Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1878-10-17

CONDUCTED BY
REV. ROBERT LATHAM.
(Original.l
PARENTAL DUTIES.

(OrIgnaLl
PARENTAL DUTIES.
Parents are the most important individuals
in every community. Without reflection
some may think this an unguarded expires
sion but when properly considered, it will be
found to be only the unvarnished truth. The
influence of nearly all of the human family
is restricted, both in extent and duration
Even those individuals who, in their own
community, are regarded as model farmers
learned jurists, eloquent divines, or skilfu
workmen in any of the manual labor avoca
tions of life, are scarcely known few miles
beyond the region in which they were born
Every century produces only few men who
exercise national influence. 1t matters moi
how extensive the influence of most men, in
the ordinary pursuits of life may be, their in
Auence generally descends with them to the
grave. Who knows anything about the far
mers, the lawyers, the physicians, the divines
or the mechanics who fourished half cen
tury ago? Who cares anything about them
They lie in their graves forgotten by the liv
ing. Even their names are unknown. Az
parents, however, their influence descends
from generation to generation. "Like parents
like children and grandchildren y may be bad
English but it is good sense. In the fea
lures, tones of voice and motions of their bod
les, children generally resemble their parents
Leading features are perpetuated for genera
tions. Sons and daughters are recognized
by the resemblance which they bear to their
progenitors. -.......aH .............
This affects society very little, and did the
influence of parents cease here, the relation
ship between parent and child would be oi
trivial Importance. Such, however. is not the
case. When the father and mother die, they
cease in the majority of cases, to exercise
any influence only as parents. Their man
ners and customs they bequeath to their chill
dren. On all questions of morality, children
think and act as their parents think and act
Death may remove our parents from this
world, but it cannot make US believe that our
parents entertained heterodox theories or
practiced dangerous precepts. 1t matters not
who may be wrong, either in theory or prac'
tice, we instinctively regard our parents as
being right in both.
Such being the influence which parents ex
ercise over their children, it is their duty to
set before them decent example. 1t is not
to be wondered at that so many boys, not to
mention the girls turn out so badly. They
learn to be bad from those whom it is their
duty to obey implicitly. Children learn the
larger number of their bad habits from their
father and mother. If parents really desire
their children to grow up and become decent
members of society, they must first be decent
themselves. 1t is true, there are exceptions
to nearly all rules. Sometimes it is the case
that an indecent father rears decent son
and sometimes the opposite is the case. Such
cases can be pointed to only as exceptions
The rule is, always has been, and always will
be, that the sons are like the fathers and the
daughters like the mothers.
The first lessons in citizenship are learned
around the family freside, and the teachers
are the parents. 1t is at home that children
learu 10 obey, aud ubedieuco is tile prime
number in good citizenship. The unruly
child must make an .unruly grown person.
The child that is not ruled by its parents, may
make, when grown, a slave. 1t can hardly
make citizen. Hence, parents are under
obligation to teach their children to obey. In
their own homes parents should make their
commands respected. In the family, the pa
rental authority is above any other except
that of God. 1t is, since this is the case, the
duty of parents to command and exact scru-
pulous obedience to their, commands.
The duty Of parents to their children, in a
moral point of view, is far greater than in
every other respect. Some persons pretend
to think that parents should exercise no moral
control over their children at all. They
should be left free and untrammeled' to do as
they please in all religious matters. Such a
notion is so absurd, that it seems strange that
any sensible man or woman would entertain
it for moment One of the principal lreasons
why there is so little practical religion in the
land, is because parents neglect to teach their
children moral and religious duties at home.
B9- We never have tomorrow it is simply
a world of prophecies 1t has been said that
the two great pleasures of living are in having
something to love, and something to hope for,
and the last of these is never before us in the
promise of tomorrow. Tomorrow we may
not know, and it is we'll that it is ordained to
be, for beyond the invisible veil that conceals
alike its coming joys and sorrow, our fancy
may revel only in what is beautiful and fair,
nor see the gloom or shadow of coming trials
and worldly af1iction, that, could we antici-
pate as fixed realities that we're certain to
come, would mar all our peace and enjoy
ment of the present 1t is we'll for us that
we cannot withdraw the veil which hides our
future.
aag- Of the uncertainty of success we have
examples every day before us. Scarcely can
a man turn his eyes upon the world without
observing the sudden rotation of affairs-the
ruin of the afiuent, the downfall Of the high !;
and it may reasonably be hoped that no man
.,b,n, ho onportnpifioc of curb ohaarva-