The Waterbury Democrat., 1936-06-26
PARENTS
---sR RARENTN -
 Your Children
By Olive Roberts Barton

Admire the child who knows what he wants. Stand off and silently ap- plaud the youngster who insists on having his own way.
 Now please put the guns away and show the white flag of truce over the wall. You have your side and 1t certainly will have the back. ing of the troops. But here am l, Q lonely envoy of the enemy, and wright or wrong, I'd like to get some things of my mind that have been smoldering there for some time.
 It is about the good" child, the one who doesn't want anything hard enough to so after 1t with out counting the cost, and the "bad" one who most certainly does both.
 They Count Cost
 We dearly love those youngsters who stay put. We tear our hair and weep hot tears over the ones who are 50 utterly unpredictable we never know what to expect next.
 Now out of this last raw material, the Oft-called "hellion child" two types of product flower. One is the ruthless, selfish, undisciplired adult who laughs at lock-smiths or out- wits his neighbors; the other an assiduous and persevering citizen who sticks to Q purpose and gets there.
 The difference is that one learns what law is, and the other doesn't.
 Two Roads Ahead
 Why, then, you ask, shall we stand of to admire the child who climbs q "verboten" tree or helps himself to paints to ruin the garage door; who won't mind unless 1t suits him and thinks discipline and suggestion are made for the other fellow?
 Because in adventurous Ynisbe. havior there are two things to con. slider. One is a deep-set purpose to do 0 certain thing. The other is the moral part of it--taking unfair ad. vantage and breaking home rule--or any rule, for that matter.
 The outlaw, later to be society's enemy, stresses craft, defiance. priv- ilege and preying. The merely pur- poseful child who has the courage of his convictions, and sometimes loses sight of the honorable, is motivated more by the end to be reached. His determination to get there often ob- scures the moral side, but only ii1- cidentally so. He can get over that, and learn to accomplish his purpose honorably.
 Some Follow Blindly
 Tn between is the one who does not know what he wants. He supine- ly follows the crowd and waits for the world to hand him something good. He often lacks originality and Will-power and is dissatisfied with any and every lot he fall heir to.
 There are the three grades of hu- man beings, roughly speaking.
 The worst and the best, as Q rule, draw from the sturdy, rather willful pattern. Be right proud of this child, I recommend. The parent comes iyl by helping this determined boy, or this determined girl, to turn energy into worthwhile practice, to encour- age worthy ambitions and diScour- age unscruplous conduct.
 It is not easy, but 1t is possible. Such children need Q great deal of direction, an enormous supply Of parental resource and, in turn, enough faith on the childs part to abide by the parents word. It ts high time we stopped calling nega- tive children good" and positive ones bad. Discipline must be sa- luted, but character is gift of the gods indeed, so why look on 1t as Q curse?
 Copyright lo36, NEA Service, Incl