Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1888-11-14
Cruel Children.

From the Fortnightly Review
In the gradual development there IL always
sense of pleasure in the exercise Of power. but
this pleasure has to be subordinated to the
good OF society," and this is one Of the first neces-
sary steps to successful social growth. So the
young boy who is, even among Us, more fire.
quently cruel than sympathetic, may 20 through
a period OF bullying, &C., to become Q refined
and sympathetic man, full Of generous inn
pulses: say this is the ordinarymethod, but,
as might De expected, some boys never become
kindly, and some, instead, grow from cruel to
brutal. and end as social pests It il supposed
that the lowe animal especially the carnivora,
are pleased with the torture they cause, but I
doubt II this is the only Interpretation of the
treatment OF the mouse by the cat and of his
victim by the lion. There are children who
lnfiict torture on every kind Of living thing.
Thus have known of child of tender years
begin by pulling off the wings Of flies, then
proceed to bake frogs, and next take birds
and bore ont their eyes, and later still try to
injure any child who might fall into his power
have known such children kick cats and dogs
to death, or set light to them. or pour boiling
water over them, the fendish pleasure being
increased If the young of the animals were
thus reduced to starvation. The morally un-
developed child has been pointed out to me by
several devout friends proof of the exist
ence OF the devil as well as Of the truth Of the
doctrine OF original sin, and own their actions
go far to satisfy those who seek such support
l do not know OF any age at which this brutality
may not develop, as have seen brutes Of this
nature as young as four. In one such the vice
and cunning we're extreme, and though many
evil and cruel deeds were done the culprit was
long undiscovered. Another most serious trait
is that these morally insane children will make
false accusations, and will even destroy their
clothes and produce the appearance of injury
to support tales of assault and robbery.
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pfvprr 1AI
SCIENCE AND ART OWE ALL THEIR KNOWLEDGE
TO MOTHER EARTH's TEACHINGS.
From Science Gossip
Most of the skillful devices invented by men
for doing fine work rapidly can be traced to
nature, where for countless centuries they
have been operating. The discoverer Of each
new appliance Of mechanism might be shown
that his idea was as old as the hills. 1t is
claimed that the inventors of the future will
be those who carefully study the natural world
The burr stones Of the mills are another style
of the molar teeth which grind all the grist that
feeds men and beasts. The hoOfs of horses are
made of parallel plates like carriage springs.
SThe finest file Of human manufacture is a rough
affair compared with the Dutch rush used BY
cabinet-makers. The jaws Of the turtle and
tortoise are natural scissors. The squirrel car
ries chisels in his mouth, and the hippo
pOtamus is provided with AIDES, which
CoHStdutly sudTptHeO as tu0y are worn.
The carpenters plane is found in the jaws
of the bee. The woodpecker has powerful
little trip-hammer. The diving-bell initiates
the work Of the water spider, which constructs
a small cell under the water, clasps bubble Of
air between its hind legs, and dives down to its
submarine chamber, with the bubble, displac-
ing the water gradually until its abode with
fishes contains a large airy room surrounded
by water. In laying its eggs on the water the
gnat fastens them into the shape of ife-boat,
which it is impossible to sinh without tearing
it to pieces.
The iron mast Of modern ship is strength
ened by deep ribs running along its interior.
A porcupine quill is strengthened by similar
ribs. When engineers found that hollow
beams were stronger than solid ones, they only
discovered a principle that is very commonly
seen in nature. wheat straw, if solid, could
not support its head Of grain. The bones Of
the higher animals are porous, and those Of
birds, where lightness and strength are most
beautifully combined, are hollow. The frame
work of ship resembles the skeleton of her
ring. Aeronauts try to copy the structure and
movements of birds. Palsy, the French
potter. studied seaside shells to learn the best
method of terrifying town. The ship-worm
is an admirable tunneler, boring his way
through any submerged timber, and lining the
round passage with hard casing. The engi-
neer Brunei took hint from this animal, and
was the first to succeed in tunneling under