"THE FOES OF YOUTH, AND HOW TO CONQUER THEM."

Thames Advertiser, Volume XIII, Issue 3691, 27 August 1880, Page 3

"THE FOES OF YOUTH, AND HOW TO CONQUER THEM."

This was the subject of an interesting and instructive lecture delivered last evening in tho Presbytorian Churoh, by the Kev. T. L. Davies, under the auspices of the Young Men's Christian Association.

The chair was taken by Mr William McCullough. The choir also attended and rendered some musical selections, There was a good attendance.

The Leoiubee prefaced his subject by saying there is no class of individual possessed of so much interest to us as our youth, All seem more or less interested in the young ; Parents think of them with deepest interest-with mingled feelings of_ fear-and hope, and watch over them with care. Ministers regard them as those who are to fill up the vacancies occasioned by sin and death in our churches, and.who, under the blessing of heaven, are to be the moral renovators of our country, Patriots and philanthropists view them as the life-blood of every community—as those upon whose shoulders will be suspended, in a few years hence, the whole fabric of our social order and national prosperity.' Heaven regards them with profound interest, and appeals to every element of their nature—now in language of admonition and reproof, and then in that of promise and tenderest love. But while the season of youth is. deeply interesting and important, it is also peculiarly dangerous: Their spirits are buoyant, the imagination is full of Are, and the heart full of hope. Elasticity and freshness characterise the Whole soul. They are fall of hilarity, ardour, ambition, and hopefulness. Their extreme buoyancy sometimes beclouds tho understanding, prevents consideration, intoxicates the head, and leads the feet astray, There is an earnest thirst for all kinds of pleasure. This often renders them impatient of control, urges tbem on to extremes, and plunges them into many difficulties and improprieties. As tho sun of youth rises and wanes, a new order of feelings, and a new class of desires, become engendered, but all fresh and impulsive, and too frequently leading their subjects first to embarrassment, then to ruin. They are full of credulity, they believe every fair statement, and become entranced by every fair appearance. They look upon the rose with admiration, and inhale with pleasure its sweet perfume, but they never see the thorns. They are delighted with the beds of flowers, but never dream of the foul serpent that lurks beneath them. Besides, they are encompassed by a number of watchful, subtle, malignant, and powerful foes. Having thus led up to the subject, the lecturer Said that while the physical nature of the young is exposed to a variety of hostile influences their moral nature is exposed to still greater foes, and more terribly dangerous. The foes whioh assailed them wero divided into two orders—the internal and the external. The first consisted in thoughts, which, characterised by two peculiarities, rendered them dangerous enemieß. The one was their invisibility. They have the pinions of angels, and Spreading them abroad, they go and come unobserved and unchanged, leaving no traces of their footprints behind them. The young man might be in his workshop or behind the counter, but his thoughts may be rioting in some bacchanalian banquet, or feasting on some licentious pleasures, Familiarity with such scenes tended to corrupt the mind, whioh would at once corrupt the heart, and that would mirror itself into the|life. Faint thoughts of evil, like a far»off cloud, which the sunlight gilds and renders attractive, first come, then the tainted and lurking spirit becomes embosomed in that cloud, and the whole man gradually became enveloped in its gloom and scathed by its lightning. No sooner did thoughts build their fair castles, than immediately sallied forth vices assuming the forms of adultery, fornication, blasphemy, and drunkenness, just as impure atmosphere will breed disease and sow the seeds of death; and: go, morally, our imaginations could not fly along in tainted air without being infected. The other was their potency. One good thought might redeem a life, while one bad,thought worked a corresponding amount of pain- The ultimate result of which no stretch of the imagina» : tion could comprehend. A single seed-; thought in the minds of Luther, Franklin,' Watt, Stephenson, and others, led the way- to the stupendous changes which within the past and present centuries have so changed,the aspeot of society, and given to all human affairs fresh inspiration, One thought frequently started a new life, created a new earth,'and spread abroad a new heaven in the human soul. Thought' generated feelings, feelings created desires, whioh led to action, became habits,'and thus formed tho character...' loung men, said the lecturer, let me have you believe that your thoughts are possessed of greater importance than you ever imagined, and are capable of wielding a mightier influence than you ever imagined. They are. eithor angels gladening you with their smiles, and raising you'on their pinions to high altitudes'of dignity and glory; or fiends lashing you with their _ stings, and dragging you downward with inexorable malignity to the profoundest depths of disgrace, anguish, and ruin. By indulging a virtuous thought you are fostering a friend to be your-companion—training a sweet cherub to be your monitor and guide. By cherishing a vicious one, you are nursing a scorpion to torment you with, its fangs — feeding a demon to conduct you to despair. You can never, therefore, attach too much importance to your thoughts, nor watoli over them with too much' vigilance, and solicitudo. . The lecturer then proceeded to deal with the external foes, the most of which, were bad companions, instancing this with a string of examples, and' advising the young not to be charmed by tho accomplishments of those whose society they should shun, Accomplishments and refined manners were often used as flowers to adorn hidden corruption, or as garlands to conceal the fatal poignard. The practice of gambling was next dealt with, in which scenes from the boy leaving the parental roof and embarking into life, full of hope and promise, but falling into the meshes of the gambler, until ruin followed, were very forcibly portrayed. After dealing with the evil generated by habits of intemperance, the lecturer passed on to discuss the influence of bad books. The press of to-day, he said, is a mighty engine for good, but it has also an opposite tendency. Whilo it deposits in the human soul much pure' grain, it sows tares on a large scale as well. The literature of the day may be divided into three distinct classes The truly good: Wo havo a largo number of books, periodicals, tracts, nowspapors, and pamphlets, which impart healthy instruction, These improve, create convictions, produce impressions, and exert an influence for good upon all who read them, Those, again, that partake of uo decided character either way': They

