Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1880-03-05
Young Mems Temptations.

The case of young Boynton, the Bos-
ton bank teller who was discovered Tue
other day to have embezzled S24 ,OOO OF
the banks money, once more forcio'y
reminds us of temptations to which
Young men are constantly exposed.
Boynton, like many promising youth
before him, overtaken by business EN-.
barrassment, resolved to save himself
from ruin by taking from the funds IN
his charge few hundred dollars which
would not be missed, and which he
doubtless fully intended to replace.
Bnt luck went against him, and he had
10 resort again to the vaults of the
hank. and so it went on, the theft grow
ing daily larger and he more wretched.
Then he determined to take the desper-
ate hazards of speculation. If he won,
he could easily make good his debt
80 he persuaded himself-to the bank
and recover his honor. If he lost-he
dared not look on that side of the ven-
ture. He lost, of course, and then the
embezzlement came to light. 1t is the
old story, and it no longer takes us by
surprise, yet the repetition does not
lessen the shame nor soften the regret
which it occasions.
Can nothing be done to diminish the
temptations which beset young men !?
We have associations which do noble
work in looking after their moral well
fare, and in surrounding them with
kindly influences, but they reach little
further than their own doors. The
employer, who enjoys the best oppor-
tunity for this work, is usually the one
who neglects it. Having paid the
salaries of his clerks, and allowed them
liberal vacation, he considers that he
has done his whole duty. What his
Young men do after Office hours is none
of his concern though if he should,
perchance, learn that they are given to
dissipation, then he will most likely
discharge them with great alacrity. II
it happens, in addition, that somebody's
accounts are found to be crooked he
will surely tell us how much he thought
of that young man, and how cruelty he
has been deceived, although ISL mat
ter of fact he has perhaps ne, er sp ken
to him except in the way of Business,
and has only himself to thank for the
deception. If he had suspected that
his trusted clerk was spending his
nights at the faro table, or his lunch
time in buying margins in stocks, he
would have looked after him sharply
enough. But of this he knew nothing.
1t never occurred to him to ask wnere
he spent his leisure hours what amuse-
ments interested him what home intiu-
ences surrounded him. When he re-
turned to his own happy tireside, he
never wondered to what sort of life
his employees were returning. He
probably would have laughed at the
suggestion that it would be prudent,
from business point of view, to take
a personal interest in their affairs.
Was it not enough that he did not
"dock them for lost time II they were
ill or wished to take a half-holiday?
How many really worthy employers
are there in the country who occupy
the position of this one? Yet in this
very neglect on their part to concern
themselves with the homelife of their
employees may be found the secret of
many disastrous defalcation and in
dividual disgrace. II is often in their
power to protect our young men from
temptations which they themselves are
not strong enough to resist, did en-
ployers but seek the opportunity. A
kindly suggestion, now and then an
invitation to a social gathering; the
loan of a good book a..chance to invest
small savings in some safe and profita-
BILE way--in short, the manifesting of
personal interest in the welfare of our
young men would go long way toward
helping them to steer clear of tempta-
ton. Is it not worth thinking about?
baltimore American.