The Arkansaw traveler., 1885-02-28
SHORT TALKS WITH THE RoYs
I'M. Quad, in Detroit Free Press.l

~Dces is hurt . boy to read novels ?"
 Take a clean sponge and dip 1t into a running gutter, and what is the result The sponge can be cleansed and purified again. but only after much labor.
 The human mind, my lad, is sponge, and soaks up the good, bad and indifier- eut with the same relish.
 The great trouble with novels is the false ideas and vicious theories. It is the same with all serial stories in the SO called boys' papers, and 1t is to a certain extent in many of the boy books. In the first place the boy, no matter what his age, is always made to perform feats of yslor which common sense teaches you is impossible. He never acts nor talks like a boy. His adventures as a hun ter, detective or runaway are too improb able.
 Nevertheless, as you read you find yourself half believing, at least and the next thing is to wonder why you can't be hero. The story makes you dissatisfied with school and home and family gov- ernment, and the first thought is to run away or plan sop.e adventure. Even if you say to yourself that you won't believe a word of the story. the mind will still soak up many of the false theories and absurd ideas, and later on in years it may cost you something to get rid of them.
 If a stranger should tell you that, as he was passing over a certain bridge spanning a creek, he saw gold watch lying in the water, but was in too great a hurry to stop, you would probably believe .L vf haA rneitsSnn hoe the man was brazen liar you would still ind yourself wondering how deep the water was, who lost the watch and whether any one had secured it. Your common sense tells you there are no such beings as ghosts, but you have read and heard of them, and have probably expected to feel them clutching at your throat.
 A story which is put forth tor boy to read should, although it may be purely fiction, contain nothing exaggerated or improbable. The hero may be brave without overdoing the thing. You may find in the papers almost any day in- stances where boys have displayed great heroism at fires, or have risked their lives to save others. These things are possi- ble and probable, but this making boy drive of band of Indians, or break up gang of robbers, or capture ship-load of pirates, is against common sense.
 Let me instance some other evils. In a book recently published by a very re- spectable eastern house, and having for its author person with "Rev" before his name, he tells about a sailor falling down the middle companion-way." He meant harchway, but some day some one nk hse hon vAaIAve su.lI about the middle companionway and find himself the butt of ridicule. The same author speaks of sailor in his hammock. Hammocks are never used aboard of merchant vessels, but the men have berths. He has the crew gather around the man at the wheel to sing and smoke and yarn it, when every boy who ever heard of discipline aboard ship knows that no sailor is permitted aft un- less called there by strict duty.
 In another book, put forth by an equally respectable house, the length of ths Mississippi river is wrongly given. Arkansas is put on the wrong side of that river, and the distance from Vicksburg to Baton Rouge is not correct by thirty miles.
 Such instances as have related befog boys mind and lead him into error, and he had better have spent his time in playing marbles.
 Let me ask you'll ,w much better of you would be to sit down in a grocery for three hours each evening and listen to some man telling lies, knowing all the time they were lies? Would that inn prove your mind? Many of the novels are no more improving than such grocery tales.
 Now let me ask you what makes an in- telligent, well-posted man? School edu- ing after we left school the world would slip backwards. His mind goes on, day after day, week after week, picking up scraps of history, politics, travel, botany, astronomy, and so forth, and by and by he is human encyclopedia. He may read love stories and adventures all his days and be no better of. Indeed, he will be far worse of.
 We'll, what shall boy read ?"
 There are one or two boy papers of good moral tame. The heroes are not exaggerated, and the adventures are not improbable. If the story is of mining, the author gives you some valuable in- formation in regard to minerals and how to mine. If it is of hunting you are taught how to make snares and traps, and are given the principles of taxidermy. If it is of boating you are taught the principles of sailing and rowing. Ifit is of the sea, you are given the correct names of ropes and yards and sails, and the habits and traits of the people of other countries are correctly stated.
 There are few boy books which are true to everyday life. Read these, and you have further time take history, or something else which is certain to return some bene6t-a daily paper-with its news from every foreign country-its home happeuings-its discussions ot all matters of interest-its incidents and ac- cidents, is geography, history, grammar and orthography combined
 Think of these things, my boy. Ifyou were going to be boy forever the case would be different. No one would ex. rA~< ~v~~,s ,f.. ..@.. n..s al ~