Year: 1860

The grand aim, then, which every parcn
should set up, should be this to guard cor
rupt nature from temptation, and to fix virtuou
habits so strongly as to hold the immortal a,
steadfast as an anchor holds the ship from tn,
winds and waves. And the very first step O
family government must be, of course, the sub
lection of the child to the parents knowledg,
and will; for its own happiness, and the success
OF all further instruction. requires this in the very
beginning. Its own well-being requires that il
should be subducd and made obedient. Parent,
sometimes through weakness of love cannot en-
dure to conflict with their children, and punisl
them. 1t seems so cruel and unfeeling. 1t i.
neither. Not to do it, is cruel and unfeeling
For no child can be so happy as that one which
has been obedient, habitually, to a Just rule
1t is simply question as to which will be besI
for child-the sober arrangements of expert
enced parents, or the blind dictates of its own
passions. An unbroken horse and an unsub.
dued child are both reared to wild useless
ness.


do not suppose any man on earth estimate,
mnd-knowledge more highly than | do; but
after ALL it is the disposition that has more to dc
with happiness in this life than skill, or success
or knowledge. knowledge is of the head, but
wisdom belongs to the heart. And no parent
trains his child, who does not train his disposition
II he is suffered to grow up selfshly, because &c
sweet child has certain prettiness in his selfish
ways; if its anger and violence are suffered to
form channels, because the early currents OF
passions are rather witchng; if its hasty tenn.
per stands like volcano, always smoking, and
often in eruption; it its habits form to self in
dulgence, the parents have given it a legacy OF
trouble and struggle, often of fierce and fiery
wretchedness, and frequently of certain and ir-
retrievable ruin, it is cruel kindness to leave u
child's disposition unsubdued. The habit OF
prompt submission to superiors, of absolute
obedience to the parents word, is not half So
necessary to the order of the family itself, as to
the future happiness of the child.


One who has never learned how to obey, will
be at fault all his life long 1t is vital attain
ment. Flax is no better than any weed. unless
1t be broken, hatcheled. Then it may be spun
and woven; and then it may be manufactured
and worn. And our various powers left in the
native fibre are nearly usess for good broken
IN and trained they are endless benelactions
and to break them in and train them is the
parents business.


This matter goes beyond the individual. 1t
affects the State No man will be obedient to
laws and submissive to magistrates, who has
not learned obedience and, generally, who has
not learned it in the family. Sometimes this is
learned by external experiences, and by the rude
gatherings of fortune; but, in the greatest num-
Der of cases, If it be not learned at home, and
in youth, it viii not be learned at all. A child
not trained at home, will be dsobedicnt in
school, irac,ious as an apprentice, an unruly
student, passionate and wilful citizen, dsa-
greeable companion, difficult husband; and
when in turn. he becomes father, the mischiefs
of his own bad education will fall with double
violence upon the heads of ais children. For
a child not governed in his own youth, is very
apt to be tyrannical husband and a despotc
father


There is one step beyond this The disci-
pline Of the family reaches far forward, and has
relation to many things scarcely suspected.
When for instance, in adult life. the gospel laws
its claims upon the soul, ana men rouse up ia
the truth, it will be fonnd that those thorough
ly trained to flial obedienc, and reverence. will
be prepared to yield to God, and to obey and
worship him; while those who have never been
made obedient in the household, will resist
nightly the superiority of Gods will over
theirs. Every pastor has noticed the difference
in this respect between children well trained and
children not trained at all


And there is one other instruction in this
connection. Moral qualities are transmissible.
1t is very well known that the offspring of wild
animals that have been domesticated revert to
the wildness of their parents; but that when
wild animals have been domesticated through
several generations, their offspring become more
and more docile, and at last tend to be domes-
tic. And that which is true of the animal king
dom at large, is true of the human family. A
stock for several generations reared to educa-
ton, will have tendency to intelligence; a
stock reared to moral influences, will have a
tendency to moral influences, stock reared to
family government, and obedience, and gentle
ness, and love, and other benign qualities. will
have tendency to these things Thus the prom
Use of God is fulfilled through many generations.


This part of family government the parent
should begin early. 1t cannot be begun too
early. a child NAV as well develop to the
knowledge that the parents will and Judgment
are supreme, as to the knowledge that fire
burns, that water browns. that knives cut, or
any other settled and invariable fact.


The advocacy of cogent family government
is, however, met by several objections. 1t is
said that it is not good to break child's spirit
by too much government. This NAV be an
answer to excessive severity, but not to lust and
moderate parental government. | have no
doubt that it would be a sad thing to have a
chd's spirit broken; but | do not remember
ever to have met with an instance of such mis-
fortune. and therefore | cannot speak knowing
" on this point | do not think our American