Atlanta Georgian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1912-1939, 1913-11-03
PARENTCULTURE
SCHEME To END
FLOCC|NC
Mrs. Chas. }. Haden Thinks Those
in Authority and Children Should
Both Be Taught Duties.

Mrs. Charles ]. Haden, No. 1919
Peachtree road. president of the City
Federation of Women's Clubs, on Sat-
urday injected q new idea into the
discussion precipltated by an inter
view gwen out recently by Recorder
Nash R. Broyles, in which he char
acterized corporal punishment as in
human and a relic of barbarism, and
urged that the practice of fogging
+, children,N both in the home and in
the school, be abolished.
She advoca ted a course of training
for parents and children, beginning
in the infancy of the latter, by which
there should be instilled into the
mind OF the child a knowledge of au-
thorlty, of the meaning of discipline,
and natural inclination to obey, that
should solve the problem by the sim
pie process. of eliminating it. 1t would
follow. she declared that the child
that entered school with such train
ing received in the home would never
need an application OF the rod as a
corrective mea sure for it's misdeeds.
Mrs. Haden, while she laughingly
declared thu whatever opinion she
might entertain is more or less theo-
retical. being based on observation
rather than on experience, admitted
that she agreed with Judge Broyles
that corporal punishment Is never
justified, except perhaps as punish
ment for the most fragrant violations
of discipline.
Parents to Blame.
This statement she modified how
ever, by declaring that children who
have attained such heights of juvenile
d. tee L.
dent through malice thereby making
the rod the. only remedy, are not so
much to blame as their parents, or
whoever has their training in charge.
The time undoubtedly will coma
Mrs Haden declared, when corporal
punishment viii be abhorrent, and
when the flogging of children will hs
the exception rather than the rule
but 1t will hardly be for some time.
A course of training that proba5l
must extend through several genera
tons perhaps may be necessary be
fore the precepts of discipline, the
beauties Of obedience and a thorough
knowledge of authority is so ground
ed in the mind of childhood that it
will be unnecessary to resort to viO-
lent means to enforce discipline or
compel obedience.
81 do not believe" Mrs. Haden de-
clared, that the practice of whipping
children is Il thing that can be cast
aside lightly, because it appears to
be human nature, or at least natural
for a great many people, to resort
to the rod as punishment for even
the most trifiing violations OF disci
pline I do not think any child does
wrong willfull'' or maliciously, and
surely there are other means of con-
trolling them than by whipping them.
However. | have heard children, and
parents, too, say that they have
known children who have been utter
ly unresponsive to kindness and love-
and yet have instantly become ODE
dent and tractable after being
whipped. so there must be times when
corporal punishment appears to De
justified. Corporal punishment car
ried to excess, however. could never,
under any circumstances, be right or
just.
Training Only Solution.
Corporal punishment, / think, is a
problem and nothing seems to Offer
solution but training, both for the
parents and the children. II the right
kind of training is given, the problem
will solve itself by gradually elimi-
mating whatever necessity there
might be for corporal punishment.
IDlS lTdlnlHS mas already DeBuu anu
1t is, In fact, q part OF the feminist
movement that Is sweeping the world.
The kindergarten and all the modern
scientific methods of rearing child
appear to me to be things that will
be factors in the solution of the cor
poral punishment problem. At the
kindergarten the child is trained In
the right direction the principles If
discipline, a knowledge of authority
and na tural inclination to obedience
are instilled into IL at a time when
its mind is receptive. II this training
Is continued through the years with
out break, they Will never need the
rod, and when they, too, become par
ents they will be equipped TO train
their own children. OF course, moth
ers who are equipped and able and
have the time should train their
children in their own home, but for
those who have not the time, for
those mothers who are forced by cir
cumstances TO relinquish to a certain
extent the care Of their children, the
kindergarten training is the best sub
stitute for a mothers training"