Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1903-09-05
Parental Dishonesty.


Parental Dishonesty.
FalsehoOds in the parental world:
We would have brOadened this head
ing and called II "falseh0ods In the
domestic world" but for one reason.
When husband deceives his wife and
a wife her husband they do it deliber-
ately and premeditatedly. They do 1t
with their eyes wide open, and they
fully realize the enormity Of their sins
and toward what destructive rocks
they are heading. But, though a father
never tells a falsehood to his marital
companion without forethought that
parent may thoughtlessly fall into the
habit of deceiving his children. They
are so young. He thinks they do not
remember and do not understand. The
same law applies to the wife as well as
TO the husband. The mother some day,
wearied by the perpetual racket, says
to her child, Now, Harry, If you will
90 to bed this afternoon and take a
nice long nap l will take you out for a
ride this evening" The child goes to
bed without a murmur. When evening
comes the mother wishes to do some
thing else. The ride Is postponed
What is the result? She deliberately
breaks her promise. She falsifies be-
cause she does not think ii necessary to
be honest with her child.
The father comes to the side OF the
invalid's crib and says Now, my son.
If you are patient and good and Will
take your medicines as you ought,
when you get well | will give you a
bicycle or watch or printing press
or n scroll saw" The sick boy thinks
| and dreams about that coming present.
| But when the child gets well the bills
! begin to come in. The doctors bill
and the druggists bill and the trained
nurses bill stagger the father. He
neglects his promise. or he says: Il
cannot afford that bicycle now. You
must wait. my son; you must wait
awhile" That night the mother says
to her husband Husband. do you
think it is right not to give the boy his
present? Remember you promised
him." "Oh." says the father, "he is
only child and will soon forget il"
VIII he forget your promise? Never,
man. never! 4 child's mind and heart
are like the rolls Of Photographic in
! strument. Every time you speak into
| child's ears the roll Of memory re-
ceives an indentation. After awhile
your human voice may be still, but
these memory rolls will speak forth
the records Of your broken promises
tell you canddly I would sooner lie
to any being on earth than to one OF
nv own children. If l lie to them
not only destroy myself, like Ananias
and Sapphra, but in all probability
absolutely destroy my little ones also
Falsehoods in the church: That
means many of us are weekly and
daily breaking the public pledges we
have made to God. Take, for instance
that promise which you made wher
you joined the church. Have you kept
it? Every Sunday night at the close OF
the meetings the members of hundreds
and thousands of Christian Endeavol
services are repeating the Christian
Endeavor pledge, Il promise him thai
[ will strive to do whatever he would
like to have me do: that l will make il
the rule Of my life to pray and reac
the Bible every day and to support my
own church in every way, especially by
attending all her regular Sunday anc
midweek services, unless prevented by
some reason which can conscientious
ly give to my Saviour" Do all thu
young people read the Bible every day
and conscientiously try to attend the
midweek church services? Are they
simply perjuring themselves to Goo
with their lips? Are they trying, con
scientiously trying, to live up to thu
teachings of the beautiful motto, 1T II
better to be than to seemT Remember
the perturers of my text were destroy
ed because they were making a false
statement to the church. Many anC
many church members who deliberate
" at the church affairs continue to lii
to God and continue to break the prom
ises which they are making Sunday
after Sunday must answer to God fol
their sins as Ananias and Sapphirt
had to answer.
sur1estion