VOLUME II,
OXFORD, N. C., WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 1876.
NUMBER 6.
CHIIDBEIV’S EOWGSMG-HOUS.ES.
The Children’s Aid Society
provides five lodging-houses in
New York City, four of them for
boys and one for girls, where a
night’s lodging may be obtained
lor five cents and a meal for six,
all, however, being received.
whether able to pay or not. If a
child be out of employment or
alone in the world, every effort is
made to provide for him accord
ing to his age, caj)acities, and ne
cessities. Meantime he or she re
mains in the home enjoying the
benefits of the schools, either day
or evening, connected with them,
as well as whatever provision is
made for industrial training. The
demand for a small payment, in
variably made of those who are
able, is regarded as an important
feature in the plan to aid and el
evate this class, taking away, as
it does the sting of charity, and
making the children feel rather
like independent guests in a hotel.
Another important feature is the
savings-banks which have been
opened in the houses, and pay a
liberal interest—sixty per cent.—
for all moneys deposited by the
children, wdio are thus taught
lessons of economy and provi
dence. Girls pay their waj’ by
housework, if they have no other
means, and are trained in that, in
dress-making, and on the sewing-
machine.
The newsboys’ lodging-house,
whose accommodations have long
been inadequate, has lately taken
possession of a new and commo
dious building on Dune, William,
and New Chambers .streets, cost
ing S216,000. It is 109 feet long,
with an average width of 60 feet.
The building is seven stories high.
It contains dining-room for the
boys, with accommodation for
400 at table. The school-room
has seating capacity for 500 boys.
There are comfortable single beds,
in w'ell-ventilated apartments, a
savings-bank, a school-room, (an
swering also for chapel,) bath
and wash-rooms, private lock-
closets for each boy, games—as
chess and checkers—interesting
reading, and every evening a
brief devotional exercise.
“The savings-bank,” the super
intendent states, “has been used
by 1,372 boys, who have saved
$3,330.86, being a large increase
over last year—say 38 per cent.
During 1874 there were 8,913
different boys who contributed
$6,167.53 towards the expenses,
which were $16,470.61, including
gas, fuel, food, salaries, rent, bed
ding, &c., but not improvements
and fittings up in the new house.
The receipts from the boys were
43 per cent, more than ever be
fore.
“During the year 472 boys
were placed in good homes, and
912 lost and truant ones (an av
erage of nearly three a day) re
stored to relatives and friends.
Parents'and others often visit the
home to learn about lost chil
dren.”—Bureau of Education.
C31EEKFIJ1L CHAT'S 'iVlTlS T’f
«KOW8J\« BOY.
BY GKANDFA'i'IIER SEVENTY.
I knew him well. He was a
long, lean, pleasant faced boy,
with a stoop in his shoulders and
a shuffling wuilk. He stooped be
cause he was too lazy to hold up
straight. He shuffled because he
tliought it was less trouble to
drag one foot along after the other
than to lift it up from the ground.
There were about twenty boys
in his class at school. He gen
erally stood about the eighteenth
or nineteenth in his class. Some
times he would get up a little
higher, but he seemed so much
out of his place if he rose more
than five or six from the tail end
of the class that he would drop
again, and always find his level
near the last seat. On examina
tion days he was a curious mix
ture of confusion and indifference.
He w'as never certain of anything,
except that he did not know the
answer to the question that was
asked him. And, even though he
knew that he could not give a
satisfactorj^ ans-.ver, he would re
main standing and nibbling his
thumb nail till the teacher would
tell him to sit down. It made no
difference to him rvhether he suc
ceeded or failed. Once in a very
long while, as if by some happy
accident, he would know a lesson
well; but he was never elated by
it. AVhen he missed he was not
badly discouraged, He was re
signed to his lot, for he thought
that, as a mong the Israelites there
were some who were specially ap
pointed to be hewers of wood and
drawers of water, so some boys
must have been made to stay
near the tail end of the clasL
And, as that involved less labor
than hewing wood or drawing
water, it suited him exactly.
This poor fellow was so unfort
unate as to have a rich father; not
that a rich father ought generally
to be considered a misfortune,
but in his case his father was his
solo dependence. He knew that
his father would pay his bills ;
and that on the old gentleman’s
decease a very handsome estate
would be divided among the
family. That seemed to remove
every stimulus to labor or study,
and to quench every spark of am
bition from the boy’s soul.
