Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1856-03-29
Education and Occupation.

1t is stated that of the six hundred
and six convicts who now occupy the
Ohio Penitentiary, tJoo hndred and for
ty-toHr cannot read or 'crite and FOUR
HUNDRED, or nearly sixty per cent ofthe
entire number HAVE NO TRADES This
brief return is full Of meaning. 1t at
once admonshes and instructs There
are two great essentials for success il
life-EDucATIoN. and REGULAR occUPA-
TIoN. There are others, but these are
among the most important Moral train
ing should, of course, never be lost sight
Of But without habit of industry,
which can only be induced by regular
occupation, the pcrils to the young are
fearful. Almost any trade is better than
none. The error with many parents is
to neglect this great essential until too
late, when the habits become formed and
fixed, and thus all useful control is lost
The figures quoted from the annual re-
port of the Ohio Penitentiary tell and
point out the true causes Of the misery
and crime that prevail throughout the
land The annals Of other and like in
stiSutions abound with similar details.
Many children are over INDUCED, and
thus are ruined. They are permitted to
follow their own inclinations, and, with
no experience of the world and its ways,
they naturally 90 astray. 1t is indeed
difficult at times TO know what is best to
be done. We arc all apt to fancy that
our own offspring possess remarkable
qualifications, and hence to look to some
very elevated pursuit or calling as emf
nently calculated for them, Too often
we misjudge, and by mistaken partial
ity place them in a sphere for which they
are untitled But we repeat, regular
occupation should be regarded as an cs-
sential Some trade, calling, or pro-
fcssion should be selected and fully ac-
quired. At least the habit Of industry
would be secured, and thus the first great
step to success in life. But the longer
we delay the greater will be the difficulty
The old and experienced cannot cncorn-
ter idleness without great risks. How
cruel, then, to submit the young and
thoughtless to such fiery ordeal! The
parent, too, who neglects to give his son
business may well be reproached by
that son in after life Occupation is the
great safeguard. 1t not only engrosses
the mind, but it curbs and restraints the
passions 1t not only elevates the in
diyidual in his own estimation, but il
makes him useful and Independent. He
feels that his faculties are tasked and ex-
erted, and he therefore contributes some
thing to the wcll-beng society. Nay,
the real powers, mental and physical,
can never be fully known until called in
to play by some emergency ofproiession-
al life or business requirement. Never
thelcss, there are hundreds Of young
men who are permitted to grow up with
false notions of position, influence, and
pride, and who find, to their regret, when
they become little older and wiser, that
they have been wasting the best years Of
their youth in the vain conceits produced
by idlencss or the visionary speeulations
engendered by inexperienee. Again,
therefore, we earnestly urge the necessi-
ty of a regular occupation. Itmay seem
irksomc at first but it will soon lose its
severity and terror; while the tact, the
information, the knowledge, and the art
thus acquired will strengthen and fortify
for almost any emergency Of life. A fair
education, industrial habits, and use
ful calling are infinitely more valuable
than fortune without these priceless
qualities. Philadeyphia Laqairer.