1882.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
489 
i-*** 
Give.the Boys a Chance. 
Farmers’ boys are as full of life and am¬ 
bition as any boys. They see visions in the 
future of prosperity, influence, money, and 
reputation. They see boys who have been 
clerks in the village stores, carpenters, 
bridge-builders, compositors, machinists, em¬ 
ployes of financial operators, merchants, 
bankers, etc. They at once mark their 
great superiority in some 
things: in a knowledge of 
the world, in quickness 
of thought, and, likely 
enough, in wickedness 
also. Your boys want to 
get away too, or see their 
ivay out, some how. If 
there is money to send 
them to school, that satis¬ 
fies them; if the condition 
of going is that they shall 
learn a trade, they will 
learn one ; if they must 
get a self-supporting place 
in store or shop, on a canal 
boat or anywhere else, 
they will find one. Is it 
because they hate farming 
and work? No, indeed. 
Nine-tenths of them love 
the farm and will eventu¬ 
ally return to it, or will 
buy another as soon as they 
liave.made money enough. 
The best farm laborers 
are men who have been 
born and bred on the land 
they till; the best farmers 
are those who have been 
in business, or who have 
been successful in some 
trade, or who have been to 
sea, or have seen the world 
and know something of 
trade and commerce, who 
have expanded ideas, and 
who are readers, and lovers 
of books. They are up 
with the news of the day, 
abreast with agricultural 
progress, have their no¬ 
tions about political econ¬ 
omy, free trade and pro¬ 
tection, cooperative dairy¬ 
ing, creameries, new kinds 
of stock, etc.; they put up silos, get new 
tools, and show an earnestness for progress 
in some way—in every way—and really do 
progress. They not only make money by 
legitimate farming, but are gradually put for¬ 
ward as prominent men in the community, 
given township offices, sent to the legislature, 
and all that. All because their natural ambi¬ 
tions were not curbed, because their spirits 
were not broken by the wretched poverty of 
ideas which prevails on too many farms. 
Which do you think most of, the farm or 
the boy?—If the boy, then give him a chance: 
give him every opportunity in reason to see 
and know what is going on in the world about 
him ; give him good books ; trust him at the 
store, and to be “off” evenings, if he will 
only trust you with the knowledge of all he 
does. He will do this and have no secrets, 
if his father is worthy of confidence. You 
must sympathize with him. 
There is not room on the farm for half the 
boys. Some must go to the town, to sea, to 
college. Do not grieve over it. It is better 
for them and for the world, and really better 
for the farm. Make your boys wide-awake 
men, and encourage them in seeking after 
knowledge and plans for improvement in 
every way. With books and papers, and good 
company, and some knowledge of outside 
things, a boy will choose his own avocation, 
succeed in it, and in after years come back 
to bless the old Homestead, and the old folks. 
If you think you must keep the boy on the 
farm for your own sake, give him a personal 
interest in the farm, a share of the cattle and 
sheep, pigs and poultry ; get him to keep his 
earnings or invest th§m, to have a saving’s 
bank account, and so anchor him, not by ex¬ 
hibiting your authority or purchase,but by his 
own love for you, and by his own interests. 
Stammering—Its Cure. 
Stammering or stuttering varies all the way 
from a slight impediment in the speech to a 
difficulty of utterance that is painful to those 
who witness it. Authorities agree that it is, as 
a general thing, a nervous affection, and the 
successful methods of treating it are those 
that give the patient control over those nerves 
and muscles concerned in articulation. It is 
a singular fact that those who stammer most 
violently can usually sing without impedi¬ 
ment. We had the pleasure of a visit, a few 
weeks ago, from the eminent Dr. Dawson 
Turner, of London, Eng., who told us of a 
method by which he had cured confirmed 
cases of stammering. It being a nervous 
affection, everything tending to excitement 
should be avoided. Talk to the patient 
quietly, and ask him to sit down with you 
where no others will be present. It is im¬ 
portant to divert his attention from the 
organs of speech, therefore show him how to 
shut his hand with the forefinger only ex¬ 
tended, as one would nat¬ 
urally do in pointing to a 
distant object. Engage his 
attention as much as pos¬ 
sible on the proper position 
of the fingers. Then ask 
him to repeat any sentence 
after you, following you 
in making a tap with the 
finger after each syllable. 
The taps may be made by 
the forefinger of the right 
hand in the palm of the 
left hand, but preferably 
on a table. Dr. Turner 
told us of his cure of the 
engineer on an ocean 
steamer upon which he 
was a passenger. The en¬ 
gineer was highly esteem¬ 
ed for his skill, but his in¬ 
veterate stammering so in¬ 
terfered with his useful¬ 
ness, that it nearly unfit¬ 
ted him for his position, as 
in an emergency he was 
unable to say what should 
be said promptly. The 
Doctor had given the en¬ 
gineer a few lessons with 
success, and the Captain 
was much surprised to 
have the engineer come to 
him one day with, “ Cap- 
top, tain tap, the tap, pro¬ 
top, pel- tap, ler tap, is 
tap, bro- tap, ken tap, and 
tap, we top, must top, lay 
top, to tap, for tap, re¬ 
top, pairs top.” To have 
given this message in his 
usual manner would have 
required a long time and a 
severe struggle. This illus¬ 
trates the method. Some 
quiet friend should first 
practice with the stammerer alone, until he 
can speak without difficulty, and then gradu¬ 
ally accustomed him to the presence of others. 
Ah In-grown 3s'ail. — Much suffering 
is due to the corners of toe-nails growing 
into the flesh. The remedy is very sim¬ 
ple. It is a mistake to cut the nails short at 
the sore comers ; if the nail is long, cut the 
upper edge straight across, or in a crescent 
shape, the crescent in the center, leaving the 
corners untouched. Then scrape the middle 
of the nail, for its whole length, quite thin. 
The scraping may be done with a knife, but 
much more readily by the use of a bit of 
freshly broken window glass. The center of 
the nail should be made so thin that a slight 
pressure upon the corners will bend it. In 
some cases it may be well to put a little lint 
or cotton under the comers of the nail, to aid 
in the bending. Of course the avoidance of 
tight boots or shoes will suggest itself to all. 
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