Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1913-01-21
The Children
Must Work
Themselves

Last year, as near as we can get at
it, there were about 10000 children
engaged in making or raising some
thing with only little start in the
work, but it was a great stimulus to
future effort. AS result of the inspi-
ration gained last year we hope to
have practically every one of the 1885,
900 school children Of the state en-
gagged in some phase of the work this
year.
To those who did not get interested
last year, and are not familiar with
the rules of the contest, we wish to
say that they are very simple The
most important one is that the chill
dren must do the work themselves,
and that the parent or guardian will
be required to sign q statement TO
that effect. In raising garden, some
one else may plow the ground and har-
row it, but the child must do the rest
the planting, cutivating, harvesting,
etc, In raising poultry the child does
not have to own the parent flock, but
must set the eggs and feed and care
for the chickens they exhibit.
One Of the main objects of these
contests is to get the boys and girls
interested in doing something. To
teach them to do something practical,
something worth while, something by
which they can earn living when
they grow up to manhood and woman
hood, And the only way to learn how
to do something is. to do that thing
with your own hands, II you show
something that some one else has
raised or made, you are chaeting your
self out Of the most valuable part of
the contest-eXperience gained by do
ing it yourself.
Not only that, but in showing some
thing that is not the product of his
own effort he is practicing deception
cultivating dishonesty and laying the
foundation for a life of dishonor ant
trouble. He may be successful in de-
ceiving others. No one but himself
E and the members of his own family
t may ever know that he has cheated
but that is enough. In doing what hC
knows is not right he loses respect FOL
himself, and that is long step in the
, wrong direction. When a person losei
respect for himself he soon loses thu
confidence and respect of others. "TC
y thyself be true, and it follows as tn,
O day follows night that to no othe
A man thou canst be false" Every chilli
should early in life get this principle
firmly fixed in his mind, and througl
q life never depart from 1t.
Parents, don't think you are fayorinl
4 your child by giving or loaning hin
= something to take to the fair to win
, prize with, for you are not. On tn
= other hand you are doing him an alb
, solute injustice. You are cheating
him out of the valuable experience o
learning how to do something, and a
the same time educating him to b,
dishonest. Character building il
the most important part of the earl!
= education Of the child, and the great
est value of these Industrial contests
is along that llne-forming in thu
child habits Of industry, economy, sys
TEN, honesty, self-reliance and all O
the traits that 90 to make up the goot
citizen.
There will be many valuable prizes
for the children at the state fair agar
next year. but none Of them will bt
worth as much as a clear conscience
and the experience gained by raising
or making something with which t
win the prize,
--N-s-S-s--