CHILD AS CITIZEN.

Wairarapa Daily Times, 16 October 1929, Page 5

CHILD AS CITIZEN.

OPTIMIST CLUB LECTURE. “The Child as Citizen” rvas the subject of a lecturette delivered by Mr G. W. Morice, M.A., at the Optimist Club luncheon to-day. Mr M. Maekay presided, and the lecture was listened to with great interest. All were interested in the building of citizens, said Mr Morice. In the past there had been enormous progress in every phase of human activity, and it was well to look back a hundred years ago. There had been immense progress in material and social matters. He did not think that the end of the process had been reached. It seemed that there would still be greater developments. Social conditions were far from perfect to-day, even in our own land there were conditions tar from ideal. It should be seen that the torch of progress was carried on, and the heritage that had been passed on cherished. Any nation which lived on its past dies. . It is necessary to-day to see that the child is properly prepared for citizenship. A citizen is one who, while doing his share in material things, does not spare himself to raise the status of his country in regard to social conditions. The children in school or homo were like to a block of marble to the sculpture. Children are never idle: Thev are always doing something, andthe" average advice given to children was the word “don’t.” One might as well tell the tide not to come in as to say to the children, “don’t,” It is a sounder principle to say “do”; it may be harder. It was best in the long run to use their superabundance of energy to get them on to another track. It is better to harness their energy to do something useful. The child should be encouraged to do things, and it is wonderful how they become useful. The training in the home was important, and true education. The parents had the children in natural surroundings, and the instinct of the child to do, to play, and for companionship, could be used" to the greatest advantage. It was marvellous how quickly children took up ideas we thought foreign to their minds. Parents often get the mistaken idea that the child’s mind is immature. It was the duty of the parents to admit the child to important discussions. He felt that parents would bo failing in their duty is they did not discuss some of the great men of the day with the children. From these things they would learn something which would assist in making them grow up true citizens. Mr M. Maekay thanked Mr Morice for his interesting address.