St. Landry democrat. (Opelousas, La.) 1878-1894, 1891-04-25
Houe Training.

I'm former article it has been said that
absolute obedience on the part of children
should be the unvarying law of the home.
| It must not be understood that arbitrary
authority must make the lew and demand
| it's observance, but the control must be
Que Of sympathy and the deepest concern
| In other words, the child must feel that
every demand made upon it comes from
fond and loving heart, and that execution
will bring the best results. Obedience
then is accepted by the child as the wisest
course to reach the best ends. Further,
such sympathy between parent and child
bogets, in addition to the natural relations
feeling of lovable companionship. Au-
thority is CO iverted into the gentler
.overment of sympathetic harmony. and
obedience follows as the natural conse-
quence of the conception of right.
In learning obedience in this way the
child learns self-respect. This makes
him, as it were, his own master, and he
soon learns to govern himself. Obedience
at an early age must be arbitrary but at
the very earliest moment possible 1t
should come because of self-respect, and
there follows as a matter of course the
absence of restraint.
To bring about this condition Of things
will require much study of the temper and
disposition of the child. No two temper
aments are exactly the same. The govern
ment that would scarcely check the way
wradness of one would break down and
crush the spirit of another. Tastes differ
and they begin. to show their differences
at very early age. All the conditions
and environments of the child should be
taken into consideration in seeking his
obedience to government, and the very
best means should be used to subject him
to authority. One method is demanded
under certain conditions and quite another
when the conditions change.
The charas .ef of Punishment to effect
obedience csnnot be Uniform and ironclad.
In some families, and in many schools
there are certain arbitrary penalties affixed |
to certain transgressions. This Is all |
wrong. I repeat, the punishment must
vary as the conditions vary, and the parent |
must take the time and exercise the |
patience to understand these conditions. |
In this connection l must say, never |
strike child. Surely in the wisdom of |
these times some more civilized method of |
can be used. The constitution \
Of our State will not allow the admins
.;ator of law to beat thief, and it is per-
mitted only upon insubordination after the
Criminal is confined lin the penitentiary
How can mother get her consent to strike
her child7 Oh !sno. whipping is not the
penalty for disobedience on the part of
child. nor as have before said can any
man FIX any uniform punishment that
should be used. Every parent must study
zach one Of his children and then apply
uss such penalties as each ofense de-
nands Seek obedience in the gentlest but
iraest way. By all means have obedience
,ut never be unjust or rude to secure it.
lot the unqualified confidence of the child,
rave him know that all the demands made
,f him are for the best ends; use more
sason and less brute force, more sympa-
hetic tenderness and less. Of coarse re-
,pke, be absolutely immovable in securing
aspect and obedience, and from happy
lome You but give to the State, at least
bsdient citizens. j. Northen, IN
,oaiy1segn CsiltsoGt0T. I.
1 Al pretty girl in an Iowa town ran away
rpm home to avoid practicing on the
iano. She must be a queer girl. 1t is
eneralf the other members of the family
rho wantt run away from home to avoid
earring the girl praeticing on the piano.
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