Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1907-11-13
COURTESY IN CHILDREN.
4 Quality Rare in the Days of Preco-
cicus Youngsters.

A Quality Rare in the DAYS of Preco.
clous Youngsters.
A really gracious and courteous
child is like a fragrant exotic-and
about as rare, says the New York
tribune The average mother seems
70 consider her children when little as
ineligible for instruction in courtesy as
the family cat or dog. When they
are older she finds too often thew
nave grown beyond her jurisdiction
and advice.
While the child is young the
mothers own courtesy is considered
as sufficient to maintain lo dignity
Iof the family, but too ofte. the child
receives some pretty questionable ex.
ampies Of the real article, as the fol.
lowing article viii show:
On recent rainy day a sudden
doWnpour sent many pedestrians
Ierowding into the line OF cars that fol.
lowed one another In quick succession
along a busy thoroughfare. At an es.
peelaily poDulous junction people
poured IN from both ends of the car
iiilng the seats rapidly. A bow Of 3
OF years, who entered with b;g
mother. and a young mother with ber
INFANT in her arms both annroaoboa
lne one vacant seat near the middle
LOT the car --lu =
suddenly the boy awoke to a reaIiza.
tioh OF the situation. made a rand
aaSh Forward and slid into the seat
IuSt as the young mother, steadying
IerSeit as best she could, reached If
For an instant she hesitated and
iooked down at the boy in evident dis.
appointment. as though she believed
ne might rise, but the boy glanced at
her and smiled trfumphantly at his
mother, who had reached him and
was standing, too. That's all RIGHT
johnnie" she said, in reply to his look
stay where you are" And Johnnie
dld' Almost dir city another passen.
ger arose and gave his seat to the
young mother, but the boys mother
stood during the journey of several
miles. Yet that kind of a woman
would expect every other mothers son
TO get up and give her a seat. Court.
.esy would demand it.
1t is not always that we have the on.
portunity of viewing discourtesv in
TINS ugly light but it is surprising and
almost beyond belief how broadcast
this spirit is, and how many homes of
supposed culture and refinement har.
Dor 1t in its worst forms. The mother
who defers the teaching of a courteous
manner as though it were knowledge
to be obtained by study, not by appli.
cation, usually allows these matters to
drift during childhood. She permits
the children to quarrel among them
selves. to maintain their arguments
by the law OF might, to trespass upon
the rights and privileges of one an
other, to resent like fmpOsitions nv
physical argument and to resort to all
OF the refined cruelties and brutalities
mat only members of the same family
would dare to demonstrate toward one
aho'her Then out of this chaos of
bitterness and resentment she viii
some day expect sweet courtesy TO
bud and blossom.
know one mother who in the AFRO
ganee of family pride believes that
courtesy will be as natural to the ele-
ments of her sons character as is any
feature in his physical makeup. All
birth and heredity. At the present
time, however he is, to use the Ian.
guage of one who is outside the family
and who consequently hasn't the same
reverence for It as the mother has, "as
nncouth a young cub as ever lived,
and thorough nuisance to the com
| am afraid that the>veneer-
ing of courtesy that he viii assume by
and by when shame puts him to it will
be so thin that it WIN not hide the
real character behind it, and even that
veneer will only be for public use.
Courtesy. like charity. begins at
home. and when it doesn't it isn't
worth the name. Teach little chill
dren the golden rule as every child
should know tin spirit as well as
word Teach them TO respect the
rights Of others, to show consideration
to all who are older, weaker or less
fortunate than themselves. Let them
know the joy of an occasional self
denial and sacrifice, and you nave
sowu the seed of courtesy in its truest
and sweetest sense-the only courtesy
tba, is worth the name.
Homer (readirg) "a Kansas man
has discovered method of making