13P MORAL CONDITION OF THE CHILD 



tion of the rod might have been beneficial, even 

 if cruel and needless, its hurt would have been 

 temporary ; but the goblins and ghosts will never 

 let up their stings and starts while life shall last. 

 Burns catalogues his infant tormentors as "dev- 

 ils, ghosts, fairies, brownies, warlocks, spunkies, 

 kelpies, elf-candles, dead-lights, wraiths, appari- 

 tions, cantraips, giants, enchanted towers, drag- 

 ons, and other trumpery." One wonders what 

 else could be outside of this list. He said: "It 

 had so strange an effect upon my imagination 

 that to this hour, in my nocturnal rambles, I some- 

 times keep a sharp lookout on suspicious places; 

 and though nobody can be more skeptical than I 

 am in such matters, yet it often takes an effort 

 of philosophy to shake off these idle terrors." 



"Wordsworth evidently had a similar experi- 

 ence; for he speaks of 



" Huge and mighty forms, that do not live 

 Like living men, moved slowly through the mind 

 By day, and were a trouble to my dreams." 



Barring accidents, children will not be more 

 afraid of the dark than the daylight. It is prob- 

 able that because people have pictured the dark- 

 ness as inhabited by the strange and mysterious 

 powers, against which the child can not protect 

 itself when suggested, that they often show ex- 

 ception to this statement. In so far as accidental 

 suggestions are likely to occur should we be on 

 our guard against imparting fears of this kind. 

 The "spooks" and the apparitions should be exor- 



