The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1894-01-25
For BOYS.

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For Boys.
My boy. the first thing you wan
to learn-if you haven't learned how
to do 1t already-is to tell the truth
The pure, sweet, refreshing, whole.
some truth. The plain, unvarnished
simple, everyday, manly truth, with Il
little "t.' For one thing, it will
save you 80 much trouble. o, heaps
of trouble! And no end of hard
work. Aud a terrible strain upon
your memory. Sometimes--wh l
say sometimes 1 mean q great many
times it il hard to tell the truth
the first time; but when you have
told it, there is an end of it; YOU have
won the victory; the fight is over.
Next time you tell the truth, you can
tell it without thinking. Your mem
ory may bo faulty, but you tell your
story without n single lash from the
stinging whip Of that stern old task
master, conscience. You don't have
to stop and remember how you told
it yesterday. You don't get through
with tho awful sense upon you that you
are not telling it as you did the other
time, and cannot remember lust how
you did tell it then. You wont have
to look around to see who is there
before you begin to toll it. After
Anapias told )ie his wife had to
tell another just like it. You see, if
you tell lies you arc apt to get your
"hole family into trouble. And then,
it IS 50 foolish for you to lie. You
cannot pass a lie off for tho truth,
any more than you can get counter.
felt money into circulation. The
leaden dollar is always detected be-
fore it goes very far. When you
tell lie it is known. Yes, you say
God knows it.. That's right; but he
is not the only one. So far as Gods
knowledge is concerned, the liar
doesn't care very much. He doesnt
worry about what God knows-if he
did he wouldn't be liar; but it does
worry a man or boy that tells lies, to
think that everybody else knows it.
The other boys know it; your teacher
knows it; people who hepr you tell
"whoppers' know it; your mother
knows it-but she won't say 30. And
all the people who know it and don't
say anything to you about it, talk
about it to each other, and O, the
things they say about boy who is
given to telling stories! If ho could
only hear them it would make him
stick to the truth like flour to miller.
And finally, if you tell the truth al
ways, l don't see how you are going
to get very far out Of the right way.
And how people do trust truthful
boy! We mover worry about him
when he Is ont of sight. We never
say: II wonder where he is. 1 wish
l knew what he is doing. I wonder
who lie is with. I wonder why he
doesa't come home" Nothing of
the sort. We know that he is all
right, and when he comes homo we
will know all about it, and get it
straight. We don't have to ask him
where he is going, and how long he
will be gone, eyerytime he leaves the
home. We don't have to call him
back and make him solemnly promise
tho same thing over anu over two or
three times. When he says, Eyes, l
will, or "No, l won't, Just once, that
settles it. We don't have to cross.
examine him when he comes home, to
find out where he hns been. He tells
US once and that is enough. We
don't have to say, care you surc!"
when he tells us anything.
But, my boy, you can't build up
that reputation by merely telling the
truth eDout one half the time, nor
two thirds, nor three fourths, nor
nine-tcnths Of the time. If it brings
punishment upon you, while tho liar
escapes; if it brings you into disgrace
while the smooth-tongued liars are
exalted; if it loses you a good positions
# it degradcs you in the class; if it
stops a weeks pay; no matter what
punishment it may bring upon you,
tell the truth.
All these things will soon be right.
ed. The worst whipping that can be
laid on boys back, won't keep him
out Of the water in swimming time
more than week; but lie will burn
more than fifty years. Tell the truth
for the sake of the truth, and all the
best people in the world will love and
respect you. and all the liars will re
spect and hate you.-Ladies' Home
Journal.