The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1878-04-10
what our Boys are Reading.

Professor Sumner, of Yale, has been examin-
ing the fash story papers SO widely read by boys
aud in Scribner for March gives some earnest
words of warning to parents, accompanied by
specimens of the types described in the stories.
Here is one:
Another type or hero very common in these
stories is the city youth, son of rich father,
who does not give his son as much pocket money
the latter considers suitable. This consti-
tutes stingiuess on the fathers part, although 1t
might be considered pardonahle. seeing that
these young men drink champagne every day,
treat the crowd generally when they drink. and
play billiards fot 500 game. The father. in
this class of stories Is represented as secretly vi
cous and hypocrilicay pious. In the speci-
mems of this class before the young man is
' discovered in the Police Court as a prisoner
whence he is remanded to the roombs. lie has
been arrested for collaring big policeman, to
prevent him from overtaking a girl charged with
pocket picking. He interfered because he judged
from the girls face that she innocent, and it
is suggested, for future development in the story,
that she was running away from insult, and that
the cry of stop thief was to get help from the
| police and others to seize her. The hero, who
is the son of q man worth FIVE millions. and who
| is in prison under assumed name. now sends
for his fathers clerk and demands $1,000, saving
that otherswlse he will declare his real name and
disgrace his family. He gets the money. He
| then sends for a notorious Toombs lawyer TO
whom he gives $500. With this sum his release
| is easily procured. He then starts with his cou-
sin to initiate the latter into life in New York.
They 90 to a thieves college. where they see a
young fellow graduated. His part consists in the
taking of things from the pockets of hanging
H. 81 ~ IL,
tached, without causing the bells to ring. OF
this full page illustration is given. The two
young men then go up the Bowery to beer sa-
loon where the hero sustains his character by his
vulgar familiarity with the girl walters. Next
they hear row in side street. They find q
crowd collected watching woman who hangs
from third-story window. while her drunken
husband beats and cuts her hands to make hei
fall. The hero solves this situation by drawing
his revolver and shooting the man. AS he and
his friend withdraw unobserved. the former ward:
off the compliments of the latter by saying mod
estly that he could not bear TO stand there anC
see such crowd looking on. and not knowing
what to do. so he just did the proper thing
Next day the hero, meeting the thieves college
graduate in the corridor Of the Fifth Avenue
hotel agrees to receive and hold for him any
booty he may seize in the bar-room which ht
does At night he and his friend go to disre
putable masked ball, where the hero recognizes
his father in disguise amongst the dancers. Sc
curing place in the same set, during pause il
the dance he sratches the mask from his owl
and bis fathers face at the same moment. Th;
edifying incident is enforced by full.page illus
tration. friend suggests the question: VIVA
demon of truthfuness makes the artist put sucl
brutal and vulgar faces on the men? In thi
class of stories fathers and sons are represented
as natural enemies, and the true position for th
son is that of suspicion and armed peace.