The Farmington times., 1916-12-22
COPPER-TOED SHOES
BEING A BOY AGAIN

itation he answered: "My dear lady,
the gift / am really signing for is a
pair of copper-toed shoes" but,
but"-the hostess almost stammered-
"is that the latest style? Do they
make boots for grown-up gentlemen
with copper at the toes?" Liberals
smiled as he replied: at is just boys
pair that desire, with the appropriate
changes that will make me fit to
wear them. My dear madam, am
asking to fit the receiver to the gift.
am growing old, and / am weary of
maturity. / want to empty my mind
Of judgments and conclusions. |
want to try life's experiences and ad-
ventures all over again. would
cease to be grown-up man and put
back my whole stature of body and
of mind to fit the coppor-toed shoes
/ saw trudging sturdily along the
pavements this morning. I want to
be rid of the morning news and the
noontide gossip and the evening stock
quotations, to empty my mind OF
huge mass of unnecessary and burden
some information, to attain to the
happy responsibility of boy of TO-"
"That is clear enough" answered
our hostess, "and now / understand
exactly what you mean. You are
idealizing childhood as the poets and
storytellers of your own generation
did. You think that if you had your
life to live all over again, you could
make a better use of it than you have
done. Your friends will hardly agree
to that. They are pretty well salts
fled with you as you are. You are de-
ceiving yourself, my friend, | fear.
Without fattery, you will allow me to
say that you would run some risks in
those copper-toed shoes and might
make a worse use of the long and
busy years. Childhood has risks as
well as pleasures, let me tell you"
81 have often wondered" Liberals
took up the conversation, show much
we bring over to our life experience
from former existences. The ques-
tion goes with the problem of whether
we are made out of nothing or sim
ply go round and round. 1t is one of
the strange things in strange world
that all the experience of all the gen
erations throws no light upon that
1ucstion. 1t daunted the imagination
Of the Greeks in the heroic age. HON.
er could imagine the scenery and
characters of theIliad and the Odys-
7ey, but he could imagine nothing for
tie shades of his dead heroes except
aimlcss living in world as shadowy
as themselves. And some Christian
thinkers are Just as helpless. They
have given the boys just graduating
from coppcr-toed shoes the idea that
heaven is a continual harping and
'vmn singing. You cannot feed the
magination-which is the undevelop-
ed soul of 12-year-old American boy
-on such monotony of occupations.
He does not believe it, any more than
he believes any other unpleasant fact
which contradicts his irresponsible ac-
tivities of mind and body. The boy
If Asia, who is taught that his pres
ant life is just the fruit of lives which
ne has passed through previously
md that he is reaping only what he
has sown, has more rational, if less
hopeful, view of the universe than
the Greek or the copper-toed Ameri-
can boy who is taught that what fol
lows on the ending of this life is what
seems to him today perpetual bore
DOM"
81 understand the risk of going
back to boyhood," he went on, "and
am not ungrateful for your kind ap-
probation of my career in life. But
I am thinking of the great opportuni-
ties which open on the copper-toed
youngsters of today. | am also vair
| oyo,,.b 10 tb;,,ly fbot fbo snbari+ or
qualities which have made possible
that small success of which you dc
me the honor to remind me, are fan
insurance that with a new beginning
| would not make a failure of my new
opportunity in life. / know you woulC
, be kind to the boy to whom yoI
l brought the chance Of new venturinl
with your magic Christmas gift of th'
: copper toes, so should not lose you
friendship altogether. But think o.
the relief of having all the anguish o.
r this war a dim recollection of one'
e childhood, and all its heroisms an in
r spiration in the fresh and gratefu
S memory of man-kind Think of tn,
Q new knowledge pushing down into th
primer lessons and even the talk
: around the family table! 1t is so mucl
: bigger world that l am emulous o
its opportunities and adventures"
Consider, l put in at this point, al
the improvements in games an
shows. In the days of our youth ther
t was no golf, too little tennis and n
t movies. Football was an amusemen
!. and not a heroism and social rally
:. ing point for the very rich. TIL
whole development of the motor ca
s was in the future, you did not eve
n have bicycle. You learned you
lessons by kerosene, or by flicker
ing gas burner which our grandchi
dren would scorn. All the fare an
glare of electrical advertising was j
: front of you. You had your news c
3 the doings of the world by steamt
arrivals and the wars of the worl
j were not the first thing served wit
: due fiavoring of horror at the breal
! fast table. No wonder, Liberals, yo
) are envious Of your grandson and ar
; sighing to get into his shoes.
! "That is all true enough" Liberali
: answered, "but superficial. A bo
> puts his whole heart into his occup;
, tions, whether they are Of the o
time or the new. But there is a cei