim Crow does good:_--
4. By eating large numbers of insects: grasshoppers, caterpillars
(including army worms and cut worms), June bugs, and other insects. So
many insects does he devour that he earns more than he destroys. A half
bushel of corn scattered on a field is said to be sufficient in many
cases to prevent Jim Crow from pulling the growing corn.
_To study crows:_--
Watch the crows to find out just what they do. Do you ever see them
flying in large numbers? If so, at what time of day do they fly? Where
are they going? Notice how they use their wings.
Do they come from the same direction each morning? Would it not be a
great experience to make up a party and visit the place from which they
come? What do you think you would find there?
[Illustration: _Fig. 323. Who's afraid!_]
When you see crows feeding in a field try to learn what they are eating.
You can often find crows' tracks in the snow. There the prints of their
feet and wings may be seen. What do you think interested the crows in
the snow-covered field?
Determine whether the caw is always the same. Is it sometimes short,
sometimes long? Can you associate these differences with the actions of
the birds?
I wish you would read John Hay's poem, "The Crows at Washington."
LEAFLET LXVI.
A FRIENDLY LITTLE CHICKADEE.[84]
BY ALICE G. MCCLOSKEY.
(Compare Leaflet XXIV.)
This scrap of valor just for play
Fronts the north wind in waistcoat gray.
--EMERSON.
[84] Junior Naturalist Monthly, December, 1903.
[Illustration]
One cold December day a chickadee found himself alone in a wood. He
looked very much like other chickadees, a small, gray bird, wearing, as
someone has said, "a black hood with white side pieces and a black
vest." He was like others of his kin, too, in that he was a skillful
acrobat. He could stand right side up on a twig or cling to it upside
down--one position seemed as easy as the other.
But I am not sure that this little chickadee was like his fellows in one
respect. I have wondered whether they are all as friendly as he. I shall
tell of something that he did, and leave it to young naturalists to find
out whether other chickadees will show as friendly a spirit.
It happened on the cold December day when the chickadee was alone in the
"snow-choked wood" that a Senior Naturalist wandered along that way.
Whether or no the little bird knew that the tall man was there I cannot
say. At any rate, he called out "phoe-be," the plaintive little pipe of
two notes, clearer and sweeter than the real phoebe bird can make. The
tall man answered the call, whistling two notes as plaintive and sweet
as the chickadee's own. Again and again the whistle was repeated and
every time it was answered. Nearer and nearer came the fluffy midget,
until finally he alighted on a tree directly over the tall man's head.
And then a remarkable thing happened! You will scarcely believe it, yet
it is true. Knowing how near the chickadee was, the tall man whistled
"phoe-be" very softly, and the little bird flew down and rested on his
arm. How pleased the Senior Naturalist must have felt when he had gained
the confidence of this wild bird! I wish that our boys and girls would
try to do the same thing and tell Uncle John whether the experiment is
successful.
STUDY OF A CHICKADEE IN WINTER.
1. Keep a sharp lookout for chickadees. Can you tell one when you see
it? They are often with nuthatches and downy woodpeckers. If you tie a
piece of suet in a tree near your house these winter birds may visit
you.
2. Listen to the notes of all the winter birds. Some day you will hear
one say "Chick-a-dee-dee-dee-dee." Then he may sing "phoe-be," and you
will try to imitate the notes. He may answer you. Tell us how near you
can get to one of these friendly little birds.
3. Watch a chickadee searching for his breakfast on a twig. What kind of
a bill has he? What do you think he is finding to eat?
4. If I lived on a farm I should have suet hung in my orchard to
encourage the chickadees to stay there. Can you tell why?
5. Do you see chickadees in summer? Where are they then?
6. If I were to ask you to find a deserted chickadee's nest, where would
you look?
LEAFLET LXVII.
THE FAMILY OF WOODPECKERS.[85]
BY ALICE G. MCCLOSKEY.
(Compare Leaflet XXIV.)
[85] Junior Naturalist Monthly, January, March, April, and May, 1903.
I. THE RED-HEADED WOODPECKER.
[Illustration]
The story goes that, once upon a time, a naturalist found a great many
grasshoppers wedged into an old fencepost. They were alive but could not
get away. Bye and bye their jailor appeared. He was neither somber nor
ugly, as you might suppose, but a merry red-headed woodpecker. With
never a thought of cruelty in his little red head, he had used the
fencepost as a cold-storage place, and had filled it with a good supply
of food.
Now I am sure our boys and girls will ask, "Is this story true?" I
cannot say. The best way to decide whether it may be true is to study
the habits of a red-headed woodpecker. Do you think that we shall find
him capable of so clever a trick?
The red-head is not uncommon. Keep on the lookout for him. His head,
neck, throat, and upper breast are red; the rest of his body is
blue-black and white. He is a handsome fellow, a bright bit of color in
wood, garden, orchard, or field. Let us see what we can learn about him.
SUGGESTIONS.
1. Try to get a nearer view of any bird that you see sitting on a
telegraph pole or fencepost. It may be a red-headed woodpecker.
2. Is this little fellow as good a drummer as his relatives?
3. His mate likes his music. If she comes near, the better to hear him
drum, notice whether she has a red head.
4. Do you find beech-nuts or other food stored in decayed trees? Under a
bit of raised bark? In cracks in bark? In gate posts? If so, a red-head
may be about.
5. These woodpeckers eat more grasshoppers than any of the others. Find
out whether they eat them on the ground.
6. Have you ever seen one fly into the air after a passing insect?
[Illustration: _Fig. 324. The red-headed woodpecker._]
7. Do red-headed woodpeckers ever visit your chicken yard? Watch them
closely and find out why they are there.
8. Do you see them later in the year eating fruit on your farm?
9. It has been found that they eat ants, wasps, beetles, bugs,
grasshoppers, crickets, moths, spiders, and caterpillars. If you find
them doing harm on your farm will you not compare it with the good they
do?
10. What plants do they visit?
11. Where is red-head's nest?
II. DOWNY WOODPECKER.--A LITTLE ORCHARD INSPECTOR.[86]
[86] Junior Naturalist Monthly, January, 1903.
