Daily Kennebec journal., 1905-03-01
The Case Of the Country Boy.

trularly those III tn" great cities. to
know that th@re is any class N III
divid,ials whicn has not more or less
benevolent aud .ocial organizations
vcloped at the recent great inter-
denominational convention held i'm Bos-
ton that there il such a class and tina,
it is made Up Of orr country boys.
Concerning the sad state Of the country
boy. Il bright young Maine clergyman.
The Rev. Herbert A. Jump. pastor of
the Bowdoin College church at Bruns-
wick. stated in On address before the
Boston convention: For him there
arc no boys clubs, gymnasiuns, game
cente,s. free baths. juvenile libraries,
social settlements or trade schools. He
has not been systematically studied.
nor has altrui.,.ic enthusiasm annexed
him to its province"
So il seems tnat the country boy has
been left to himself and being left to
himself he has proceeded for gener-
try. as whole. with it's greatest and
strongest mon. leaders in all profess
sions and lines of business: the presi-
dents OF the banks. the colleges. the
railroads OF :he United States. III
spite Of being neglected by the aitruis-
tic organizations the country boy has
succeeded with monotonOus regularity
in nearly all the great opportunities of
life. and it does not seem as though ne
had suffered fr,m the neglect of the
well-mcaning philanthropists who are
no0v concerned in his behalf.
Nevertheless. al til. religious c"nvcn-
ton referred to. the General Ailian.'"
"f Workers with BOYS determined t"
open department for work among
country boys. and as :. result of papers
upon the subic"t-on" Of the best of
them being that of Mr.. Jump. from
which we have uuoted-the farmers
sons are now going 10 have clubs or
Canize for chem. The experiment in
whatever form it takes will be watched
with interest ard it is a safe prCDo-
5ition that whatever is done in tn"
matter. the coIn;ry Toys will go on
becoming the worlds great men AMI
supplying the best material for bus:-
ness men. scholars. fiuancicrs. pro-
fessional men. statesmen, soldiers and
sailors. and making a success OF life
by working out their destiny for them
selves. Whether the club will help him
oi not. he will nc. allow the m to hinder
him in reaching the goal.
Sometimes i. is true. the country
boy pities himself and bcmOans his lot
and fails to rcaijze until later in lif'
| what a blessed privilege it is to be
a country boy: to b. born and reared
among elemental things. and to have
mis- mind tillrd and his soul n"urishad
BY close cont"..t with nature. Often
| he hates his lot. and cnvies the city
| boy, whose ,irc.;., is more neat. whose
hair more properly trimmed, and whose
hands are less soiled with work. Bu:
| the kind Of start which he gets in
life gives him in the long run great
advantage over that same city boy and
usually he lives to appreciate the fact.
The advantage is physical. mental and
moral
If the General Alliance OF Workers
for Boys means to drag the country
boy out Of lis environments and i'll
jcct him into a club room and give him
second hand impressions from musty
| minds, it will ma Ike mistake and will
| not do him n real service Says thy
| New York Mil. "thcic is no culture III
| the world that takes the place Of the
| direct impressions which the country
| brings to a boz and make, up rcrtp-
| tive brain. The man who is filled viii
! these impressions is the Cne who un-
dcrstands the worlds scriptures AMI
| histories and can sp,lk from the dcpt:l
| Of his wisdom.
|