Page 399 - Our Vanishing Wild Life

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TEACHING WILD LIFE PROTECTION TO THE YOUNG
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resources of nature, and especially wild life, must be conserved. To per- mit boys to grow up and acquire <:^ns without this knowledge is very WTong.
The Duty of Teachers and Schools.—A great deal of "nature study"isbeingtaughtinthepublicschoolsoftheUnitedStates. That the young people of our land should be taught to appreciate the works of nature, and especially animal life and plant life, is very desirable. Thus far, however, there is a screw loose in the system, and that is the shortage in definite, positive instruction regarding individual duty toward the wild creatures,greatandsmall. Alongwiththeirnaturestudiesallourschool children should be taught, in the imperative mood:
1. That it is wrong to disturb breeding birds, or rob birds' nests;
2. That it is wrong to destroy any harmless living creature not properly classed as game, except it be to preserve it in a museum
3. Thatitisnolongerrightforcivilizedmantolookuponwildgame as necessary food; because there is plenty of other food, and the rem- nant of game can not withstand slaughter in that basis;
4. That the time has come when it is the duty of every good citizen to take an active, aggressive part in preventing the destruction of wild life, and in promoting its preservation;
5. Thateveryboyandgirlovertwelveyearsofagecandosomething in this cause, and finally,
6. That protection and encouragement will bring back the almost vanished birds.
We call upon all boards of education, all principals of schools and all teachers to educate our boys and girls, constantly and imperatively, along those lines. Teachers, do not say to your pupils,—"It is right and nice to protect birds," but say: "It is your Duty to protect all harmless wild things, and you must do it!''
In a good cause, there is great virtue in " Must."
Really, we are losing each year an immense amount of available wild- life protection. The doctrine of imperative individual duty never yet hasbeentaughtinourschoolsasitshouldbetaught. Afewteachers have, indeed, covered this ground; but I am convinced that their pro- portion is mighty small.
Text Books.—The writers of the nature study text books are very much to blame because nine-tenths of the time this subject has been ignored. Thesituationhasnotbeentakenseriously,saveinafewcases, by a very few authors. I am glad to report that in 1912 there was pubhshed a fine text book by Professor James W. Peabody, of the Morris High School, New York, and Dr. Arthur E. Hunt, in which from begin- ning to end the duty to protect wild life is strongly insisted upon. It is entitled "Elementary Biology; Plants, Animals and Man."
Hereafter, no zoological or nature study text book should be given a place in any school in America unless the author of it has done his full share in setting forth the duty of the young citizen toward wild life. Were
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