The herald and news. [volume] (Newberry S.C.) 1903-1937, 1919-11-11
SOMETHING ABOUT KIDS.

SOMETHING ABOUT KIDS.
We ask you to read an article by
Herbert Corey which we reproduce
from The State. J. T. Thomas, who
is head of the Granada bank out in
Mississippi, gave the boys and girls
of that county tryout, and by so
doing put the county on the map and
put the older people as we'll as the
kids to thinking and doing something
that is worth while. We have always
:. ,een of the opinion that the best way
develop sturdy and worth while
manhood and womanhood was to trust
the boys and girls and put them on
their honor, so to speak, and that this
thing of not trusting any one and re-
curing every one who wanted to
get something and to secure some
help 50 that he might really do some
thing was the same as going on the
principle that every one was rascal
and guilty of something wrong, in
stead of the old doctrine that every
one is presumed to be innocent and
honest until the contrary is proven.
Whenever you require every one
who wants some help to put up twice
the amount you are going to let him
have, it is virtually saying to him
that you doubt him, and he pays you
simply because he feels that he is
obliged to do so. We mean to say
that such plan has that tendency.
Of course, we do not mean to say
that a man must be careless with
what he has accumulated and simply
throw it away, but if we would trust
our boys and girls just little more
and let them understand that charac-
ter and honesty and integrity would
count for just little in the COM
mercial world as an asset, it would
develop a higher type of manhood
ard womanhood.
This man Thomas, according to the
story undertook to help every boy
and girl in the county, who was will
ing to go into it, each boy torbuy
pig and each girl pen Of chickens,
and the result was that there was not
real defaulter in the lot. 1t is
stated that one of them died and in.
one case the pig died, but all of them
paid up the stake with interest, and
the girls, it is stated, made on an
average $52.43 after paying off the
note or stake furnished by Mr..
Thomas, and the boys made on an
average $500. One boy made from
his pig s125. And more than that,
each one was given a new vision with
determination to do something and
be something. And it is stated that
an equally important result was that
it aroused the men Of the county to
the realization of the fact that the
county could prosper even if the boil
weevil had come.
We suggested to banker Of this
town the idea of trying similar
plan here several years ago. Take
young men Of character and integrity
and help them to get start and to
get home and take their character
as the greater part of the collateral,
and if he had done so we do not be-
lieve that he would have lost dollar,
and greater than that he would have
helped many young man to become
! a home owner and good substantial
citizen, land would have helped his
county. Of course the thing could
not be done Unfortunately.
But the point of printing the
article referred to and the writing of
this article is to say that even with
the boil weevil actually in our midst
! it is not an unmixed evil. There
may be some good in it if it will only
teach US not to depend absolutely
and entirely upon cotton.