, 1893-01-04
To the Editor of the 81. Cfoia Avis.
Dear Sir

This is a new year, and after
the usual expressions of good wishes to each
other. men are generally wont to begin to
think of.the future outlook. Most Of us, at
least those of us who have had our thoughts
and eyes turned in the right direction, must
have discovered, duriHg the past year, some
weakness sitheA in our own personal char
acter, in our family regulations, or IN the
social conditions IN c0nnexlon with us. 1t
will, no doubt, be good for us, at the begin
ming OF a new year, to set about remedylng
the defects which have been detected, taking
them in the. order in which they are enumer-
ated above.
1t will not be wise for us to suffer the year
to become old before commencing.the reforms
referred to. for delay, like .not a few other
things, is dangerous, and, Time once past,
will ne'er come round = and again, Gle that
rises with the sun, hath his Journey well
begun; = and again, Drive thy business,
let not thy business drive thee
Your correspondent "Observator, in your
last issue for 1892, has given us a very
appropriate text to consider at the opening
Of the new year for what can be more i'm
portant to us than the 'Cultivation of che
feh,aIe mind" and yet this subject appears,
In many. cases, toshe entirely ign0Ied by us.
We do our heat-well, not quite GUS best, for
there is. ample room for improvement-for
our boyS; and we very often hear people
rsmark Xow shameful it is for Il boy to grow
up in ignorance, while we are apparently
Indifferent as to whether a girl be much in
formed or not. The fact that boys have af-
terwalds to go ou4 into 'ths world to earn
their livelihooa'rendbrs it highly desirable for
them to be we'll instructed, so that they may
competentIy fix the varions situations 10
,Vb;ob Rba,, no lo BALLAD PAT - 40, 4oorS,S
" DO truthfully denied that by far the great
er part of the knowledge which a man pos
sesses, (at least practical knowledge, is
acquired after he has become acquainted with
the outer world.
The girls, on the contrary, have seldom
much 20 do with the outer world their sphere
of action is rather confined to the domestic
circle, 1t would appear as if they have bee
specially made TO manage the inner world
and in order that they may competently per-
form their duties, they nust have their minds
cultivated to the same extent as, and in some
respects, to a greater extent, than boys.
There Is perhaps no person who can exercise
a greater influence than a mother, and |
cannot think Of a greater blessing to any
family than an intelligent and pious mother.
Very few women can be a Prascovie, but all
may, with due culture, fulfil the duties of
domestic life.
History furnishes us with examples of such
women, and among others may be mentioned
the name of Cornelia, the mother of the two
Gracchl. We read that this illustrious lady,
after the demise of her husband, who left her
twelve children, devoted herself to the gov
eminent and training of her family with
so mpdch discretion and prudence that
she .eesasned universal applause. Of all
these children, only three came to years
of maturity, Sempronia who became the
wife of the End Scipio Africanus and two
ssops, Siberius and Caius. She brought IN