Abstract
THE object of this book is to present “a series of exact truths from natural history in a popular form.” The author's original intention was to write a number of essays upon insect life, and particularly upon the life of ants and spiders, which he has especially studied. Friends, however, persuaded him to give the essays a colloquial form, so that they might appeal to as wide a circle of readers as possible. We are not sure that the change was in all respects an improvement, for, as Dr. McCook says, “the truths of Nature are attractive enough in themselves, and need not the seasoning of fiction.” The book is very popular in the United States, and there can be little doubt that it will also be appreciated on this side of the Atlantic. The author is a keen and accurate observer of Nature, and his enthusiasm for his subject is so steadily maintained that it cannot but exert some influence on the minds of young students. For the present edition a brief introduction has been written by Sir John Lubbock, who bears cordial testimony to the fidelity and skill with which Dr. McCook has carried on his researches. The work is remarkably well illustrated.
Tenants of an Old Farm.
By Henry C. McCook (London; Hodder and Stoughton, 1888.)
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Our Book Shelf . Nature 37, 363 (1888). https://doi.org/10.1038/037363a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/037363a0