Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1863-11-06
miscellaneous Reaching.
The Tyranny of Children.

bers Of society. because sometime in the fu-
'ure they are to be men and women, and
will have to manage the world if it is man.
aged at all. Rut we do not believe in be-
ing tyrannized over by children, and are
not willing to submit TO it without entering
a protest. If we have got TO be ruled with
a rod Of iron, we want to have that rod held
by stronger hands than ours, and then the
world will applaud our heroism if we ven-
ture. upon resistance. But let any one in
innate 10 his most intimate friend that said
friends child is at times a trife troublesome
and now and then little exaciing and un-
reasonable in its orders and demands, and
the indignant parent thinks him an unnatu-
raj monster who never tasted the milk of
human kindness, and consequently is fit
associate for only barbarians and cannibals.
Rut be this as it may, it is a solemn and
painful fact to many of US that great part
of this tyranny could be avoided if parents
would use a little thought and rely more
upon the dictates of judgment and common
sense than upon the impulses of exuberant
feeling. But when parent helps the child
TO tyrannize oyer everybody with whom it
comes in contact, and teaches it in fact so
to DO, it is natural that by-and-ly the child
will love the exercise of power so we'll as
to domneer over those of his own house,
hold as well as the outside world. The
fault primarily is with the parent, and there
the remedy must commence.
A good many parents seem TO suppose
that, Of all the descendents Of Adam, the
one that nestles in their arms is by all
means the fairest, wisest and best. With
that opinion we will not quarrel so far as
they are concerned, but they must not sup
pose that everybody will agree with them
Let person visit a hundred homes, each
of which rejoices in an infant, and in nine
ty-nine of them he will no sooner have set
tied into comfortable chair than one of
the fond parents will present before him
bundle of dry goods, from one end of which
he will hear vigorous inarticulate sounds.
Said bundle is held up triumphanty before
the caller, and while the miniature face is
.wrinkled and distorted on account of real
or imaginary pains, and while the eyes are
closed and the fists are busily pummeling
what represents a nose, he is expected to
break out in rapturous exclamations as TO
the beauty of the child, tell which of its
ancestors it resembles, point out the ex
pressiveness of its various features, give it
his watch and pocket knife as playthings,
and after half hour of the direst agony,
declare that such child never before ex-
listed and probably never will again. Let
these operations be repeated at every call
ing place, and man naturally gets disgust
ed with children and begins TO look at them
as necessary evils and nothing more. IF
parents would just take the trouble to think
that, save to parental eyes, all infants look
alike, and that their callers would prefer
some other relaxation and entertainment
Than hearing children cry, or being told
their most remarkable "pouts." they would
relieve outsiders of great deal of serious
trouble, and make the world much pleasant
er for those who have had no personal ex-
perience with juvenile humanity. More
over, when children get out of swaddling
clothes. it is not really necessary that they
should rule the world. They are no better
for seeing and tormenting every visitor !;
they are no more amable for smashing all
the mirrors and tearing up all the books
that the house affords. OF course they
want everything they see, and they are not
TO blame Cor exercising a feeling which is
inn, te and cannot be helped. And yet the
parent will deny the child no qualification
however unreasonable it may be, however
injurious to the child or however inconven-
lent to whole family, visitors included.
If discipline be so fine thing, pray do not
deny your children some of its benefits =
if il is right and best that men should hard
ly ever enjoy what they most desire, then
Why let yourselves and your friends be tyr
annized over for the qualification of an un-
reasonable whim?
Children require firm and careful train
ing, and il is mistaken kindness that al
lows them to lord it over everybody with
whom they come in contact. They enjoy
it doubtless for the time. but they pay Sc
we're penalty for the qualification afterwards,
when they find that they cannot content
themselves because they have never been
controlled; that they have no selt-denial,
because nothing has ever been denied them
that they cannot exercise reason, because
they were not treated reasonably. Let
children be kept in the nursery until their
swaddling clothes be removed; let them be
taught, as soon as instinct develops into rea-
son. that the world revolves upon its axis
for others than themselves; let them be
taught that personal comfort is as dear to
others as to themselves let them be taught
to obey all parental commands with an un-
questioning faith let them learn to respect
age and merit wherever they meet it; let
them be taught that life Is a reality and NOT
a playground; that they cannot obtain all
:hey wish for, but must do without many =
coveted blessing let this be done, and the
wcrld will be pleasanter for us all, and the
helplessness of childhood will always be