The Montgomery advertiser., 1907-03-17
Imagination or Lying in The Child.

One way to find out is to respond to his story with some pretended doings of your own confessing at the end that it was only play, and asking him if his story was not also. If in some way like this, he Is reminded that his ideas are not like the facts. he will usually outgrow the tendency. Only the in- tention to deceive Is dangerous.
 By means of the imagination the child Is enabled to invent new combi- nations, and produce new results. The next step, is tof shp VI these to an admir- Ing world, to get social approval It others Will -not-accspt- -his--wonderful creation, if they criticize or laugh at it, he is forced to modify his enthusiasm of tito change it 80 that it will meet with general approval and use The possibility of using his invention. in
 his relation with others, is thus a ehild's final test of his creation, and spur to new efforts, The desire to have control of the situation. or to es- cape unpleasant surroundings doubt less underlies this.
 Many so-called lies illustrate the same point Baldwin gives us the fol- lowing example: Helin was bringing some packages to him from the hall and became tired befoYe tbeS' were all brought in. She brought them more and more slowly and finally stopped NNANAG nun Sdlus NO LuOEG. NOW, as she Became tired, Baldwin says, the thought of her delight when the task was finished and of the praise she would receive from her father, became more and more prominent. With this was the consciousenss that she would tell her father when she was through From this consciousness 1t was a short step to the thought that ey telling him at onGe that there were no more she XOuld ha nrafsaN anN vaIIa-Aa rhaA Is simply to escape from an unpleasant situation, she invented situation which would give her the desired re- suits. without any sense of wrongdo- ing.
 Many of the first lies of children. where they are not purely imaginative, are of this sort. and should be care fully dealt with. because they grow Into deliberate lying. They usually occur like this one, because they are uf use to child in some way. The best way to deal with. them must vary according to the disposition of the child. He must in one way or another. learn that social disapproval always follows such an act, because if people generally lied. social life would not
 exist.
 'on the other hand, when he has done any kind of wrong. the treat. ment of him should be such as to in- duce repetance instead of fear. so that the next time he does wrong he will not be tempted to lie to escape pun- ishment Where there is confidence and wise government. the lie problem will not be so pressing a one as where there Is fear and too great restriction. To prevent lies. then, there should be cultivated most carefully in a child tho courage to take the consequences of his acts and tho confidence that he will always he justly treated and under stood.
 The most practical use Of tmarl. nation that any of us make is the plan ming of our career. and in this thero is close connection between imagination and initiation. Instead of abusing the agination by exercising 1t too much on useless things. we are abusing it by not employing 1t to raise and eIe- vate our lives from year to year There Is no stronger power for good than a vivid and noble ideal.
 'Imiginatiou is the pattern of the web of life"