The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1898-10-12
That Boy Of Yours

Wnen IOunu Jnat MarCn morning, inc |
young calf was nearly frozen, but, with the
help of Bob, Farmer BIS twelve-year-old
boy. 1t stood up, took few swallows of
milk. picked up courage, and concluded not
to die. Bob took an interest in the calf.
Good care and liberal feeding put xxx
trade mark on It, just as this combination
will similarly mark almost any animal or
farm. At five months old, 1t was the finest |
heifer in the neighborhood. Its appetite |
threatened the pigs with a milk famine, and |
its b-s-a-r-r suggested anything but quick |
consumption. Bob's heart was set on keep |
ing it for a COW, and his father half prom
Used to do 80. In the little pasture beside |
the road, 1t was noticed by all who passed |
by. A stranger stopped one day and, after
some dickering, offered q fancy price for
the young heifer. Farmer B took 1t, was
pleased with the bargain. gave Bob dollar
and promised to let him 20 fishing the next
Saturday. Bob felt hurt. He wanted the
calf more than the money or the fishing
trip. 1t seemed cold-hearted and cruel to
sell the very thing he was most interested
in. Boys are peculiar. They are not spe-
cially grateful. They look at things in
one-sided and unreasonable way, and often
get foolish pfejudices that require years to
break down. The farmer meant well. He
saw the good bargain, but not Bob's zero
feeling toward the farm. A few more such
incidents made the farm to him the one
place where you could not have what you
wanted, and why should he want to stay
there? A calf, lamb, an experimental po-
tsto patch, fish pond, or, in fact, anything
within reason is good property, II, with it,
the boys interest in the farm can be kept
Crafty every whim9 OF course not but
study the boy, use a little tact and patience;
don't let him get soured. II possible, tide
him safely over this notional and freakish
part of his life. 1t will pay. II, after a
time, he wishes to take up some other bust
ness, let him look back on the farm as the
most delightful spot on earth, and not
place to be summed.
The farmers boy occupies some-
what unique position among boys. He
can be of use, and can help his father
in the work while most boys cannot.
The result is that city and village boys
for the most part have nothing to do
but go to school and to kill time. Most
generally there is q job awaiting the
boy who lives on the farm, while the
boy who doesn't has to hunt up jobs
which are too often jobs of mischief.
Now this very fact of having a useful
occupation is one of the greatest ad-
vantages to boy. To be trained to
useful employment, to be able to help
in necessary work, to learn habits of
industry is worth fortune to young
man. But there is always danger
that the boy on farm will be forced
to do too much work, kept too busy, or
treated in the way 30 pertinently set
forth in the above clipping. The old
adage, "All work and no play makes
Jack dull boy" is ever and always
true. Jack must have time to play, or
most serious present and future conse-
quences will ensue. 1t is true there
are some who have been brought up to
hard work with very little chance for
play, and who are apparently none the
worse for it, but at the best it is dam
gerous experiment, and generally ends
in the ruin of the boy. So we say to
the farmers, while you train your boys
to be Industrious, to work, to do all
kinds of farm work, do not forget that
boys need time for play and encourage
ment in plays,which are. healthful and
innocent. For instance, most boys. ARE
at some time in their lives crazy for a
gun, at least an air gun, if, nothing
more. Suppose they get the gun, the
next thing will be to use it on,some-
thing alive. If there are vermin do
ing harm around the buildings or on
the farm, like squirrels, woodchucks,
coons, rats, hawks, ETC., it is all right
for the boy with the gun to be allowed
to thin them out, but when it comes to
killing small and harmless or bene-
fetal birds the boy should not be al
lowed to do it. He should be taught
to restrain himself from the wanton
destruction of life, should be shown the
usefulness of the song birds and those
which kill insects. AS to crows, Eng
lish sparrows, and the like, We do not
think it best to protect them from the
boys, they generally manage to protect
themselves. So too in other sport the
boys should be taught to show hui
manity, not to infict pain except when
necessary, to regard the life of every
useful creature.
And then we want.to utter word in
addition to what the editor of the Ru-
raj Ne,o. Yorker has said as to the way
to keep the boy on the farm, as to deal
ing fairly with him. 1t is a strange
trait of the New England character
that the parent who would not deal I'M
justly with neighbor will do so with
his own flesh and blood. How many
| hovs have heen led To dislike the farm