Abundant and varied practical exercises have been suggested, and careful instructions have been given so that the book shall seem intelligible even in the absence of a teacher. The proposed practical work is not only what might be done by eager boys and girls on half-holidays, but what can be done by every scholar in the course of ordinary school work. The pictorial illustrations are intended as aids to observation, not as substitutes. Drawing is one form of practical exercise, and the preparation of corresponding illustrations in the scholars' notebooks from the apparatus used in the classroom and the fields around the school may afford exercises in artistic work with pen, brush or camera. Sufficient directions are given for the supply of necessary materials and apparatus. The apparatus proposed is of the simplest character. It is suggested that the book will be found most useful in the higher standards of elementary schools, in preparatory schools and in the lower forms of secondary schools, that is, where the ages of scholars average from 12 to 14. HUGH RICHARDSON YORK, 7 January 1911 {vi} CONTENTS CHAP. PAGE I. WHAT IS THE SOIL MADE OF? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 II. MORE ABOUT THE CLAY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 III. WHAT LIME DOES TO CLAY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 IV. SOME EXPERIMENTS WITH THE SAND . . . . . . . . . . . 22 V. THE PART THAT BURNS AWAY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 VI. THE PLANT FOOD IN THE SOIL . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41 VII. THE DWELLERS IN THE SOIL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53 VIII. THE SOIL AND THE PLANT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 IX. CULTIVATION AND TILLAGE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82 X. THE SOIL AND THE COUNTRYSIDE . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 XI. HOW SOIL HAS BEEN MADE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116 APPENDIX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128 INDEX . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132 [Transcriber's note: The page numbers below are those in the original book. However, in this e-book, to avoid the splitting of paragraphs, the illustrations may have been moved to the page preceding or following.] LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS FIGURE PAGE 1. Soil and subsoil in St George's School garden . . . . 2 2. Columns showing what 100 parts of soil and subsoil were made of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 3. Columns showing what 100 parts of dried soil and subsoil were made of . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 4. Clay shrinks when it dries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 5. Clay swells up when it is placed in water . . . . . . 12 6. Landslip in the Isle of Wight. _Phot._ Valentine & Son . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 7. Clay does not let water run through . . . . . . . . . 14