At one time or another, perhaps all of us are given to the belief that all flowers blossom for our especial enjoyment. It is hard to think back for a thousand years and imagine hepaticas blooming on our New York hills; yet no doubt, they blossomed then in far greater numbers than they do to-day. Many of our native plants played their part in sustaining the lives of the native Americans, and that little preacher, Jack-in-the-pulpit, was a turnip long before he was a preacher. Indian turnip was his name in the days of our ancestors because the Indians boiled his bulb-like root and the ripe berries, thus making them a less peppery and a more palatable food. The St. Nicholas Magazine was for so many years the organ through which Jack preached so many sermons to children all over our land that he is even to-day one of the best loved of the woodland flowers. Whittier, in his "Child Life," and Lucy Larcom have both celebrated Jack-in-the-pulpit in song, and these verses should be given to the children when they are studying the habits of this interesting plant. Jack-in-the-pulpit is a wild cousin of the over-civilized calla lily. It is interesting to study the way the flowers resemble each other, and this you and the children will be able to study for yourselves. It will teach you that the showy parts of a blossom may be merely a protection, and an advertisement for the true flower hidden within. QUESTIONS CONCERNING JACK-IN-THE-PULPIT. 1. Where do you find this plant, in dry or in wet locations? 2. What is the shape of the root? Is it pleasant to the taste? 3. How do the leaves look when they first appear above the ground? 4. How far are the leaves developed when the flowers appear? 5. Does the tip of the hood fold over at first? 6. Do you see a resemblance to the calla lily when you bend the tip of the hood backward? Compare or contrast the two plants. 7. How many leaves has Jack-in-the-pulpit? Are they simple or compound? 8. What are the colors of the "pulpits" in your locality? LEAFLET XLII. INDIAN CORN.[56] BY ANNA BOTSFORD COMSTOCK. [56] Home Nature-Study Course, Vol. IV, No. 32, May, 1903. _"Hail! Ha-wen-ni-yu! Listen with open ears to the words of thy people. Continue to listen. We thank our mother earth which sustains us. We thank the winds which have banished disease. We thank He-no for rain. We thank the moon and stars which give us light when the sun has gone to rest. We thank the sun for warmth and light by day. Keep us from evil ways that the sun may never hide his face from us for shame and leave us in darkness. We thank thee, oh, mighty Ha-wen-ni-yu that we still live. We thank thee that thou hast made our corn to grow. Thou art our creator and our good ruler, thou canst do no evil. Everything thou doest is for our happiness."_ [Illustration]