I suggest no thought, convoy no idea, nnd establish no principle. To read them invokes a painful waste of time, and tends to foster much mental indolence, 1 and are unworthy of any serious consideration. There is ouother class: This consists of a number of books, periodicals, ephemeral productions, whioh are of a decidedly immoral character. In tho volume entitled "The Book and its Story," I find that upwards of twentymillions of infidel and licentious papers and pamphlets issue from the English press every year. This exceeds, by many millions, the total circulation of all Bibles, Testaments, religious tracts, newspapers, and periodicals of every kind in the same time. These books, wield a deadly influence over the heart and intellect of their readers. They silently undermine all right principles of life and action. They pander to every vulgar taste, and make it their aim to gratify the lowest feelings of every morbid sentiment. The authors of these clothe their thoughts in such attractive garments as to make them appear lovely and beautiful. Tho foulest corruption is coined in the mint of beauty, and a currency is thus obtained which otherwise could not be had. There are many books whose literary excellencies oharm the intellect, but wjiose moral sentiments drop with the very gall of death on the heart. The very tree, which is io men mentally a tree of knowledge, is to man morally a deadly upas. Its very flowers breathe infection, its clustering fruit imparts poison. Guard, therefore against all books whose moral tendency is in any.way of a questionable character. It is a most dangerous experiment to ascertain what amount of poison you can' take into your system without being dangerously affected by it. Should you be able to throw off its malignant power, by the strength of your constitution, you will suffer more or less by the trial.' Refuse it, therefore, with loathing abhorrence, remembering that once you take it, shouldit not prove fatal, it will steal over your soul, and stupify your moral sensibilities. The theatre, billard, and concert rooms, having been noticed, then in foroible language the lecturer proceeded to show how the foes of youth were to be avoided. He advocated the improvement of the mind. Ignoranco generated vice, but knowledge fostered virtue. The fields open before the youth for their improvement were the physical sciences, whoso never failing interest and practical utility invito attention ; the chronicles of the past abounded in lessons of true instruction. There were tho rich and beautiful regions of poetry, where all could stroll with advantage and delight, and the mental and moraf wealth of centuries lay at their feet to gather up. In reading a book, they should master it thoroughly, that i(s treasures may form a part of their iotelleotual patrimony. Let books not be as gold to the miser, but as fire and water to the steam-engine—the means of action and the elements of power. Ignoranoo tied down the low and. vulgar like the ropes which tied down a balloon. But let the ropes be cut, and like the wellfilled; balloon, intelligence, guided by 1 right principles, would lift a young man in society with ease and grandeur, Few things were better adapted to improve the young than the friendship of tho wise and good. He who hunts flowers will find them. Having dwelt at some length upon the necessity of devoting life to the inculcation of the good and noble elements of life, and instancing the purity of the example shown by the Great Teacher, the lecturer concluded thus; Conquerors receive the greatest honors in this world, Patriots, politicians, philosophers and divines have been forgotten, but the conqueror has been remembered and honoured, History has recorded his achievements on its imperishable pages; sculpture has represented his form; music has chanted his praises; for him the richest chaplets have been wreathed, and tho costliest memorials erected, Around his tomb the vanities of pride and the blazonry of honour have gathered, and the grand fabric of his fame has been built by the death of thousands. It has been coloured by the blood of warriors, and cemented by the tears of the mother and the orphan. But if you engage resolutely in the conflict through which you must pass, and conquer the foe bent on your ruirii, brighter, will be your honours than those of earthly conquerors, and sweeter will be your poean of ' triumph, more verdant will be your palm than any ever yet borne by them, fie therefore determined an i valiant, and ever remember that the path of duty is the path to glory. The speaker resumed Ms seat amidst the plaudits of the audience, and the usual complimentary votes of thanks terminated the proceedings.