for the reason that high-school students were too young to learn to manipulate the instrument. As evidence of the feeling, I need but refer to the preface in Gray's Textbook of Botany, in which this is given as a reason why the study of the Cryptogams is omitted from this book. On account of Professor Gray's position as a botanist in this country, his dictum was received without question, and for ten years longer few attempts were made to extend the study of botany in high schools to the lower forms of plant life.

The appearance of Sach's Textbook of Botany in 1884 with its new classifications of plant forms and the broader view it gave by including structure and function as essential to a correct understanding of plant life, made the use of the microscope necessary.

Teachers began to learn that the difficulties in the manipulation of the instrument were not so great but that students of high-school age, with a little instruction and practice, could do profitable work. A similar change took place in our method of teaching zoölogy. The new science, introduced by Huxley under the name of biology covering both fields, was now given a place in the high-school curriculum.

With this brief historical sketch of the evolution of the microscope and its gradual application in scientific investigation, we are brought to the time when the modern laboratory methods of teaching the biological sciences in our high schools had their beginning.

In describing the kinds and amounts of microscopic work valuable for high-school students, I shall confine myself largely to my own experience in teaching. I do not pretend to say that these are all the applications of the microscope that can be made in teaching the subjects that I shall mention, but that they are such as I have found by experience to be possible and valuable.

The fundamental fact that, in all our studies of living organisms, should constantly be born in mind is this, that no matter how great the variety of form and structure of the organs which make up the individual as a whole, the life of the individual is the sum of the life activities of all the cells. The more we know of an organism the better we are able to understand its various activities and the conditions under which it can live and grow and multiply.

Since it is impossible, on account of the time limit that is set to the various subjects that are presented for study in a high-school course, to study many forms of plant and animal life, it becomes necessary to choose for our study such forms as best represent the typical structures of the different classes. There may be some difference of opinion among teachers as to what are the best types. Then, again, there is also the matter of availability of material. It is not always easy to find the best types in the vicinity in which you happen to live and you are therefore compelled to choose some related type as the material for study.

The examples which I shall give, which require the use of the microscope, lay no claim to logical order of study but are merely given as illustrations of what may be done profitably by high-school students.

Beginning with the plant world, I would choose, on account of its simple structure, its large transparent cells, and its abundance in all ponds and slow flowing streams, the alga spirogyra. It lends itself as an interesting study of the phenomenon of cell growth and cell division, of the properties of chlorophyll, of starch production, of conjugation, and spore formation.

In Vaucheria, another one of the algae, we see a different but simpler structure with a form or reproduction resembling that of higher plants. As an example of a unicellular plant, the protococcus gives us a view of multiplication by simple cell division with a motile stage.

A study of the fungi is valuable on account of their practical relation to household economy. A knowledge of their growth and reproduction gives the housewife an intelligent insight and reason for the various means she uses for preserving fruit. The common green mold, penicillium glaucum, and the white mold, mucor mucedo, are the best subjects for this study.

Another plant whose product profoundly affects the welfare of man, is yeast. From its study we learn that it is a plant because it has the power of constructing protein from inorganic substances, that it multiplies by budding or gemmation, that it is killed by heat, that it is the cause of fermentation in all liquids containing sugar, by decomposing the latter and that the product of this decomposition is alcohol. It has a practical value for the housewife in that it teaches her the secret of bread-making.

The liverworts, mosses, and ferns should receive attention because in these three classes of plants we are introduced, besides difference in structure, to a feature in plant reproduction known as alternation of generation. Its two distinct sexual organs, the archegonia and antheridia, differing in form and very unlike the same organs in flowering plants. The lichens, so frequently called mosses, deserve notice not only on account of their wide distribution in nature but as an illustration of that singular phenomenon called symbiosis in which an alga and a fungus keep house together and form a single organism.

In this connection, the historical fact may be mentioned that for 300 years the true character of a lichen remained a puzzle to botanists until the riddle was solved by the studies of Bornet in 1860.

The use of the microscope is essential in the study of the histology of the spermatophytes and the organs of reproduction, such as the stamens and the formation of the pollen, the stigma, style, and ovary with its contents. The function of the leaf as determined by its structure, its epidermal cells, its stomata with their guard cells and their relation to the respiration of the plant; the intercellular spaces, the mesophyll with its chloroplasts and other products.

The structure of the stem with its fibro-vascular bundles, its bast fibers, and sieve tubes. The difference in structure of the Monocotyledonous and Dicotyledonous stem. The structure of the root, with its rhizoids and their cells and the osmotic action of the inclosed protoplasm.

In zoology, we need the use of the microscope in the study of all the unicellular organisms and in the histology and minute structure of the organs of the more highly organized animals.

