Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1871-11-02
A Spoiled Child.
From Hearth and Home.

n SpUlItu Snllus
From Hearth and Home.
\ few days ago we were taking a holi-
day in the country after our won't. At
the house of the friend where we gen.
orally found ourselves the only guest,
we this time found strange visitor.
The stranger was lad of seventeen,
and "a curiosity which we feel called
upon to describe.
Unfortunately he was not so rare a
curiosity as we could wish. He was a
young man who had been spoiled in all
that makes manliness, health, vigor,
brightness of life and spirit, by two
mistakes on the part of his parents and
sisters.
In the first place, this unfortunate
young man had been allowed no respite
from drugs and doctors. When he was
an infant he had begun with soothing
syrup and baby drops; he had ad-
vanced into ipecac, grown upon squills
and guiacum, and eliminated with
calomel and quinine. No drug had
been allowed to dodge him. No breath
of fresh air was allowed to blow upon
him. He had been laid down like a
carpet upon which the sun was never
to be allowed to shine; he was taken
up as if he were glass, and brittle. In
consequence he was Trailer than the
violet, and more colorless than the lily.
OF course his appetite and his powers
OF digestion were pretty nearly gone in
consequence of this treatment. 1t was
amusing to see his doleful air at dinner.
He seemed to regard potatoes as poison
Gus and strong meat as a mocker. He
had to be urged to eat and a serious
question arose about each mouthful.
Could he chew it? Could he swallow
it? Could he digest it?
The poor lad was too delicate to walk
mile; and the girls were vexed to
tind-for beaus were scarce in the vii
lage, and the evenings were then made
charming by the full moon-that the
estate of his health did not permit him"
to attend any of them home.
But this was not the end of the poor
fellows failings. He was the most
effeminate young man that we ever saw.
His friends thought him handsome, but
his beauty was simply that of tolerably
regular features and the pallor of COM
plexion which many persons, even in
these common-sense days, think to be
interesting" His voice was weak and
OtA uO was hCINOuS anu tlIult,
though, being a gentleman born and
bred, he was not bashful, and behaved
himself well enough but for this lack of
manliness. Without having any definite
ailment, he seemed to be, and was,
continual invalid. With every advan-
tage, or the possibility of every advan-
tage, that his parents money and posi-
ton could buy, he remained nonentity.
And the oldest part of the story is that
his parents were healthy, breezy, stirring
people of the world, and, except in two
important points, sensible, excellent
people.
Now let US ask what possessed these
excellent persons to make such an
effeminate good-for-nothing of their
boy at seventeen years of age?
1t was two evil spirits that led them
away-the witch of dosing, and the
witch of over-petting.
They had given him so much medi-
cine that his physical vitality was wasted
away. To be sure, as they thought, that
he should receive no injury, they had
kept him from the play ground, and
from outdoor air and sunlight. They
had caressed him and fondled him at
home, and kept him in such ignorance
of the rougher outer world that as q
child he had no heart or desire to seek
playmates, or, later, friends and fellows
there. He was very religious; he was
| determined to be minister, but how
could he face the college and the semi.
nary? The thought of the rough treat
ment he might expect to receive from
a boisterous class of young men made
his cheek grow paler than ordinary
when the subject of his future studies
were mentioned. And, indeed, he was
a most tempting subject for college
"hazing" or smoking out" His help
less air invited rudeness, and should he
ever get to college we may be pretty
sure that his experiences will go or
record among those of the worst-usec
freshmen of his day.
Now, what is the value of this forlorr
character to us? Simply to show al
instance of those sad mistakes which
are made not merely by ignorant anC
foolish parents and sisters, but by thos,
who are in the main sensible in respec
to this matter of dosing and humorin!
boys. All boys, fortunately, cannot b,
spoiled in these ways, but here was
young fellow, perhaps of delicate con
stitution at the start, who was, excep
in moral sense, ruined by the foolisl
and officious care that had been takel
of him from infancy. He was taugh
to be self-conscious, dyspeptic, reclus
to whom sunlight and society were dis
tasteful. 1t was an admirable training
perhaps, for monk, but it was a ruin
, GUS one for man.
Let the medicine chest, then, severel
alone in most cases. Don't be afraid G
little, or of great deal of air an
sunlight. Encourage your boy, if he
at all delicate or nervous in constitu
+ ton, to seek the society of his fellow,
, Don't shut him up with his sisters a.
day long in the library. Books ar
good enough, and a sisters petting
! an excellent thing. Even calomel ha
, its uses. But the best instruction fc
the growing child is hearty life out c
q doors. The sweetest sisters friendshi
). may injure if it keeps boys at HON
. from school, and cuts them off from tn
. healthy life and friendship of the pls,
| ground. That other misused thing, th
: family medicine-chest, is like batter
! of mitrailLeuses, only good in time of wa
q when disease makes a determine
f charge upon the household. Then sen
/ for the doctor, and give up hom
: dosing. In this way we may avoi
$ seeing so many examples of the cha
= acter we have described-th delicat
}. melancholy, dead-and-alive spoile
" child.