The herald., 1895-11-28
CRUELTY TO CHILDREN

Many good woman is cruel to her
children from her very anxiety and
dread of their going wrong, whipping,
soothing and nagging Thorn until the
trusting. loving child spirit is driven
out and in its place is one OF craftiness
and deceit.
Every over must one day reap
From the seed he has sown.
How carefully. then, it becomes us ia
keep
A watchfuI eye on the seed and sack
To SOW what is good, that -one may not
weep
To receive our own.
Did you ever see father come home
from hard days work tired, hungry
and cross because supper was not ready
and his wife, aggrsvatingly take up the
tired, sleepy, crying, hungry chilu from,
the foor and give it a severe spanking
simply because he was fretted and could
smarting under sharp reproof from her
husband, whips her child simply tn re-
lieve her tenn DER. Children need the re-
straining influence OF parental authority,
and should be taught sim pie, prom Ut,
old-fashioned obedience, and it can be
done without cruelty. A parent who
treats his child in such q way that it can
not love home and respect MIN does 1t a
cruel wrong for which he cannot atone.
He takes from it one of the chief corner
stones of a good character. respect for
its parents.
Souls are built as temples are;
L and on the building goes
Thro' the sunshine, thro' the snow,
Every fair thing finds plac',
Every haro thing lends a grace,
Every hand may make Or mar.
once knew a cultivated Christian gen.
tleman whose little boy, 3 years OLD, cried
for pie when he first went 10 the noon.
time dinner table. The father sent him
from the table and allowed him to have
no food until supper. Think OF baby
morning until night in an elegant Chris.
tian home. Shakespeare speaks OF some
one bsing clothed with little brief all
thority." Perhaps such people feel that
they must use 1t while it lasts. If such
things are done in respectable families
endured ~ the helpless children OF
drunken and vicious parents.
Never on any account punish child
for being afraid of the dark 1t is just as
real and its terror as great when COM
PEELED to enter dark place alone as
yours would be to be lowered into den
OF lions; for probably yon would know
lear of an indefinite. horriblte ''sume
thing" which you fail to understand. l
have great sympathy for the little boy
whose mother told him to 60 to sleep in
the dark. that God and the angels would
be with him, who answered: 'Yes, know
it, but l want somebody with a skin face. :"
Little hu.Ian boy, he wanted human
companionship, omething soft and
warm that he could feel.
When | think of the men who drink
and smoke from choice, of the women
against liquor and tobacco seems we'll
nigh hopeless, but when l see the little
children of such parents handicapped
from birth with a bad heritage, with
suffering bodies and weak wills, predis-
posed to spina sand hip disense. St.Vitus
dance and such terrible things, not only
suffering but cruelty treated and abused,
Deatsn and starved, feel that something
must be done and pray that God will set
apart my life for this service. I once
spent some time in a children's hospital.
Many of the children were from drunk
ards homes, Dwheie they had been neg
lscted land abused until their poor little
pitiful faces would have touched heart
OF iron, but the kindness they there re-
ceived soon revived the loving "child
spirit" which had been 30 crushed and
cruelty wounded. And at twilight ne
little sufferer after another would joil in
singing "Desus loves ms. die know"
l wish every parent before Furnishing
his child would 60 away alone every few
moments and oil bis knees repeat those
blessed words:
Like as father pitieth his children,
SO the Lord pitIsth them that fear Him.
He hath net dealt with US after our sins