Parental Laziness

International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Nov 27, 1884

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 10, No. 45.

Parental Laziness.

The tendency of children to disregard the authority of their parents, and the too general acceptance of this juvenile self-assertion as a lamentable but inevitable feature of modern society, are working out their miserable but natural results. It is a fact which needs to be emphasized over and over again, that in many cases the straying of children into evil is due to actual laziness on the part of their parents. Making due allowance for the sad cases in which parents devote thought and labor enough to their children, but in unwisely directed efforts, there remains a large percentage in which parents are content to see that their boys and girls are fed and clothed properly, are sent to school regularly, and are nursed suitably when ill; but do not take the trouble to know who are their children's associates, what are their habits when away from the fireside, and what are the tendencies of their development. It is no wonder that their children cause them grief and shame at last. Nor is there anything harsh in declaring that the conduct of such parents is too often due to sheer and shameful "laziness." A word to the wise ought to be sufficient.—The Congregationalist.