The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-10-17
FOR FEMININE READERS
PROPER READING FOR CHILDREN A
MATTER FOR CAREFUL THOUGHT.
Little Folks should Have Pleasant As
sOciatiOns with Sunday-The short
Skirt Growing in Favor.

Who, even Of the wisest, can now say
what is good reading for our young people?
asks a writer in the New York Post. We
who were brought up on Mrs. Hemans and
Upper for poets, and Miss Young 90 Miss
Sewell and Grace Aguilas for fiction, how
are we to decide for those to whom every
newsstand, every book shop, every discrimi-
mating literary critic holds out Tess anu
1.-The Manxman" and their congeners? We
have to fall back on bedrock principles
of what is pure and holy and clean implant-
ed in the hearts of our children, and nerve
our astonished minds not to stand ASIDE
when undergraduates of universities and
colleges discuss these wonderful stories, but
enter freely into the arguments so easy to
them and so difficult to us, and lend what
aid we can to their inexperienced fervor.
The father and mother of the end of this
century have to act as a constant equipoise,
and let their establishments and doubts be
made subordinate to their obligation to en-
ter where the children go forward and clear
the atmosphere for them they climb
these extraordinary ascenfs. They must
not rest on 1.-The traditions of their youth"
but keep pace with their children's time,
which is indeed strange, iconoclastic era.
Fathers and sons come more freely into
contact on common grounds, if they are at
all congenial and companionable; but the
mother of to-day is frequently much with
drawn from the lives of both her sons and
daughters, and is generally supposed to dis
approve of whatever they are enthusiastic
about. Respect and affection may make
them listen attentively to remonstrance, but
they do so with the settled conviction that
the points of view are irrevocably di1erenI
The mother must by some discipline TO ner-
self at least reach the position from which
they look before she can fairly judge of the
value of the lens through which they see
their pleasures and duties.
In speaking of children and young people
of course ] mean young men and women;
infancy though extended to the legal limit,
cannot even hold q tield-glass steady long
enough to see plainly what lies in its pain.
Nor do / mean for an instant to express
that youth is wiser than age; only mean
that age is not wise simply because II IS
old and that the altered circums tances ana
surroundings which the lapse OF forty or
fiftv wears makes in the conditions OF lie
require that mothers and fathers shali re-
adjust themselves for their children saKes
nay for the continuance of their own nap
piness-and in 1897 bring eternal principles
to bear on life as 1t now is ana without
abatement of zeal for what must eVeflast-
ingly be true, cease to demand tnat CUSTOMS
should be followed which were In force III
1883.
There are many sad households funda-
mentally affectionate and adherent 70 laHl-
" bonds. where the parents have become
simply providers of shelter ana food ana ana
clothes, and where there is no mutual liIe
whatever The morning paper is caught up
by the father for the state Of the market
or the news of his profession. the mother
waits her turn for the report OF yesleIudy
charitable meeting or the announcement of
household interest, while the children are
absorbed in discussion of the last tourna-
ment. the new play. the yacht race, or the
description of the coming wedding. Each
eagerly discusses the pet champion, mourns
over the defeated boat, or is vociterous over
the reception of tie favorite artist. The "a
Their broods over the fall in shares, and the
mother wonders how her Day Nursery
can be kept up with such narrow 6ank
account it is scene typical of their daily
lives. That family life may be ideal there
must be 2 concession at all its gatherings
to what is of mutual concern, and the ELDERS
must know what the realities are of these
intense interests