Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1866-11-02
Our Young Men and the Pursuits of Life.


g Are we under the new order of things,
as We were under the old, to be overstocked
in Virginia with professional men? There is
some ground to apprehend that we SHALL
We have seen it stated that an undue proper
ton of the young men in some of our leading
colleges are taking the law and medical tick
cts. We have now more lawyers, doctors.
and other producers than are needed. -
There are enough to last for twenty or thir-
ty years. Agriculture, the mechanic arts,
manufactures, the honest manly industries
are the great sources of wealth. We want
to see our young men turn their attention
and devote their talents to them. Take an
intelligent, industrious young man. put him
in an iron mandatory for instance, ard let
him learn the business thoroughly, and then
start him in life with a licensed lawyer or a
medical graduate, and ten to one he will, in
fifteen years, be rich or in fair way to make
fortune, when the lawyer Or the doctor will
be without any considerable practice, Or at
best with only income enough to supply his
conmmonest wants. The same will follow if,
instead Of the iron business, any of the great
branches of practical industry are selected.
The fortunes are not made by the profession
al men. The influence of the commercial,
mechanical and agricultural classes is every
year growing more potential. Formerly
every young man of any pretensons studied
law or medicine; or, being landed propri-
etor, turned his attention to farming !. or, if
the son Of merchant, to merchandise. Only
those who had no choice between pursuits
became mechanics and artisans. We fear
that our young men are not yet emancipated
from the fatal influences of this deusion, and
that too many Of the present generation will
follow in the footsteps Of those of the past
generation, only to reap harvest of disap-
pointment-for the paternal wealth that sup
ported 50 many in idleness no longer exists.
We rejoice to see SO many schools and col
leges, and to know that such large numbers
of our young men and boys-much larger
than we had ventured to hope for-are at
tending them. One chief object of educa-
ton is to instill correct ideas into the minds
of youth and to eradicate false ideas and opin-
ions. We hope that our professors and teach
ers will not forget to combat that pernicious
error that the mechanical occupations Of life
are unworthy Of educated young men. We
have known many instances of boys who man
Tested remarkable mechanical genius, and
who, if put in the workshop, would have
made their mark in the world, but who, I'M
Ger the fatal influence of this delusion, have
been made cyphers and nonentities for life
in consequence Of the attempt, against their
natural bent, to make lawyers or doctors of
them. Every parent should give his chill
dren as thorough an education as he can af
ford. The educated mechanic or artisan dig
nifes labor and removes the reproach Of ig-
norance. Education should embrace the
whole range of physical science, for in the
new era that will ere long dawn upon Yir-
ginia 1--WE speak for her especially, } the hith-
erto undeveloped resources of the State in
mines, minerals and water-power will be
brought into requisition. Our young men
should be prepared to take the lead in this
great work and profit BY its rewards. The
time is not distant when Virginia will be
filled with manufactures and workshops of
every kind: and if our own people are not
qualified to take charge of them, strangers
will come in and reap the harvest Of fame
and profit which they will surely yield. =
Richmond Whiq.