The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Book of Nature Myths, by Florence Holbrook

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Title: The Book of Nature Myths

Author: Florence Holbrook

Release Date: August 27, 2007 [EBook #22420]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE BOOK OF NATURE MYTHS ***

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[Illustration: FROM THE WIGWAM OF THE GREAT SPIRIT (page 2)]

THE BOOK OF NATURE MYTHS

BY FLORENCE HOLBROOK

PRINCIPAL OF FORESTVILLE SCHOOL, CHICAGO

[Illustration: Publishers Stamp]

HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY

BOSTON . NEW YORK . CHICAGO . DALLAS SAN FRANCISCO

The Riverside Press Cambridge

Children's Room

COPYRIGHT 1902 BY HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN & CO.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

The Riverside Press
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS
PRINTED IN THE U.S.A

PREFACE.

In preparing the Book of Nature Myths the desire has been to make a
second reader which would be adapted to the child's interest, ability,
and progress.

The subject-matter is of permanent value, culled from the folk-lore of
the primitive races; the vocabulary, based upon that of the Hiawatha
Primer, is increased gradually, and the new words and phrases will add
to the child's power of expression. The naive explanations of the
phenomena of nature given by the primitive races appeal to the child's
wonder about the same phenomena, and he is pleased and interested. These
myths will gratify the child's desire for complete stories, and their
intrinsic merit makes them valuable for oral reproduction.

The stories have been adapted to youthful minds from myths contained in
the works of many students of folk-lore whose scholarship is undisputed.
Special acknowledgment is due Miss Eva March Tappan for her valuable
assistance in the final revision of the text.

CONTENTS.

PAGE

THE STORY OF THE FIRST HUMMING-BIRD.

Part I. The Great Fire-mountain 1

Part II. The Frolic of the Flames 4

Part III. The Bi