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KIDD'S OWN JOURNAL 



platoons across the room, and direct them to 

 the ready performance of many simple 

 manoeuvres. Think you that an infant is 

 less acute and less teachable than these? 



Let the mother who doubts the ability of 

 her child to learn obedience, try how soon 

 and how easily she may teach her child that 

 he must not touch the tongs or poker ; and 

 that when sitting on her lap at table, he 

 must not touch the cups and saucers. A 

 child may be taught obedience in such things 

 as these, and it should be as much disci- 

 plined the first year of its life as any suc- 

 ceeding one ; for the u child is father to the 

 man." The mother's authority should be 

 established over the child as soon as it can 

 comprehend the meaning of looks and ges- 

 tures. And how much trouble will a mother 

 escape by having her children thus early 

 taught to obey ! 



I think that the great cause of rebellion in 

 children and opposition to their parents' 

 will and wishes, is, that they perceive their 

 want of parental qualifications, and begin to 

 act on their own authority ; feeling con- 

 scious that they really know better, which 

 is not unfrequently the case ! So necessary 

 a thing in parents is wisdom, and so few 

 possess that treasure. 



Knowledge, love, affection, and attention, 

 will inevitably secure the respect and love 

 of any child ; but harsh severity will en- 

 gender fear ; and fear is fatal to love. Fear 

 engenders hatred ; and the affection derived 

 through fear is only the attachment of the 

 beaten slave. The most efficient family 

 government may be administered, if the 

 child be made to understand that disobe- 

 dience will not pass unpunished for itself, 

 and not for being found out. 



I have also noted, how terrible a thing it 

 is to place. one's self in direct opposition to 

 the wishes of a child, and oppose temper 

 against temper. If a child wants anything, 

 and you think it is not desirable, endeavor by 

 all means to direct its attention to some- 

 thing else. Children have such a fund of 

 curiosity, that this will be found a compara- 

 tively easy matter, and the result will be 

 infinitely better than to drive it into a fit of 

 passion, by setting your temper in opposition 

 to the child's, which would speedily be 

 placed on a level with your own — thus very 

 soon becoming your master. A weighty re- 

 sponsibility devolves upon the parents ; for 

 they not only give birth to their offspring, but 

 they mould and shape their future life. 

 The child, as Tennyson beautifully says, 

 " is a link among the days to knit the 

 generations each to each;" and parents in 

 educating a child are setting in operation a 

 train of circumstances which will affect all 

 coming time. " Love" is the great agency 

 of development for good. " Love" will ever 



cause the angel side of human nature to be 

 uppermost, as the moon draws the tides of 

 the sea. My faith in " love" is great ; 

 therefore I would say to parents with regard 

 to their children — 



So let your large twin-love bend over them, 

 As the calm, silent heavens bend over earth, 

 Revealing God's own starry thoughts and things, 

 And pouring round an atmosphere of glory. 

 So shall the Image of your hearts' Ideal — 

 The Angel nestling in their bud of life, — 

 Smile upward in the mirror of the face ; 

 A blessed beauty in your darken' d ways, 

 And a perpetual feast op holy things! 



Rosina Jane Massey. 



THE TWO COATS. 



(Concluded from page 384.) 



On arriving at my destination, I was 

 shown by an astonished-looking servant 

 into a splendidly-furnished apartment. Pre- 

 sently the door opened, and the master of 

 the mansion entered with a smirk and a 

 bow, but no sooner had he cast his eyes 

 upon me than his countenance underwent 

 all the changes from surprise to perplexity, 

 from perplexity to coolness, from coolness to 

 contempt, and from contempt to downright 

 superciliousness. When it had settled at 

 the last agreeable stage, he opened his lips, 

 said he " should be happy to see me again 

 before I left England, but that he was so 

 much engaged at present that I must posi- 

 tively excuse him," rang the bell for the 

 servant, and wished me a very good morn- 

 ing. I was petrified — but too indignant to 

 speak ; so I seized my hat and left the house, 

 with all the blood of the Von Sclmedikers 

 burning in my face. 



I cooled by degrees ; and having no defi- 

 nite object in view, wandered listlessly 

 about from place to place, ruminating on 

 the unpleasant occurrences of the morning, 

 when, to my agreeable surprise, I perceived 

 the six Misses Simpkins ambling down the 

 street, in the direction in which I was ad- 

 vancing. When we had nearly met, they 

 looked towards me, stopped abruptly, whis- 

 pered, and then crossed suddenly to the 

 opposite side. Surely, thought I, this is a 

 mistake ; they cannot have recognised me. 

 Accordingly I crossed likewise, met the 

 young ladies full in the face, and, with the 

 bland and pleased expression of countenance 

 necessary on such occasions, I proceeded to 

 address them in my very best style. In- 

 stantly six glasses were raised and levelled full 

 at my person, and the plrysiognomies of the 

 Simpkinses exhibited a curious combination 

 of horror, vexation, and chagrin, to me per- 

 fectly unaccountable. 



" Keally," lisped Miss S., " they were 



