each of the
children who live in the cities, they will have lost a great joy out of
their lives.

There are besides the flowers of which we have been speaking other low
plants of beautiful foliage with which we love to decorate our homes. We
must take care that these are not gathered too closely or they also will
become scarce. We cannot go out into the woods and pull up ferns by the
roots year after year and expect Nature to keep up the supply.

The huckleberry is one of the many beautiful shrubs which we admire
for its delicate leaves and colors. It is cut and brought in from the
country in huge bundles to supply the florists. The time will come when
these decorations can no longer be had if the men are allowed to cut all
they can find. Just as in the case of the flowers, seekers for them will
be obliged to go farther each year and by and by the shrubs will be so
scarce and high priced that we shall be obliged to do without them.

[Illustration: _Pillsbury's Pictures, Inc._
Nature has grown flowers in abundance, but we should not pick or destroy
too many of them.]

We hunt far and wide for the beautiful "holly berries" with which to
decorate our homes at Christmas. When we have found a berry-laden bush,
we eagerly break off the branches and bear them home in triumph. The
bush, once so gay with berries, is a sad-looking thing when we are
through with it. The branches are broken so far back that next year it
will bear few berries and we shall have to seek another.

We treat the beautiful earth on which we have been placed in a most
thoughtless manner. We think only of what we want _now_, and forget that
another year is coming in which also we shall want some of the earth's
treasures. If we take only the surplus which each year produces, there
will always be enough for us and for the people who live after us.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

NATURE'S PENALTY FOR INTERFERING WITH HER ARRANGEMENTS

Nature seems very prodigal in her ways. She is continually creating on
the earth a great multitude of living things, far more than there is
room for. Each one of these, if it would live, must have a certain
amount of air, sunshine, and food. As there is not enough of these
things to supply every one, there arises a struggle. Those that are
weakest die, because they are not able to get what they need. To us this
seems hard, but it is Nature's way.

And further, since many of the animals feed on the flesh of other
a