The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1879-02-06
A LETTER TO THE CRANCEK
BOYS,

"A LIE = = ASAe Il ~ z u H AN En-
BOYS.
My impression is that the Changers
are willing to cultivate their minds as
well as their farms. We are most in
| clined to help scholar who is apt and
anxious to learn. Youth is the best
time to learn, because the memory is
stronger than it is in more advanced
life. What is learned in youth is gen.
orally fixed well in the mind, Great
opportunities are given to improve the
mind and manners of the young. Your
parents are intelligent, Industrious and
sober, and your homes are supplied
with books and papers. These long
winter evenings give time to read and
study. If other books are wanted they
can be obtained from libraries but be
careful to get good ones if you borrow
books. Time spent in reading suitable
publications will make any common
boy intelligent. Some of our best men
had but few books to read; they could
remember those few, having read them
several times over. Too much reading
is as bad as too little. If you want to
have strong minds and good memories
do not read novels. There ia enough
truth published in books and papers to
keep any one a long lifetime in read
ing. Young people who become at
tached to novels seldom enjoy better
reading. Fictitious reading weakens
the mind and destroys the memory and
throws doubling, careless spirit over
everything else that is read.
4 IF you want to have sound mind
improved as much as it is capable of
being, do not spend time in reading
fictiOns. Truth is better, it can be used
in argument. The lawyer wants facts,
the physician is in pursuit of truth.
and the minister ought to be, as well
as every other moral reformer.
Do not use tobacco in any ofits forms.
1t weakens the memory, confuses the
mind and debilitates the body is liza
BILE to cause apoplexy, paralysis, dys-
pepsia, amaurosis, cancer of the lip
and tongue. The expense of it is more
than q man in moderate circumstances
can maintain. The use of it is habit
which most men wish they had not
formed. Some try to leave it off and
can succeed for awhile, but mostly go
back to it again. 1t is not prudent to
form habit that enslaves you. If you
want to read on this subject send to
Cleveland for Millar and Lizars on the
use of Alcohol and Tobocco. You can
get this book for one dollar, and it is
worth a hundred dollars to any boy who
will read and believe 1t. if he will reg
ulate his life and manners accordingly.
Another objection laid to tobacco !; it
creates craving for stimulants, and is
the forerunner of drunkenness. 1t is
easier to avoid forming habit than to
break one that is formed and it seems
much pieasanter never to associate
with low company than to have to for
sake them with their bad tuition cling
ing to you.
Do not play cards or any game that
is likely to absorb your time from more
profitable pursuits. You are better off
not to know the games.
Do not drink liquor in moderation
even, for it is useless expense, and
there is danger of being enslaved by
the habit. The best improvement of
the intellect does not require it.
Do not swear, it is not becoming in a
gentleman and scholar; there is no in
telligence in it, but is like shallow
pate that wants to say something but
cannot, so he will string lot of ia
miliar oaths together and let it take
the place of conversation.
Socrates told he Athenians it was
right to render their souls as good and
as perfect as they were capable of being
This obligation is not any less now
than it was in his time. So 1 say to
you, go back to church there are so
many societies now that almost any
one can be suited. Besides. you can
get instruction from a sermon enough
to pay you for going even if you do
not belong to the same church. The
habit of washing and dressing Sunday
morning in time for church will help
to give ability to do work in season
and give you an appearance of cleanli-
ness, which people who do not dress
up on Sunday do not have. You can
do a great deal towards forming char
acter for yourselves. A few days ago
saw man who said he was a boy with
Gen. Garfield. Their places are now
very different. Each one chose his
own way. There is room for large
number between them. If person
does not try to be intelligent and in
dustrious he is not as likely to accom-
plish as much as if he did try. w.
Atwater, Feb. 3, 1879.