One day a kind friend was
trying to interest him in conver
sation. She tried to draw him
out on his habits of reading. She
asked him if he was in the habit
of reading much history. He
answered that he did not care
much for history'. She then
asked him aboirt the poets, and
drew 'from him the confession
that he did not know one poet
trom another, and cared nothing
for any of thenr. So with works
on science and art and travel and
discover}'. Finally she asked
him: “Well, what do you read?”
and he replied; ‘I don’t read arry
thing at all.’
Orte bright afternoon this lazy
fellow was at an upper story wirr-
dow of a sea-side hotel. It was
a window overlookitrg the yard.
A cat was leisurely making its
way across the yard. He threw a
boot at it from the window. As
he was too lazy to take a good
aim the boot missed thq cat, and
the animal walked away' unlrurt.
Some of the other boy's who were
in the room with him told him
that he had better go down and
get the boot, but he said that it
made no difference ; some body
would pick it up he guessed.
Somebody did pick it up, sure
enough; for when, after some
hours when he happened to be
going down stairs, he went out
for it, it was gone. He said it
made no difference, for he would
get measured for another pair. A
young man who will thus throw
good boots away will never get
along very prosperously. The
last I saw of this lazy' fellow he
was wanting a situation, and ask
ing all his friends to get one for
him. He had finished his educa
tion—all the education he will
ever get. He reminded me of
raw hand from Ireland, who seek
ing a place in a store was told by'
the proprietor: ‘I have very little
work to be done now, my man.’
‘Shure, sur,’ replied Pat, ‘thin it’s
jist the place that’ll suit me ex
actly', sur, for its little work I
want to do, sur.’ Our lazy fellow
went from friend to friend, from
office to office, but without suc
cess. Then he thought he would
wait a few y’ears, and perhaps he
might get a place as cashier of a
bank, or president of an insurance
company', I never heard of any'
such position Ijeing offered him.
Such people are not generally
much sought for.
My boy, there is no place on
earth for a lazy man or a lazy
boy', except the grave. Lazy
people may lounge along the
whole threescore y'ears and ten of
their unprofitable existence, only'
to live unrespected and died un
lamented. From the day's of Sol
omon to the present time slug
gards have been in exceedingly
slight demand, and from present
indications it is not probable that
the demand for them will ever be
greater than the supply. AYake
up ! Keep awake ! Don’t be a
sluggard !—Christian at Work.
THE CAB OF JUOGEKKAFT.
In one of his recent lecture.s,
Mr. Gangooly, the converted
Brahmin, corrects some of the
popular impressions in regard to
the car of Juggernaut. He says :
‘This car took its origin from
the fact that Crishna, the god,
when a child, lived in the village
of Kauka. The king in a neigh
boring province, had a great fes
tival, and invited Crishna to be
present, and sent a car to carry
him to the festival. To com
memorate the fact, the Hindoos
carry' the image of Crishna on it,
to (as they say) give him a good
ride. As to the self-sacrifice of
the Hindoos, it is not true. The
Hindoos believe that if a sinner
should give two or three pulls to
the ropes connected with the car,
he will be taken to heaven by a
similar car. This false idea in
duces many of the menial Hin
doos to go forward and pull these
ropes; and often, by their care
lessness, tliey fall under the
wheels and are immolated. I
once saw four perish in this way,
so that their faces wei’e entirely
obliterated. AYlien caution is
taken, no one is killed. AVhen a
heavy car gets in motion it can
not be stopped, being drawn by
hosts of horses. The ropes with
which the yreople pull the car are
five hundred yards long.
AYhen young, I wanted to help
di aw the car. I rode on it, but
was afraid to draw it. I thought
that heaven would be thus secur
ed ; such was my earnestness and
love for these idols. It makes
me smile when I think of those
things. Once it rained and blew
very hard, and all the people left
the car but myself. I remained,
and held the idols from being
blown about by the wfind, or be
ing beaten down by the rain and
wind. The very consciousness of
doing something good, made me
feel cheerful and contented.
This car is drawn on the first
day of the month, and on the
eighth day it is drawn back. The
latter is a matter of policy ; it has
no sanction in the Hindoo Scrip
tures.
The rich man who dedicates
the car, entertains freely all the
lower castes, by thousands, every
day. This is the leading feature
of Brahminism, viz., the cari-ying
of alms to the poor. All other
ceremonies do not amount to
much if this is not done.
