Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1877-10-05

mining party and rushes of to the Black Hills,
expecting by some happy stroke of luck to
achieve, before he is twenty y-one what would
be fair reward for lifetime of labor.
The young girl, whose ideas of life are
formed in the same school, is fast and loud in
her dress and manners. She answers matri-
monial advertisements, picks up acquaint-
ances on the street with strange men by hand
kerchief hrtations and ends, perhaps, by
marrying her fathers coachman or running
away to Join troupe of actors. Every now
and then the community is astonished by some
such denOuemeRt in families Of highest posi-
ton. If we knew what the girls reading had
been probably we should no longer be aston
ished
The principal of young ladies' boarding
school once said to me, "If there is anything
thoroughly detest it is Young Americdhism.
The quality she meant very soon becomes OH
Americanism, and a national Characteristic.
The American traveller returning from Eng
land is struck by n contrast between the man
ners of the travelling public here and there.
In England, to be invariably courteous and
gentlemanly, seems to be the national aim, the
quality most admired. In his native land (it
seems to the returned American who looks
with newly opened vision, the national ideal
is fast slangy ''smnrtness." He sees so
many men in the cars, feet on the seats, hats
on one side firing tobacco-juice right and left,
with the knowing air of one who can't be
taken in" by anything. He secs that the
person looked upon with admiration by hosts
of young fellows is the coarse, smart, know
ing man who has made money or achieved po-
litcal position by various crooked ways that
require only brazen impulse and easy princi-
pies OF such an one he hears them say ad-
miringly Hes smart, / tell you"
Noxn II tba fraita which rnol
Young Americanism" be traced to the read
ing of the boys and girls at the very forming
period Of life ? To this source may not some
of our most disagreeable and dangerous traits
be traced? "As n man thinketh, so is he. "
and the child's reading shapes his thoughts.
OF lower class of juvenile literature, the
weekly story papers, it would seem unneces-
sary to speak as one would naturally suppose
no parent of average responsibility would al
low his children to look at them. But your
own boy borrows them of his High school
class-mate to your amazement you see them
on your friends table as the boys regular
reading, and the flood of them published
shows that the demand must be immense.
recently sent to n Cincinnati newspaper deal
er for copies of the most popular papers for
young folks He sent me The Boys and Girls
Weekly" The Boys of New York" Our
Boys, The Girls and Boys of America, 4"
and so on, eight in ALL and all as near alike in
style and aim as possible. He stated that of
some Of these papers he sells one hundred
copies weekly.
These are the titles of some of the leading
stories -" Black Adder, or the Pirates of the
Channel :" The Two Runaways, a Story of
Mystery and Thrilling Incidents;" Jack
Dauntless, the Boy Privateer;" "Dashing
Dick, the King of the Highway" Charlie,
the Masher. or the Boss on Rollers :" 'Hunch-
back Dick !" Young Sleuth, the Keen Detec-
tive, or the Smartest Boy in New York :"
Teddy O'Flynn, the Irish Detective - THE
Boss Boy" and so on, dd nduSedm. The il
lustrations are literally murderous. | hardly
dare present to you samples of the Dialogue.
A few moral and literary gems, taken at ran
dom from the wealth in which each story
abounds will suffice. Tom, boy of ten is
talking with his father, as follows: Give
that back again, exclaimed his father. Are
you talking to me?" said Tom, coolly. "Of
course | am" Then | don't want any of
your chin-music." Tom also says of his faith
er, Fancy the old 'un trying to say put up
n job on him" Other samples of his CONVEX
sation are. :" Don't bust yourself, ma'am."
Where's the spondulex:' Il saw dad load
it to shoot some yawling cats" In another
story we enter thieves den. called the Hole
in the Wall" in company with the 'GunnufT
from Galway" and Mike the Monkey" who
cry, Cheese it Cops are coming!" In an
other the boy hero restores n lost wallet to its
owner, who casually remarks. "One of these
thousand dollar bills is yours" Bob's mother
We read, twas too rigid. with too much drfUt
reHgiously c6lljag distance between her and
Bob" Charlie the Masher, We read, had
always felt great deal of affection for his
parent, in spite of the old gentleman's severi-
ty." The hero addresses "A member of Con-
gress, That's all right, old hop-fy." Further
dialogue reads Try it, you flannel mouth :"
That's the cheese" None of your lip"
Go it, pard, I'll pipe off the doors and give
you the Office if any one tumbles.
These are far from being the worst speci-
mems possible to select Not very refined
matter this to bring to ears polite, yet not
impossibly your own boys at home, perhaps
even the girls, are reading such matter regu-
hrly. The heroes of these stories are hood
lums," thieves, negro minstrels, highway
robbers and detectives. If you would allow
your boy to go down into the Five Points and
Rat Rows of your city, and associate with the
company lie finds there, then allow him to
read papers where his mind associates with
the same class, and acquires the thieves
vocabulary and views of life generally. The
warden of one of our States-prisons attributed
the efforts of the men to stab the officers
when they knew escape was hopeless, to the
admiration of the daring deeds of crime by
the weekly story paper heroes on which their
minds have fed for years. To rank with their
heroes they were ready to risk life itself.
Having said SO much of what children
should not read, few words as to the posi-
tive 1t is but half the battle to keep weak
and vicious reading from children. They
must be surrounded with attractive good read
ing, and their tastes influenced and directed.
Don't buy many juveniles for them. Of
course no child's education is complete with
out thorough course of Mother Goose, the
good old fairy tales, Arabian Nights, Robinson
Crusoe and Hans Christian Andersen. The
childs imaginative mind takesa keen delight in
the fanciful and improbable, as these standard
stories develop his imagination healthfully.
Let the child believe that fairies nestle in the
flower cups, that Undine peeps up at him
from the deep hole in the brook, that Santa
Claus really Chambers down the chimney, and
that the Sandman comes regularly with the
twilight. These pretty fancies throw an after
glow over his whole life.
Take the Nursery" and 'St. Nicholas" for
him. 1t would be imhuman to deprive him
of the charming pictures, which are sort of
education in themselves. The reading matter
is usually of the better order, and the childs
pride and interest in his own magazine fosters
n love of reading.
But, while he is quite young, begin to in
terest him in standard reading, Those who
have not tried the experiment will be sur
prised to see how easily even young children
may be interested in 'grown-up' books if
read aloud 10 them by father and mother with
the necessary explanations, Recently l have
known boy of eight intensely interested in
hearing read Pilgrims Progress" tom
Brown at Rugby" and Uncle Toms Cabin. "
The reader must be prepared to answer endless
questions, and must sometimes omit passages
beyond the child's comprehension. OF course,
in reading Pilgrims Progress" it is safest to
omit the theological disquisitions and stick to
Christians battles with Giant Despair, and the
rest. The same child will enjoy equally well
The Old Curiosity Shop" Paul in "Dombey
and Son" the Lady of the Lake, and SINH.
lar books, when his mother finds time to read