Rap! rap! rap! the little inspector has come to look at our apple trees.
"You are welcome, downy woodpecker," say we every one. "Stay as long as
you like. We want to look at you closely so that we shall know you every
time we see you."
A bird about three inches shorter than a robin, black above, white
below, white along the middle of the back, and the male red on the nape
of the neck: this is the way downy looks. A hardworking, useful,
sociable tenant of the farm: this is what downy is.
Let us see how this little woodpecker is useful. If you live on a farm,
you have probably heard of borers--grubs that get into trees and injure
them. Your father does not like these grubs, but downy does. He seems to
like any kind of grub. Watch him on a tree sometimes when he is looking
for one. He knows where to find it, although neither you nor I might
suspect that an insect is living beneath the smooth bark. Then he bores
into the tree, and spears the grub with his long tongue. His tongue is a
remarkable weapon. He can stretch it two inches beyond the tip of his
bill, and it is barbed on both sides.
[Illustration: _Fig. 325. Cocoons of the codlin-moth as they were found
attached to a piece of loose bark, natural size._]
Downy does not stop work, you must remember, when borers are not plenty.
Beetles nibble no more plants after his eyes light on them. They are
trespassers, and as judge, jury, and executioner, he proves his right
to be considered a most useful farm hand. Ants, too, provide him with a
good meal occasionally.
Among the helpful deeds of the downy woodpecker, we must not forget to
mention that he destroys great numbers of the larvæ or worms of the
codlin-moth in winter, when these worms have tucked themselves away in
the crevices of the bark, all wrapped in their cocoons. (Figs 325, 326.)
Perhaps your father has shown you these little cocoons along the body
and in the crotches of the apple tree. If not, you can find them
yourself. Open some of them and see whether the worm is still there. If
he is not, downy has probably taken him. I suppose you know that the
larvæ of the codlin-moth are the worms you find in apples. See Leaflet
LIII.
You must not confound the downy woodpecker with that other woodpecker,
the sap-sucker, that often drills rings of holes in the trunks of apple
trees. The sapsucker has yellow on his under parts. I shall tell you
about him some other time.
[Illustration: _Fig. 326. Pupæ of the codlin-moth in cocoons,
enlarged._]
You have learned that insects and apple-scab and yourselves all try to
see who shall own the apple fruit. Now you know that birds, and insects
that feed on leaves and in the wood, are also concerned in this quarrel
about the apple.
A FEW THINGS TO OBSERVE.
1. Does the downy woodpecker travel down a tree head first or does he
hop backward?
2. Try some day to see his feet. You will find that two of his toes are
turned forward and two backward. Are there other birds that have this
arrangement of toes?
[Illustration: _Fig. 327. The downy woodpecker._]
3. Notice that he braces himself with his tail as he works.
4. Do you ever see the downy woodpecker eat seeds of plants that the
farmers do not like to have on their land?
5. Hang a bone or piece of unsalted suet out of doors for the
woodpeckers. They will enjoy an unexpected feast.
6. Where does downy make his nest?
III. THE SAPSUCKER.[87]
[87] Junior Naturalist Monthly, March, 1903.
If you are walking through an orchard or wood and see a jolly little
woodpecker with red on its head, do not say at once that it is a
downy woodpecker. Look again. Has it yellow on the underparts, black on
the breast, a red throat, and red on the crown instead of on the nape?
Then it is a sapsucker, a new arrival. (Fig. 328.) It is larger than the
downy. The female has no red on the throat.
And to think that such a merry little fellow has such a bad reputation
among farmer-folk! You will be surprised to find how unkindly
woodpeckers are treated throughout the country, because of the misdeeds
of the sapsucker. Even the downy has suffered much abuse. This is
unfortunate, for I am sure downy woodpeckers have done much more good
than sapsuckers have done harm.
I wish that all Junior Naturalists would try to find out whether even
the sapsucker deserves all that has been said against him. He does harm
by boring holes in trees, but how much? Let us learn. As woodpeckers are
not shy, it is not difficult to get near them. I have stood within a few
feet of a sapsucker, and he did not mind a bit. He kept on boring holes
in a tree without a thought that any one might object.
1. How many trees can you find that have holes bored by the sapsucker?
2. How are the holes arranged; here and there on the trunk, or in rings
around it? Have you ever found a complete ring of holes?
3. Keep a record of the months in which you find the sapsucker.
4. Notice how the sap runs down into the holes that have been newly made
by a sapsucker.
5. It is said that this woodpecker eats the inner bark of the tree as
well as the sap. What can you find out about this?
[Illustration: _Fig. 328. The sapsucker. Compare this picture with that
of the downy woodpecker in Fig. 327._]
6. Do you ever find insects near the holes made by the sapsucker? Do you
think he eats them?
7. Find out where the sapsucker has his nest.
IV. THE FLICKER.[88]
[88] Junior Naturalist Monthly, May, 1903.
Three woodpeckers have been introduced to you in these leaflets: the
red-head, the hard working downy (Fig. 327), the sapsucker (Fig. 328).
There is one more that we ought to add to the list for summer study,
since he is very likely to cross our path,--the flicker (Fig. 329).
[Illustration: _Fig. 329. The flicker._]
This woodpecker has a great many names, probably because he lives
in a great many States. The most common are: flicker, highhole,
yellow-hammer, and golden-winged woodpecker. I like the name flicker
best of all.
He is a good-sized bird, about two inches longer than a robin. His
colors are: brownish with black spots above, whitish spotted with black
underneath, a black crescent on the breast, and a scarlet crescent on
the back of the neck. When he flies you will notice two things: the rich
golden color of the inside of his wings, and the white patch on the back
just above the tail.
Now, since he is a woodpecker, you will probably expect to find the
flicker in trees; but you are quite as likely to find him on the ground.
About half of his food consists of ants, and these he finds afield. He
also eats other insects, as well as a good deal of plant food.
I hope that you will see a flicker this year and hear him call out,
"a-wick-a-wick-a-wick-a-wick-a-wick-a." Possibly some of you may find a
nest that these birds have dug out in an old apple tree. They do not
always make new nests, however, but live in the deserted homes of other
woodpeckers.
