Boys | Page 5

should be kept, and the more
the great festivals are recognized the better. Fasting, however, is quite
as necessary. Appointed times in which to remember more particularly
Christ's suffering for us, to deny ourselves lawful pleasures, and to
make us think more of our sins and how to conquer them. They keep us
from getting careless, and letting our religion become a sort of Sunday
clothes, to be put on at certain times, but to have no real effect upon our
daily life.
One thing more. God has given you brains and the power to use them.
You are bound then to try and learn about God, and the duty you owe
to Him. Every year you ought to advance in knowledge, and not be
content with the little you were taught as a child. Read your
Bible--think it out for yourself--pray for understanding, and study such
books as will help you to a better knowledge of it.

COURAGE.
Boys and men are great cowards. There is hardly any accusation that an
Englishman or boy resents so much as to be called a coward. Still I
venture to make the accusation, and will try and make good my words.
I do not mean that you are cowards in the sense of being afraid to
attempt any act of daring. You have pluck enough to tackle a fellow
half as big again as yourself, pluck enough to endure pain without a
word, pluck enough to risk your life to save another, but too often you
have not pluck enough to say no, or to brave a laugh. That is what I
mean by saying that men and boys are cowards. You will let the worst
fellow of the lot be the leader and give the tone to conversation because
you have not the pluck to say boldly that it is wrong, and that you will
not join in it. This want of moral courage makes a lad give up little by
little his hold on what is right. Sunday school, Church-going, prayers
given up because Jem chaffs so about them. If he chooses to neglect

them that is his look out. You have as much right to your opinion as he
has to his. Why should you let him show more courage in doing wrong
than you in doing right. Are you afraid of him? No. Well then, stick to
your duty.
I said just now that going to work throws you in with a different set of
companions. Here, specially, comes the test of your courage. Are you
going to follow bad leaders, or have you the courage of your own
opinions. There is one particular subject where courage is most needed,
and where it most often fails. A young lad naturally wants to seem to
be manly--has a sort of feeling that he would like to show that he is not
just a little boy and bound to do as he is told. He is tempted to show his
manliness by neglect of home commands, rough and rude manners, bad
language and bad talk. I have remarked before how home obedience
and true manliness go together; here I want to speak more particularly
about bad language and bad talking, and the evil it leads to. S. Paul
speaks about it very plainly when he says, speaking of the things that
should not be named amongst Christians, "neither filthiness nor foolish
talking nor jesting, which are not convenient." Now, boys, all indecent
words and conversations are wrong--they are sinful, unmanly,
degrading. I know you cannot help hearing much that is wrong. Shame,
be it said, to the men of England--yes, men who talk of advancement
and freedom, men who are fathers of families, that they too often make
or allow the talk of the workshop to be such that no boy can work there
without hearing words and jokes which are not fit, I do not say for
Christians to hear, but not fit to be spoken. Hearing words of evil you
often cannot help. To join in them you can and must refuse, and unless
you do so refuse you are a coward and false to your profession. I do not
speak here of actual deeds of sin--no one can do or join in an impure
deed without knowing that he is sinning, but many think that there is no
great harm in listening to and laughing at what others say. Be warned in
time, it is but a very little step from laughing at to joining in bad
conversation, and a very small step from words to action. The same
want of courage that joins in the laugh will make it difficult to say no
when tempted further. Never, with companions of your own sex, and
still more