Evening star., 1928-06-16
BACKGROUND OF EVENTS
BY PAUL Y. COLLINS.

Tomorrow win be sacred to fathers.
just as we celebrated mothers a few
| days, ago. BY what authority these
special days are set apart does not come
10 mind. but who would question their
sanctity?
1t has been charged that they are
| commerclalizing sentiment--that when
Fathers day" is referred to, 1T means
that all who have living fathers must
buy them present Of some kind. and
that makes business. But, after ALL
why not remember that much neglected
individual with some tangible token
OF love? Does he not carry the pack
usually In the sweat of his brow, in
order to bring JOY to the whole family.
that none may go hungry nor want
for new dresses or a new car?
1t is easy TO be sentimental about
Mother: she Is so patient and gentle so
KIND and lovable. But 1t sometimes
comes awkward to write poetry about
the Old Man" That ought not to
be. but somehow 1t is true. Only
rarely do we find the same intimate
relationship between daughter and son
and the Old Man" as persists when
IL lis Mother and not Father. II this
bluntness OF nickname arouseB resent
ment in the hearts Of some OF our
| adolescent readers, so much the better.
After all, Father is lonesome for just
the KIND OF sympathy and love that
warns the heart Of Mother, but II is
hard for him to show how he Graves II.
How easy 1t Is for child, by his own
standards, to appraise old agel To
think Of 1t as apart from todays
generation! How easy II is to AK the
limits OF age as being just a few years
beyond the child's own. and 10 set
that In quite another worldl
A new biography OF Hon. Herbert
Hoover quotes him as expressing some
regret that his sons win never have TO
work their way out OF poverty into sue
cess. as he. did. He worked through
all his school and college course, and
| after graduating as an engineer he was
| obliged to accept, not a position" but
a Job" as a. pick-and-shovel laborer.
Yet alter all Of his instructive wishing
similar character building struggle
| upon his own boys, the multimillionaire
| father In the shadow Of the White
House withdrawa that thought In grati-
| tude that hts sons will have "advan-
| tages" In wider opportunities Of gen.
eral learning than could come To him.
| self.
Probably the Indian coachman who
shares the ticket with Mr. Hoover will
also congratulate youth of today who
| do not have 10 face similar hardships
| In gaining a foothold on life What
father exists who does not wish To give
his sons and daughters better" start
| than he himself had? Yet 1t is rare
that a successful man Is not one
| VINO has struggled against early hard
| ships, and 50 toughened the fiber OF his
soul Witness the cowboy Roosevelt, the
raiisplitter Lincoln and most other sue
cessful men.
Observers Of life never fail 10 note
| haW handicapped is the child OF a great
| or successful father. How can the son
| OF sucn a man equal his father without
| the parents discipline Of life? Some
| times that ia done, but more instances
are cited where the boy, basking In his
fathers glory became atropied before
| his own muscles developed into strength
! 0f kelf~reliance. Perhaps that is often
| the fathers fault, for ii takes courage
10 emulate the eagle and push the
| yoiigstef out 0f the parental nest, 10
force him 10 try his wings
! And then 1t III 30 obvious 10 child
hood that the world has ontRfown the
| Dld Mans ways" Bupcfannlation be-
gins at such variable ages, according
10 how mature is the juvenile Judge.
Once there WAS young man who
| had worked for three or four years
TO save money enough TO carry out
his Lifelong ambition 10 study art, Al
last he found himself In an art school,
al the advanced age OF "a, and over
heard comments 0f fellow students,
averaging under 10. who wondered why
| any one 80 old should take up The work
Of etudent~too old 10 learn.
Later, when that old~youngster was
nearly Oslerized, but was still fattered
10 be- informed that he looked 10 years
younger than the almanac libel APP
praised, he was nearly run down by an
automobile driven by a half drunken
| young luol vino jeefed him with "Hey,
where you hain', fap7"
THAT was one of those darkest mo-
aasatS u lila" who G0ntsAsAA tnat ~