On the study of natural history as a branch of general education in schools and colleges : being a paper read before the Natural History Society of Belfast on the evening of Thursday the 26th Nov. 1840 / By Robert Patterson.

  • Patterson, Robert, 1802-1872.
Date:
1840
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On the study of natural history as a branch of general education in schools and colleges : being a paper read before the Natural History Society of Belfast on the evening of Thursday the 26th Nov. 1840 / By Robert Patterson. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    they may seem ludicrous, afford, on the whole, melancholy ex¬ amples of the evils produced by ignorance, of time and labour misemployed, money uselessly squandered, and, sometimes, a temporary annoyance or loss, increased tenfold by the injudicious effort made for its removal. If to the- weight of such evidence we add the fact, that the whole of our food, clothing, and habitations, are of necessity derived from the animal, vegetable, or mineral kingdoms, there will not, it is presumed, be any one hardy enough to deny that a correct knowledge of such things must be both desirable and advantageous. It is not, however, from these considerations that I have been induced to come forward as the advocate of Natural His¬ tory. I pass on, therefore, to consider the EFFECTS OF THE STUDY OF NATURAL HISTORY ON THE MENTAL FACULTIES AND FEELINGS. % It may be premised, that the study, though suitable for manhood, is highly attractive to youth; and bends itself, with easy adaptation, to the varying intellectual capacities of its votaries. To the very young,—to children only four or five years old, its objects are perhaps among the most pleasing that can be presented to their notice. At that age, when the obser¬ vant faculties are in constant action, and the reasoning powers are as yet immature, the flowers, the shells, the birds, or quad¬ rupeds, by which the child is surrounded, form naturally the primary subjects of his admiration and inquiry. Those who have had any experience in the management of children will testify with what delight they listen to stories about such things, when the narrator possesses the art of making himself intelligible to the capacity of his auditors. How frequently is he again and again asked for the recital, while each repetition serves only to enhance its charms. Should the teacher be collecting flowers in spring, or gathering the shells which are scattered over the strand, he will find in children his most delighted and zealous assistants, and will mark with what facility they can be taught to discriminate the several kinds, and to recollect the names of those which are the most attrac¬ tive. And if the same individual — whether a parent or a