The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1880-03-18
A Guy Boys Life.

Not having much else to do, have
taken to thinking much OF late about
the boys of our cities. For one who
lives in city, that is not Il very strange
thing to do; good many boys are in
sight as one walks about; you find them
not only in the school-hOuses and the
school-yards, but on the corners of the
streets and in the alleys and the vacant
lots; and whenever a ball-match is
about to begin in the park, you see
crowds of them faring eagerly that
way.
Here and there you find boys at work;
there are cash-boys and news-boys and
office-boys and messenger-boys and
shop-boys and bootblacks and garbage
boys-and some very honest and manly
little chaps, too, in that unpoetic branch
of business. Indeed, there are quite a
good many boys in every city who ore
hard at work every day, helping to sup
port themselves, and perhaps their
mothers, too.
But, besides these boys who work,
there are not few who have a great
deal of time on their hands. Some of
the school boys study out of school, but
most of them, fear, do not; and these,
especially the high-school boys, have
much the largest portion of their wax
ing hours to spend either in play or in
idleness, or in what is much worse than
either play or idleness. Many of these
are the sons of wealthy or well-to-do
people, many others are children of
the poor. They sleep say eight hours
of the twenty-four, and this part OF
their time is we'll improved; when they
are asleep they are all very good boys.
Then they are in school four and-a-h half
or five hours; that makes, say thirteen
hours; and they spend, perhaps.
their way to and from school, making
fifteen hOuls; and that leaves nine hours
which those of them who do not study
out of school have to spend in amusing
themselves. One whole work-day in
every week is a holiday, and that is
devoted wholly to play or idleness.
About thirteen weeks of every year are
vacation weeks, and in these there is
nothing at all to do. Now let us figure
it up. One-quarter of the working
time of every year is vacation time. OF
the three-quarters left, one-sixth is hOl-
iday time, and one-sixth of three-quart-
ers is one-eighth; quarter added to an
eighth is three-eighths. OF the tlve-
eighths of the working time left, about
three-tifths is spent in idleness or diver
sion, and three-tifths of five-eighths is
three-eighths; this added to the three
eighths we had before makes three
fourths-three-quarters of the working
time of every year spent in fun or in
idleness.
Even those boys who study an hour
or two out of school, on school days,
but who have no other work to do, have
fully half of the working time of every
year for their own amusement.
Now, l like to see boys playing, and
would deny myself great many things
father than have my boys forced to
work as constantly as did, and with
SO little respite for fun as I had when
was boy; but, after all, it seems to
me that it is a grave question whether
boy who spends three-quarters, or
even half, of the working time of every
year in amusing himself is not carry
ing it little too far; whether, indeed,
such life as this is the kind of life
that a boy ought to be leading from his
tenth to his eighteenth year; whether
this is the best way for him to fit HIM
self for the serious work of life
Washington GLADDEN., in st. Nicholas.