QUESTIONS.
1. Has the flicker a straight bill like the downy woodpecker?
2. Have you seen the flicker's mate? If so, in what way does she differ
from him in color or marking?
3. Where does the flicker build its nest? What color are the eggs?
4. Try to watch a flicker feeding its young. Describe.
5. Do you know the call of the flicker? Can you imitate it, or write it
so that Uncle John can recognize it?
6. Do flickers remain all winter? If not, when do they come? When do
they leave?
LEAFLET LXVIII.
DESERTED BIRDS'-NESTS.[89]
BY ALICE G. MCCLOSKEY.
[89] Junior Naturalist Monthly, February, 1901.
[Illustration]
There is a wagon trail which I like to follow; it is always a pleasant
walk. There is no foot path; so I do not think many people pass that
way. Perhaps this is why many little wild creatures of the field and
wood like to live there. I do not know any other place where the birds
sing so sweetly, where the wild flowers grow so thick, and where the
insects are so numerous.
By the side of this road I found the little vireo's nest which you see
in the picture. It was about five feet from the ground, and hung near
the end of a long branch. It was interesting to find out what it was
made of,--grasses, strips of bark, hair, pine needles, plant fibres, and
bits of paper. On the outside were lichens and spiders' webs. The pieces
of paper were dropped along the way, I think, by the leader in a
cross-country run. Even the little vireos have an interest in the
outdoor sports of the college men.
[Illustration: _Fig. 330. The vireo's nest._]
One of the most interesting bird homes is the oriole's nest. Uncle John
will like to know whether you find one. The young orioles must have
happy times in their cradle, which hangs between the earth and the sky.
Winter is the best time of year to hunt for birds' nests. It is hard to
find them in the spring and the summer. The parent birds intend it shall
be. If you succeed in getting a nest, take it into the school room so
that the other members of your club can study it with you.
SUGGESTIONS.
Where did you find the nest? What is its size and shape? Name it, if you
can.
Was it built on the horizontal crotch of the branch, or on an upright
crotch?
How was it fastened to the branch?
Notice the materials of which it is made.
[Illustration: _Fig. 331. The hanging nest of the oriole. A cord is
woven into the nest._]
In the oriole's nest you will see that there is a difference in the way
in which the upper and lower parts are made. What is it?
How deep is the oriole's nest which you find? Compare the material on
the outside with that on the inside.
How is the nest fastened to the twigs?
Where does a catbird build its nest? Robin? Bluebird? Swallow? Hen?
Turkey?
[Illustration: _What?_]
LEAFLET LXIX.
THE POULTRY YARD: SOME THANKSGIVING LESSONS.[90]
BY ALICE G. MCCLOSKEY and JAMES E. RICE.
[90] Extended from Junior Naturalist Monthly, November, 1902.
[Illustration]
A rosy-cheeked girl, a freckled-faced boy and a little bald-headed baby
were the only young persons at the Thanksgiving dinner. The baby was not
old enough to be invited, but we were so thankful to have her with us
that we could not resist drawing her chair up to the table.
The turkey was a big one and "done to a turn." We old folks thought so,
the freckled-faced boy thought so, and the rosy-cheeked girl thought so.
The baby, so far as I could judge, thought not at all. She chewed
energetically on a spoon and left the discussion of the turkey to her
elders.
Having known for a long time that children like to chatter, I decided
that I would give the little lad and lassie opposite me an opportunity
to talk about turkeys, ducks, chickens, and the like. "These," thought
I, "are good Thanksgiving topics, and a boy and girl who have lived on a
farm all their lives can tell me some interesting things about them."
But this world is full of many strange surprises! It was not long before
I learned that those little folk could not answer some very simple
questions about poultry. They did not even know why a chicken does not
fall off the roost when it sleeps. To be sure, they could tell the exact
moment when, in the process of carving, the wish-bone would appear: but
you will admit that this is very little. I certainly was disappointed.
The bald-headed baby cheered things up a bit, however, by crowing
lustily. I rejoiced in the fact that apparently she had heard sounds
from the barn-yard.
Now there are many reasons why children, Junior Naturalists especially,
should know something about poultry. It may be that you live on a farm
and will want to raise chickens, ducks, and turkeys some day; and the
farmer who knows his poultry best will be most successful in raising it.
But whether you live in country or city you will like to study these
interesting birds. Let us see what we can find out about them in the
next three or four weeks. November, the month of Thanksgiving, is a good
time to begin.
TURKEYS.
Let us first pay our respects to the king of the poultry yard. We may
never know His Royal Highness, the old gobbler, very well, because it is
said he will not often permit folks to meet him on his own ground. I am
told that a visitor is more sure of a welcome within his domain if he
wear sombre garb. Although gaily dressed himself the old fellow objects
to bright colors on others.
There is one thing that we can do if the gobbler does not let us near
him,--we can peek at him through the fence. Then, too, at Thanksgiving
time many a slain monarch will hang in a nearby market. Following are a
few suggestions that will help us to learn something about turkeys. I
hope that you know all these things now, and, therefore, will not need
to be asked. If you do, please write Uncle John. How many letters do you
think he will get from such persons?
In the study of any bird, learn to describe it fully: the size, the
shape, the bill, the length of legs, the feet, and the color. Is there
more than one color of turkey?
Observe the head, face and wattles of the turkey gobbler.
Notice the strong, curved beak; the bright, clear, hazel eyes.
How many colors does he wear?
When the turkey is being prepared for the Thanksgiving dinner, ask
mother for the foot. Are there any feathers on it? Has it the same
number of toes that you find on a rooster's foot? Is the arrangement of
the toes the same?
Perhaps you find scales on the legs of the turkey. Do you find them also
on hens' legs? On which side of the leg,--front or back--are the scales
the larger?
When I was a little girl I liked to pull a tendon that I found in the
turkey's foot after it had been cut off. It was amusing to see the toes
curl up. I did not know then that when birds roost at night this tendon
is stretched as they bend their legs. Then the toes grasp the perch and
hold the bird on. When it stretches its leg to leave the roost the toes
spread out, but not until then Because of this birds can go to sleep
without the least fear of falling. What kind of perch do they choose, a
wide one or a narrow one? Why?
