Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-07-02
LI1IILE@oRlEs
.6rbEDTlnE
BIZ THORNTON ". BURGESS.
Copyright. 1917. by T. ". Burgess)
Learning by Doing.
The surest way to learn . thing
II Just to try to do 1t.
And then to try and try and trJ
IL ran RAallY Inau- IL

As II you really knew 1t.
And the frst thing you know you will
End that you will know it. There is
nothing like learning by doing. You
that you have learned just how to do
1t yourself, but when you come to try
II you hnd It Is a very different matter.
Now. Mrs. Billy Mink knows this So
does Billy. No one knows 1t better than
they do. So when their five babies were
Just . little too big to be called babies
any longer. or at least too big to feel
that they were babies. Mrs. Billy began
World. At least she began to teach
them the ways Of that part of the Great
World which would be likely to concern
q healthy Mink.
OF course. the little people of the
Green Forest and the Green Meadows
are not taught out Of books or in the
way that little boys and girls are taught
They are taught altogether in the great
School Of Experience. which is the school
81 le.Inins BY do,nE And they begin
help them out Of trouble when they
make mistakes and to keep them from
harm. Also she shows them how to do
things. She does It by doing a thing,
Ind they, being natural little imitators,
try to do the same thing, and 50 they
learn
THAT was the way it was with Mrs.
BILLY Mink and the nve little Minks.
she took them for walk in the Green
Forest. First she led them to an old
stump which was very much rotted and
In this she began to dig. for 1t was 50
decayed that It was what is called
punk. and her sharp claws made It ny.
Seeing her dig. the five little Minks
began to. dig. too. and thought it great
fun. Presently a beetle ran out and
their mother ponnced on 1t and ate It.
The fve little Minks watched her and
ohA hn0
70 dig again and 30 did they. Almost
right away another beetle ran out right
under the nose Of one Of the little Minks.
He knew what to do. OF course. He
his lips. while the mouths Of the other
little Minks watered.
WAS 1t good?' asked one.
M-m-m-m." was all the lucky one
said. and began to hunt for another.
But there were no more in this par
ocuiar old stump and Mother Mink led
them to an old log under which were
some more beetles. enough for every
little Mink to have one. So they learned
that beetles were good to eat. and where
to look for them and how to get them.
a little farther on Mrs. Billy sud
Denly stopped and stood perfectly still.
The five little Minks did just as she
did. though why she did it they hadn't
the least idea But presently they heard
Footsteps. Mothers ears. being trained,
had heard them first. They saw her
snamng the AIR and SO they smiled. too.
and presently they smelled something
strange.
Hide" said their mother sharply but
SOFTLY. and darted under q heap Of brush.
The nve little Minks did the same thing
just because she did. The footsteps came
nearer and nearer. and peeping out they
saw some one SO big they couldn't be-
lieve their own eyes. They hadn't dream
Cd that any one could be SO big. It was
Buster Bear. They could smell him
very strongly now and they didn't like
the smell. because they knew that he
was some one to fear. or Mother would
not. have hidden. So they learned to use
their ears and their noses. and the next
time they met Buster Bear they would
They had learned 1t by doing it. And
many moro things they learned in Just
that same way before they returned to
the hollow log under the pile of brush
beside the Laughing Brook