Ideas For Boys | Page 8

our own, and to follow our plan of education ; and, they will soon begin in earnest to develop the wonderful mineral and other resources of that country, which as yet are practically untouched.
By the wonderful stimulus which has been given to education throughout the world, great changes are being wrought in the lives of millions of individuals who are thereby learning to think for themselves, and how to improve their condition in life.
Trade and commerce follow in the trail of science, education and enlightenment, and there are many things for you to learn in school.

COLLEGE DAYS.
A college education is of greater value now than ever before, because a greater proportion of young men go to college nowadays than ever before, and in your lifework you will have to compete with these men. Especially is this true if you expect to enter upon a professional or a political career. The last three Presidents of the United States were college men, one a graduate of Harvard, another of Yale, and another of Princeton. But whatever calling of life you may pursue college days if properly utilized will prove beneficial to you, provided you take them at the right period in life.
A boy cannot enter a leading college unless he has had a thorough and careful preparation; he ought to begin at the age of ten years to prepare to enter college, and he ought to enter college when he is sixteen to eighteen years old and graduate therefrom when he is twenty to twentytwo years old; he is then ready to take up the real serious part of his preparation for life's work. If he is to take up a profession, he must devote at least three years to his professional studies, and he should do this while his mind is young and plastic and in a receptive condition, and if he is to enter upon a business career he should begin to learn the principles of business at the age of twenty to twentytwo.
But we are a little ahead of the game we started to talk about college days; these are the days that afford the greatest opportunities for physical, mental and moral growth and development. The opportunity is with you, to improve or waste these days. You are now away from home, away from the tender, kind and restraining influences of your parents or guardian; you are living in a little world of its own your college world. During these days you will meet boys from different parts of the world, boys who have different ideas and habits from yours; among these boys you will find many congenial spirits and you will make many friends, fellows who will be numbered among your friends as long as you live therefore be careful of the attachments you make in college, be strong enough to select your chums, select fellows who have already developed a good character.
"Birds of a feather flock together."
If you should be so unfortunate as to fall in with a crowd of fellows who waste their time in gambling or drinking, have the strength and courage to break away from them, if you don't they will demoralize your habits. Remember the words of the poet:
"Vice is a monster of such frightful mien,
Which to be hated, needs but to be seen,
But seen too oft grown familiar with its face,
We first endure, then pity, then embrace."
Here are some don'ts to remember while you are in college :
don't gamble,
don't drink intoxicants,
don't smoke,
don't associate with immoral women.

GAMBLING.
Don't waste your college days or nights playing cards for money. Gambling in college is a fearful waste of time. You can't name one single benefit to be derived from gambling at cards in college. Some one might say it is only a pastime, but that is not the way it works out. Suppose you and some of your friends sit down at eight o'clock in the evening for a little friendly game of poker, you expect to stop at eleven o'clock and go to bed, but when eleven o'clock arrives some one in the party has lost and wants to play longer and the game is continued in this way until the morning hours; you have lost much valuable time and sleep and you are not fit for your work the next day. Perhaps you may win a little money and go out and squander it, for "come easy go easy" applies. If you win your chum's money, he will feel badly and want a chance to win it back, and if you lose, you will want a chance to win back your money, because you can't afford to lose in gambling the money your parents send you to use for your legitimate expenses and so you will go on from time to time losing and