The Manchester journal. [volume] (Manchester, Vt.) 1861-current, 1878-04-04
WAR orn nor. aRr Rsap,se

Professor Sumner Of Yale has been ex-
aiming The aAah story papers % widely
rsaa BY boys, and in SeribRer i0g March
gives come earnest words Of warning 60
parents, accompanied b sPeclmensol lhe
types described In the stories. Here j.
one;
Another type Of hero very common in
these stories is The city youth, son Of
rich father, who does not give his sou as
much pocket money as the latter considers
suitable. This constitutes siinginess on
the fathefs part, although il might ho
considered pardonAbIe, seeing that these
ioung men drink champagne every day,
treat the crowd generally when they
drink, and play billiards for 500 game.
The father, 10 this class Of stories, Is rep
resented as secretly vicious aud hypoerit-
ically pious. In the specimen in this
clAss before us the young man Is discoy-
cred In the Police Court as prisoner,
whence be Is remsnded 10 the Tombs
lie has been arrested for collarlng a big
policeman, 10 prevent him from oyertak-
Ing girl charged with poeket-picking
lie intcrfered because be judged from
the girls face that she was innocent, aud
1t is suggested, for future development in
the story, that she was running away
from insult, aud that the cry OF stop thief
was 10 get help from the police and
others 10 seize her. The hero, who is The
con Of q man worth five millions, and
who is In prison under an assumed name,
now sends for his fathers clerk and De.
mands OIL 900, saying that otherwise he
will declare his real name and disgrace
bis family. He gets tho money. lie
them sends for notorious Tombs lawyer,
to whom be gives $500. With this sum
his release is easily procured, He then
starts with bis cousin TO initiate the latter
into life In New York. They 80 10 a
thieves college, where they see youug
fellow graduated. His part consists in
taking things from the pockets Of hang
ing figure, to the garments of which bells
are attached, without causing the bells to
ring. or this fullpage illustration is
given. The two Young men then go TO
Bowery TO beer saloon where the hero
sustains his character by his vulgar famil-
iarity with the girl walters. Next, they
hear row In 8 side street. They find q
crowd collected watching a woman who
hangs from third-story window, while
her drunEen husband beats and cuts her
hands 10 make her fall. The hero solves
this situation by drawing his revolver and
shooting the man. AS he and bis com
panion withdrew unobserved, the former
wards of compliments of the latter by
saying modestly that he could not bear TO
stand there and see sucn crowd looking
on. and not knowing what to do, SO be
just did the proper thing. Next day the
hero, meeting the thieves college gradu-
ate In the corridor of the Fifth Avenue
Hotel, agrees to receive and hold Tor him
any booty he may seize in the bar-roon I;
which be does. AT night he and his
friend 90 TO disreputable masked ball,
where the hero recognizes his father in
disguise amongst the dancers. Securing
place In the same set, during a pause in
the dance he snatches the mask from his
own face and bis fathers at the same
moment. This edifying incident is en-
L
forced by full.page illustration. a
friend suggests the question, What de-
mon Of truthfnIness makes the artist put
such brutal and vulgar faces on the men ?
In this class of stories, fathers and sons
are represented as natural enemies, and
the true position for the son is that Of
Suspicion and armed peace.