Evening capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1888-1893, 1890-03-08

~ 8aAEEo - NfVWtA NA1 AhAN'NH-~ -
woefully wrong. II you worship
them you are in error. Power is
not with them. They are the tossed
up driftwOOd Of power, the last cast
up sea-weeds from the ocean Of cir
cumstance.
Why use a position Of power to
cringe TO the strong and strike the
weak? Does real power fawn on
the great and smite the small? No,
real weakness does that, and we can
only pity It. Real fpower does not
show itself IN that way.
We hear much said about three
words, power, influence aud charac-
ter These are common terms in
the mouth Of even common
people. But, what do they mean?
What do they pass current
for in the coin Of language?
Are they not half the time counter
fiet terms? How often is power not
power. One If the cOmmonest ex-
hibitiOns Of power is that exercised
by the father over his children. II
they disobey. or require correction,
and persist in II, the first temptation
Is ~ address them IN tone Of voice
supposed to he powerful enough to
command obedience. II that will
not bring it we are next tempted TO
use physical power and strike home
with the slipper or bare hand the ter
ror our powerful words do not inspire.
Ia spanking the obstrepcrous child
We lash ourselves into inevitable an
ger, and after the flushed blood cools
here comes a feeling OF regret and
.bame that u a confession Of our
weakness. Was II power we EN-
ployed aftpr all? Was it not rather
weakness? The harsh, passionate,
tempestuous speech uIder any
circumstances, Is it power that
Is manifested! Rather not. Take
a wayward, disobedient child; fret
ting, stewing, crying, wearing out
the mothers tact and the fathers
patience, Of which the supply Is al
ways limited; whip IL? No. A
thousand times, no! Employ your
ingenuity to give it something to
10. Look around and get 1t some
job. That sobbing, whining, peev-
ish peslifsrous terrible infant Is out
of proper employment. That is all.
Don't use power. Use your heart.
Use your @ ,d-glven intellect. Set
the boy to driving tacks, If only to
pull them out ag lin. Let him
whittle, cut up papers, feed the
the horse, anything, anything!
rather than teach him 10 think less
of you, TO lose his love for you by a.
visible confession Of your weak use
Df power. The children are spoiled
because we are weak and ignorant
Df their wants. We think we are
using power when we are using the
opposite. We think we are sowing
the seeds Of strength, when we will
only reap the crop Of weakness.
One-half the sOrrows of the world
come from misconception OF
.erns, misuse OF forces, misemploy
ment of time and means.
Half the troubles of life come to
Is for want Of proper employment.
There IL the right work for each Of
is. There IL the proper task, the
field of labor TO expend our
ife forces in; our duty IL 10 find 1t.
rhe employed man or child is the
lapDy man or child. There flows
,ne Of lifes grandest streams of con-
eminent. If left to themselves,
most ot our children would find !
In our superior false
wisdom we might call il mischief.
We coop them up, put clothes
IN them that they dare not soil,
Ioften them by keeping them In
loors, make them go into inyolun-
AIRY idieness, then use our power to
punish them II restless, trouble
'ome, annoying, the pest Of our
Ives. Oh! for IA right conception Of
hat word, power, to deal with our
,wn childron, to deal with our fel- |
owmanl Too, too often, our EN-
Dloyment OF power is ouly AN appli-
,atlon Of weakness.
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