The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1893-08-23
BILL ARP.
Good Advice to Wandering Boys.
atlanta Consultation.

| Good Advice to Wandering Boys.
atlanta Constellation.
[ was ruminating upon tho Presi-
dents message and have come to the
conclusion that perhaps | am the only
reading man in all the country who
does not understand the question.
| The trouble is read both sides and
have got all tangled up. If a man
wishes to preserve his peace of mind
and his self-conceit he should read
only one side of politics or religion.
/ This may make him wrong in his path,
but he is more. contented and more
jealous. He can just rip around and
raise Cain in politics and he can 60 it
blind for his Church and his preacher.
An intelligent friend who is just from
Washington told me yesterday that
| Mr.. Cleveland was the grand imper-
\ sonation Of the National Government ;
that he was greater than parties or
platforms and would rum the machine
independel; Of all restraints. "If, "
said he, "Grover Cleveland should die
| tomorrow the country would go to
RUIN in thirty days" Another friend
said the message was an abortion and
| Mr.. Cleveland was a huge mistake
the most dverrated man in the nation.
But l am not going to worry about
it. If there are not enough brains
4 among the Statesmen at Washington
to fix up this money business [ can t
4 help it. So let it rip. I read the
4 message on my way home from the
/ posteaice and when [ reached the
piazza where Mrs. Arp was sitting I
H said:
4 ssHere is letter, a message from
! the President, would you like to read
it p
aNo," she said. "Did you bring
\ me any letters from the boys p
HNone," said I.
"I am afraid they are SICK" she
said. "They haven't written for
three or four weeks. They never write
when they are sick"
There it is. A letter from son or
daughter who is far away is bigger
thing to a mother than Grover Cleve-
lands message. Everywhere all over
the land the 'sold folks at home" are
waiting for letters from their absent
children. I have seen them sitting
on the piazza or by the freside with
shade of sadness on their faces and
as they look dreamily away I know
what they are thinking about. There
Is nothing sadder in life than the sep
aration Of aged parents from their
children. DR.. Samuel johnson said !:
81 have always looked upon it as the
worst condition of mans destiny that
most persons are torn asunder just as
they become happy in each others So
ciety."
If this be true concerning the
friends and companions Of our youth,
how much more touchingly does it ap-
ply to the aged ones whose children
have removed far away from the old
homestead. Love and memory is
about all their earthly capital and
from day to day and week to week
they look for letters-kind letters,
loving letters from the absent ones
whom perhaps they will never see
again, but hope to meet-yes, hope to
meet-on the other side.
Letters from the childcen are the
next best thing to their presence, and
the children ought to write them
write them often-write regularly.
While I was ruminating about this |
heard the sweet strains of that pretty
song, Il Sent Letter to My Love-"
and then [ got to thinking what
blessed contrivance these letters were,
the daily mail, the government post,
the swift messengers that like Mercu-
ry speed over sea and land to comfort
US. Memory went back to the time
when [ was away from home for long
year and how happy I was when let
ter came-a letter from home espe-
cially when there was little money
in it. Heard a college boy say the
other day that letter from home with
money in it was the best letter and the
best money in the world. Parents are
sure to write them and to send little
money when they can, and so when
the parents grow old and feeble the
children should pay them back and let
no sad memories make furrows on
their brow. I would plead with the
boys everywhere to comfort their old
mothers with kind and loving letters,
the good old mothers who have them
and nursed them and comforted them
and took their part in all their
troubles-never let mother feel the
truth of the proverb, "How sharper
than serpent's tooth it is to have a
thankless child" I have heard of
boys going away to the far West to
seek their fortune and not writing a
line back home for years. | have
seen aged parents who have not heard
from their boy in SO long they had
given him up for dead. They had
written to where he was last, but had
no answer. But he was not dead and
in one case he came back after eleven
years of absence-came back and COM
forted them for he had sown his wild
oats and reaped the crop and was
tired. Boys, don't do that way,
please don't, write letters, write from
every place, your letters are treasures,
they are read and re-read. l know
where is bundle now, big bundle
tied around with tape and it gets big
ger as the years roll on. If che writ
ers should get killed or die from sick
ness the tape will be united and the
letters read again while tear drops
here and there upon the open leaf.
Writing letters regularly to kindred
and friends reacts upon the writer
and makes him better, gentler, kinder.
They take but little time and cost
only two cents to send and al, really
the most valuable things for the cost
that can be found in the world. A.
good loving home letter that cost only
ten minutes in time and two cents in
money is worth ten dollars to any
mother who loves her child.
The mails are blessed privilege,
and one that was almost unknown to