The Democrat. (Scotland Neck, Halifax Co., N.C.) 1884-1896, 1892-05-05
AN OPEN LETTER
TO THE BOYS
SOME POINTED REMARKS.
RE AID AND PROFIT


IN {. Baptist
| have heen noticing yoa lately
nv hor, and | think word or tx,
IN regard 10 your conduct will not :,
out OF place. And you need 20
cry sold fogy" either. as you are &C
customed 20 do when advised b,
those OF mature yesrs, and who-s
minds are stored ny years OF ex
perience, for il you happen to know
me you will remember that I'm mol
out OF the twenties myself.
First, my boy, you are sadly de-
hcient in your mnane-s. You NAV
know etiquette we'll enough to laue b
at the blunders Of others, bot real
| genuine polteness is bat little un.
defstood by the young folks of To.
day. When you spoke that plain
old farmer the other dsy about the
weather, you did it with a patroniz
ing air that would have been often
sive to any cne but gentleman like
him. You looked exactly like you
thought that was all that he knew
t. talk ahouf. Why bless you, nv
boy, you'll never find a man 10 this
world but who knows soUetbing
you don't, and because you have
borrowed a few ideas of some great
authors, you need not think youF-
self better than other folks Cd tha,
account. For boy to think we'll
of him self, Is self respect; bat for
him to think better than be oug tt
to is seif-conceit Don't think your
self better than others just because
you happen to know whst it took
some one ! ears Of toll md labor to
fiHd out and make plain enough for
block heads TO learn. Don't do il.
Il ou are not ashamed OF yourself
for 1t, other people are; and | would
rather have less opinion of myse f
than any one else would have of me
Young people are getting very wise
in their own conceIt nowadays.
Which ia only petite way Of calling
one a fool.
Another thing [ don't like to se.
about you IS the want Of respect you
show to the aged. | noticed the
other day when you were in compan,
that you ignored them altogether. ]
ion't suppose they would have en-
joyed your company any more than
you would theirs, unless you hav
improved in yorr conversation OF
late. They are not up to the latest
slang, and your fmall talk is toe
d mlnntive for their failing senses.
"Birds OF feather will flock to.
gtther,. bot l would advise yOu to
flock by Yourself awhile till you
learn to pay due respect to the olG
Their ways may be fashioned,
but cot any more so than yours will
be to the coming generation. You
may happen to think about sll OF
tHl- IN years to come, and If you DO
y"u can just remember that | told
you so.
have ooticed too that you have
acq .ired vocabulary that Is sort
OF q first cousin to profanity. And
you seem to take natural free born
American pride in using 1t oD any
occasion. OF course 1t feels mighty
b In you TO emphasize your state
mants by such e1pletives, and |
don't deny but that they may need
some sort OF emphasis either. Bot, u,
bo remember that, besides heiDg
sinful, (aud you know 1t is as we'll
as do.) it shows that you think that
a simple statement of youts is not
sufficient OF itself to be believed
without being emphasized aod sworn
tn, aud thereby you acknowledge
yourself liar, or that you bellve
otter people think you are. Per
b ,ps you have never thought about
it in that way.
Again, fear YOU have lost some
OF Your reverence for religion if You
ever had much. You rememb Der how
you acted at church the other Sun.
day. l was heartily ashamed Of
Won. You looked and acted as if
i we're an affair gotten up for your
own amusement. | don't believe
you remembered any of the sermon,
but YOU did look relieved when the
preacher got through. | don't know