Waterbury evening Democrat., 1908-06-17
GRADUATION DAY.


 In countless homes all over the country are nervous girls who, in the intervals between visits to the dressmakers, are practicing the de- livery of masterpiece called "The Goal and How to Reach It." In other homes peevish boyhood is digging doggedly over an essay with a highfaluting title, such as 'The Fitness of the Prepared" anticipat- ing with dread the awful night when 1t must appear before a gaping and unsympathetic world to illustrate the occasional "Unfitness of the Prepared"
 We have all been there, and when we were given our graduating sub ject can remember how we came home and casually mentioned it at the supper table. Dad rather loftily assumed that the subject was an easy one, but when asked to help was too busy to be annoyed. Mother was sympathetic and helpful. Dur ing the winter nights and spring af- ternoons, when we gave up baseball practice to pour over histories, en- cyclopedias and books of reference, she was always ready to help, and cheer us to our work by a simple from the pan of fresh doughnuts, or save for the students the little pie made up of the leftover dough and filling, always reserved for the one in special favor with her.
 Many man when his own chill dren are growing up and he is faced with the problem of planning their future, is reminded of his own childhood and graduation. What an important epoch in his life it was. When he opens the old yellow scrap book wherein Is pasted the full and yellow text of his masterly effort on graduation day, together with the town paper tribute to the orator, which were treasured so highly through the years as one of her proudest possessions, he realizes how many things happened. during those days that only mother seemed to care enough about to preserve or remember.
 This is the, season when the old story will be told over again. What a day of days that is for those who take part! What lofty ideals" high resolutions standing on his hilltops looking down on the plan."I splunging bravely into the battle of life" and a hundred more of the glittering generalities of which only unknowing unseeing youth is cap able!
 Mary's heliotrope scented essay is hidden away with the other treas ures of mothers pride. The fram- ed diplomas considered by Her the ideal of pictorial prettiness are no doubt relegated to the attic by a generation which thinks it has bet ter taste in decorative art; the bruising struggle of life has driven the conjugation, of "amo" out of Johns head. while Mary has be- come matronly of figure and matter of fact of mind; but it would he we'll for Mary and John and the army they represent to review ser iously each year with their children the high ideals about which they so loftily preached on their gradua- tion days.
 The sheer of the cynic cannot wipe out the fact that we have too few ideals in this nation of ours just now. For la, these many moons the muck | rakers have been feeling the national pulse and telling us there is some- | thing radically wrong with us, and | everybody, including the muck-rack- CTS themselves, are agreed that we have a surplus of diagnosis and must seek about for cure. Where to find 1t even those who do discover 1t and prescribe but one thing is absolute ly certain, those who discover 1t and | prescribe the remedy must be capable of measuring their pubic men up to a standard that will compare favorably with the ideas of graduation day.
 It would harm none of us to go to mothers scrapbook once a year and re-read that essay so packed with high resolves and practice a little A. erF-