OUR YOUNG FOLKS' COLUMN

Mataura Ensign, 28 December 1911, Page 7

OUR YOUNG FOLKS' COLUMN

OTJR MOTTO: 'Whatever thy- baud findeth to do. do ii with all thy niignt." LiUii'ES: ';. All letters for the week's puhilcjvuovi should reach the office net later than Monday afternoon. i. ' Correspondents should wiii*« on only ene side, of the paper. i. / II correspondents must scud their <"i) n>ii:w..*.-, not necessarily for pub-!i.-»*ti.>;-. 1 t \it l»>t U'-rs should S>e undressed thus - — '7 1-st; \ _"».•*. •.'\<j__ i''lllL, 'S_,UM;_u Oth."«-. Gore I Dear Boys and Girls,—The year is closing. Ti-ough only an infinitesmal arc iir the great circle of time, it yet marks a period when one begins to take thoughtful views of life. The passing years beat out the little lives of men. This fast whirling planet, This lonely ball That hurries through the eternal hall, carries us onward to a future into which we cannot look. What is hidden for us in the coming days no one can tell. It is our part to face futurity with courage, With a smile for those who love us, With a sigh for those that hate, Audi, whatever sky's above us, With", a heart for any fate. It is particularly with thoughts of you who are on the verge of manhood and womanhood that my mind is at present employed. Some of you have said Good Afternoon to your teacher when leaving school for the last time. With a light hear", perhaps a joyful one too. you have done so. School may have seemed little else than another name for restraint, and you are glad to be done with it. As the years go by you will realise that this feeling was caused by the fact that school brought you up against the first prolonged restraint, and that its little trials are a*s nothing compared with those that have to be faced and overcome in the years lying ahead. But let that pass. It is not wise to meet trouble half-way. ' Indeed it is the peculiar torture of highly imaginative persons that they conjure up difficulties and trials that do not always or even often emerge in real life. Shakespeare said: Cowards die many times before their death; The valiant die but once. Just one word of suggestion, I shall not call it advice. If your parents offer you the choice of going to work or to the High School, without a moment's hesitation choose the latter. There will always be openings for you in the great world of work, but the opportunity of getting a High School education comes only once. And its value can hardly be overstated. If I could be a 10-ye.v:-old boy again I should jump at the chance, and linger round it till the rector hinted to me to move on to the Uniersity. Culture leaves an indel'ble mark on a man. It opens up long, cr.l- - vistas along which the poor'yeducated can never even hope to look. It- makes him the heir of all the ages'. It gives him power. It makes him a leader. What educated nien are thinking of to-day, the less cultircd will be thinking in the coming days, only 't will [ be another generation that will do so. Your chance, if you miss it, will be past —irrevocably past. But perhaps someone will siy. "Had i been dux of my school i should have gone on." Make no niis&ike heie, boys and girls. It is not alwiys tl e dvx of the school or the scholarship winner that in the end climbs the steep path of fame or leaves his mark on .his gener-1 ation. Sometimes an easily-won prize ] in a primary school makes a boy think j that in the school of life other prizes are easily won. It is not so much ability that tells in the end 1 as what is commonly called stick-ability. And non-prize-winners have sometimes more of the latter than have the dux boy and girl. The High School holds far better prizes than cups and medals, it holds the keys to knowledge. The former are bits of metal, that is all. Who loves not knowledge? Who shall rail Against her beauty? May she mix With men and prosper! Who shall fix Her pillars? Let her work prevail. Those, however who have already found a place in workaday life, I should like to say: Shut your lips tight against alcoholic drinks of every kind. That done and success is half achieved. Never mind those who, for so doing, call you "Cocktail!" In their hearts they admire your courage and resolve. For the rest try to understand every branch of your calling, strive to do daily as much work as you can, and your master knowing your worth will make it his business to promote you. Some of.you will in a few years be far from Gore. To-day I had a postcard from far-distant Pisa. Miss Dolamore (the sender) had before writing just climbed its leaning tower. She had been through Switzerland, and later had visited Venice, Florence, Rome and Naples, climbed Vesuvius and seen the disinterred ruins of Pomp?ii. Miss Dolamore is merely away on tour, but other Gore scholars are spread over alj most the whole world. And—sobering thought—all of you will in a few short years be the men and women who are to bear the responsibilities at present resting on the shoulders of your seniors whose increasing grey hairs indicate that their vitality is waning. A Happy New Year to you, boys and, girls. UNCLE PHIL. Dear Uncle Phil, —We went to Gore Show but were disappointed in our day's outing, as it began to rain after we left home and made things disagreeable. We did not stop to ..see the circus, as one was coming to Riversddle and my father said he would drive us up to see it, which he did. What do you think? It was a worse night for bail and rain when we went to the circus at Riversdale than it was on Show Night. We had not very far to go and jwe enjoyed it very much. My brother did laugh when he saw the clown prej paring to sit down and another man pulled the seat away from under him. We wev& too late to see a lot of the animals. I will conclude by wishing you and your nephews and nieces a

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.—Yours trulv, PARSLEY. Riversdale. [The weather has certainly spoiled a good many outings and hindered the work of turnip-sowing too. However, it now seems to have returned to old form. After all seed time and harvest never fails to come. I hope you will enjoy your holidays and reciprocate your kind greetings.—U.P.] NOTICE TO CORRESPONDENT. Miss L.T., "Waikaka.—Thank you very much for your kind greeting and pretty card. Write soon.