The Savannah morning news., 1901-02-24
LEARNED 1T AT BETHESDA.


The presidcn. OF the Union Society and
the Bethesda Orphan House. tells story
illustrative OF what a boy may learn at
that venerable institution. He was travel
ing In Upper Georgia recently. and ON the
train he met gentlemlu whom he re
ognized as a former beneficiary of the
Union Society, and the conversation nat
urally dritted into matters connected with
Bethesda.
1t was nearly 20 years ago
when the gentleman. then a well-grown
boy, left the orphan house to AXE place
as office b TO- q Bay street cotton
firm The dream OF his hoy IL at Bethes-
ola was TO come to SaNar nah and earn
something for himself i help his W d.
owed mother He applied himself to his
business, and was s on a trusted clerk,
and then buyer for the firm in interior
towns. In the course of time he settle
in one of the smaller cities in the middle
Of the state, became a merchant, bank
director end a director in cotton
factory. He married and had a mother
tn-law, one of those thou ands of good
but much belied helpers to young mar
ried couples.
The former Bethesda boy said his moth
er-in-law was one of the best women alive
She thought her son-in-law one of the
smartest of men, and the Bethesda Or
manage the most wonderful institution
In the world.
The home of the young couple
was on the edge of the town, and there
the young man and his wife and her
mother lived. When they moved into tn .
house there was the usual amount of
tinkering and carpentering to be done
and when the mother-in-law saw how her
daughters husband handled a saw and
Ratchet and noted his general hardness
in getting the household goods in shape,
she wanted to know where he learned
how to do all those things. AT Bethes-
d." he replied.
The next surprise was when the young
husband laid off and planted the yese
table garden and raised enough vege-
tables to supply the family, and the
mother-in-law wanted to know where he
acquired his knowledge of farming, and
the reply was. eat Bethesda"
When the family was W thout servant
md the young merchant went to the stable
and harnessed the horse and hitched up
the carryal, that also had to be explain
ed. His mother-in-law inquired the source
of his knowledge of horses, and again
he replied, Bethesda"
The last of the wonders to be learned at
he orphanage was disc 5Vered When the
Dung merchant one morning, in the alb
sence of the help. MIXED the COW. His
mother-in-.aw at once asked, Where did
you learn to milk" and the reply came
back, "at Bethesda
The young mans mother-in-law is Of
he opinion now that Bethesda is the
Jlace for boys when l was there, said
he young man. "of course, l mad no
dea how valuable to me in my future
ife would be the things l then learned.
boy is wiling TO learn he can get
I'll that he requires in ordinary life 4,
bethesda. He learns how to care fol
'imself and many other things that are
lot acquired elsewhere. A boy starting
,ut from Bethesda at Is years of ags,
who has been attentive to his duties. and
tho keeps from beer whisky and kindred
ntoxicants and other common and bad
habits, has as good, if not better chance
f success in life than the college grad
ate, or rich mans son. He knows how
work. and is not afraid or too proud TO
o any honest labor. | would not give
ny six years experience at Bethesda
or any other mans six years boyhood."