cized words in "Reading and writing are important studies; Hunting is his favorite sport; Singing was taught them early," are not Nouns but Gerunds, is one involving a discrimination of "meaning and use" and not a choice of terms as above. He admits that many words ending in ing are Nouns. No doubt then he would say that reading in "The reading was bad," is a Noun. Now why is "reading" in the first a Verb (a Gerund, an Infinitive, or Participle) and not so in the last?. The only difference I can see is, that the latter has "the" before it, and the former has not. The presence of "the" may settle the question of what part of speech a word is, but I can not see how the absence of it determines what it is not. Such a test is put upon no other Noun.

Again, what do Reading, Writing, etc., here lack to make them Nouns? What verbal properties do they have that "Reading" in the last example does not possess? In "He studies reading; He learned surveying," certainly no one would go so far as to say that "reading" and "surveying" are not Nouns. Now, what is the difference between these and the ones he sees fit to call Gerunds?

I am in hearty sympathy with

the sentiment expressed by Dr. Findley in the March number of The Ohio Teacher, in which he says:

"It fell to my lot, not long ago, to coach a candidate for appointment to a cadetship at West Point. He had had all his school training in city schools, was then about midway in a four-years' high school course, and was a lad of about average mental ability. He had had "language lessons" and "lessons in English" galore, and had taken the regular course in English grammar in an up-to-date textbook. I found him fairly proficient in most of the studies, but very deficient in English grammar. For example, he could not distinguish between that as a relative pronoun and that as a pronominal adjective, and he was surprised to discover that the word that is sometimes used as a conjunction.

"I considered his case hopeless as to English grammar, but undertook to make the most of the situation. After two or three lessons in his up-to-date text-book, I threw it aside and put into his hands "Harvey's, English Grammar-Revised edition." A few lessons served to reveal to the young man that he knew very little grammar, and to get him fairly down to work. The result was that in the competitive examination he made a good grade in grammar, and took second rank among twenty-five candidates, receiving the appointment of alternate."

NOTES INTRODUCTORY.

By J. J. Burns.:

-I hope that every person who has the excellent intention to read the Course this year has a copy of the bulletin for 1900-1901. It contains the story, so far as it can be told in figures, of last year's Circle, and while the reader will see some things of which he does not approve, I believe that candor will affirm that the fair side of the story will throw light even into the shady places. It contains also the Course of Reading for the new year, and an appeal from the Secretary, which has at least the merits of brevity and earnestness, to those persons who on account of the vantage ground they occupy can decide the momentous question shall this year's work be crowned with a higher degree of success than any of its predecessors?

-There is an oft-spoken bit of wisdom which most fitly marks out the limitations of the Board of Control: You may lead a horse to the trough, but you can't make him drink. You can write down your mind on this extremely important subject, but it can not necessarily be said of you as it was said aforetime of the Ancient Mariner: "He stoppeth one of three"- three committeemen, three institute of

ficers or instructors, three members of the board of examiners. No, the "one" may not stop, and the other two may go on. This work demands of the person whose button-hole we try to catch, a goodly degree of unselfishness, a willingness to do some unpaid service for the betterment of others. Furthermore, if they are to do the best work as leaders in local clubs, they must confront not a theory of education to be lectured over, but condition, the realization of a need to pursue these very studies perhaps to read these very books.

- Last year my list of county secretaries did not cost such an expenditure of time, ink, postage, and begging as most of its predecessors had done. A large number of the Institutes saw to it that I should know the name and address of the person chosen to head the procession in their respective counties. Some flattered me by feeling confident that I could guess who was made secretary; in one county for some inscrutable reason, the matter was kept a secret—a jewel in a thrice-barred chest was high noon publicity compared to it.

-I wish to say here that if any secretary needs additional copies of the bulletin, let him make his want known.

-I am hopeful that we shall have the assistance of competent aids in conducting this department during the cooler months coming. (It is something over ninety out in my "book-shed" this afternoon, though the said edifice stands foursquare to every wind of heaven, or would, did not a solemn stillness hold all the air and I should not have pen in my perspiring hand had not a summons come in the noon mail from the editor.)

