Part 2 — DIVISION VII (continued 2)

“Want the cat back? You can have her if you won’t pull her tail. Will you let her tail alone?” he asked again. Margy said she would, and Donald again captured the cat and put it into her arms. This time Margy did not pull its tail. She stroked it, still holding it tightly by the fur; but she had learned that pulling a cat’s tail had sad consequences when Donald was near. She never repeated the act when her brother was within reach, although she did it when alone or with her mother.

Pulling hair is not a good form of punishment, but Donald’s method was based on sound principles, of which of course he was utterly unconscious. A baby should not be asked to make judgments, but he should be taught that pleasant consequences follow some acts and painful ones follow others. This is nature’s 733method of teaching human beings, and no one can improve on it as a method of last resort for the young human animal.

ILLUSTRATION 2

“Look what I’ve found,” Harry Jennings cried to his friend, Captain Stanhope. The captain was sitting on a park bench reading his morning paper, and Harry had been running races with Gyp up and down the gravel walk. He came up to the bench, now, with a handful of souvenir post cards in his hands.

Applying “Golden Rule”

“Some one has been addressing them here in the park, and then went off and left them on the bench,” he continued. “See, they’re addressed to people all over the country, and not a stamp on one of them!”

“I have seven cents in change,” said the captain, pulling out his worn little purse. “That will send seven of them, but there are a dozen.”

Harry brought out a dime from his trousers pocket, and looked at it thoughtfully. It would just pay his admission to the community ball game that afternoon, and if he used half of it to send off a stranger’s postcards, he must stay at home, for this was the last of his week’s allowance. Still, there was the captain, the knight of a dozen campaigns, looking at him. Harry knew that he allowed himself but one cigar a week, for his pension was subject to heavy drains; and yet he contributed his seven cents without hesitation. Surely, to share the doing of a good turn with the captain would be worth staying home from the ball game.

“Here’s a dime, and I’ll send the rest,” he told the captain. “Shall I take them to the postoffice?”

734The captain used the most subtly effective of all appeals to a child to do right—he assumed a willingness to be generous on Harry’s part, and offered him a comrade’s share in the deed. Not for worlds would Harry have appeared stingy and selfish and little, before the captain. And having set for himself a certain standard of generosity, it will not be hard for Harry to be generous when his next opportunity comes, even if there be no Captain Stanhope near to stimulate him.

CASE 136 (EIGHTH GRADE)

Faithful Work

“Here, you little rascal, finish up in that corner!” called out old John Smith, the janitor, to Oldham, who was helping him sweep the basement. Old John had rheumatism, and the school board allowed him to employ a boy at twenty-five cents a night, to help him with the sweeping. Oldham had secured the job, and hoped to earn a new suit before spring.

“I am finishing up in this corner,” he answered, indignantly. “I’m not done yet, but I’m getting it clean.”

“See that you do, then,” and old John turned painfully to his own work. His eyes were growing dim, and because he could not see he thought he might insure thorough work by severity. Soon Oldham came to him for more directions.

“Go into the furnace-room and sweep up in there,” old John told him.

Oldham saw that the furnace-room was very dark, indeed. “He’ll never know whether I’ve done the corners in here or not,” he told himself. And still 735smarting a little with resentment at old John’s undeserved gruffness, he slighted his work and finished in short order.

CONSTRUCTIVE TREATMENT

Pursue a plan exactly the opposite of John Smith’s. First, approve the boy’s willingness to coöperate with you. Expect the best work Oldham is capable of doing, and show your appreciation of his assistance. Tell him how glad you are to have the help of his young eyes and willing hands.

COMMENTS

This and the following incident show the play of social reaction upon conduct. For the approbation of a friendly, trusting man, who showed that he believed Oldham to be a boy of honor, Oldham cheerfully did his task honestly and well; to old John, distrustful and discourteous, Oldham responded with the trickery he invited. Oldham should have been more deeply grounded in principles of honesty, of course; he should have been indifferent to a childish, ill, old man’s acidity. But Oldham was very human in the personality of his attitude; the world abounds in people like him.

ILLUSTRATION (EIGHTH GRADE)

As Oldham went through the outer room to put away his broom and dustpan, Mr. Miller, the principal, entered.

