sight the subject always, and then give each feature of the object described only that prominence which its importance warrants.

It may be best to begin with a description of the general appearance of the plant. The reader will be better satisfied if he has at the outset some sort of outline picture of the whole. Then proceed to details. Take up in succession, so far as the plant in question possesses these organs, root, stem, branches, foliage, flowers, fruit. General considerations will followvarieties, uses, associations. If you are describing the oak, note its symbolism as illustrated in the derivation of our word robust; note too its connection with Dodonæan and Druidic rites. In like manner the palm has a symbolism of its own and will call up more than one scriptural and classical allusion. There is a saying among the Arabs that "the palm tree has three hundred and sixty uses.'

However, do not get the idea from what has been said that one particular order must always be followed. Such a practice would result in very mechanical, inflexible, monotonous composition. Many subjects will admit being treated in half a dozen orders, each of which has a defensible claim to the attribute of natural. Writers of genius may even depart from natural order altogether and still produce a happy effect. When you have thoroughly trained yourself in the systematic treatment of subjects so that the most intractable material will assume under your hands symmetry and just proportion, then you may more safely venture to strike out upon whatever lines your fancy suggests. Cultivated taste will have to be your guide.

MODEL.

THE JUDAS-TREE.

Those who have traveled through the limestone districts of Pennsylvania during the early part of May, will remember with pleasure the beauty of the landscape. At that time the large trees of June-berry are a mass of white bloom, and every brake and thicket is richly decorated with the glowing red of the Judastree and the snowy flowers of the wild plum in pleasing contrast. All of these trees are desirable for ornamental planting, blooming as they do very early in the season, before the foliage has developed, and making a gorgeous display by the profusion of flowers which they never fail to produce. But the most lasting and pleasing of the three is the Judas-tree, or red-bud, botanically known as Cercis Canadensis.

This beautiful tree belongs to the great order Leguminosa, which includes the black locust, the honey locust, the coffee-tree, and many other trees prized in ornamental gardening. The flower buds, which are clustered at the leaf axils along the stem, begin to swell at the dawn of spring, and in southern Pennsylvania are showing their color by the middle of April. They continue to develop in size and brilliancy for several weeks, and it is not until the middle of May that the banner-like petals are unfolded and the bud assumes a peculiar bird-like form. A dozen or more of these little flowers are found in each cluster, and by a little stretch of the imagination, they remind one of as many miniature humming-birds vying with each other for a share of the honey from some nectared flowers.

The trees are often found from twenty to thirty feet in height, with a branching, semi-globular top almost as many feet in diameter, supported by a trunk fifteen to twenty-five inches in circumference. In full bloom, such trees are a mass of soft crimson color, and may be seen across the landscape for miles. As the flowers begin to fade, the rich, broad, green leaves expand, and clothe the tree with dense verdure, which furnishes a delightful shade the entire season. This is further intensified by the profusion of long, compressed green seed-pods which turn to a brownish red during autumn, and by their number and

length, as well as peculiar color, excite the curiosity and admiration of those who see the tree or enjoy its shade.

Propagation is easily effected by seeds, and the trees are easily transplanted and do well in the most exposed situations.

With

all these characteristics, it seems strange that the Judas-tree is not generally used for ornamental gardening. - Ladies' Home Companion.

Take half a dozen beans or grains of corn or other seed, and plant them in warm, moist earth. Examine one each day and from your examination describe as well as you can the process of growth. The more mysterious processes of change in organic structure, of cellular growth and multiplication, must of course be left for the microscope of the skilled botanist.

This is very plainly description though it assumes to deal with activity. We describe the plant as it appears at different stages of the activity, and that is about all. We see it before the change takes place, we see it again. afterward, but just what that change consists in deeper than this external manifestation of it, is extremely difficult if not quite impossible to say.

There is to be noted in vegetable life much activity apart from mere growth, movements that look toward self-defense, self-sustenance, self-preservation, movements that exhibit many of the characteristics of animal instinct. This is one of the things that forbid us to draw a sharp line between the two kingdoms. The observation of these movements will furnish material for very interesting descriptions.

Any Natural History will furnish a wealth of information on these subjects. And various works of such authors as John Burroughs, Olive Thorne Miller, Maurice Thompson, and John B. Grant, may be consulted both for matter and for good examples of the way in which the matter should be treated. But do not consult these books first if you wish to get the maximum of profit from this exercise. Here, as always, observe for yourself. Half an hour spent before a cage of monkeys or a tank of fish, will be more fruitful than the reading of a chapter from any book. Go to books

:

to settle points that you have no means of settling for yourself, and to verify the results of your observation. Do not be disappointed to find them verified the young investigator is sometimes apt to feel that way. Be encouraged rather, for while the verification does not detract in the least from the merit of your own discovery, it increases your confidence in your own powers.

It is not intended here that you shall dissect an animal and describe it down to the minutest details of its organism, although that may be done. But an abundance of subject-matter may be found apart from this. If you are interested in birds, note the varieties that are to be found in your neighborhood; the time of arrival and departure of the migratory ones; the respective sizes, and lengths of beaks, wings, legs, claws; the extremes of color variation in the same species; the notes or calls; the manner of running on the ground; the favorite resorts, food, etc. Speaking of bird-notes calls to mind a very interesting essay read before a class by a boy who had a good ear for music and a talent for whistling. He imitated so well the notes of half a dozen different birds that they were immediately recognized by his hearers. The same thing may be conveyed to readers, though in a more imperfect way, by the use of musical notation. See S. P. Cheney's Wood Notes Wild.

The numerous points just suggested would furnish too much matter for an ordinary composition. Either confine yourself to one species of animal, or to the comparison of different species in respect to some particular feature. For example, "Bird Beaks" would