The Union times. [volume] (Union, S.C.) 1894-1918, 1918-07-04
TRAINING LITTLE CHILDREN
The Real Mother Is as Careful to
Train Her Child's Character as to
Provide for His Physical
Wants
Article XXVI-By Miss Harriet
Frances Carpenter.

self on several occasions in her
home and which she had found most
trying. She said "My children so
and get their clean stockings and tie
knots in them in connection with a
game they play, and often when l
start to dress the children | can't
find single stocking that hasn't been
tied tight several times. One hot sum-
ner afternoon, lost patience, Anne
I exclaimed to the eeldest, why do you
cause me such annoyance, day after
day?' What are mothers for" she
asked, and I saw that she was right"
I gravely asked this thoughtless
ter for Anne to aid in the task of un-
tying the stockings, being led, by
sharing the toll, to feel grateful for
the many times her mothers patient
hands had done it for her.
"Oh, she couldn't unite them," she
answered with shake of her head.
"Had she tied, and found it i'm
possible, she might, of her own ac-
cord, have stopped knotting the stock
ings," I replied.
"But I wanted to take the children
to pay visit, and there wasn't time
enough to let heR try"
"Then oughtn't she to have forfeit
ed the pleasure of going with you?"
She stared aghast; then, with
pitying look, burst out: cts easy to
see that you are not mother! No
mother could do that-her mother
heart would not let her!"
/ was silent for a moment, then re-
membering that physical and spirit
ual motherhood are not necessarily
embodied in the same person, eX-
planned without impatience the effect
such Indulgence would have on the
child, and pointed out that the most
loving mother takes as great pains
to train her children's characters as
to provide for their bodily wants, and
that the greatest love is that which
is most far-seeing. But to the end
the mother stoutly held to her concep
ton of the "mother-heart."
A scene observed at later hour in
the day revealed this mother, re-
gardless of her "mother-heart" in a
it of i'll temper administering a vio-
lent shaking to the said Anne.
"Nora" complained mother to her
sister, "your namesake spoils all of
our rides in the new car. She just
will go, and then she wants to come
home Immediately, and kicks and
screams all the way. Sometimes we
set her out on the road and ride on
but she knows that we will have to
come back, so that doesn't do any
good! You're a kindergarten, Nora,
YOU must break her of it."
"Leave her at home until she shows
that she understands that she should
not spoil the enjoyment of Others"
advised the aunt. But this mother
fatty refused to do, and the miserable
rides continued.
Some time later the mother went
on a visit and the aunt was left in
charge of her refractory niece. | saw
her riding in the automobile several
times without the offender. Then one
day the small figure sat in it's usual
place and in the aunts arms was the
two-year-old brother. They called at
the door. "Are you having pleas
ant outing? ?" / asked little Nora.
eyes," she beamed. 81 used to spoil
our rides; now Pm showing little
brother how to make everybody have
a good time"
eve had to go without Nora for a
few days." remarked the aunt quiet
ly, "but now she is trying to think Of
others as well as of herself"
In this case the aunt was more
truly the mother than the child's own
parent. For she understood that
mother-love should be something
more than the qualification of pas
sion, and this insight gave her the
courage to face the child's passing
disappointment for the benefit of her
future welfare.
What seems of slight Importance at
the moment assumes a quite different
; aspect when considered in the light of
its future results.
Please pass this article on to a
friend and thus help Uncle Sam reach
all the mothers of the country.