Can you tell which is the hen turkey and which the gobbler? Explain. On
which one do you find a hairy tuft on the breast?
Did you ever hear of the caruncle on the head of the turkey? Compare
this with the comb in domestic fowls. Does it differ in shape? Do ducks
and geese have combs?
[Illustration: _Fig. 332. A turkey likes to roam through the fields._]
What is the color of the turkey's face? Does it change color? Do you
notice any difference in color when the turkey is angry? What are the
turkey's wattles?
Notice the fourth toe. Why is it placed in opposite direction to the
others? I wonder whether it enables the fowl to grip the perch; and
whether it gives the turkey a wide span for support in running over
loose brush.
Turkeys and chickens and other animals have habits, as boys and girls
do, only that they are not bad habits. Did you ever watch turkeys
hunting grasshoppers? And did they go in flocks or alone? How do
chickens hunt,--in flocks or alone? Which roams farther from home,
turkeys or chickens? Do turkeys lay their eggs in the barn or poultry
house, as chickens do? Did you ever see a turkey's nest, and where was
it?
We have Junior Naturalists in many parts of the world: England,
Scotland, Australia, Egypt. Will they have an opportunity to study
turkeys? See what you can find out in answer to this question.
A TIME-HONORED RACE--GEESE.
Geese, as you know, come of a very distinguished race. This is no
advantage to them in a social way in the poultry yard, however. There is
not a duck nor a turkey nor even a wise rooster, that knows or cares
whether in times gone by geese saved a Roman city, or whether they were
recognized in ancient Egypt.
[Illustration: _Fig. 333. Geese; "a very distinguished race."_]
The story of the old gray goose was the one I liked best long ago,--the
goose that died before Aunt Nabby had enough feathers to make a bed. How
often you and I have listened to mother sing about her! And what an
inconsiderate old gray goose we thought she was, to die before the
feather bed was finished.
Some things for Junior Naturalists to think about come into my mind in
connection with Aunt Nabby's goose and others of its kind:
Why do goose feathers make the best beds?
Do you think an old grandmother goose would give enough feathers in her
lifetime to make a good bed? I have heard of one that lived sixty years.
Are feathers ever taken from live geese for beds?
Compare the feathers of land-fowls and water-fowls.
Probably one or more of our Junior Naturalists will have a goose for his
Thanksgiving dinner. If so, I wish that the wing feathers might be
brought to school. See whether you can find out why the wing feathers of
a goose were preferred for making quill pens. Make a pen if you can and
write a letter to Uncle John with it. The five outer wing feathers are
most useful for writing, and of these the second and third are best.
Why? Do you think that the Declaration of Independence was signed with a
quill pen? Do goose quills make good holders for artists' brushes?
[Illustration: _Fig. 334. A happy family._]
What kind of food do geese like best?
Is the tongue of a goose similar to that of a turkey or chicken?
Is the old gander as cross as the turkey gobbler?
Have you ever seen a flock of wild geese flying northward or southward?
Which way are they going in the fall? Observe that nearly always they
keep their V-shaped ranks unbroken. There is, of course, a leader whose
call the flock follows. Whether the leader is some chosen member of the
number or whether he takes his position by chance I do not know. What
time of day do the wild geese fly? Do you like to hear them honking as
they go on their way? I wish you would find out whether our farmyard
geese are only these common wild geese tamed.
CHICKENS AND DUCKS; AND THE STORY OF TWO MOTHER HENS.
One mother hen had her own brood of fluffy little chicks (Fig. 334).
When they were old enough they scratched for worms and ate gravel as
obediently as any one could desire. How happy they were underneath the
hemlocks in the long afternoons!
[Illustration: _Fig. 335. Mother hen and baby ducks._]
The other mother hen had to take care of ducks (Fig. 335). Pretty as any
chicks they were, but troublesome as only little ducks can be with a
nervous old hen for their adopted mother. The family in the picture
looks very contented. Do you suppose that the photographer told them to
look pleasant? When we come to know ducks and chickens better, we shall
learn why the little ducks are often such a trial to the hen mother.
It may be that when we ask boys and girls to study chickens and ducks
they will say that there is nothing new to learn about them. I am not so
sure. The freckled-faced boy thought he knew all about them, too. Let us
see whether we can suggest some new things to think about, as you look
over the fence into the poultry yard, or watch the cook preparing a hen
or duck for the Thanksgiving dinner.
As I looked at the chickens in a barn-yard the other day, I was
interested in the different kinds that I saw: some brown, some white,
some black, some speckled; some had feathers on their feet, others had
not; some had combs with many points, in others the comb was close to
the head; some had long tails, some short tails, some no tails at all to
speak of. If I were to name the differences that I noticed you would not
get through reading them in time to write your November dues. How many
unlike marks or characters can you find in chickens or ducks?
Have you ever seen two chickens or two ducks exactly alike?
Compare the feet of a hen and a duck. Their bills. Do you think that a
duck can scratch for worms?
What do ducks eat? What kind of food do hens like best?
How do a hen's feathers differ from a duck's?
Note the scales on a hen's foot. Snakes have scales on their bodies,
too. Some day you may learn a wonderful story that these similar
features of hen and snake suggest.
Touch a hen's eye lightly with a pencil. Does she cover it with a thin
eyelid? A turtle does this. Has a turtle scales also? If so, may be it
will come into the wonderful story connected with hens and snakes.
Look closely at a hen's ear.
Watch chickens as they make their toilet. A farmer told me that among
the tail feathers of barn-fowls there is an oil sac that they find
useful in cleaning their clothes. I wonder whether this is true?
While I was watching some chickens the other day, I saw one jump up into
the air several times. She was a skillful little acrobat. What do you
think she was trying to catch?
Watch the cook as she prepares a chicken or turkey for dinner. Find the
crop into which the food passes after it has been swallowed. From the
crop it passes on to the gizzard. Look closely at the gizzard. See what
strong muscles it has. It needs them to grind the grain and gravel
stones together. It is a very good mill, you see.
