The Project Gutenberg EBook of Lessons on Soil, by E. J. Russell
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
Title: Lessons on Soil
Author: E. J. Russell
Release Date: April 10, 2007 [EBook #21022]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ASCII
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LESSONS ON SOIL ***
Produced by Al Haines
LESSONS ON SOIL
BY
E. J. RUSSELL, D.Sc. (Lond.)
GOLDSMITH COMPANY'S SOIL CHEMIST,
ROTHAMSTED EXPERIMENTAL STATION
Cambridge:
at the University Press
1911
[Transcriber's note: Page numbers in this book are indicated by numbers
enclosed in curly braces, e.g. {99}. They have been located where page
breaks occurred in the original book, in accordance with Project
Gutenberg's FAQ-V-99. In the HTML version of this book, page numbers
are placed in the left margin.]
{v}
PREFACE
The Syndics of the Cambridge University Press propose to issue a Nature
Study Series of which this is the first volume.
We count ourselves fortunate in securing Dr E. J. Russell as author and
Soil as subject. The subject is fundamental, for, just as the soil
lies beneath the plant and animal life we see, so is a knowledge of the
soil necessary for all understanding of flora and fauna. The real
complexity of the apparently simple element "Earth," and the variety of
methods required for exploring it, are typical of the problems which
the _tout ensemble_ of the outdoor world presents to the naturalist.
Dr E. J. Russell has not only acquired a first-rate and first-hand
knowledge of his subject at Wye and at Rothamsted; his own researches
have recently extended our knowledge of the micro-organisms in the soil
and their influence on fertility. Further, what is very much to our
purpose, he has himself had practical experience in teaching at an
elementary school in Wye and at a secondary school in Harpenden.
Just at the present moment, County Councils are trying to push rural
education and to awaken the intelligence of country children by
interesting them in their surroundings. It is, therefore, a favourable
opportunity to offer these pages as a concrete suggestion in model
lessons and object lessons, showing exactly what can be done
|