The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1902-05-30

In men of lesser, but still Of COM
Portable fortune, you see the same
thing in all communities. Boys drift
into evil associations, fall into habits
of intemperance, gambling, loafer-
ism, social evil and the like, careful
ly avoiding all the virtues and form
ing a syndicate of all the vices, en-
barking all their capital in such
schemes. And they go to the Junk
pile in droves and are finally flung
out like bats at a brick yard or brok-
en- shards at pottery social wastes,
ruins, and ruins that no amount of
time can make impressive or pict-
ureSque.
There is more hope of manliness in
a boy who is poor. When at the age
OF 10 or II years he realizes that he
must paddle his own canoe, the con-
viction will act like a tonic on him,
firing his ambition, setting his will
firm like a helm in a storm, girding
up his loins like belt, and he will
amount to something. He may even
overdo it; if he becomes rich his chill
dren may be corrupted and the pith
punched out of them. Riches do not
pay.
There can hardly be question that
we are inclined to do too much for
children. We do not throw them
enough on their own resources. Cod
ding is always bad for them. The
more self reliance they have the bet
ter for them. Pampering never
makes heroic fiber The boy who has
to shift for himself and hustle will
be likely to become stalwart man.
If a boy has to get his own educa-
tion by privations, self denial and
hard knocks he will appreciate it and
it will do him some goood-vastly
more good than to the boy who has
every favor dumped onto him with
a silver fork.
1t is doubtful if our modern schools
are not harming boys and girls. The
next generation may show that we
have made colossal mistake in
doing everything for children and al
lowing them to do nothing. A rich
legacy or lucky strike nearly always
ruins the recipient, especially if he
is young when the good fortune, so
called, comes to him. Instead of
good fortune it is really an ugly fate.
AS a rule young folks nowadays do
not appreciate the schools. They are
gratuities, and gifts are nearly al
ways bad. Usually a good whipping
is better than big gift. The thing
earned does good-an education
along many lines goes with the earn
ing; but what discipline is there in
receiving gift?
The attitude of our young people
toward education and culture is
vastly different from that of Lincoln,
Greeley and many poor boys two
generations ago, when books were
scarce and they walked two miles
to get one and read the same on
their backs or bellies on the punch
con floors in Kentucky and New
Hampshire. by the light of pine or
hickory knots blazing in a fire place.
They not so much read as devoured
those books and pondered them at
their work in the fields. But who
reads books in that way now? Who
reads them as a COW crops grass, and
gets the real good Of them, as she
does, by raising the cud and chewing
it,, Its the chewing that does the
business in the matter of milk and
cream in both cases.
Giving everything to children. re-
quiring them to do nothing. seems
likely way to emasculate them and
instead of fitting them to fight their
way amid the competitions and rival
strengths Of life, as we fancy, really
units them, by denying them alex
perience beforehand:
1t is bad thing for boy to know
that his father is rich
1t is an equally bad thing for him
if that father, out OF mistaken COM
passion and affection, does every
thing for the boy without requiring
him to hustle, exercise self-restraint
and self denial, and earn good
share of the privileges of life.
This complaisance often and often
costs the boy an honorable career,
worthy character, and ruins him alb
solutely
The healthy OLD man wears his
gray hairs like silver crown. What