Try to find out whether a duck has a crop and a gizzard. Do not ask any
one. Wait until there is to be a duck for dinner some day. Would you
suppose from the kind of food ducks eat that they need a crop and a
gizzard?
Do little chickens have feathers when they are hatched? What is the
cover of their bodies called? Are they always of the same color when
they are hatched that they are when they are grown up? What kinds of
poultry change their color when their feathers grow? Notice the chickens
of Black Minorcas (if you know any one who has that kind), then write
Uncle John about their color. Did you ever see fowls without feathers?
When you go to the fair be sure to look for some "Silkies." Did you ever
see fowls whose feathers were all crinkled up toward their head? Look
for "Frizzles" when you go to the fair.
A LESSON ON EGGS.
[Illustration: _Fig. 336. A coop of chickens._]
What is the color of the turkey's egg? Do the first-laid turkey's eggs
differ in color from those that are laid later? How do these eggs differ
in color from the eggs of ducks, geese, and hens? Do eggs from different
breeds of hens differ in color? Do eggs from different kinds of poultry
differ in shape? Can you not make some drawings of eggs showing how they
differ, and send to Uncle John? Not one of you can tell how much a
turkey's egg weighs, nor a hen's egg. Do you think that eggs from all
kinds of hens weigh the same? And if they do not, do you think that they
are worth the same price the dozen?
Did you ever look through an egg at a strong light? What did you see?
Was there an air space? Was it on the big end or the little end? Leave
the eggs in a dry room for a few days. Does the air space increase in
size? Boil an egg. Remove the shell carefully over the air space. Do you
notice a membrane? Are there two membranes? Boil an egg until it is very
hard; does the white of the egg separate in layers? Break the yoke
carefully; do you notice layers of light and dark color? Is there a
little soft light colored spot in the centre? Write to Uncle John and
ask him what this is.
SOME QUESTIONS IN GENERAL.
How many varieties of fowls can you name? How do they differ in size and
color?
[Illustration: _Fig. 337. What kind of hens are these?_]
Have you ever seen ducks, geese, hens, and turkeys standing on the snow
or ice? If so, how did they behave? Which seemed to enjoy it? Why should
a duck or goose be able to swim in ice water without apparently
suffering from cold? When mother dresses a duck or goose for dinner, ask
her to let you see the layers of fat under the skin and inside the body.
Write to Uncle John and tell him what the fat in the body is for. Ask
him how this fat came in the body; also whether there is such a thing as
fat in the food which the ducks eat.
Did you ever see hens and ducks out in the rain? Did they all enjoy it?
Did you ever see anything wetter than a wet hen? Why do they look so
disconsolate?
Examine the feathers of different kinds of poultry. How do the feathers
of ducks, geese, turkeys and fowls differ? Try wetting the various
feathers, then let them dry out. Make drawings of these feathers,
showing, if you can, the different colors and shapes.
Do turkeys think? Did you ever watch a turkey steal her nest? Where did
she go? How long did you watch her before you found the nest? Did she
cover up her eggs? With what? Why do they cover the eggs when they leave
the nest? Do ducks, geese, turkeys, and hens all cover their eggs? Why
do hens differ in this respect from the turkeys? Do all kinds of ducks
cover their eggs?
Did you ever watch ducklings and little chickens eat? Did you notice any
difference in their appetites? Which grow faster, little chickens or
little ducks?
Do you know that some hens do not pay their board? Sometimes hens eat
more than they are worth. It may be the fault of the hen or it may be
that she is not provided with the proper kind of food or given the
proper care. A hen cannot make eggs unless she has the proper kind of
food. Some persons so feed and handle their hens that they are able to
produce eggs for six cents the dozen; other persons expend more than a
dollar to get the dozen.
How does the farmer make his money from fowls (that is, what kind of
products does he sell)?
You should learn to classify chickens according to the uses for which
they are grown. (1) Some kinds of hens excel in egg-laying. These kinds
are known as the "egg breeds." One of the leading egg breeds is the
Leghorn. (2) Others produce much meat, and are known as the "meat
breeds," as the Brahma. (3) Others are fairly good fowls for both eggs
and meat, and are called "general-purpose breeds," of which Plymouth
Rock and Wyandotte are good examples. (4) Then there are "fancy breeds,"
grown as pets or curiosities or as game birds. Now, try to find out
whether there are any general differences in form and looks to
distinguish one class of breeds from another. And find out whether
turkeys, geese, and ducks may be similarly classified.
HOW FRANK AND HENRY RAISED CHICKENS.
Frank and Henry wanted to keep chickens all by themselves. They thought
they might sell the eggs and the fowls and get spending money. They knew
little about chickens, but then, it did not matter, for chickens will
take care of themselves. All there is to do is to give them corn and
water every day,--at least, so the boys thought.
Both boys had a hard time the first year, but they kept at it. Frank
finally made a success. Henry lost money; his hens died or did not lay,
and he had to give up. One boy turned out to be a good farmer and the
other a poor farmer. You have seen such farmers living side by side.
I will tell you why Frank succeeded. 1. He provided warm and pleasant
quarters for the chickens, so that the fowls were comfortable and
contented. 2. He learned to like the chickens, so that he spent many of
his extra hours watching them and caring for them. 3. He learned that
something more is required in feeding a hen than merely to satisfy her
appetite. Some kinds of food may be best for growing chicks and others
for laying hens. 4. He soon found that some hens lay more and larger
eggs than others, and he saved eggs from these hens for hatching. Henry
said that "eggs are eggs" and that there was "no sense in being so
fussy." 5. He learned that eggs and poultry sell best when they really
are best and when they are carefully cleaned and neatly packed. Frank
had learned the first lessons in good farming.
[Illustration: _Fig. 338. At the drinking fountain._]
LEAFLET LXX.
LITTLE HERMIT BROTHER.[91]
BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK.
[91] Nature-Study Quarterly, June, 1899.
[Illustration]
In far Thibet exists a class of Buddhist monks who are hermits and who
dwell in caves. I was told about these strange people by a Senior
Naturalist, who has spent his life going around the world and finding
the countries upon it as easily as you Junior Naturalists find the same
countries on the globe in the schoolroom. A real naturalist is never
contented with maps of places and pictures of things, but always desires
to see the places and things themselves.
