Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-07-22


and it will mean that he is growing up and
will soon be leaving me. and 1 can't bear
to think that such a time will ever come.
Curls Are Tabooed.
It's too bad that this Pierce child for his
own good has not sufficient temerity to
take matters into his own hands, at least
as far as his curls go. Johnny Hampstead
mother persisted in keeping eurls on him
in spite of his daily pleadings to the con-
trary and his Disguised declara lions that
he was being called a sissy and made fun
of by the boys. Finally, growing weary Of
pleas that awaited naught, he said, with a
serious tone in his voice that his mother
failed to notice:
Mother, I'm going to ask you for the
last time If you are going to take off my
curls now?'
why no, Johnny: how can you think I'd
do such thing when you are still a little
boy?' Johnny was seven at the time).
''All right. mother" said Johnny, resign
eddy; but you'll be sorry soon.
Sorrow descended upon his mother that
night when in answer to the call for din
ner, Johnny turned up from back of the
barn with head from which his own
hands had wonderfully sheared the obnoX-
ious curls.
Needless to say, the shock was great to
Johnny's mother. but it awakened in her
the comprehension that boys should be
trea ted as boys; and the next day she took
the child downtown and fitted him out in
clothes that delighted his masculine sense
of the fitness of things and no longer caus-
ed him to be the mark of his playmates
gibes.
Equally to be pitied with the boy who is
kept in curls and such geegaws long past
the baby age is that boy who is not allowed
to romp off his animal spirits in company
with other youngsters of his age, as
the average poor boy is permitted to do
to his decided advantage later on.
Peter Barlow is six. going on seven; but
in all his years 1t is doubtful If he has
ever been permitted by his mother to re-
ieve himself of one whole-hearted whoep
or yell Hey fellers," over the back fence
to a group of kids" conspiring with heads
together down the alley a piece. Peters
mother is one of the kind who believes in
repression for growing boys She says it
is dreadfully vulgar for them to yell and
be noisy at play, and that most of the
games which boys delight in are destruc-
tive to their proper up-bringfng. Peter,
however is permitted to play jack-straws,
but not in the open, for he has to stay in
the house the greater part of the time. so
his mother can keep him free of the dam
gers to which he would surely be sub
jected were he to mix with any of the
young Philistines that live all about him.
Sturdy Qualities Not Developed.
And Peter? Well. he is naturally de-
veloping none of the sturdy qualities that
make boys manly and admired. and is
daily growing more dependent and effem-
mate in his ways. And how many Peters
there are in the boy world today, simply
because all mothers do not recognize that
a boy has a part to play in the world as
well as a man, and that if he is not per-
mitted to play that part naturally the
chances are heavily against his playing the
mans part we'll when it comes high time
for him to do so.
Raise up boy wholly in the way boy
nrNI not stl tb.a a
girl should go, and it's a safe guess to
make that that boys name will not loom
up later on among the names in lifes book
written under the heading Failures" The
poor boy is almost invariably reared in
orthodox fashion, and to this circumstance
may be largely credited the fact that in
every walk of life the poor boy has won
out and IS winning out in overwhelming