A rich man promised the river
Ganges one thousand pipe man
goes. As the servants were bear
ing the baskets to the river with
this fruit, (which is the richest
fruit in India,) a poor man, tired
and hungry, came and asked for
one of the mangoes. The ser
vants bid him go about his busi
ness. He hazarded his life, and
took one ajid ate it. At night, it
is said tliat the river Ganges came
to the rich man in human form,
claiming the payment of nine
hundred and ninety'-nine man
goes, saying that he had received
but one. In this, Brahn]inism in
culcates a beautiful form of char
ity. I am sorry to say that it al
so teaches that if y'ou help a
Brahmin, and do not help other
castes you do right.”
BE NATEBAE.
In music the note designed as
B natural is vey near to the one
designated as B flat, and the lat
ter is often sung for the former
by uncultivated singers. It is
very much the same with respect
to manners. If people fail to be
natural, it generally happens that
they come to be flat. Any af
fectation is disagreeable.
People are apt to think that in
order to be polite it is necessary
to adojot a certain style of man
ners, use a particular set of
phrases, and speak with a minc
ing pronunciation. Lord Chester
field was a great authority on
manners in his day', and so many
persons made his rules their stand
ard that they all acted and spoke
pretty much alike. Variety,
which is the spice of life, was to
be found only in the lower walks
of society, where Lord Chester
field was unknown.
A similar result is accom
plished in some of our large
sclmols, especially those for girls.
The pupils are all cut out, so to
speak, after a certain pattern, and
are prevented, if possible, from
developing any manner or style
peculiar to themselves.
Dr. John.=on was the opposite
of Lord Cliesterfield, and was of
ten rough and boorish. All he
did, however, was the expression
of his own indi\iJuality'. ’I'iiere
was not the slightest affectation
either in Ins words or his man
ners.
One of the most objectionable
forms of affectation is that of de
voutness. A remarkable case of
tills kind 'U'as afforded by Lord
Westbury, at one time Lord
Chancellor of England. He was
in the habit of speaking of him
self as an “eminent Christian,”
yet he delighted in wounding
every'body by his bitter, satiric
speeches, and cool insolence.
Once, when about to plead be
fore the lords, who are the judges
of the highest court in England,
he kept them waiting, when they
were ready to liear him, by ap-
p irently engaging in his private
devotions. Ho clasped hs hands,
and bent his head, with closed
eyes, to the great astonishment of
tue court. It would, in any' case,
have been an improper time
for such an act; but it w'as known,
in this instance, to be a mere af
fectation of de.voutness, intended
to irritate the judges wTiom he
was about to address. '
Naluralness is by no means
opposed to cultivation. One may
have cultivated manners without
being in the least artificial. In
deed, it generally requires some
degree of cultivation to become
perfeclly natural, just as it usually'
requires practice in writing to be
able to express one’s meaning ex
actly and gracefully'. Ease, and
grace of manner, though acquired
by practice, are not, on this ac
count, artificial; for the gentle-
m(Tn,o.r lady whq has them is aljle
to act freely according to his or
her nature. The highest culture
is thus consistent w'ith the most
perfect natui-alness. Affectation
and conventionalism, on the con
trary, are generally found in con
junction with ignorance and low
breeding.
KEEPIiVU T3IB T'OIVGE'B
ICeep it from mikindness. AYords
are sometimes wounds. Not very'
deep wounds alway's, and yet
they irritate. Speech is unkind
sometimes when there is no un
kindness in the heart; so much
the worse that needless wounds
are inflicted ; so much the worse
that unintentionally pain is caused.
Keepit from falsehood. It is so
easy to give a false coloring, to
so make a statement that it may'
convey' a meaning different from
the truth, while yet there is an
appearance of truth, that we need
to be on our guard. There are
very many who would shrink
from telling a lie, who yet suffer
themselves in such inaccurate or
exaggerated or one-sided state
ments that they' really come under
the condemnation of those whose
“lying lips are an abomination to
the Lord.”
Keep it from slander. The good
reputation of others should be
dear to us. Sin should not be
suffered to go unrobuked ; but it
should be in accordance with tlie
Scripture method : “Go and tell
his fault betwixt thee and him
alone.” And it shall be borne in
mind that what is too often con
sidered as merely harmless gossip
runs dangerously' near, if it does
not pass, the confines of slander.
A reputation is too sacred to bo
made a plaything of, even if the
Int nt be not lua’.i.i^.uj.— 1. Mes.
mi