The Senior Naturalist told me that he found Thibet a dreary land
inhabited by queer people; and the hermit monks were the queerest of
all. Each one dwelt in his solitary cave, ate very little, and worked
not at all, but spent his time in thought. Could we read his thoughts we
should be none the wiser, since they are only mysterious thoughts about
mysterious things.
Now it is a surprising fact that we have hermits of similar habits here
in America; only our hermits are little people who dress in a white garb
and live in cells underground; they also eat little and work not at all,
and probably meditate upon mysteries. However, they are equipped with
six legs while the monks of Thibet have only two, a difference of little
importance since neither hermit travels far from his cave.
* * * * *
There are in eight or nine counties in New York State places that may
surely expect visitors on certain years. The connection between these
guests and the hermits of Thibet may not seem very close at first sight;
but wait and see.
The reason why these New York counties expect company is that they
entertained a large number of similar guests in 1882, 1865, 1848, 1831,
1814, in 1797, and probably at intervals of seventeen years long before
that; in 1797, however, was the first record made of the appearance of
these visitors. Every time they came they probably outstayed their
welcome; yet they had the good quality of allowing their hosts sixteen
years of rest between visits.
In order that the Junior Naturalist may recognize these visitors I will
describe their methods of arrival. Sometime in the latter part of May or
in early June you may hear a great buzzing in some trees, as if there
were a thousand lilliputian buzz saws going at once. If you examine the
trees you will find on them many queer-looking insects, with black
bodies about an inch long, covered with transparent wings folded like a
roof. Naturally you will wonder how such great numbers of large insects
could appear one day when they were nowhere to be seen the day before.
But if you look at the ground beneath the trees you will find in it many
small holes. You will also find clinging to the trees many whitish
objects, which at first sight seem like pale, wingless insects, but
which on closer examination prove to be merely the cast skins of insects
(Fig. 339). These are the cowls and robes which our little American
hermits cast off after they come out of their underground cells, and
which they must shed before they can free their wings. Our little
American hermits we call the seventeen-year locusts. However, this name
is a most confusing one, since we also call our grasshoppers locusts,
and to them the name truly belongs. These seventeen-year locusts are
really cicadas, and they belong to a different order from the locusts.
The real locusts have mouth-parts formed for biting, while the cicadas
have mouth-parts grown together in the form of a tube, through which
they suck juices of plants. So we hope the Junior Naturalists will call
our little hermits by their right name, cicadas; and will not permit
them to be spoken of as locusts.
In order that you may know the mysterious lives of these wonderful
insects, I will tell you the story of one of them.
THE STORY OF LITTLE HERMIT BROTHER, CICADA SEPTENDECIM.
Once a cicada mother made with her ovipositor a little slit or cavity in
an oak twig, and in this slit placed in very neat order two rows of
eggs. Six weeks later there hatched from one of these eggs a pale,
lively little creature, that to the naked eye looked like a tiny white
ant. If, however, we could have examined him through a lens we should
have found him very different from an ant; for his two front legs were
shaped somewhat like lobsters' big claws, and instead of jaws like an
ant, he had simply a long beak that was hollow like a tube. After he
came out of his egg he ran about the tree and seemed interested for a
time in everything he saw. Then, suddenly, he went to the side of a limb
and deliberately fell off. To his little eyes the ground below was
invisible; so our small cicada showed great faith when he practically
jumped off the edge of his world into space. He was such a speck of a
creature that the breeze took him and lifted him gently down, as if he
were the petal of a flower; and he alighted on the earth unhurt and
probably much delighted with his sail through the air. At once he
commenced hunting for some little crevice in the earth; and when he
found it he went to the bottom of it and with his shovel-like fore-feet
began digging downward. I wonder if he stopped to give a last look at
sky, sunshine, and the beautiful green world before he bade them
good-bye for seventeen long years! If so, he did it hurriedly, for he
was intent upon reaching something to eat. This he finally found a short
distance below the surface of the ground, in the shape of a juicy
rootlet of the great tree above. Into this he inserted his beak and
began to take the sap as we take lemonade through a straw. He made a
little cell around himself and then he found existence quite blissful.
He ate very little and grew very slowly, and there was no perceptible
change in him for about a year; then he shed his skin for the first
time, and thus, insect-wise, grew larger. After a time he dug another
cell near another rootlet deeper in the ground; but he never exerted
himself more than was necessary to obtain the little food that he
needed. This idle life he found entirely satisfactory, and the days grew
into months and the months into years. Only six times in the seventeen
years did our hermit change his clothes, and this was each time a
necessity, since they had become too small. Judging from what the Senior
Naturalist told me, I think this is six times more than a Thibetan
hermit changes his clothes in the same length of time.
What may be the meditations of a little hermit cicada during all these
years we cannot even imagine. If any of the Junior Naturalists ever find
out the secret they will be very popular indeed with the scientific men
called psychologists. However, if we may judge by actions, the sixteenth
summer after our hermit buried himself he began to feel stirring in his
bosom aspirations toward a higher life. He surely had no memory of the
beautiful world he had abandoned in his babyhood; but he became suddenly
possessed with a desire to climb upward, and began digging his way
toward the light. It might be a long journey through the hard earth; for
during the many years he may have reached the depth of nearly two feet.
He is now as industrious as he was shiftless before; and it takes him
only a few weeks to climb out of the depths into which he had fallen
through nearly seventeen years of inertia. If it should chance that he
reaches the surface of the ground before he is ready to enjoy life, he
hits upon a device for continuing his way upward without danger to
himself. Sometimes his fellows have been known to crawl out of their
burrows and seek safety under logs and sticks until the time came to
gain their wings. But this is a very dangerous proceeding, since in
forests there are many watchful eyes which belong to creatures who are
very fond of bits of soft, white meat. So our cicada, still a hermit,
may build him a tall cell out of mud above ground. How he builds this
"hut," "cone," or "turret" as it is variously called, we do not know;
but it is often two inches in height, and he keeps himself in the top of
it. Under ordinary circumstances our cicada would not build a hut, but
remain in his burrow.
