The  very  existence  of  it,  and  the  activity  of  these
feehler  moral  powers,  constitute  the  occasion  for  such
treatment,  while  their  neglect  may  lead  to  ruin.
Again  :  children  are  to  be  controlled  ;  but  how  sad
the  abuse  of  this  power !  They  are  too  frequently
scolded  and  beaten  in  such  a  manner  that  they  lose
their  sulf-respect  and  self-control ;  and  come,  by-aud-
by,  to  believe  that  they  are  the  veriest  vipers  that
ever  crawled ;  and,  to  be  consistent,  they  strive  to  be
all  they  are  taken  to  be.  If  there  is  one  thing,  in  the
treatment  of  children,  that  is  of  no  possible  benefit,
or  has  not  one  redeeming  quality;  if  there  u
one  sin  that  is  without  excuse,  and,  for  wickedness,
almost  without  a  parallel ;  one  that  is  more  offensive
than  all  others, — that  sin  is  passionate  scolding.  It  is
out  of  place  every  where.  We  venture  the  assertion
that  there  never  was  an  occasion,  in  all  the  education
of  a  child,  that  rendered  a  resort  to  this  practice  nec-
essary. It  is  purely  gratuitous,  and  purely  demoniac.
