The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1877-12-06
FOR PARENTS TO THINK ABOUT.

A distinguished theologian has assert"
ed his belief that children have not souls
till they are about seven years old, when
they begin to acquire them. However
this may be, it is certain that under
that age, In the presence of certain
facts, they have no souls which they may
fairly call their own. They think 1t
possible for them to commit the most aw-
ful crimes in the calendar, aud 80 great is
their dread Of any authority whose pow
ers, not beiug understood, are thought to
be overwhelming, and that when they
imagine they have laid themselves open
to its action they at once resort to lying,
which is the natural and almost the only
weapon that weakness has to use against
strength. The amount of worry and
trouble which they bring to others by
acting in this way is of no moment what
ever with them their only thought is of
self. protection. For three days the po-
lice of Philadelphia has sought high and
low in every vacant house In the city Tor
Willie Bishop, aged seven, whom Master
Albright, aged Blk, had acCidently push
ed into the river, where he was drowned.
There were four children present when
the accident occurred, and the three who
! were left, being in mortal terror of what
they imagined would be their punish
ment should the accident be discovered,
ConCocted the ingenious story that while
they were playing in an empty house
some larger boys drove them away and
left Bishop locked in closet. Search
was made everywhere until ut last the
body of the missing child was found in
the river, and it was only then that the
truth was told by his companions, who
explained their silence by saying that
they feared they would be punished
should they tell the real story o. the &C
cident, If their present account of the
affair is true, as it probably is, the amount
Of trouble they have given themselves
and the mental suffering they must have
endured for four long days and nights are
sad to think of, when we remember how
great is the capacity of children for mem
tai agony. Young fiends like Jesse POM
eroy, the more they are considered are
only the more detestable; they are not
the children who suffer, and yet are the
only ones who should do So
For much of the untruthfulness of chill
dren in such cases as this those parents
are directly responsible who are always
threatening dire punishment for trivial
offences Young ones soon learn that
is real "Old Bogie," of whom other
people stand in awe-the Law, namely,
which is embodied for them in the police
man and the hangman, who catch mur-
derers and whose powers are unlimited.
If man cannot escape this terrible pow
er how shall child fail to be crushed by
it? He knows but one way his only re.
source is a lie. The boy comes to believe
that this "Bogie," this "Raw.head and
Bloody-bones" of whom he has read in
nursery, is real and terrible being. If
the child has been brought up tenderly
except in this respect his dread of the
law and his exaggeration of what it can
do are only the more intense, and when
suddenly he imagines that he has com.
mitted terrible crime the tension on his
mind is enough to snap and ruin it for
ever. Imaginary horrors are not the
proper pabuum for babies,-EG.