Finally there comes a fateful evening when, as soon as the sun has set,
he claws his way through the top of his mud turret or out of his burrow
and looks about him for further means of gratifying his ambitions to
climb. A bush, a tree, the highest thing within his range of vision,
attracts his attention and he hurries toward it. It may be he finds
himself in company with many of his kind hurrying toward the same goal,
but they are of no interest to him as yet. Like the youth in the famous
poem, "Excelsior" is his motto and he heeds no invitation to tarry. When
he reaches the highest place within his ken he places himself, probably
back downward, on some branch or twig, takes a firm hold with all his
six pairs of claws, and keeps very still for a time. Then his skeleton
nymph-skin breaks open at the back and there pushes out of it a strange
creature long and white, except for two black spots upon its back; on he
comes until only the tip of his body remains in the old nymph-skin; then
he reaches forward and grasps the twig with his soft new legs and pulls
himself entirely clear from the old hermit garb. At once his wings begin
to grow; at first they are mere pads on his back, but they soon expand
until they cover his body and are flat like those of a miller. The many
veins in the wings are white and he keeps the wings fluttering in order
that they may harden soon. If, in the moonlight of some June evening, a
Junior Naturalist should see a tree covered with cicadas at this stage
he would think it had suddenly blossomed into beautiful, white,
fluttering flowers.
[Illustration: _Fig. 339. The cicada is full grown at last, and his
empty nymph skin is hanging to a branch._]
[Illustration: _Fig. 340. The cicada's drum._]
As the night wears on, the color of our hero changes and his wings
harden; until when the sun rises we behold him in the glory of a black
uniform with facings of orange and with beautiful glassy wings folded
roof-like above his body. (Fig. 339.) Great is the change wrought in his
appearance during this one marvelous night, and greater still the change
wrought in his habits! He is now no longer a hermit; there are thousands
of his kind about him, a fact which he realizes with great joy. So happy
is he that he feels as if he must burst if he does not find some
adequate means for expressing his happiness in this beautiful world of
sunshine. Then suddenly he finds in himself the means of expression and
bursts into song. Yet, it is not a song exactly, for he is a drummer
rather than a singer. On his body just behind each of his hind wings is
a kettle drum. The head to this drum is of parchment thrown into folds
and may be seen with a lens if you lift his wings and look closely.
(Fig. 340.) Instead of drum sticks he uses a pair of strong muscles to
throw the membranes into vibration and there is a complex arrangement of
cavities and sounding boards around these drum heads so that the noise
he gives off is a great one indeed for a fellow of his size. So fond is
he of making music that he has no time to eat or to do aught else but to
sound fanfares all the sunshiny day. He is not the only musician on the
tree; there are many others and they all join in a swelling chorus that
has been described as a roar like that made by the "rushing of a strong
wind through the trees."
If our cicada could talk to one of you Junior Naturalists he would tell
you that there was a good reason for all this music. He would explain
that only the men of the cicada world possess drums and that the object
and reason of all their music is the entertainment of the lady cicadas,
who are not only very fond of this drumming, but are good critics of
cicada music as well. He would perhaps tell you also that he had his eye
on a certain graceful maiden perched on the leaf between him and the
sun; but she, on the other hand, seemed to give about equal attention to
him and three other drummers situated near by. Excited by the
competition and by her indifference, he rattled his drum faster and
faster until he rose to the heights of cicada melody and harmony that
left his rivals far behind. Then the lady of his choice listened
spellbound and pronounced him the greatest of all musicians, and thus he
won his bride. However, we may safely predict that their wedded life
will be too full of happiness to last. After a few weeks the sunshine,
the music, the happiness of wooing and winning will prove too much for
our hero and one day he will beat his drum in a last mad ecstacy and
fall to earth and die from happy exhaustion. His little wife may survive
him only long enough to cut slits in some of the twigs of the home tree
and place in them rows of eggs from which shall develop a family of
hermits which shall come forth and fill the world with their music
seventeen years hence.
* * * * *
There are many broods of cicadas in the United States, so that they
appear in different localities in different years. New York State has
five well-marked broods.
There are several other species of cicada peculiar to America. One is
called _Cicada tredecim_, since it appears every thirteen years.
However, this species is limited to the South.
The dog-day harvest fly, or lyreman, is the cicada that is best known to
us through the northern and middle States. This appears in small numbers
every year and is a distinct addition to the summer chorus of insect
singers. He is larger and much more dignified in appearance than is his
cousin _septendecim_. He wears a black suit embroidered with scrolls of
dark olive green and the whole lower surface of his body is covered with
white powder. His drums are situated above plates which may be seen on
the lower side of the body, one behind each hind leg. He hides in trees
and his shrill music is so associated with the heat of summer noons that
the sound itself makes one drowsy. The hermit life of the lyreman in
underground cells is supposed to last only two years.
While the cicadas of which we have spoken are the children of an ancient
race which inhabits America, Europe also has her ancient races of
cicadas, although they are not the kind which live hermit lives for
seventeen years. We have evidence that their music was held in high
esteem by the ancient races of men--especially the Greeks. When Homer
complimented his orators he compared them with cicadas. Thus it may lend
a special interest to the study of the cicada by our Junior Naturalists
when they know that his kettle drums have been celebrated instruments of
music by poets who wrote three thousand years before America was
discovered by Columbus.
QUERIES FOR SHARP EYES.
1. When did you first see one of the cicadas?
2. What was it doing when you found it?
3. Did it do anything to attract your notice to it, or did you find it
by accident?
4. Where did you find it?
5. See whether you can determine which are the father and which the
mother cicadas.
6. Try to find where a mother cicada has laid eggs.
7. If you find where the cicada emerged from the ground, or from a hut,
give a brief description of the location, as to kind of soil, etc.
8. Where did you find the most of the cast-off nymph skins?
9. Did you discover animals or birds feeding upon the cicada?
LEAFLET LXXI.
A HOME FOR FRIENDLY LITTLE NEIGHBORS.[92]
BY ALICE G. MCCLOSKEY.
