The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1901-01-01
for yourself.

lZ6 GhaG III SUdnQS, Wn0n
made, as the monument to your
value as a citizen.
Be jealous of your civic rights.
Take a wholesome interest in public
affairs, but do not let politics or
anything else, interfere with the
rigid administration of your private
duties. The State is made up of in
dividuals.
Be clean and decent. Don't do
anything that you would be ashamed
to discuss with your mother.
Don't gamble.
Be circumspect in your amLse-
ments.
JOIN A CHURCH AND HELP TO SUPPORT IT.
At the very outset a young man
ought to join a church. He ought to
bear the burden of the church sup
port to the full extent of his ability.
What this ability is he must judge
for himself. As in charity, he should
give a dime if he can give no more !;
and this dime, if it represents the
full measure of what he can spare,
is just as important as the dollar or
the thousand dollars of the rich man.
Communion with the church helps
tremendously in building up a solid
character. There will be met clean,
wholesome men and women. Ac-
quaintances will be formed that are
helpful in every way. 1t is natural
that the people of d church should
take more interest in the success of
one of their young communicates
than they do in the success of an out
slider. That is human nature, and
human nature prevails in a church
Just as much as it does outside. The
only difference is that the church
human nature is cleaner. But unless
a young man Joins a church through
conviction 1t is far better for him to
remain away. If the utilitarian adj
vantageS Ire uppermOst in his mind,
if he has no true religion, church
communion, instead of helping, will
harm him. He may find success
more easily, but not happiness. The
man who joins a church simply be-
cause he can make something out of
the connection is a hypOCrite of the
meanest stripe, and a hypOcrite is
not only ii very unhappy man, but he
must also be the most contemplate
being in the sight of the Lord. l
can conceive of no more miserable
Ov;-Ao-oo AL,- 4h,A r-L;o1 - la Ir
a pretender. And the more carefully
a boy realizes the hOllOwness of
shamS, religious and otherwise, the
more placidly he will sleep of nights.
The man who joins a church because
it offers an easy shortcut to a com
petence will probably find some
pretty unpleasant experiences in his
way. There are sincere young men
who may be deferred from joining a
church from this very reason. They
have not a sufficient religious con-
viCtiOn, Or perhaps no religion at all.
In such cases always providing that
he is honest and %sinCere) it will
nevertheless benefit a young man to
attend a church. With most of us
religion has come as a matter of edu-
cation. 1t is never too late to be-
gin this education, and, as a purely
ethical problem, it is a fine thing for
a thinking young man to spend part
of his Sunday in a place where he
can hear good, instructive discourse
on religious topics.
ALWAYS KEEP IN TRIM FOR HARD WORK.
A certain portion of every young
mans time ought to be given up to
outdoor exercise. Most of the men
who win riches and distinction in
the great cities come from the cOun-
try. They are farmers boys as a
general thing. The free outdoor
life they have led eQuips them with
a physique that defies hard work
and long hours. Boys raised in the
cities have no such advantages. Con-
sequently they cannot stand the
physical strain that is thrown on
every man who comes to the front.
Of late years this fact is becoming
better understood. The boys are
going to g~ymnasiums in the evening,
where they can get a taste of actual
life. But even a gymnasium, to my
mind, does not produce the same re-
suit that exercise in the open brings.
No sickly lad can in these days hope
for a place in the front ranks. The
struggle is too fierce, too trying.
APPROACH 4 COLLEGE WITH CAUTIoUsNEss.
But extreme care should be taken
in this matter of higher edu-
cation. 1t is sometimes doubtful
whether, in our great endeavor to
educate all boys beyond the measure.
known to their fOrefathers, we are
not OVERRIDING it in some places. The
boy who reaches fifteen or sixteen
should very carefully consider, and
his parents shO1ld consider for him,
whether or not he is fitted for higher