The Detroit times., 1916-10-06
The Spiritual Value of
Picking Up After Ones Self
BY Or. FRANK CRANE
Copyright. 1915. By Frank Crane)

fashioned people left who are anxious to
save their children'S souls That is.
while they would like them to Get On
and Get Rich and BE Prominent. they
would much more like them to BE Clean,
Strong, Honest and Happy.
The latter class includes the Saved;
the former most of the Damned
And to such parents, of wholesome
and sane mind | would say:
If you want to save your child's soul
teach him to wait on himself and to pick
up after himself
There is no one thing in this world
more destructive to ChriStianity-nay,I
viii go further and say more destructive
20 the spirit of humanIty-than being
waited on and picked up after.
The very essence of that sweetness
and light which constitute the shine OF
greater souls is the indwelling desire to
be Of help to others.
And. conversely, the very core and gist
of that deyj-spirlt that makes about all
the trouble ON earth is the desire to have
others mop me-
This banefu desire takes many forms
and has many names. 1t is called Selfish
ness, and disrupts families. II is called
Ihoughtlessness, and sewers friend 1t
is called Pride. and Stubbornness, and
causes wars. Il is called Greed. and works
AN manner OF tort and cruelty 1t is
called Vanity. and tramples on every
graceful flower Of lie. 1t is called Am
btion, and sacrifices on its bloody high
altar every dove and lamb Of human con-
teutment.
But under whatever masquerade it
goes it Is always the same constant de-
sire to have somebody else do things for
me and to avoid doing things for some
body elsa
The laws Of the spirit are as unerring
and Inevitable "a the laws of matter, and
The effect follows cause in the souls
business with as steely precision as two
and two make four, or fire and gunpow-
der make explosion. And the persistent
aim % make other people minister TO me
Ni,i bring me sorrow and dryness Of soul,
and the dominant wish to minister to
others will bring peace and deep JOY in
life just as surely as any logical sequence
In mathematics.
Hence begin early, if you care for your
child's life.
No matter how rich you are, nor how
many servants YOU can afford, teach your
boy, as soon as ne is able to learn, how
to be sufficient for his own physical
needs; how 10 dress himself, polish his
own shoes, keep his own nails clean, take
his own bath sew on his own buttons,
empty his own slops. keep his own room
and bureau drawer in order, hang up his
own clothes. pick up his own playthngs,
and never leave dirt or confusion after
HIM
Let your title girl learn, at the very
earliest age, how to brush her own hair,
10 care for her own linen, to mend her
own frocks, to darn her own stockings,
and TO cook her own food as far as prac-
tical.
Real Christianity and real democracy
amount to the same thing and that thing
is: TO keep yourself of other peoples
backs.
If we had learned that we would have
no spoiled and rotten Smart Set whose
concern is Clothes, Amusement, Sex Ex-
element, and Intoxication.
If we had learned that we would have
no Endowed Class, consisting of useless
leeches living on the blood Of workers.
We would have no kings, mobiles, MIL
lionaires and aristocrats, nor any Of that
class Of Magnificent Ones from whom
flow the never-ending streams Of opprss-
sion fraud, wretchedness, poverty, and
war that make this fair green earth q
sinking Gehenna.
If you want, most Of all, your boy TO
be Famous or Rich, you needn't bother
But if you want him to be a Man, 10y
to himself and to all that shall have to
do with him. teach him only to be of as
little trouble as possible TO servants, par
ents, and playmates.
II you want your daughter TO get the
best price for herself in the market OF