The Athens post. [volume] (Athens, Tenn.) 1848-1917, 1859-12-02
VOL. XII-:-:-NO. 5S4:
Don't Depend on Father.

StohN Vi heIe, young mall anu ict us
talk to you. You have trusted alone to
the contents of fathers purse or to his
fair fame for your influence or success in
business. Think you that father has
attained to eminence in his profession
but by unwearied industry? or that he
has amassed fortune honestly without
energy and activity?f You should know
that the faculty requisite for the acquir-
ing of fame and fortune is essential 10,
nay, inseparable from, the retaining OF
either of these. Suppose father has the
rocks in abundance; fyou never earned
anything for him you have no more bus
iness with those rocks than goslin has
with q tortoise! and if he allows you to
meddle with them till you have learned
their value by your own industry, he
perpetrates untold mischief. And if the
old gentleman is lavish of hiss seshz towards
you, while he allows you TO idle away
your time, you had better leave him; yes,
run away sooner than be made an imbe-
cile or a scoundrel through SO corrupting
an influence. Sooner or later you must
learn to rely on your own resources, or
you will not be anybody. If you have
never helped yourself at all, fyou have
become idle, if you have eaten fathers
bread and butter and smoked fathers,
cigars, cut swell in fathers buggy, and
tried to put on fathers influence and
reputation, you might far better have
been poor canal boy, the son of Chin
ney-sweep, or a boot black, and indeed
we would not swap with you the situation
poor, halEstarved motherless calf
Miserable objects you are, that depend
entirely upon your parents, playing gen.
tleman (alias, dandy loafer.) What in
the name of common sense are you think
ing of! Wake up there! Go to work
with either your hands or your brains, OF
both, and do something! Don't merely
have it to boast on that you have groion in
fathers house-that you have vegated as
other greenhorns! but let folks know
that you count one. - --. ....,..-,
Come, off with your coat, clinch the
saw, the plow-handles, the scythe, the
axe, the pickaxe, the spade-anything
that will enable You to stir your blood :
Fly round and tear your jacket" rather
than be the recipient of the old mans
bounty. Sooner than play the dandy at
dad's expense, hire yourself out to some
potato patch, let yourself to stop hog
holes, or watch the bars; and when you
think yourself entitled to resting spell.
do it on your own hook. If you have no
other means Of having fun of your own.
buy with your earnings an empty barrel,
and put your head into it and holler, or
get into it and roll down hill. Don't, for
pity sake, don't make the old gentle
man do everything, and you live at your
case.
Look about you, you woll dressed.
smooth-faced, do-nothing drones. Who
are they that have worth and influence
in society? Are they those that have de-
pended alone on the old gentleman's
purse! or are they those that have
climbed their way to their position by
their industry and energy. True, the
old gentleman's funds or personal influ-
ence, may secure you the forms of re-
spect, but let him lose hir property or die.
and what are you. A miserable fegling
"a bunch of flesh and bones that needs
to be taken care of! ...f- sE.
Again we say, wake-get up in tho
morning-turn round at least twice be-
fore breakfast-help the old man-give
him now and then generous lift in busi-
ness-learn how take the lead and not
depend forever on being led; and yeu
have no idea how the discipline will bene-
fit you. Do tlIis, and our word for it.
you will seem to breathe new atmos-
phere, possess a new frame, tread on
new earth, walk to new destiny--and
you may then begin to aspire to manhood.
Take off, then, that ring from your lilly
finger, break your cane, shave your up
per lip, wipe your nose, hold up your
head, and by all means never again eat
the bread of idleness, nor depend on father,