Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1893-08-25
THE cHi.OREN'S RIGHTS.
why farctes should Always Keep Faith
with Their Rcys.

with Their Ecys.
That a man should keep his promise
is proposition so self-evidcnt that it
should need no argument. II he should
keep his promises with his banker or
merchant, how much more should he
do SO with his own flesh and blood.
While farmers, as rule, recognize their
obligation to make good their promises
to their neighbors. merchants and
bankers, we are sorry t. say. breaches
the Kansas City Live Stock Indicator,
that a promise made 10 the boy or girl
is not always considered equally bind
ing. If he has a pig, which for some
reason does not thrive, he says to the
boy: Now, Jimmie, if you take this
pig and make nice pen for it and feed
it you may have half that il sells for
when it is grown" Jimmie enters into
the scheme with spirit and with full
confidence in his fathers word. For
months TO come there is nothing too
good in his sight for that pig, and it is
with very laudable pride that he sees
it catch up with its mates and event
ually surpass them. The fall of the
year comes and the pigs are to be sold,
and Jimmie's pig goes in with the rest,
probably not even weighed separa tely.
he has spent good many hours think
ing what he will do with that money.
To plan what to do with it was q real
pleasure. He awaits the return OF his
father with the pig money, and Is
grieved and hurt that nothing is said
about the price of the pig. Then, if he
ventures to su2 2geSt that he is entitled
10 the half he is probably met
with rebuffs, or told that there are
taxes and interest that must be paid
and the money is absolutely needed.
Most boys in an emergency of this kind
will say: 'All right, father" Frequent
ly, however, he is met with a rebuke
and told that he has been boarded and
clothed for so many years and that he
owes all of this and more too. This is
simply brutal The boy has contracted
no obligations to his parents that were
not known at the time the promise was
made. 1t was therefore made under
these circumstances and conditions.
The money for that pig is Jimmie's,
and to divert it to any other purpose
without his consent is simply robbery
no matter ii it is done by the parent.
We are quite well aware that parents
do not intend to rob their children in
this way nor break faith with them,
nor deal unjustly, nevertheless the in
justice is none the less clear and the
boys feel it keenly. We know some
thing about this from experience. 1t is
not desirable thing for boy to lose
faith in his father or mother, or to have
the slightest misgiving as to whether
or not they will keep their promises
So common is this, that the phrase
"Jimmie's pig" fathers money"
"Susie's calf" fathers cow" Tom
my's colt, fathers horse" have passed
into proverbs
Nor is there any way by which boy
can be more completely disgusted with
farm life or his affections more COM
pletely alienated from home than by
this method of dealing with him. The
excuse is sometimes made that the boy
may spend his money foolishly. We
beg leave to say that it is none Of the
fathers business. He has a right to
spend it how he pleases. The boy,
however, who has the sand in him to
take n worthless pig, an orphan lamb
or stunted calf and develop either of
them in accordance with natures in
tentions, will listen to suggestion
from the parent Us to the best method
of spending his money. What if he
does make u little mistake He must
learn to spend money wisely some time
and Will inevitably make mistakes. He
is a dozen times less liable to make mis-
takes with money that has cost him
time, thought and labor, than with
money that the father gives him either
before his death or after. Therefore,
we say, keep faith with the boys or the
girls. They are priceless jewels of a
parents CROWN On them must the
name and honor of the fuinily depend
in the future Let it be an untarnished
name. Let a boy or girl think of his or
her father and mother as persons whose
word is as good as their bond, and have
no more doubt about the literal fulfill
ment of it than they have of the sun
rising or setting.