Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1888-10-30
THE eEsr MOTIVES.
How to Lead the Young to Choose and
Prefer All Things Good.

How TO Lead the Young to Choose and
Prefer All Things Good.
We point out truly enough the hap
piness which results from bodily
health, and thus urge mon to acquire
such habits OF moderation, OF diet, of
exercise, Of sleep, OF labor, ETC., as
will most surely lead to it. We teach
that honesty, integrity and persever-
ing industry will insure permanent
success in business; that kindness and
compassion, mercy and lovc, react to
sweeten the lives Of those who practice
them-in word, that active goodness
Of every kind, evon though it may be
hard and painful to perform, finally re-
suits in happiness to the doer In
private life, and In all life, the best
motives to action arc those which lilo
outside of self and its supposed inter-
ests. To build the ship stanch and
safe and tho house firm and healthful
for the sake OF human lives that will
be entrusted to them; to administer
justice because OF its equity; to heal
disease and teach sanitary laws for tho
sake OF suffering humanity; to cherish
in every employment some glimpse Of
and interest in tho good that is to bo
produced in the world, intro
duces q finer element into
the labor and actually brings
forth better quality OF work than can
be educed by tho mere hopo of per-
sonal benefit TO tho worker. II is o
very poor typo OF parent who would
subordinate his child's welfare TO his
own in his relations with him, and n
very poor typo of teacher who does
not make the needs OF his pupil para
mount Philanthropic actions, so called,
may have many motives; money and
time and energy may be devoted to
those who need them from the nero
desire to be considered generous or
the fear OF boing thought mean; but
who can doubt that when they are
given from true sympathy and an hon
est desire to promote happiness they
are of tenfold worth? 1t is true that at
present the egoistic instincts of men
are SO much stronger than the altruis-
tic that the former class Of motives is
much moro easy to arouse. And, as
We have said, they arc In many cases
the only available onesi yet we should
never lose sight OF the truth that they
are inferior, and whenever it is possi-
BILE TO infuse love of what is good and
right for its own sake-a desire TO SEQ
others benefited and made happy, u
motive for excellence unconnected with
self-we should hail tho opportunity
with Joy. Generous emotions and Writ
uous desires are in themselves fount-
ain OF happiness to their pos
SCISSOR, but it is n fountain
which must spring up unawares.
Planned for and sought for. it fails to
appear 1t is in youth that such mo-
tives can be most easily fostered. Then
it is that habits are formed; and there
is habit OF motive as we'll us habit OF
action. 1t is not sufficient to instruct
the child TO follow certain lines of con-
duct and to avoid others. We must
supply him with incentives, and upon
tho nature Of these will his future
character largely depend. Instead OF
assuring children that II they are good
they will be happy, and clinching the
assurance by artificial rewards or
bribes, we should lead them gently TO