St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1884-05-15
Where Do you spend Your
Evenings

If | were "a merchant, and young
man applied to me for employment IN
any responsible position, one OF the
first questions that | should ask him
would be: Where do you spend your
evenings? The answer to that ques-
ton would go very far toward deter
mining whether he were the man to be
trusted or not. In the rural regions
evening commonly signifies quiet
freside after the labors of shop or farm.
With what swift and eager foot my
memory runs back to the cheerful joys
of NV boyhood in the old hospitable
farmhouse, and beside roaring hick-
ory fire! A book and a game of ''foX
and geese" and row of sputtering APP
pies and chestnuts on the hot hearth,
made up the usual round of indoor en-
tertainment Whittier tells the whole
story in that most delightful of Ameri-
can idyls, ''Snow- Bound"
1t is of young men III the cities and
the large towns that am thinking
now. Some of them are living under
IA parental roof; tens of thousands are
in boarding houses legions of them
are ION the road" and lodging in
hotels. For those who still reside at
home. the parents are still responsible.
The primal duty of every father and
mother is to make home attractive to
the boys and girls. Some godiy-mind-
ed fathers, who are very regular at
PRAYER meetings, and some mothers
who never miss theiI "Dorcas Society
make shocking blunders i'll the man
agement of their own children. Their
Gown vineyards" are badly kept, and
yield only sour grapes. When a boy
begins to dislike his home ana seeks to
escape from it, he has very often
reached the first milestone on the
road to 'Ethe bad; and for this dislike
his parents may be more than half re
sponsible. | entreat every father and
mother to see to two things. The one
is that their own dwelling he made just
as attractive as possible (and bright
open fire will pay ten-fold more than
it costs as IA "means of grace" to your
family), The other is, be careful how
you trust your boys with night key.
/ If you knOU where he is, very we'll If
you hand him IL night-keY, and do not
know or care whittier he goes with it,
you may find out one of these days to
your sorrow. A SagaciOus father said
TO me yesterday: "ihe anchorage OF
my children has always been a bright,
happy home" That man has never
seen one of his sons wrecked on the
rocks of ruin. Thousands of young
men really have no home, except the
| parlor of boarding house, and no do
nestle property, except trunk up Ill
third-story bedroom.
But, however young man may be
situated, the evening hours bring to
/ him certain temptations and perils.
The days work is over and nature
Graves recreation. No one understands
this natural necessity better than the
I Devil and he makes the most of it.
The evening is his harvest time; then
he opens his numberlesS doorways O
temptation. Then he lights up his
places of enchantment-hriu out his
dice-bOxes, and cards, and cham
payne bottles, and billiard tables, anC
roulette boards; then he tunes his
horns and violins, and filings wide opeI
ways to sensual indulgence. 1t is il
1.-THE black and dark night that the
shameless wanton prowls the streets il
quest of 1.-The young man void of un
derstanding"-ye and of some grey
headed fools. likewise. How many ;
one (while father and mother are IL
their unconscious sleepy 'goeth after he
straightway, as an OK to the slaughter
. and knoweth not that it is for his life.
( 30 SlltCtSSlUl dlt llltSt Val iOllS btltlS ~
, the Tempter that, if all the young mel
, who have spent any one evening IL
dangerous places could be mustered
the next morning in mass-meeting
its size would be appalling and tn
composition of it would strike many
. parental eye with horror. After thirty
one years of close observation of cit,
. life, avn not surprised that so many
, mothers son is led astray only won
About the specific evil ways of seek
ing amusement have already spoken
in my previous articles on the "Peril
2 of the Playhouse" (which has had
: wide currency in tracts and reprints
and on wine drinking. card-playiug
: and gambling. But the best antidOt
f to all dangerous. places and pleasure
is to find safe ones. Where and wha
E are they7 A wholesome home, {
, course, stands first. As long rs yO
). are tethered there, you may live i
Il happy ignorance of manifold thing
which a pure heart should not wish I
know; for blessed is the youth VIII
does not know too much. No matte
h how plain OF cheap your boarding
a quarters MAY he, my young friend,
t you have plenty OF good books, yo
e may spend many an evening in CON
d pany tit for a king. Secure a ticket i
r a public library, and then bring t
= your room such authors as YOU can al
o ford to- be intimate with. Nnn nee