A Better Method

“Hello!” he called out, cheerily. “So you’re the 736boy who’s helping out in a pinch, are you? I know John Smith appreciates that, and so do I. This floor looks as though you might have swept it—not a speck to be seen. Did you?”

“Yes, sir.” Oldham’s checks flushed with pleasure.

“Good, sincere work. Every corner clean. Well, I must go on up. I came down to see how John here was getting on, but since you’re helping him I needn’t stay longer. Aren’t you about through, yourself?”

“In a few minutes, Mr. Miller,” Oldham replied. “I have to do the furnace-room yet.” And he turned back to do a bad job over.

(2) Adolescence. In learning the great lesson of altruistic living it is not strange if young persons sometimes fail to see their acts in clear perspective. Only time and more experience can furnish that perspective. The following incident illustrates an exaggerated ideal of altruistic service on the part of a high school boy who sacrificed his scholarship for athletics.

CASE 137 (HIGH SCHOOL)

Overdoing Altruism

Oscar Colegrove was the most popular boy in the Vernon High School. His kindness and courtesy won the girls, his unusual size and strength were admired by the younger boys, and his manliness won the love and respect of the older boys, but he was not studious enough to gain the approval of his teachers. He was an especial trial to Mr. Watkins, teacher of Caesar. He had never understood English grammar—the Latin forms meant nothing to him. When he recited, everybody was glad when he got through.

But Oscar was a famous basketball player. Mr. 737Watkins had decided to make him carry his Latin or drop out of athletics. He had revolved in his mind the best method of making this fact known, but had come to no definite conclusion, when fate seemed to take things in hand.

One morning Oscar was unusually stupid in Caesar. Mr. Watkins kept him on his feet asking him question after question and growing more and more angry with every wrong answer. He even asked him to translate the beginning chapter about “All Gaul,” so well known to every student of Latin. Oscar ludicrously stumbled over the easiest parts. Mr. Watkins was the angrier because he had thought to cause Oscar to be ridiculed by his classmates, who only seemed to suffer with the tortured boy. Finally, in disgust, Mr. Watkins banged the textbook down on the table and said, in angry tones, “Oscar Colegrove, you shall not play another game of basketball until you can make a decent recitation in Latin.”

“You don’t mean that I can’t play tonight. (That night a game was to be played at Vernon with a famous out-of-town team.)

“O, I know you want to show off tonight! You’re afraid somebody else will get the honors due to you, if you drop out. You’re too selfish to want to give up being a hero. This is your last game until this Latin is learned.”

That night Oscar played on the team and the next day he was absent from school.

When Mr. Watkins went to the recitation room to meet his class in Caesar, he found not a student there. On his desk was an envelope addressed to him; opening 738it mechanically, he found this note within, signed by all but three of the class.

“The Caesar class will be adjourned until the most unselfish of its members, Oscar Colegrove, is allowed to play basketball as well as to go on with his studies.”

Mr. Watkins called a meeting of the school board that night and admitted that he had not handled the case of the delinquent pupil wisely.

“I contemplated dropping him from the team and I wanted to show the class that I was justified by letting them see how little he knew,” Mr. Watkins said in self-defense.

In the private conference the next day, Oscar promised to study his Latin more faithfully and the entire class reassembled. Oscar’s lessons were better learned thereafter and Mr. Watkins seemed to have gained his point, but he knew too well that he would not be able that year to fulfill his earlier prophecies of being an ideal leader of his students.

CONSTRUCTIVE TREATMENT

Mr. Watkins should have delayed passing sentence until he had calmly decided upon the best method of communicating his decision to Oscar. He should have said to Oscar privately: “I know all of the pupils want you to stay on the team and I do myself. I know also that you and I are agreed that you must keep up your studies. For a week I will assign you certain topics for review and hear you recite them here in the office or at my home, whichever suits you better. With this extra effort and a reasonable amount of time put on your daily lessons, you will be able to please everyone 739including yourself, by both carrying your work and playing for the school.”

COMMENTS

A really selfish boy is never a general favorite. Athletic boys are often heroes of the entire school and are considered self-sacrificing by all whom they represent. The question of athletics and grades should be handled privately by the principal of the school.

