Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-03-02

HIM -NS then she came in and
HAh "A the lad boy of five.
e&N- struck at her with
his toy whip, leaving
long red mark
across her hand.
Il don't know what 1 am to do with
Milton" she said to me. after a reproving
darling, don't you know that hurts man.
MAJ" to the vicious youth, who walked
over to the piano and began swapping his
whip about it's polished legs. 1.-THE child
Is so high spirited and is so masterful!
Why, we hardly dare correct him at all
any more, 1t makes him SO angry. My
husband says he will make. his way in the
world, because If he can't do 1t by fair
means he will by foul. Why, he frequently
threatens to shoot his father, even now"
And, with a laugh, as though the childs
masterfulness' might be a good joke,
that misguided mother began to discuss
the National Council of Women, while
the "high-spirited" youth sat giowering in
corner, banging his heels against the
legs of a dainty enameled chair.
1 know what l would have done with
Milton if he had been my child. I would
have taken him to the remote regions of
the woodshed and given him spanking
that would have kept him warm the re-
mainder of the day! There are some chill
dren you can control by loving words and
gentle admonitions, and there are some
others. Millions, for instance, who can be
managed only by brute force THE boy
makes the man, and SO my husband says
We must not punish Milton too severely
or 1t will break his spirit this friend Of
mine told me once, when Milton wantonly
threw tea cup at Rose in Blooms cat,
just to see it run, and splintered favocite
mirror, as well as smashing the cup I
shook him till his teeth chartered, and
put him in a chair SO hard that he didn't
get over his surprise during the remainder
of the day. He was meek as Moses all
the time, too.
Indeed, 1.-The boy" does makes the man."
and the boy who is fairly born, with no
hereditary warping. is often left to the
mercy of his own will to grow twisted and
stunted in sensibilities for the lack Of
training. that every tiny sapling needs,
no matter how fine the seed from which 1t
springs. Watchfulness and constant adj
monition is the price Of well-trained chill
dren, as well as gently bred grown people.
An EARLY Beginning.
Old Isaiah evidently understood that. for
he said of the government of the people:
For precept must be upon precept. precept
upon precept; line upon line. line upon line;
here little and there little The repe-
tition reads monotonously, and one is in
clined to wonder little at it, for the Bible
is not given to verboseness; but when one
remembers how mother has to train and
drill, with her line upon line, and how even
grown people have to be continually adj
monished of eros and infringement of
the laws of the land, that We come to I'M
derstand how the sum of life is made up Of
that "precept upon precept' repetition.
In company with a philanthropic friend,
l once visited a slum district in New York.
My friends heart was wrung with anguish
for the unkempt and woitiSh little children
we found there. She grieved over them all
the way home. "How can we hope to make
our government the purest and best on the
earth, and reform our great cities while the
very fountain head, the children, are bred
in the midst of crime and degradation?
Why, do You know that after l had fed
that impish little youth. and emptied my
bon bon box in his dirty paw, that he stole
the silver bow knots off my card case while
we were assisting his poor mother to eat
her dinner? 1t is just dreadful to think
that they have no more idea of gratitude
than that"
We had been home but short time
when an old woman, beneficiary of my
FRIEND called, and the'servant was ordered
to get small piece of silver from the
poor box" on the mantel. The silver was
not to be found however. and another piece
was substituted. Il presume Roy has
taken it again., remarked my friend in a
resigned tone. Il try to supply him with
all the toys and candy he wants, but some
times when l am out he takes the money
from what we call the poor fund" and
goes shopping for himself. l have told him
that 1t was almost the same as stealing,
but he does not seem to think So Soon.
Roy made his appearance with a bag of
candy, toy balloon and some marbles.
Il matched for these he remarked, as
he threw the marbles in his mothers lap.
Il hooked the silver out of your poor box
again. You had better put it out of my
reach, if you want to keep anything in it,
"Oh, Royi You are too smart for any,
thing" was his admirng mammals re-
joinder, as she smoothed back the hand
some little fellows hair. But what do YOU
m T
came by the marbles honestly"
The Parents Duty.
''Of course was the quick reply. Its
low down to impose on anybody. Willie
and l matched pennies for them. Nothing
sneaking about that" And with another
kiss he went off to his plays. with not a
word Of reproof from the woman whose
very soul had been moved with compassion
for the untutored little wretch who had
stolen her silver bow knots after she had
fed and warmed him; a ragged little out
cast, whose highest conception of heaven
was full stomach and immunity from
rest! Yet Of the two children, her own was
the more degraded, for he has been taught
better, and was bright enough to determine
between right and wrong. His mother was
to blame, too. She knew that the taking
of the money distinctly set aside for an
other purpose was no better than stealing,
for she had so suggested it to her son, and
Wnel she weakly admired MS spirit ana
complimented his "smartness'' in appro-
priating something that did not belong to
him she was by so much bunting his moral
perceptions and losing her own influence
over him. The Zine upon line' little Sc
verely administered right at that moment
might have taught her son a lesson that
would have stayed with him awhile.
Boys will be men, and no mother wants
her son to grow to be bad man. The only
way to avoid it Is to begin with the boy ex-
actly as you would with girl. Teach him
to be truthful, persevering, self-reliant and
polite. 1 would give my boy and my girl
the very same training in mental and moral
lines. 1t makes the boy gentler and more
polished, while 1t makes the girl stronger
and more self-reliant. 1t is quite as neces-
sary, in my opinion, for a man to make a
good appearance in society as for woman.
Teach your boy how to sit at the table,
Show him the approved manner of holding
his knife and fork, when those articles Of
table furniture may and may not be used,
and how to use spoon. Do not put him
off with an ignorant servant to acquire bad
habits, which will mortify you and bring
disgrace upon him when you chance to take
him visiting. While you are instructing
him how to eat see that you practice what
you preach, for little pitchers have large
eyes as well as ears, and example is great
deal more to them than precept.