I know of no better organism with which to begin this subject than the amoeba. We have here a bit of protoplasm exhibiting all the manifestations of a living being in its simplest form, contractility, irritability, and the whole series of processes included under the term of metabolism.

This study has another value for those who subsequently take a course in human physiology for it makes clear to them the peculiar function of the leucocytes of the blood acting as phagocytes.

Their amoebid character and their mode of injestion can only be understood by recalling to mind the study of the amoeba. Other unicellular organisms such as the vorticella and paramoecium, should follow to show differentiation of cell wall for special purposes.

The simple multicellular hydra, the fresh water sponge, the insect with its mouth parts, its nervous system, its spiracles and tracheae, the minute anatomy of the higher animals such as the clam, the earthworm and the crayfish, all require the aid of the microscope to understand their structure.

In the study of the human body the function of many of the organs can only be understood by careful study of their finer structure. For this purpose, carefully prepared sections of the human skin, to show sweat and sebaceous glands, and sections of the small intestines to show the villi, should be studied.

Ciliated cells of the air passage should be seen in order to show their relations to dust in breathing. The function of the kidneys is made clear by observing the structure of the glomeruli and Henle's loops. The double character of the muscle fibers of the heart, and the structure of voluntary and involuntary muscle fibers should receive attention.

The circulation of the blood through the capillaries cannot be understood until your pupils see it in the web of the frog's foot or the tail of a small fish.

It is only by studying a thin section of a bone that we can realize that it is not a hard compact body and that its growth and nutrition depends upon its porosity and the flow of the blood and lymph through it.

Nerve cells and nerve fibers, sections of the retina, the composition of the blood, the characteristic structure of lung tissue, of hair and finger nails, of epidermal cells, etc., all afford valuable and interesting information.

With these examples as illustrations I believe I have sufficiently indicated the character and scope of the work that can be done by high-school students in the study of the natural sciences that are usually included in the curricula of secondary schools.

Another subject that has not yet been accorded a place in such a curriculum but which, on account of the wonderful advances that have been made in it and also for the reason that a great deal of ignorance and error prevail in the public mind regarding the nature of the organisms which have been the subject of these investigations, should receive attention. is bacteriology. I know that I am venturing upon debatable ground when I broach this subject but I feel that no more practical information than a course of this kind can furnish our pupils can be found.

The labors of Pasteur, Koch, Bering, and a host of other investigators, have established, beyond a doubt, that nearly all infectious diseases are due to bacteria. It is further a well-ascertained fact that bacteria are living organisms and therefore subject to such limitations as food, temperature, light, and moisture. Every bacterium is the offspring of a pre-existing one, no matter how favorable the conditions for its growth and development are. No disease germ can come into existence without a progenitor. Filth and dirt cannot breed disease germs before a germ has been planted in them. But all bacteria are not harmful, the fact is that only a few of them are really dangerous to health. However their distribution in nature is so universal and they enter into our household economy at so many points that a knowledge of their nature, the conditions under which they live, their growth, and the means that can be used to counteract them should be in the possession of every intelligent person.

Now, I take it that it is the function of the high school to prepare the students for practical life, to put them in possession of all those facts that shall enable them to protect themselves against agencies that may handicap their usefulness, not only in the community in which they live, but also themselves and their families. Good health is essential to our happiness and well-being and depends largely upon wholesome food.

We know that all putrefactive fermentation is the result of bacterial activity and that bacteria are the chief source of the changes that make food deleterious to health.

It is said that seeing is believing and that nothing so effectively impresses itself upon our mind than an ocular demonstration.

By the aid of a properly prepared culture medium, a number of experiments can be made before the class that will not only be highly interesting and instructive but will also put in the possession of the pupil a knowledge of the character of bacteria and their work in the economy of nature that cannot fail to be of great value to him in after life.

As an illustration, I will briefly state some of the facts that can thus be learned. The student can be shown that bacteria are in the air everywhere, that dust is the means of spreading them. That they are found in ice and that this is therefore a source of danger in drinking-water and iced tea.

Milk is especially favorable to their growth and hence can be readily infected with disease germs.

The success in modern surgery depends wholly upon the care of the surgeon in excluding them from open wounds. It is a well-known fact that touching an open wound with dirty fingers or even picking a pimple with an unclean pin has been the cause of bloodpoisoning.

It can be shown that the common house fly may be the cause of spreading an infectious disease such as typhoid fever and consumption by coming in contact with our food.

Bacteria are found in the saliva and on our teeth thus causing their decay.

The whole process of sterilizing can be made clear and practically illustrated. The nature of disinfectants and how they affect disease germs, the effect of boiling, of freezing, and of light, all can be demonstrated by experiments.

