El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-08-05

| are seldom driven to this by want, but
| simply by an avarfce so great they are
| willing to coin their children's happi-
ness and youth and all that the future
might mean 10 them, into gold
| This is one side of the child labor
question, but 1t is far enough from be-
! ing the side presented by my cOrrespon-
dent, who represents the loving, consci-
entious, poor parents anxious to do their
{ duty by their children, and yet who
| feel. rightly enough. that as soon as the
children are old enough to earn money
they should contribute TO the family
support.
Sacrifices on Both Sides.
! In this matter. as in all others there
| is a golden mean, and while il is an in
| ieuitous thing for parents 10 turn their
children into mere mOney-making ma
chimes. neither is it right that the faith
er and mother should make all the sac
rifices and should work themselves TO
death to feed and clothe lot of strap
ping youngsters who are amply able to
take care of themselves.
The sense of family loyalty, OF unself-
ishnesS of duty TO, others, cannot be
impressed too early on a child's mind
There is no better way 10 do this than
to make the boy or\girl, as soon as he
or she begins TO earn money, feel that
he or she must contribute to the sup
port of the home, and pay back some of
the money that has been spent on him
or her.
a great many parents are afraid of
throwing responsibility on young shout
ders, but it is this very sense of re-
sponsibility that makes strong men and
women. The boy who saves up his
pennies because he wants to help faith
er with the fent, or TO buy mother a
nice dress, is the Find of boy that we
hear from later on in life. The girl who
brings her pay envelope unopened home
to mother on Saturday night is never
the pitiful creature that we see walking
the streets in tawdry finery.
1 believe, myself. that independence
is the very foundation of all character,
and that the most important thing that
you can teach child is to stand alone
on its own feet, and to take care of il
self with its own hand. and its own
head. There is no easier way of inOcu
lating this lesson than to show the child
how much its food and clothes cost. and
that as soon as it begins to make money
it must pay for these.
Parents Arc Responsible.
If YOU can make Il child feel thai it is
a shameful thing for an able bodied in
dividual to be supported by another-to
be parasite upon that Other-you will
have done much TO insure that boy or
girl becoming a good citizen and of
some use in the world. 1t is the par
entS who have not the nerve TO refuse
to supportNdle and lazy children who
are responsible for the drunken loafers
of society. These will not work as long
as they are sure of food and lodging
at home, but if they were turned out
of doors, and had to choose between
the alternative of labor or starvation
they would work
Another argument for making chill
dren contribute their quota to the fam
lily support is that il calls out all that is
best in a girl or boy TO make them feel
that others are dependent upon them.
The man or woman who grows up with
no sense of filial duty is Il poor crea-
ture. and there is no way to develop
this like actually making sacrifices
that the old mother and father may lean
on young shoulders, and fare better and
lie softer because of the work of young
hands
Play Fair With Children.
OF course. what proportion of the
child's earnings should go to the par
ents must always be decided by the in
dividual case. The important thing,
however. is not so much the individual