Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-07-02
NEVER SAW A cow.
Plight of Hundreds Of Children or
New York's Lower East Side.

New York's Lower East Side.
From the New York Herald.
Astonishing cases of ignorance, not only
of nature but of their own environment, on
the part of the school children of New York
have come to light as the result of joint
labors of the American Museum of Natural
History and the board of education. Thou-
sands of the pupils have never wandered
more than three or four blocks from the
street in which they were born, ana the
book of nature is practically sealed to them.
The only ANIMALS they ever have seen are
horses, dogs and cats; the only bird with
which they are familiar is the English spar
row.
How many children on the East Side
have ever seen a cow, for instance?' asked
George II. Sherwood of the museum yes
terday. Il venture TO say there are thou
sands and thousands of them. The ques-
ton was asked of class of sixty the other
day. Only one boy raised his hand.
well, how big is cow? SO big, was
his reply. spreading his hands to width
which would indicate the length of a dog.
Did you ever see one?' he was asked. Oh
sure was the reply. Il saw 1t in-the win
dow of a dairy-a picture of it"
Answers such that, IT is argued, show
the futility of trying to teach anything in
the way of natural science by pictures or
photographs.
1t would be thought. for instance that
pupils might go to the parks to observe
the ways of birds and animals. There are
many East Side children who have never
3D. avenue, a street which Is less
than three-quarters of a mile from a school
in which inquiries were made. DR.. Bum
pus, a director of the museum, recently
Instituted a series of lectures for school
children. They were brought to the lecture
hall of the museum Hundreds of them
never in all their lives had been on the
elevated railroad and often in one class
there were five or six children who were III
after their journey.
Mr. Sherwood is now engaged in the prep
arationn Of his annual report in connection
of his work Of bringing the museum In
touch with the common schools.
MANY of the teachers" he said "a year
or SO ago wrote to DR.. Bumpus asking him
to give them a few specimens for use In
their nature talks, which are now required.
The director gave orders that small collec-
lions should be made up and lent to the
teachers who applied for them. Small cab
inets were made, in which We're placed col
lections of stuffed birds. mollusks, insects.
crabs, spOnges. corals. insects, star fishes,
mineral and native woods.
There were eight kinds of cabinets In all
and each school got one for three weeks at
a time. They have been circulated in the
year closing on June l through $50 schools
and the specimens have been seen and ham
died by about 100000 pupils. The result
has been an increased interest in nature
study.
We have had a course Of lectures for
teachers and the attendance of school chill
dren at the museum has risen from 5000
year to 1900 The most popular of the
collections have been those of the stuffed
birds of which there are ninety boxes
Or Bumpus has received many letters
from public school pupils telling of their
appreciation of the collections. Here Is one
from East Side girl. who says she thinks
the blue jay Is pretty. but she likes the
English sparrow best of ALL because It
was the only bird which she had ever seen
The stuffed birds are taken from the cases
and handed about the class room. Often
the teacher has to make descent to rescue
some of the birds. for the children will
press tire birds upon their breasts and
stroke their plummage for half an hour at
a time principal in a school in the
lower part Ct the city kept unruly class
for whom he had no teacher still for more
than an hour by letting them look at some
of the bird cases which he had received
The children have been induced to make
excursions to Coney Island, whence they
return laden with sand, clam shells and
seaweed."