26

OF CHILDREN.

I

sufficient exercise in the open air, they would bothmake them more healthy mothers, and more usefulmerribers of society. I am no enemy to genteel ac-complishments, but would have them only consideredas secondary, and always disregarded when they impairhealth.

Many people imagine it a great advantage for chil-dren to be early taught to earn their bread. This opi-nion is certainly right, provided they were so employedas not to hurt their health or growth; but when thesesuffer, society, instead of being benefited, is a real loserby their labour. There are few employments, exceptsedentary ones, by which children may earn a liveli-hood; and if they be set to these too soon, it ruins theirconstitutions. Thus, by gaining a few years from child-hood, we generally lose twice as many in the latterperiod of life, and even render the person less usefulwhile he does live.

In order to be satisfied of the truth of this observa-tion, we need only look into the great manufacturingtowns, where we shall find a puny degenerate race ofpeople, weak and sickly all their lives, seldom exceed-ing the middle period of life: or if they do, being unfitfor business, they become a burden to society. Thusarts and manufactures, though they may increase theriches of a country, are by no means favourable to thehealth of its inhabitants. Good policy would thereforerequire, that such people as labour during life shouldnot be set too early to work. Every person conversantin the breed of horses, or other working animals, knowsthat if they be set to hard labour too soon, they neverwill turn out to advantage. This is equally true withrespect to the human species.

There are, nevertheless, various ways of employingyoung people, without hurting their health. The easierparts of gardening, husbandry, 01 any bus..iess carriedon without doors, are most proper. These are employ-ments which most young people are fond of, and some