The Oskaloosa herald. (Oskaloosa, Mahaska County, Iowa) 1885-1919, 1912-06-06

most successful teachers OI young
peoples Bible classes in southeastern
Iowa, at the Spring Creek Township
convention, May rs, 1912:
How Can the S. S. Direct the So
cial Life of Its Members?
Perhaps when We think of the So
cial life of community we are apt
to connect it with the youth | in
tend to take the young people phase
of it any way, because that is the
part with which l am particularly in
terested.
| believe there could not have been
subject assigned me that is of
more vital Importance or one with
which | have been more closely con-
nected in my work. | shall base my
remarks today not on theory, but on
facts | myself know.
| think too often in these conven-
tions we get more theory than facts,
too often things that are given for
the sound rather than for the practi-
cal side. l know before now l have
attended conventions for which we
thought we had splendid program
and have enjoyed it very much, yet
after | have gone home | have
thought the addresses over from be-
ginning to end, endeavoring to find
something our school, our community,
something l myself could make use
of in our work, and sometimes have
| hut hot
teal. / believe our time in our con-
ventions should be spent in things
which are of benefit to us.
Last month l attended the S. e.
Iowa Teachers Association and heard
number of addresses. Some given
by men considered among the best
educators of our state and some from
other states, but to me the best ad-
dress to which we listened was one
given by district attorney from
Storm Lake. And I'll tell you why |
considered it the best The other
men gave us fine spun theories, some
of them practical and some of them
yet to be tested, but this man
stepped out and gave us the facts as
they are. The chairman in introduc-
ing him said: 81 present to you the
man who yesterday placed seventeen
men in Jail" Not because of that
fact did like him, but because his
talk showed that he was dealing
every day with human beings. His
subject was "The Under Man" and
as he told us of how at one time he
had been called on to send a fine
looking, well educated boy of nine
teen to the state penitentiary, led in
to crime through associates, he said
THE vital treatment of the Under
Man is prevention" So if we solve
the social question with the youth
of our land, ] believe we will have
solved the greatest question that
faces the American people today. II
is said that 80 per cent of our crimi
nails are men under 80 years of age
and | suppose a large per cent OF
those are criminals because of their
social relations.
may say some things today with
which you vii! not agree, but am
not speaking for mere applause and
if am able to state a few facts that
will set you people to thinking
hope they will bring results.
l wonder how much a persons
character you think is nodded by the
company he keeps, by the society he
has been cast into? ! could point
out to you today boys who are smok
ing because older boys in the crowd
got them to smoke, boys who are
drinking because their companions
did, and yet we blame the boys.
In the first place | would like tC
ask of you people that you hold ur
the same standard for the boys OF
your community that you do for the
girls. | remember a father bringing
his two little children to school one
morning and saying to me: II wish
you would not let my little girl play
near a certain little boy in school
He knows so much and says so many
things that are really bad that il
is not fit company for her" | think
his words were true and | respected
the man for the request he made, yet
as he rode away thought, you poor
ignorant creature, you never said one
word about your little eight-year-old
boy: are his life and soul of so little
moment that you haven't care fol
him? They lived near and these two
little boys played together almost
continuously. Where was the differ
ence? | don't understand why the
soul of boy in the sight of God
shouldn't be as pure and as clean as
that of a girl Why is 1t all right
that boys should enter amusements
and vices that would not be toler
ated for a girl? The subject was
mentioned in a home last winter and
the sentiment was expressed that sc
long as they had no boy who was in
dulging 1t did not vitality affect
them if the boys of the community
were learning to gamble, were hear
ing and learning all kinds of indie
cent and unmanly things. I said in
less than two years your daughter
will be going out in company and in
all probability will be thrown In this
| mi hNu