The Monticellonian., 1908-05-28
PROVIDING FOR BOYS.
The Red-Blooded Boy Must Have
 Snnethinn fn De.

Something to Dc.
 The following was written for the parent of the country-town boy, but it is so well written that We prefer to publish it as 1t is, and let each parent adapt it to his own case. The article is taken from the Fort Worth i Telegram;
 Every so often there rlay be found in almost any newspaper a paragraph like the following from the Denison Herald:
 Parents who allow their boys to run on the streets late at night need not be surprised if sooner or later they get into trouble. No greater mistake can be made than to allow boys to feel that they are beyond the restraint of the home life"
 Not so often are there paragraphs telling how to keep the boys from en- gazing in this very natural pastime. All the gorgeously-colored pictures portraying the joys of home Casually painted by men who have lived most of their lives in boarding houses) do not offer much appeal to the healthy.
 
 stay at home after supper means sit ting in a room where father is reading the paper and must not be disturbed by talking. and where mother is us. Hally busy at her work basket It is easy to say Give the boys books and magazines to read, but only about one boy in ten can endure seven nights reading a week and even the tenth will find it hard work keeping up the program unless constant suppiy of literature which particularly interests him is supplied.
 Also it Is easy to say Find out the boys natural bent and let him follow it" Yet it is not so easy to clean up shavings after lad who wants to be carpenter or to say in the house with one who wants to be a musician and persist in practicing on the cor net.
 The problem of keeping boys at home and keeping them interest is not an easy one. It can not be solved at all unless parents are willing to make considerable sacrifice and take an in- terest in everything that interests their children.
 Most boys for the greater part of the year are interested in athletics For such an outlay of less than SD ought to supply enough gymnastic ap- paratus sufficient to keep two or three boys occupied any night when they are not inclined to other sports. It is a good deal better to have your boy pnmmeling the boy of your next door neighbor with a pair of boxing gloves in your woodshed than to have him lounging around street corners doing nothing A black eye occasionally, sprain acquired in a gymnasium, or even broken bone, is better than set of twisted morals or broken code of ideals such as may be obtained by pfomiseaous association with other boys who have nothing to do.
 If the boy has a scientific turn, and is fond of making experiments. noth. ing will please him better than a cheap miscroscope and a guide book on how to use it Evenings for a whole year can be spent examining such simple things as bread, meat and vegetables and to draw outlines of what the mi croscope shows offers practical as well as interesting work
 The vital thing is to show an inter est in what interests the boy. and to share his enthusiasm. He will get over the enthusiastic period soon enough, and when he looks back to il in later years it will be pleasant memory to recall that his parents were the best and truest friends he ever had.