Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1894-01-11
TRAITS OF HUMAN NATURE.
Paper read hy Mrs. Louise Backus before
tn" Noman's Club OF Ellsworth.
Dec. =. 1898.


published by request Of the Club
To no one more thsn the teacher is given
the opportunity Of observing the traits of
human nature in children Acting as a
substitute for the mother, six hours Of
each day, she gets TO know them thorough
ly She sees before her on each morning
number sometimes approximating to the
eighties. Each one OF these several chill
dren has au Individuality of its own which
even at very early sec is as marked as 1t
Is in those OF more mature years.
Among This heterogeneous crowd there
are 70 be found dispositions of every
grade. The jostliug, pugilistic boy. who
needs the ever-wstchful eye and restrain
ing hand; the sensitive, coy girl, who
needs to be taught confidence and to be
encouraged /, it not a problem to which
great wisdom should be given in the solu-
tion, 70 50 work for the result that the
greatest good may accrue to each?
There are some natures that burst into
what generally called rccklessness and
iupIety the moment they feel that any
thing J. hclug poured upon them for their
good, which does not come home to their
inborn sense of right, or which sppeals to
anything Ike self-!ntere-t in them
"parir Z and honest by nature and out
spoken 70 an extent which alarms all re-
>peclabi,ies, with a constant fund Of aul-
nal spirit, " hich they DO not feel bound
to curb in any way. they will not brook
restraint"
In one ~euse perhaps we are all born
criminals for We inherit from our remote
ancestors traits that II they alc given full
play woBId III accord with the customs Of
our modern civilization. The child who
in 4 mpm,n; of impoieni anger claw, vic
lousy at the face 81 its mother, manifests
an emotion TO different from that with
which the remote feudal ancestor fell upon
h- enemy ana gave him battle. The
pruyerbia! cruelty OF children 10 animals
j, perhaps reminiscent of those DAYS when
the ancestor, OF the race lived by
the chase.
"Ihc same infant that one moment Is so
vicious will the next moment hold up for
the Kiss Of the mothers checks, wet with
penten, tears. he BOY who feels an in
stinCtive desire 10 hurl stones at a strange
dog, Will just as iustlnctively bestow upon
the same dog acts inspired by regret and
pity II Ms missile unfortunately finds its
mark
The two sets of,mOtions are antagonis-
tic, but they are alike distinctive. One
needs bnt watch Tor an hour the conduct
of child yet 80 young that his deeds ex-
press, instead of masking. his emotions, To
gain tangible evidence Of that complex
, host OF autsgonl>tc tendencies that are
batting within the budding mind.
'And when one realizes al Its full value
the fac; that no one OF these tendencies
can, ny shy possibility be altogether blot
ted out from the personality of that being
whlie H IVES he VII realize also, that
such h'ppaht phrases as altogether good.
wholly had, anu the Ike have no real
meaning aS aPphed TO the complex mind
OF Man.
Il j. lTat OF human nature 10 ne more
shE"Hed bv 'he unpleasant pecuharities OF
lho>r :" u" are most Ike US and Yet are
n"t "i a. than oy ihe stronger and per
haPS more oppressive haolts OF those
whose fen"tenees from Us relieves Us
from any iNPlcalioh with lhem or their
affairs,
HUMAN nature has oiteh oeen compared
10 2aiatu' ana venture TO make the
comparison again because many traits
appear spontaneously IKE the Wild howers
% tNe Lr,u'' anu o'her- are the result OF