New-York tribune., 1907-06-23
Summer Pasfirnes Of Children.
Some Little Folk Who Spend Ideal
buds" Juvenile Cottage

THE most direct and fatal results Of great lux
Gry for children the destruction of natural and
vigorous exercise the sacrifice OF spontaneous play
and discomfort that ends in mental and spiritual
Indigestion" says student Of child nature.
Children must be active and their activity must
largely take the form OF play Their code OF ethics
must grow out Of the conflicts that arise in normal
healthful. chIdlike activities. We save our chill
dren. indulge them. give them stones for
bread. and all the while We long to help them and
ignorantly believe we doing everything for
them. We do too much and leave too little for
them 10 do
Every day last winter had occasion to pass
large private school where there were both boys
and girls. The play OF the boys consisted prin-
cipally in pelting another With candy lozenges
procured from the little shop on the corner. This
play had not the true ring; it had vigor OF
game of ball nor the abandon OF game Of leap
frog II was all in all piece of extravaganza lead
ing to wicked waste. Simply because these boys
had unlimited means to spend, and TO their faded.
blase appetites this a way OF spending
money for fun, every day for two blocks the pave
ments were strewn with bits OF candy and cookies.
Meeting two little girls Of the school, each
with Teddy bear and each bear decorated with p
large and expensive bow Of ribbon, I. by way OF
testing the girls attitude 10 play. said When I
WIS little girl about your size played with dolls
and loved them very much. Have The bears taken
the place OF dolls these days?
With fine scorn one OF the children replied Z
en- too big TO play with dolls. and then Teddy
bears are all the rage, you know.
We'll. didn't know, and II saddened me that
these children were losing out Of their lives one OF
The most precious roInances Of childhood-the love
for and care of dollies
I'VE all familiar with the summer hotel child
Arrogant and impertinent he monopolizes every
corner OF the hotel-parlors, piazzas and ballroom
'Imper1ous In manner TO the employees. rude to the
guests. this spoiled child grows up insolent vain
and oiscontented. and ii is this type who later IS
found IN the divorce courts and courtrooms
Then there is the child who has fallen behind IN
sng In the summer time TO catch up with her duties
institutes q system OF oyermental stimulation
Tutors, French goyernesses, music masters now
become q part Of the household in the summer
home, and the children must work many hours In
the day FOR these accomplishments, and this after
pretty steady pressure in school for eight months
The school Of oppression has a perfectly logical
outcome. The victims of this system later become
the dyspeptcs and the cynics of society
j. Another type OF child" continued fhe critic
lis the one who knows higher law than the
nursemeto 70 whom he Is wholly consigned and
10 whom he is often greatly superior in both in
( telect and Will His mother the happy-go-lucl,v
sort, turns him loose on the community and he
oescends upon the neighbors. The pet cat and dog
the nowern trees lawns and fences all suffer ef
the hands OF this iaWless child 10 say nothing OF
the annoyance 10 the tired or delicate woman
who want 20 sleep late In the morning or have a
nap on the loggfa in the afternoon
THE BLAsB CHILD
The blase child. and the child who ,s ov.r
stimulated mentally. both suffer, because their
spontaneous activity. expressed in play is turned
aside Play is the elemental. natural expression OF
q healthy child. and through play his personality
his creative power ana his character. make