The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1904-12-11


utterly upprovided for if parents fail 10
do their duty.
True. the teacher is supposed "a train
the child in right living. purify. patriot
law. in short. all that goes 30 the uplifting
Of society In general and the individual
in .'srtic-lar.
Restraint Slight at Home.
One of the strange phenomen;s in the de-
velopmcnt Of the race is that The ethics
OF the home arc by no means those of So
cictv nor those OF the school :sn,, IN
fortunately the ethics Of tho home are in
a majority of cases lowest in character.
Certain cordittopS ramaIn more .flmi-
tive in the homo than in any other place.
There the natural instincts lave. fear
anger. JOY. are less restrained more
openly expressed Air eur passions arc
less under our control. There maternal
love finds rs fullest and fFeest exprcs-
sion. anger finds violent rNprcsSiOn. tenn
per - allowed TO wear itself out often
IN violent physical expression. the baby
bangs her head against the wall or kicks
hnr heels uo0n the floor mill Worn out
or until her attention has been dis
tracted No external limitatlpis being
placed upon the expression Of the notions
and passions in the honie. less ssli-cOn-
troll has beer aimed for and less has been
The demand by the others in school and
IN society for n reorganization OF their
rights has resulted IN pushing self into
TO the front. and the result has heen the
formation OF an Ct heal code much in
advance Of that of the home.
OF courtesy social contact With our
fellows has forced upon mang or US
code far in advance of the one in daily
use al home. and the number of Chester
fields of society who. when at home, bang
doors and snarl replies is legion. Some
have a double. some a triple code. one for
the home. another for the daily business,
third for society,
Lying Learned at Home.
Take the matter of lying. Is it not true
that the man who would scoTn To tell a
lie about his business affairs will lie to
his own little boy? That the woman
who would under no circumstances depart
from the truth while talking 10 her
friend. will lie to her little daughter? 1
nSed TO be greatly puzzled over She almost
universal habit, among children, Of lying.
| no longer am. The puzzle to me now is
how they ever arrive at any correct ethl-
cal notions about lying. Our chi.Gren are
taught to lie both by precept anG by eX-
ample Think of the needless puZZle 1t
must be to those watchful, inquiring
Father lies to mother, and mother lies
to father and nothing happens. Father
lies to us and sometimes mothers say,
Aren't you ashamed to lie to those chill
keep still; am only foOlin'-
So the boy tries 'foolin - with his
father and nine times out of ten is physi-
cally Impressed with the fact. not that he
has done wrong. but that he has Numbered
some way, and he attacks the problem OF
successful lying. that is, of lying and es-
Gaping any stray consequences. because
he has discovered that consequences are
by no means inevitable sUcn conse-
quences as he at this point IF his de-
velOpment can understand, and he has
never been taught to look, for any other
The only ethical instruction ne has ever
! 70 on ~ GlIhiPcT been
confined to the statement that God mates
liars and that he will never get To heaven
How can little child tel the
difference between telling Mrs. e. that
mamma is not at home. when she is in
| the dining room and has sent the message
To the door and telling mamma that ne
was in school all day when he has not
seen the school building
How shall we. his teaCners. define lie
| for him when his mother instructs MIN
TO tell his teacher that he is years old
when he knows he is ., and naively tells
YOU when you ask his age that he is 5
cept when you ask him how old ne IS.
| then he is 81 s7ss
How our little ones arrive at any cor
! rect ethical notions at all is growing
wonder when we realize the prevarlca-
tons, evasions, the acted lies, the Jokes,
the so-called ''fooling,n constantly going
on in their environment.
Must Learn by Example.
There are teachable ethics. The child
can be given the fundamental ethical no
lions before ever entering school so that
the teacher has only TO go ON building
and strengthening. But ethical lnStruc-
ton must be rather by example than by
precept and must be incidental, growing
I out OF natural conditions. not forced from
| fictitious circumstances Always we must
| keep in mind that the education OF any
| child is the sum total of all impressions
made upon the BRAIN acted upon by that
| brain. and sent out again into the world
/ BY some form of expression. There must
be- first the impression by something
! from without; second. the brain action OF
/ the individual child upon that impression,
| and, third, the resultant expression. Eth
/ les have been so neglected as a subject
/ for scientific study that we are frequently
! at loss what to teach our children.
! when TO teach it, and. above all. how to
teach the ethical notions necessary 10
keep our boys and girls pure-hearted
As we have before remarked. the funda-
! mentals OF ethics can be acquired before
entrance into school at all. Children can
| be taught unseifishness, to divide their
| candy or cake. kindness TO little brother.
/ or lame old grandpa, gentieness patience,
/ helpfulness. and truth In an elementary
| but fundamental way every one OF uese
/ primary ethical ideas can be taught
/ young children. The training must begin
/ in the home and the school should sup
plement.
Problems of Sex.
! There comes TO our boys and girls a
| period Wnen IncN become lnltlStig tuIl-
Gus. when the great questions. personal
| questions of life, began TO come TO them
! and demand answers. when the question
! of sex and all the questions which grow
out OF il become the all-absorbing ques-
| tons This is the difficult period. the
| period the Germans call the time OF
storm and stress" 1t is this period
which sometimes changes the whole char
acter of the child. II requires such care
| full. delicate handling TO live through il
| and come out with a soul as pure and
] undefiled as that given when the angel
/ OF life wound up the clock once for all,
/ closed the case and gave the key into
| the hands of the angel of the resurrec-
ton"
! The ethical and physical instruction OF
/ this crucial period is pre-eminently the
1 work of the father and mother. These
young people should have their questions
answered. 1t is both right and necessary
/ that they be answered. and they should
\ be answered in such way that they see
! in the working out of the Creators plan
only purity and beauty.
Progress by Evolution.
But the securitg of pure hearts is not
] a matter of one generation and no truth
7 should be so strongly impressed upon our
/ Young men and young women as that true
| progress is racial, not individual. Tho
! isolated individual who il ahead of his
4 time rs ebowed out of the great move
/ ment Of humanity just az surely as he