The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1884-06-05
Short Talks With the Boys.

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My son, I heard you speak of your
father the other day as "the old man"
and of your mother as cher highness."
What's the matter that you can't refer
to them as your father and mother?
Suppose your parents should speak OF
you as "the kid" or "the fly" You'd
soon begin to think you were born into
the wrong family. The SON who is
ashamed of his parents ought to be
ashamed of himself.
Suppose their ways are old fashioned,
and their grammar little off, and they
don't feel like keeping up with the fash.
ions of the day? Not one father or
mother in ten had the advantages you
enjoy. Forty or fifty years ago they
walked three or four miles to country
school to pick up little learning, while
now you are talking of going to college;
They began poor and have toiled and
labored and saved for their children.
You Just remember that things have
greatly changed in this country. Years
ago colico dress was seen at church tar
oftencr than silk. Men went to meet
ing clad in hon,espuu. The rule in most
houses was for the children stand up to
eat The biggest pieces Of pie went to
father and mother, and children were
not allowed to sit up until 10 o'clock at
night, or to argue a question after the
head of the family had decided it.
My boy, don't get any foolish notions
;nto vour head Tf vo,ir father is old
and gray and bent-ir your mother is
trembling and weak and has no care for
the frivolities of this day, it is toll which
has brought these, days of hard work
and nights full of anxiety that their
children might be spared the same slavish
life. Where they wore .bluejeans you
have broadcloth. Where they ate
johnnycake you have sweet cake and
pie. Where their mode of life and
forced economy prevented them from en-
joying society, amusements or books,
Just think how you make the shillings
fly, and what is offered to interest and
amuse you
Now let's have word to say about
economy. I've been right among you,
and know that you want this, that and
the other, and "want it bad" Up to
the time of the war if one of the boys
of that day had dime to spend for
Fourth of July, he thought himself we'll
fixed. The boys want about five dollars
apiece nowadays, and that's all gone
before noon.
If we got new book it was considered
q great piece of extravaganza. The lad
who had cash enough to walk into pan
oramic exhibition, buy pair of skates,
or treat himself to swcet.meats was
looked upon by the rest of us a Jay
Gould.
I'm not saying that you shouldn't have
money and use it, but right there is 8
vital point. Be sure that you really need
what you buy. Ask yourself if it will
pay? Money is the wheels on which the
world moves. Acquire the habit Of
throwing it after every novelty brought
out and you'll by and by have second
hand museum aud no cash to run it.
dislike stipgy boy, hut when l see
a lad plankiDg his nickels down at the
desk of savings bank know that he
is one of the future men who is going to
build our railroads and do our wholesale
business. There's a big difference be-
tween being stingy and being economical:
The richest men of America are liberal
in giving to churches, asylums and to the
unfortunate, but they never waste. They
don't indulge in this or that simply be-
cause they have money enough to pay
for it.
Now, if you are about Is years old
you've got a sneaking idea into your
head that it's big thing to use an oath
occasionally. You never made greater
mistake 1t is true many men use more
or less oaths, but I would like to have
you lind me one who isn't ashamed of It'll
It's mean habit, for it is habit l
know you can point to the greatest men
in the land and prove that they spit out
oaths, but THAT'S 20 reason why you should
follow suit. There isn't swearer in this
country who doesn't feel a quiet satisfac-
ton in sitting down to converse with
man whose language is clean and pure.
There's nothing manly in using an oath.
Swearing is about the first thing. you
hear from the lips of fool or drunkard.
Even heather can swear.
Now, don't get the idea that | want
you to be too good. The too good boy is
nuisance. He was born to be an angel,
but they forgot to spike on the wings.
Go to the circus? Certainly! / know
there are people in this world who look
upon circus as the next thing to visit
from old Satan himself, but they ought
to have lived forty years ago. If you
were my boy I'd walk you in, show you
every animal and curiosity, and then
we'd take a reserved seat and see the
circus. When a man has trained horse
or mule or dog to obey him with almost
human intelligence he has proved to you
the practical value of patience and per.
severance. Every shade of men will
stop on the street to see man lift, or to
watch jumping.match. Then why de-
prive you of the sight of the performance
of an athlete, who has spent years to
bring his strength and agility to perfec'
tion?
Would I take you to the theatre? +? To
a good play-yes; to Buffalo Bill barn:
storming hurrah-no. Five plays out OF
seven are healthy in sentiment, and
point moral so plainly that even a child
can catch on.
want my boy to rub against every
day life little while he is boy. If he
has the idea that hunters lie is full
of Juicy buffalo steaks and victories over
grizzlies Pm going to send him into the
woods for week to live on woodchuck
meat, carry cold in his head and be
jumped out of his boots the first time an
owl boots. If he asks for money I'm
going to give it to him, but want to sit
down of Saturday night and see how
he spent it, and show up some of his
foolish bargains. If he wants to sail the
bounding billow know of lake captain
who will take him on a trip from Detroit
to Saginaw, and if he can't cure him in
just one voyage nobody else need try.