ILLUSTRATION 1 (HIGH SCHOOL)

Keeping Balance

M. Zigler said in confidence to Carl Worley, one of his athletic boys who was “falling down” in grades. “It takes a self-sacrificing boy to work valiantly for the good of his school. I know you will get good mental and moral as well as physical training on the ball team, because, of course, you play a clean game. But there is a school ruling that forbids a boy who has fallen below grade in his studies to keep a place on an athletic team. This rule was made for the good of the boys as you can easily see. I am sure we agree with the people who made it. Now, we can’t make the days longer for the team; I wish we could. The only thing to do is to make the time we have count for the most possible.

“I propose that you and I make a daily program for your use outside of school hours. Many college men find this a great help in getting much done in a day. In it we will provide ample time for school studies. This will do away with trouble for you and me as well as for the team, for if you follow it you can make good grades and stay on the team, too.” 740Together Mr. Zigler and Carl made a program which included practice with the team as well as study periods and plenty of time for meals and sleep. A careful following of this program showed that with the time properly used, there was no need of cutting short either study or recreation.

ILLUSTRATION 2 (HIGH SCHOOL)

“And I like Philip Lampey,” said Jeannette. “I don’t know him very well, but he always has such excellent manners and he does get his lessons. Don’t you think he’s awfully fine?”

Helping a Comrade

Miss Parsons and Jeannette White were discussing the high school seniors in a very friendly and personal way. When Philip Lampey was mentioned the teacher’s brow clouded.

“I’m beginning to be worried about Philip, Jeannette,” she said. “He’s being taken up by that fast set, and he seems to like it. He’s losing his frank way, and beginning to swagger just a little, and to be oily instead of just courteous. I don’t think he’s very far gone. Now, he likes you; can’t you help us out, and save Philip from going over to that cigarette-smoking, idle crowd?”

“I don’t know, but I’ll talk it over with mother,” Jeannette promised. “I don’t think I have very much influence, however.”

A few days later Jeannette called to Philip as they were passing to geometry, “Oh, Philip, mother is giving me a birthday party on the 22nd and I want you to go over the senior class with me and help me make out the guest-list, and perhaps you have some ideas about 741things to do too. Can we do it after physics this afternoon?”

“We sure can,” Philip assented, much delighted to find himself social arbiter. “I’ll be at your desk at 4:05.”

So Philip came to Jeannette’s desk, and they began on the list.

“There’s Sam Blennerman, he’s a good fellow. You’ll want him,” he suggested, as they came to one of his new chums.

“That stuffy little snob? I should say not!” Jeannette lifted her nose in great scorn. “The other day I heard him making fun of Earl Stubbs because he stayed out to go to church in Lent. I think he’s insufferable!”

“Do you? Oh, he’s not so bad when you know him, though. Well, how about Vernon East?”

“He smells like a tobacco shop. I never saw him without one of those nasty little rolls of his in evidence. Father would want to know what I was coming to.”

“Sylvia Fanslow, Mark Gorham, Francis Hingham—I suppose they all go on?” Philip held a tentative pencil in air.

“Yes. And Emil Irwin. Leave out Leonard James, of course.”

“But why? His family’s awfully good, and he’s no end of fun. Keeps things in a roar, you know.”

“Yes, I know. I know his kind of a roar—he thinks he’s such a man of the world. But isn’t he the boy Mr. Burcher almost expelled for swearing on the campus?”

742“Well, yes, he is. But you wouldn’t expect him to swear at your party you know.”

“Naturally not. But I haven’t any use for a boy who has one set of words for girls and another for boys. That’s a double standard and mother says double standards of any kind are bad.”

Philip was suffering a revision of his ideals at the hands of this girl. In the evenings he spent at her house, planning the party, he came to revise them further still as a result of the tactful suggestion of Jeannette’s mother. When the party was over, he found his taste for the “fast crowd” had disappeared. To keep Jeannette’s good opinion he would have pretended to believe anything, but so pliable is youth before habit has fixed one’s attitudes, that he had really come to believe in the same high standards that Jeannette held.

743