Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1906-03-31

drawn higher uHil IL stood straight
upon it's own foundations. All, the
wetting Of the ropes did IL. And when
the great obclisks of the future, the
great pyramids. the great arches Of the
bridges. are 10 he built our children
must know exactly how TO do the work.
else they will bc pushed aside as USE
less and others will take their places.
They must not only he like Domenico
Fontana. but they must be like Do
menico Fontana plus the intelligence
VI the sailor boy who suggested wet.
ling the ropes. How Is your boy get
ting along In school aud in his mental
development! Is u well with the
child:
Are They Driftingf
But | have another home greeting.
How are your boys and girls morally?
What IL the character Of your children7
Are they like u great. magnificent ship
which has been launched and Is fitted
up with superb machinery. with It's
furnaces full Of coal. with It's provi-
sions In the storeroOm. with passengers
crowding the cabins. with sailors at
their posts and with captain upon the
quarter deck and with wheelman hold
of the wheel. with compass and chart.
and yet with no rudder for the steering
gear 10 move: Are your children NOR
ally drifting upon the sea of life?
Are your children growing up with
out any moral character to be Stunned
by mankind rs runaway engine Is
feared 10y the railroad menf Up and up
this engine climbs the mountain side.
Then II reaches the top. Then, when
the engineer tries to put OH the brakes
for the down grade horror paralyzes
his nerves because he finds the brakes
will not work. Then. like fiend Of
death. the engine starts on It's terrible
journey. ON and on II goes. until IL
dashes by the little station needless
OF the signals. Then the telegraph ma
chimes begin To work. "Clear the
track" Is the message sent ahead.
Clear the track! There is runaway
engine" Like the hurricane wind. IL
PUSHES along shrieking out its warn
ings. Its wheel just escapes the pas
senger train which has pulled into the
side track ON and on 1t goes. until in
its mad race II leaps through the draw
bridge or tumbles down the embank-
ment or crashes into the freight train
which has not speed enough to outrun
IT, Then the mangcd forms of It's en-
ginccr and fireman are TO be found
amid the piled up ruins. where iron
bars are bent like reeds and crumpled
blades Of grass. Is that the way your
children are growing up. 10 be feared
by mankind: Are they growing up like
so many children we see about us, who
are never taught to obey and who new
er do right unless they care to do
right: How are your boys and girls in
reference to the moral lawi BY the
moral law | mean all those laws that
teach honesty and purity and upright
ness. Do they respect other peoples
rights as they demand that others
should respect their rights:
II you are true parents you know
that II is no easy task To make your
children Ubedient to moral law. II Is
only by the most rigid kind of disci-
pllne that they are taught to govern
themselves. So that some day they
may liz able TO govern others. DR..
William NJ. Taylor. late pastor OF the
Broadway tabernacle, once gave
powerful illustration of this thought.
He said that many years ago distin-
tyfttShAI hntuufsf nxfl.aI hfa
native land. aud he obtained employ
ment as an undergraduates in the serv
ice of nobleman. While he was en-
pioycd In this inconspicuous position
his master received II rare plant as a
gift. The gardener. thinking II Il tropic-
al plant. put IL IN the dollhouse. where
IL began to withcr and TO die. One
day this undergraduates saw II, and he
went TO the head gardener and said:
"Sir. you have made n mistake. This
is not a tropical plant. but one that IL
used to the cutting blasts of the arc
tic Winds Then the amaZement of
this nobleman was unlimited when he
saw his undergraduates not only take
the plant out of the dollhouse and place
IL IN the open air. but place Ice around
the stems OF the plant. Then the plant.
which was dying under the heat Of
the tropics, began TO grow strong I'M
der the cold of the northern icebergs.
Thus with character. II Is not by
yielding 10 the wishes OF our children
that we make them morally what they
ought 10 he. II Is not by making ex-
cuses for them when they do wrong
that we teach them how to do right.
But II is only by stern, firm. memorable
teachings of right and wrong that We
develop their moral character as It
ought TO he developed. DO not lower
the moral standard for your children
one inch. Make them toe the line of
the moral code. DO not make the mis-
take of old Eli. who had two sons. and
they both turned out 10 he bad boys
because The restrained them not" Is
II well with your children In moral
sensci
Need discipline.
Then how is It with your children
spiritually? We will suppose that you
have cared for them physically. mental
Ia MI all