These examples, which can be greatly multiplied, seem to me are a sufficient justification of my plea for a course of practical bacteriology to be given with every course in human physiology in the high school. That the knowledge thus gained is of great practical value cannot be denied. That it can be done has been proved by the experience of those who have undertaken it.

IV. MISCROSCOPIC PROJECTION IN BIOLOGY

C. T. WRIGHT, DEPARTMENT OF PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY, HIGH SCHOOL, REDLANDS, CAL. Equipment

College bench lantern with right-angle arc.

Four condensing lenses 61′′, 7′′, 71", 9" focal lengths.

Water-tank to intercept heat.

Microscope stage with micrometer stage attachment for fine focus, three objectives, 1", ", and ", two concave lenses for amplifiers, and substage condenser for highpower illumination.

Smooth white plaster for permanent screen.

Semi-transparent screen of tracing cloth mounted on a frame.

Drawing-board and crayons.

Slides, microtome, stains, etc., for temporary slides.

Operation

(1) Project the object with rather low power to get general outlines and to locate part of special interest.

(2) Use higher power for details, using substage condenser for strong illumination and micrometer stage attachment for fine focus. A field glass or opera glass previously focussed on the screen is useful. For close study of details with high power use screen of tracing cloth, students grouped close on both sides.

(3) Substitute drawing-board for screen and trace the part that is to be reproduced in notebooks. This may be done in the light while students are working on other things by surrounding the drawing-board by a large box painted black on the inside.

(4) Measurements are made by using a black piece of an old negative, cut to the size of a slide on which millimeter and fractional millimeter lines have been scratched by a needle mounted on the microtome. The length of a millimeter is indicated by an arrow on each tracing and also its length in millimeters which is the magnifying power.

After the student has made his drawing to any convenient size he measures it in millimeters and using it as the numerator and the length of tracing as denominator he multiplies this fraction into the power indicated on the tracing and indicates this result as the actual magnifying power of his drawing.

Advantages

(1) One microscopic attachment and one extra microscope for teacher's use is sufficient for the whole class.

(2) One slide of each subject and all working on the same thing at once instead of as many sets of slides as there are students in the class, or each student on a different topic.

(3) No eye strain.

(4) No time wasted studying air bubbles and unessential parts.

(5) The subject can be thoroly demonstrated before the class before the student begins his work on it.

(6) Teacher is sure that he and the pupil both see and discuss the same thing.

THE RELATION OF HIGH SCHOOLS TO INDUSTRIAL LIFE E. W. LYTTLE, INSPECTOR, NEW YORK EDUCATION DEPARTMENT, ALBANY, N. Y. The West is large; so is our topic. The industries that have created the West and the interest of the West in schools have no parallels in history. Therefore our topic needs not to apologize for its presence.

Enrolling 1 per cent. of the total population, employing upwards of 36,000 of the most skilled, tho not of the most learned of our teachers, costing in public support, in the private maintenance of pupils, and in the withdrawal of pupils from the industrial activity, about $200,000,000 annually, secondary education in the United States appears already to occupy no small place in our industrial life.

Moreover, the high-school industry is a growing one. Between 1890 and 1904 public high schools and high-school enrolment each increased over threefold. This increase was unusually large because of the rapid conversion of academies into public high schools, and recently has been checked by the unusual demands of business and a high wage scale; yet the report of the commissioner of education for 1904 shows an annual increase of over 5 per cent. of high-school enrolment. Today over 86 per cent. of these secondary pupils are in public high schools.

If one may find the prophecy in present tendencies, it is safe to say that as soon as the high school can be more perfectly adjusted to life thru the adoption of better courses of study and better methods thru the establishment of evening high schools and continuation courses, 5 or 6 per cent. of our population will be enrolled in secondary schools.

It has been intimated that our high schools are imperfectly adjusted to life. Wherever high-school courses are planned almost exclusively for the onethird of the graduates who prepare for college, and ignore the claims of the other two-thirds, that criticism will have value tho it is less valid than a materialistic age and a commercial spirit conceive it to be.

As high-school principals, we must crave the indulgence of the public for a while yet. We have been so busy growing that we have had little time for careful adjustments. Moreover, from the beginning, the public high school has been the football of the educator politician and of the college professor whose little German is a dangerous thing. Without collusion or mutual agreement, these two have been kicking toward the same goal. Each would make the high school a university, the one by enlarging the curriculum to include everything useful, the other by insisting that everything useful shall be taught in a perfectly useless way. Apparently neither has comprehended the educational axiom of the great apostle to the gentiles, "When I was a child, I spake as a child, I thought as a child, I understood as a child." Under the stimulating efforts of these two friends, our educational system has so increased in stature that it appears today like an overgrown schoolboy whose trousers and waistcoat have parted company by several inches.