Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1892-09-08

was impertinent to her mother in pub
lie, and it states that every one who
heard her remarked, justly, that it
wasn't her fault-it was her mothers,
who had not taught her PROPERLY There
is, too, Spanish provcrb, 'There are no
ungrateful children, which of course
means that bad children have had no
training to be grateful for. Now. I do
not believe that doctrine. It is cowardly
and unjust to lay the ingratitude ana
undutifulness of all children to their
parents. The argument leaves no room
for inherited tendencies-inheri per-
haps from remote ancestors-nor for the
differentiation which makes every indi-
vidual unlike every other individual. IF
training were all, why are not all the
children of one family alike? Perhaps
you will say that parents often indulge
one child more than another; but how is
it that those children who are reared in
asylums and refugees, and subjected to
precisely the same training, influence
teaching and discipline, turn out to be
just as different from each other as chill
dren reared III different families
s'You have brought up several chill
dren Of your own?" asked her listener.
''Seyeral of my own, and two or three
which were not nine.' replied the lady,
sand know that even the most careful
and watchful training will not turn
children out all alike, like shoepegs or
clothespins. Why, in the very first
family that ever existed, according to
the Bible, one child was good and the
other bad. 1t is quite probable that
they were trained very similarly. They
had no long ancestry to furnish them
with inherited tendencies Was it
training that made Cain q murderer, OF
want of training?''
you do not believe, then, that evil
tendencies may be corrected by advice,
precept and teaching:7
Sometimes perhaps. But all the
training in the world will not alter
child's nature. You may perhaps teach
a child of a sullen, willful, obstinate dis
position to keep it somewhat under con
troll, but you can never make that child
into cheerful, amiable, loyable person.
A tendency to flippancy and self conceit
(the groundwork of this impertinent
girls ordering her mother about III pub
lic) it IS next 20 impossible to train out
of child. Even those qualities which
would seem much more external, like
untidiness and Incidence for I have
often heard it preached that habits Of
order and peatness are simply matters
Of teaching and habit) are very hard 10
eradicate. Did | ever tell you about
the child that tried SO hard to make
into a trim, tidy, frugal, neat and eco
nomical woman
mo, and | should much like to hear
how a woman who has all those quail
ties in so good measure as yourself could
fail to impress them on any child under
her control"
"Well, did fail miserably, and that
experience showed me the injustice Of
laying all faults to training, or the lack
Of it. l began with that child before
she was old enough to do the simplest
kind of worlI-began by insisting on her
picking up her toys and putting them
in place every night; by having a row
Of hooks low enough for her to reach in
the wardrobe, where she was taught to
hang her clothes at night and her night
dress in the morning; by teaching her
to have her small undergarlnents-hose
and so on-laid nicely in her drawer,
ready for her wearing. Despite all MY
care, doubt if she ever put toys or gar
ments IN place without being specially
reminded.
''As she grew up she showed an utter
lack Of tidiness and order; her clothes
were scattered all about her room, her
schoolbooks were anywhere, wherever
she chanced to drop them; she could
never find her pencil, scissors or thimble;
her handkerchief was never at hand:
when she had half dozen pretty white
aprons for school they were always all
soiled at once; if she had several cam
brio, gingham or muslin frocks she was
sure to have no fresh one among them
unless l watched her dressing every day.
How hard tried to teach her to be neat
and careful with her clothes, to show
her that she must always have clean
garments ready for need; that she must
not wear clothes which needed mend
ing; that she must not pin patch; that
She must not toss her clothes on chairs
and then sit on them and press them
full of wrinkles; that she must not use
pins where buttons should be; that she
must keep her room tidy, and that she
must brush her teeth night and morn
ingr'
''Ihen you think her headlessness
and untidiness were hereditary
mo, l cannot see how that could be;
her mother was good New England
housekeeper, careful, neat handed and
orderly, who knew how to do all kinds
Of housework and sewing, and did them
well. But that girl would as soon wear
dress slit from waist to hem as not
lat least about home; she was vain
enough about her appearance in public.
If button came off her clothing she
would pin the fabric all to rags rather
than replace it. and my life was q bur
den of constant watchfulness and re-
proof. had to threaten to brush her
teeth myself ii; order to get her to do it.
and / believe ! did it once or twice.
Now you are tempted to say was too
severe with her; but ] assure you she
was never punished excepting by being
made to take off torn garment and
mend it, or to do something over which
she had scamped the first time.
1T was precisely so about her room;
it was just at the head of the stairs, and
unless took it in hand myself, as was
often obliged to do, the carpet was al
ways so covered with dust, lint and
shreds that the litter was continually
being swept ont into the hall and over
the stairs BY her going down after she
was old enough to wear long dresses. 1t
was a pleasant, large room, comfortably
furnished, but twas always ia disorder;
her clothes, her brushes, hairpins, shoes,
ribbons, gloves and books were every
where, and over all she reigned queen
of misrule.
I'm fact she did just as the average
boy does in house where he has been
allowed to believe that his privilege is