The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1901-11-01

of multitude of leaves from which
he has CLEANED only as much sub.
stantial knowledge as could be com
fortably carried in his left ear. If he
has an ambition it will form bless
ing, for the ripe question of the
hour is do lars and cents.
have been assured by learned
professors that the collegiate course
is merely an exercise, useful in form
ing and strengthening the mind.
Therefore useless study becomes
useful as dumbells strengthening the
mental muscles and imparting tone
to the intelligence of the user.
The most our graduates acquire il.
a smattering of each subject, Why?
Merely because there is not time
enough to give to each branch of
study conscientious and thorough re-
search.
1t may be asked, why then tn"
number of studies is not limited.
The answer is simply that the vanity
of the parents who like to see tha,
their sops are deep in these ob.us"
sqbiects, or that of high soundiny
sciences and, stubborn conservatism
of the faculty retaining 18th century
sentiments in the 20th century OF
practical life. The course is filled
with tares and there 10 no room for
the wheat. Of what use is Latin AID
Greek to the youth who must soon
enter the struggle for bread? The
barest excuse is that they give ali
Insight into the derivation of Ian
guage. Well, the dictionary will do
that much. Why waste four year.
i'll hammering verbs and nouns, de-
rivations and conjpnctions into boy
who is destined to sell soap, make
shoes. operate dray wagon or guide
refractory mule to a pillow. Of
what valuable use is French? 1t
will take several years to learn it
and the requirement is purely orna-
mental and in most cases not worth
dollar to the future man.
Fathers examine the studies pur-
s9ed by your sons. You will find
that you are spending yonr money
and Wasting their most precious time
storing up glirtering utensils to the
exclusion of what car benefit them
in s'erner days to come. Cast them
adrift upon the sea of life without
thorough education on some practi-
cal subject of value to tho world, and
which, in a needy hour they may
coin into bread, and you are casting
them adrift in ships of lead without
q life preserver or spare boat. :.
sunken rock or a storm and they are
lost.
If they need mental. exercise le,
them juggle with practical subjects
mechanics, book keeping, drawing,
practical chemistry, arithmetic, the
English language and 'physies. . LEI
them learn how to keep accounts, how
to handle tools, how to build and
work on engines, how to detect adul.
terations in staples of ours, how to
understand the machinery of the great
practical world and net to- lsarf the
SagarIes of the land of dreams.
If you have lea' ned the bent of
your sons mind oonane him strictly
TO studies pertaining to his calling
and cast all others away.
Our boys are not fpols. They
know the usefulness of the labors i'm
'sed upon them, sud being Amer,,
'tsps reseut ihtlingemens upon their
liberty. five neglect to give them
Weapons for the battle they viii
become skalkessin ting yesr. W,
tSrn Them loose upon the wgld.wi,h
no means Of empaymens they reward
US by becoming idle and profligate--
prematively vast d-the soul of
Saturn in the body Of Adoais-
arewasd from the race for fortune and
fanc by sirIplings Of humble life
whose education ran in narrow lines
but Vas stored with material sharp as
an ave to hew their pathway through