Year: 1869

/ read once, in a book intended for
| the guidance of mothers, a story of a
| little child, who, in repeating his letters
one day, suddenly refused to say A.
All the other letters he repeated again
\ and again, unhesitatingly +; but A he
would not, and persisted in declaring
| that he could not say. He was whipped
! again, and again, and again. In the
| intervals between the Whippings the
primer was presented to him, and he
was told that he would be whipped
| again if he did not mind his mother
and say A. I forget how may times
| he was whipped but it was almost too
| many times to be believed. The fight
was terrible one. At last, in a parOx-
ism of his crying under the blows, the
mother thought she heard him sob out
ga, /" and the victory was considered to
| be won.


A little boy whom knew once had
similar contest over letter of the al
phabet; but the contest was with him
self, and his mother was the faithful
Great Heart who helped him through.
The story is so remarkable that I have
long wanted all mothers to know it.
It is as perfect an illustration of what l
mean by f'eduedtinQ'f the will as the
other one is of what is called 'break-
ing" it.


willy was about four years old. He
had a large and active brain. a sensa-
tive temperament and indomttable spir-
it. He was and is an uncommon child.
Common methods of what is commonly
supposed to be discipline" would, if
he had survived them, have made q
very bad boy Of him. He had great
difficulty in pronouncing the letter G.
so much that he had formed almost a
habit of emitting it. One day his
mother said, not dreaming Of any spec
ial contest 'Hrhis time you must say
6. % 'fIt is an ugly old letter, ano amt
ever going to try to say it again." said
Willy, repeating the alphabet very rap
idly from beginning to end, without q.
Like wise mother, she did not open at
once a struggle but said, pleasantly
'IAh you did not get it in that time.
Try again ; go more slowly, and we
will have it." 1t was all in vain and
it soon began to look more like real OBJ
stinacy on WHY'S part than anything
she had ever seen in him. She has Of
ten told me how she hesitated before
entering on the campaign. 81 always
knew she said ''that Willy's first real
fight with himself would be no matter
of few hours and it was particularly
inconYenient time for me, just then, to-
give up day to it. But it seemed on
the whole, best not to put it Off"


So she said Now, Willy, you can't
get along without the letter G. The
longer you put off saying it the harder
it will be for you to say it at last and
we will have it settled now once for
all. You are never going to let lit
tIe bit of letter like that be stronger
than Willy. We will not go out of
this room till you have said it;


Unfortunately, WHY'S will had al
ready taken its stand. However, the
mother made no authoritative demand
that he should pronounce the letter as
a matter of obedience to her. Because
it was thing intrinsically necessary
for him to do, she would see, at any
cost to herself or to him, that he did
it but he must de it voluntarily, and
she would wait till he did.


The morning wore on. She busted
herself with other matters, and left
Willy to himself now and then ask
ing, with a smile. We'll, isn't my
little boy stronger than that ugly old
letter yeti"


Willy was suiky. He understood
in that early stage all that was 1uvolv-
ed. Dinner time came.


Aren't you going to dinner NAM
ma ?'


Oh!no, dear not unless you say
q, so that you can go too. Mamma
viii stay By her little boy until he is
out of this trouble.


The dinner was brought up, and
they ate it together. She was cheer
full and kind, but so serious that he
felt the constant pressure of her pain.
The afternoon dragged slowly on to
night. Willy cried now and then, and
she took him in her lap, and said.
Dear, you will be happy as soon as
you say that letter, and mamma will
be happy too, and we can't either of
US be happy until you do"


"Oh mamma, why don't you make
me say it p


(T6is he said several times before
the affair was over.)


Because, dear, you must make
yourself say it I am helping you make
yourself say it, for I shall not let you
go out of this room, nor out myself
till you do say it; but that is all /
shall do to help you. [ am listening,
listening all the time, and if you say
it, In ever so little whisper, l shall
hear you. That is all mamma can do
for you


Bedtime came. Willy went to bed
unkissed and sad. The next morning,
when WHY'S mother opened her eyes,
she saw Willy sitting up in his crib,
and looking at her steadfastly. AS
soon as he saw that she was awake, he
/ 0ACldlu6U AdHluldg eau say IL
/ and you know | can't say il. You're
naughty mamma, and you don't love
me" Her heart sank within her
but she patiently vents gain and again
over yesterdays ground. Willy cried.
/ He ate very little breakfast. He stood
at the window in listless attitude of
discouraged misery, which she said
cut her to the heart. Once in a while
he would ask for some plaything
which he did not usually have. She
gave him whatever he asked for but
he could not play. She kept up an
appearance Of being busy with her
sewing, but she was for more unhappy
than Willy.


Dinner was brought up TO them.
Willy said Mamma, this amt a
bit good dinner"


She replied; eyes, it is, darling; Just
as good as we ever have. It is only be-
cause we are eating it alone. And poor