Audubon Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Iowa) 1894-1925, 1905-03-02
DEVELOPING PATRIOTS.

TO my mind, patriot is a man or
woman who SO loves his country that
he is willing to give the activities OF
his hand, his head, and his heart, that
its best interests may be served.
To develop patriot is to develop
a well rounded, conscientious charac-
ter for what being with the laws of
nature in his mind, and the laws of
God in his heart, will not love his
country?
The most potent agents in training
q patriot are the influences of home,
church, school, press, and community.
OF these, / shall speak of but two-the
home and the school.
According to Dole, lone comes under
government as soon as he is born. F"
This is the government of the family.
One of the child's first lessons is learn
ing to recognize the authority of its
parents. This he must do whether he
understands the purpose of it or not.
The first reason for this government
is that child may be protected from
himself, from the result of his own
desires. There are few children who
would not gladly hug a lighted lamp,
or eat green apples, or drink fly poison,
even in their babyhood.
A second reason is that every child
is a little barbarian, and the other
members of the household must be pro-
tected from his savagery. This may
sound harsh, but all psychologists ack-
nOwledge its truth.
A third reason for this family
government is that the parents bear
the responsibility of the family. If
they have the possibility, they must
| Lao hny hn IN
rules that are necessary for them to
succeed with their charge.
One important element of training
in the home is the giving to each child
certain task, suited always to his
powers, and holding him responsible
for the correct performance of that
work 1t will do much to establish in
his mind q sense of "oughtness' OF
responsibility, an idea of duty. If the
work is well done, approval should
follow: if poorly done, disapproval.
There is no form of government
giving protection to its people, but
that it has it's laws for the punishment
of evil doors. The child should learn
early in life that falsehood prevents
his being trusted, that disorderliness
results in his privileges being taken
away, and that violent acts cause him
to lose his freedom. If he consciously
does an injustice, he should be made
uncomfortable. The earlier these
principles are founded, the better OPP
pOrtunity the child will have for self
control.
There is a tendency today to throw
Off parental discipline. Let me cite
you to New England. Reflect upon
the characters she has produced. DR..
Huntington says, "The legacy of New
England is discipline: it was the source
and explanation of her power" AS
the home and its Trainings are, sc
will the citizens of the state be later.
The next government under which
the child comes is that of the school.
Here the government is of nature
somewhat different from that to which
he has been accustomed. He comes in
to legal relation with his teacher
1t is a step half way between the home,
where reigns the love of the mother
heart, and the sympathy of those near
est by the ties of nature: and the world
where one must stand or fall alone,
for thereare few teachers deserving the
name) whose sense of duty and re-
sponsibility does not lead them to
take more than legal interest in the
children under their tuition.
Here the child comes into social re-
lationship with children of other fami-
lies, and learns that there are beings,
not members of his own household,
whose interest must be considered.
He learns that for the good of others
) some primal virtues must be developed.
Three of these virtues are punctuality,
OrderlineSS, and obedience to eStab-
lished authority.
Whatever social barriers and dis
tinctions the world outside may have
set up, here all share equally in the
privileges. Along this line, the school
has an important function - that OF
democratizing our mixed population,
of checking the tendency to social
qualification, which would necessarily
hinder the cooperative efforts of a
democracy.
These things, concerning the school,
of which | have just spoken are in the
very nature of things indeed, public
school could not exist without them.
Many of the exercises in scool form
good basis for the teaching of pat
riotism. Among these are literature,
civics, political economy and history.
The Interpretation of piece of great
literature, the reading into it of mems
motives, and asking, SIS it true to
life?" tsart fruitful inquiry and dis.
cussion. A careful reading with class
of one of the masterpieces is at once
a lesson in psychology, ethics, history,
and literature; yet the pupil, of course,
never suspects that these profound
names are lurking beneath the delight.
full exercise.
In teaching civics, it is the aim not
merely to familiarize the pupil with
the machinery of government, but
to prepare him for citizenship by teach
ing him to love our institutions, and
to recognize the voice of the majority
as law.
Political economy has no small part
in helping youth to become an in
telligent citizen. Through it, he is in
formed upon some of the questions OF
the day, tariff, freetrade, etc. 1t helps
him to decide Understandings to which
party he wishes to belong, and for
what he intends to vote. | believe
every citizen, especially a voter, should
have some knowledge at least of ele-
mentary economics.
History, too, is more than q record
of battles and dynasties. The idea of
social change, of cause and effect,
J may be more and more consciously
introduced and discussed. The past
must be, to large extent, interpreted
in terms of the present. The characters
and deeds of Greeks and Romans, of
Englishmen and Americans can be
understood only by those who have
some insight into the universal mo-
tiyeS of mankind History furnishes a