-Prof. Roark has promised to write for us, and some of the other living authors will probably comply with our request to give this department something preliminary, supplementary, or explanatory with reference to the book which has the honor of a place in our list.

A BIRD OR TWO IN THE BUSH.

For a full half hour this morning between the first streaks of day and the coming of the sun, a cardinal whistled in my garden, or perhaps from the sycamore just beyond; and when, hoe in hand, I took my customary saunter,— and one's garden is a sacred land (pity that the Cent. Dic. classes this among "absurd etymologies"), for there the burning bush still burns, -on the rude railing that props my tomato vines stood this feathered prince, looking as if the red rays from an acre of sunshine had focused in that spot.

I have not had him in my eye, but a titmouse has been almost un

intermittingly calling during the hot hours of this second half of the day.

It seems to me that our friends miss something they should hit, who go to Put-in-Bay and do not make at least a formal call upon the American eagle who is the bird king of the island. My near acquaintance with him began on the Fourth of July, '99. I found his nest, and as he was not at home I sat down on the dead leaves among the mosquitoes and the nerb Roberts and waited till he came. The next morning after our 1900 O. T. A. meeting had said its goodbye, I set forth across the island on foot from the Victory, bent on a visit to his Highness if I could find his palace. As I drew near the water, suddenly from a lowly perch where he had been waiting for his breakfast, with a clank, clank, he sprang into the air above the trees and sailed away, as I rightly surmised, toward his nest. It was no hard matter to follow him, for he obligingly circled back to the rear of my position, then away forward again.

The nest didn't look as if it had suffered any repairs this spring. On a short broken limb near it sat an eagle smaller than the one gyrating and clanking above, and with black head and tail, signs, as I read them, that it was a young bird hatched in the last year of the century, if eagles reckon time as we do.

SEPTEMBER.

With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,

And still more, later flowers for the bees,

Until they think warm days will

never cease,

For Summer has o'er brimm'd their clammy cells.

Who hath not seen thee oft amid

thy store?

Sometimes whoever seeks abroad may find

Thee sitting careless on a granary floor,

Thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind;

Or on a half-reap'd furrow sound asleep,

Drows'd with the fume of poppies, while thy hook

Spares the next swath and all its twined flowers;

And sometimes like a gleaner thou dost keep

Steady thy laden head across a brook;

Or by a cider press, with patient look,

Thou watchest the last oozings hours by hours.

Where are the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they?

Think not of them, thou hast thy music too,

While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day,

And touch the stubble-plains with rosy hue;

Then in a wailful choir the small

gnats mourn

Among the river sallows, borne aloft

Or sinking as the light wind lives

or dies;

And full-grown lambs loud bleat from hilly bourn; Hedge-crickets sing; and now with treble soft

The red-breast whistles from a garden-croft;

And gathering swallows twitter in the skies.

ARITHMETIC.

By Ed. M. Mills.

[For several months, Prof. Mills will continue his solutions of problems contained in the Institute Syllabus on Arithmetic.]

NOTE: The readers of this department of the MONTHLY may change the phrase total loss to net loss in problem IX and its solution. The word total was inadvertantly used instead of the word net.

16. My agent sold cotton at 4% commission, and invested of its value in sugar at I 1-3% commission, and then remitted the balance, $200; find his commission.

SOLUTION.

Out of every dollar in the receipts for cotton there was set aside first, 4 cents to pay agent's commission for selling the cotton; secondly, 75 cents to be invested

Out of every dollar in the receipts for hogs, the agent received first, 4 cents, and secondly, 20-120 or 1-6 of 96 cents 16 cents.

Then, 4 cents 16 cents = 20 cents, total amount of commission received by the agent out of every dollar in the receipts for hogs. But $400 total amount thus received. Then $400 ÷ 20 cents = 2,000, .. $2,000 value of hogs.

18. I contract to supply dressed poultry for $100, if fowls could be procured at 4 cents a pound; but if they can be procured at 3 cents, I will deduct 121% from my bill; find the cost of dressing per pound.