(Compare Leaflet XVII.)
[92] Junior Naturalist Monthly, October, 1902.
[Illustration]
Last year when vacation days were over our young people found it hard to
leave the acquaintances that they had made during the summer,--the
garden-folk, the road-side-folk, and the wood-folk. Let us take them
indoors with us this year. It will not be difficult to provide a home
for some of the more friendly ones and they will help to make the
schoolroom a cheerful place. How pleasant it will be in the long
afternoons to hear the cricket's merry tune or see the flutter of a
butterfly's wings! The quiet woods and the green fields will then seem
nearer and we shall feel a little touch of their mystery and beauty.
It is not necessary to have a fine home for the outdoor-folk. They will
not object if it is not an up-to-date dwelling. Fig. 341 illustrates a
very convenient terrarium, as the home is called. The sides and top are
covered with fine wire screening and the front is glass. By raising the
cover, which is fastened to one side by means of hinges, new visitors
can be admitted easily.
Another terrarium is shown in Fig. 126, page 208. This is made from an
old berry crate. It does not look quite so well as the other, but, as I
said before, the inmates will not mind a bit. The toads will give their
high jump as gracefully and the crickets fiddle as merrily as in the
finer one.
When the terrarium is ready to furnish, you can have some nature-study
trips in search of materials for it. Cover the floor with stones and
place about three inches of good soil over them. Then you will be ready
to select the carpet. Let this be of soft green moss, the prettiest bits
that you can find on the forest floor. Leave one corner free for sods
on which tall grasses grow, so that there will be a cozy nook for the
orchestra (crickets, grasshoppers, katydids, and the like). What a fine
concert there will be! Will the most conceited toad in the terrarium
ever dare to raise his voice in song again after hearing it? Perhaps
next spring we shall know.
[Illustration: _Fig. 341. A shower for the little neighbors._]
Even before the home is completed, you can gather your small guests
about you. Temporary lodgings can be provided without much trouble. Fig.
342 illustrates a good insect cage, and a box containing damp moss and
covered with mosquito netting will make fairly comfortable quarters for
salamanders ("lizards") and toads.
The first visitor that you welcome will probably be a little
woolly-bear, a brown and black caterpillar that you see so often in your
autumn walks (Fig. 343). He is one of my favorite insect friends, and I
really like to have him snuggle up in a furry ball in my hand. You will
find woolly-bear a very restless little creature. You never know what he
is going to do next. He may spin a cocoon this fall or "he may curl up
like a woodchuck," as Uncle John says, and sleep until spring. Then, if
all goes well, he will spin his cocoon and come out an Isabella
tiger-moth (Fig. 344). No matter how fast woolly-bear may be hurrying
along the highway when you meet him, put him into the terrarium, for you
will find that he is a most entertaining little fellow.
If you have an insect net, sweep it among shrubs and weeds. I am hoping
that when you look into it you will find "golden-eyes" or the
lace-winged-fly. When you see the pretty little green creature you will
wonder that her children can be called aphis-lions, for they are not at
all like their mother (Fig. 345); but when you have watched them among
the aphids or plant-lice, you will understand how they have earned their
name. They have very long jaws and very large appetites.
No one knows better than golden-eyes what her children are capable of
doing when on a foraging tour. For this reason she places her eggs high
on silken stalks (Fig. 345). If she laid them on the leaf close
together, the first aphis-lion hatched would not give the other members
of his family a chance to open their eyes, nor to know how pleasant it
is to live on a green leaf. As it is he walks down the silken stalk and
finds himself among the aphids. Then, when he has proved himself the
gardener's friend by devouring a great many of the small green insects,
he spins a pearly white cocoon and out of this comes a lace-winged-fly
with glistening golden eyes. If one of these dainty creatures comes to
live in your terrarium, you may notice some day that it has a
disagreeable odor. This is a characteristic that many insects possess,
and owing to it the birds do not like to eat them.
There is another insect out in the garden that ought to be an inmate of
every terrarium this fall, the green cabbage-worm. Some Junior gardeners
will object to calling this a friendly little neighbor, but you will
find that he will teach you many new things, in this way proving himself
friendly to you as a naturalist. You must remember that these green
caterpillars did not know that you had planted the garden in which they
worked destruction. They did not know that you wanted to send the very
best cabbage to the State fair. They knew only that when they opened
their eyes they were on a green leaf and it was good to eat.
Probably you will find the eggs of the cabbage butterfly on the under
side of the leaves. Then you can feed the young caterpillars when they
hatch. They will, of course, prefer cabbage leaves. If you miss them
some day, search in the terrarium for the chrysalids into which they
have changed. These chrysalids sometimes imitate the color of the
support from which they hang, and you may have difficulty in finding
them. For this reason it may be well to keep one of the caterpillars
under a lamp chimney, the top of which has been covered with mosquito
netting (Fig. 342), so that you may know how the chrysalids look.
The cabbage butterflies are familiar to most boys and girls; yet as they
come out of the chrysalid state in your terrarium, you will be able to
observe them more closely. Notice that the wings are dull white on the
upper sides, while on the under side the apex of the fore wings and the
entire surface of the hind wings are pale lemon yellow. In the female
you will find that there are two black spots besides the tip on each of
the fore wings, and in the male there is but one.
[Illustration: _Fig. 342. An insect cage._]
Now that I have put you in the way to find a few members of the insect
world for your terrarium, I am going to ask you to think about some
other outdoor-folk that naturalists learn to like.
Have you ever turned over stones or broken off pieces of an old stump in
the woods or along the bank of a stream? If so, you may have seen
salamanders ("lizards") making their escape as quickly as possible. If
you can get a few for your terrarium you will learn to like them, for
they are harmless and have very interesting ways. Do not catch them by
their tails as they try to get away, or you may find that you have
captured the tails but lost the salamanders.
[Illustration: _Fig. 343. Woolly-bear, natural size._]
Let the excursion in search of these little fellows be one of the
jolliest of the year. You will find them in moist places and should
therefore, carry a box containing damp moss to put them in. I would
suggest that you take two boxes along, one for the smaller salamanders,
the other for their larger brothers. Why? I will tell you.