 Chapter 56 of Floyd's Flowers by Silas X. Floyd. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. The best books for children. According to some of the most thoughtful people who have lived in this world, a good way to deal with children in regard to the books that they are to read is to give them the freedom of a library which contains a few thousand of the best books in the world and let them rouse at will. This was originally I think Charles Lamb's idea. Charles Lamb was a lovable man who wrote readable books for children. But this statement of Lamb implies of course the possession of a good library. Unfortunately many of my readers will not be found among those who live in homes which are well stocked with books. That is one reason why it seems wise to make one or two suggestions as to the best books for children to read. If you cannot have all the best books in the world, you should have at least a few of the best books in the world. And I shall name a few which I believe every boy and girl in America ought to know something about. For children between the ages of six and twelve, I should put at the head of my list Daniel Defoe's Robinson Caruso, a good addition of the Arabian Knights, and Hans Anderson's Fairy Tales. In addition to these I would get Hawthorne's Wonder Book, Andrew Lang's Fairy Book, and some book full of absurd fun like Lear's Nonsense Book or Alice in Wonderland. We must not forget Joel Chandler Harris' Uncle Remus for it ought to have a place in every collection of children's best books. Kipling's Jungle Book is good and so is Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress. Tom Brown at Rugby, Lam's Shakespeare Tales, and Ruskin's King of the Golden River must not be overlooked. John Burrell's Birds and Beasts might as well end the list since I haven't room to give all the best books for children. But whatever else you do, boys and girls, if you wish to widen your spiritual horizons, do not close the windows on the emotional and imaginative side by neglecting poetry. Somebody has said that there is in every one of us a poet whom the man has outlived. Verse and Pros for Beginners by Horace E. Scutter is a delightful book to have and another book of poems called The Children's Garland. The best books for a child are the books that widen his world. A man or woman in middle of life or old age who loves poetry and great pictures and statues, who is familiar with Shakespeare, who has a sense of humor and a love of nature, knows a deal about the joys of living and is full of resources. No one can ever have these resources and that joy who has not had them from early childhood. End of Chapter 56, Chapter 57 of Floyd's Flowers by Silas X. Floyd. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. The right to play. The right to play is one of the divine rights of men and women of boys and girls and is just as essential to the peace, happiness and prosperity of the world as is the right to pray. Never be afraid or ashamed my young friends of honest, vigorous, healthy play, dominoes, lawn tennis, baseball, football, ping pong, golf, foot racing, leaping and jumping, boxing and wrestling, pole vaulting, punching the bag, swinging dumbbells or Indian clubs and 100 other things are perfectly sane and wholesome amusements for old or young. To refrain from all forms of amusement is just as destructive of happiness and injuries to character as is the other extreme of indulging to freely in pleasures and pastimes. Puritan austerity and unrestrained excess are alike to be condemned, but a certain amount of play, play of the right kind. And when the proper limits is a divine right of young people, young people must have fun and relaxation. And if they do not find it in their own homes, it will be thought in other and perhaps dangerous places. For myself, I believe that anybody is an enemy to young people who desire to repress and crush out the naturally buoyant spirits of childhood and youth. And he is a benefactor of humanity who makes it a part of his business to see that proper places of amusement are provided for the young people. Aside from the physical advantages of play, there are moral advantages also. A man who helps to keep his body in good condition by regular exercise is in that way beyond a doubt adding to the number of his days. That is to say, he will live longer than the man who doesn't play. But beyond and above that he is a happier man while he lives. He gets more joy and satisfaction out of life than the other fellow. Seeing and healthy play tends to blot out remembrances of cares and hardship. It gives our minds something else to think about. But young people must be careful not to become absorbed in all these things. I believe in play. I believe in pleasure and fun. But when I see young people or old people for that matter, devoting all their time to wheeling football and card parties, the giddy roll of the dance, the bacchanalian hilarity of the dram shop and so on, I am forced to say that things which may be right when taken in moderation and as a relief from the overtaxing burdens of life are wrong when they become the chief object for which one lives. End of chapter 57, chapter number 58 of Floyd's Flowers by Silas X Floyd. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Recorded by Lola Janie of Northern Virginia, September 2019. A Christmas present. A forsaken little kitten wandered up and down the street on the day before Christmas. It had no home. It had no name. It had no ribbon around its neck and it had no saucer of nice milk in one corner. It began to grow dark and colder too and the stars came peeping out and the first flakes of a real Christmas snowstorm began floating down through the air. The kitten meowed a trembling little meow which told as plainly as it could that it was very hungry and it fluffed out its fur to keep itself warm. Now somewhere along that street up on top of a house hiding behind a chimney where he couldn't be seen was Santa Claus getting everything in shape before starting on his evening round. When old Santa saw that lonesome little kitten strolling around as he smiled, yes, old Santa Claus smiled. He smiled because he knew that two blocks up the street, a little girl was standing with her nose pressed against the window looking out into the deepening night. He had seen her as he went by and he had also seen the poor little supper laid out for two on the table and heard her say to her mother in a quavering voice, not even one present mama, not the teeniest little one. No Susie, her mother had answered. I'm sorry I couldn't get anything from my little girl this year but you know there wasn't any money dear and there was a tremble in her mother's voice too. Susie wiped away the tears and turned to look out of the window. Perhaps she said to herself perhaps Santa Claus has something for me after all. Now the sad really dreadful part about it was that Santa Claus didn't have one single thing for Susie in his pack. Perhaps it was because she had moved into that house since last Christmas or perhaps for once old Santa had made a mistake. Anyway he was just saying to himself why bless me what should I do when he caught sight of that shivering little kitten. The very thing he thought I'll give them to each other and he chuckled till his reindeer looked around to see what was the matter and what happened next? Well that kid never knew really. It only seemed as if there was a sudden rush and jingle of bells which frightened it so that it flew up the street as fast as its four little legs could carry it until it saw a small friendly face at a window and rushed up some steps nearby. Then the door opened and two soft little arms picked it up gently from the cold snow and a voice cried oh mama see the poor little kitten it's so cold oh we'll keep it won't we mama the poor little thing. Do you think it would drink milk? Would it drink milk? What a question to ask about a little kitten. While the little kitten was nearly choking itself trying to drink a saucer full of milk and purr at the same time there was a jingle of bells outside and Susie said mama I hear old Santa's bells and of course this is the present he brought. End of chapter 58 chapter 59 of Floyd's Flowers by Silas Hex Floyd. This Slipper Vox recording is in the public domain. Drinking and smoking. There is food for reflection in a saying of somebody who lived a great many years way back in 1878. Here it is. Our government land cost $1.25 an acre and good whiskey $2 a bottle. How many men die landless who during their lives have swallowed a whole township trees and all alongside of this statement might go this other one which is equally true. The young man who smokes three five cents cigars a day and many young men use double the quantity at double the price puffs away enough money in the course of 10 years to give anyone a handsome star in business or to provide anyone a comfortable home. From a purely business standpoint not to say anything about religion or morals from a purely business standpoint young people drink too much and smoke too much. Every five cents spent for beer is five cents thrown away. Every ten cents spent for whiskey is a total loss. It would bring far better returns if it were put into a savings bank and laid away for a rainy day. As for smoking it is a silly census the expensive habit. It literally burns up money. The following figure show the expense of smoking two cigars a day at five cents each from the age of 20 to the end of each period of five years up to the age of 70. Six percent compound interest semi-annually being reckoned upon the money. Two cigars a day at five cents each from the age of 20 to 25 years the principal 182 dollars and 50 cents principal and interest 209 dollars 21 cents 20 to 30 years of age number of years 10 365 dollars principal and interest 490 dollars 39 cents 20 to 35 years in 15 years principal it's 574 dollars and 50 cents principal and interest is 868 dollars and 25 cents age is 20 to 40 in 20 years the principal is 730 dollars and principal and interest is 1376 dollars and 7 cents 20 to 45 years old in 25 years principal is 912 dollars and 50 cents principal and interest 2058 dollars and 44 cents 20 to 50 years in 30 years 1095 dollars principal and interest 3094 dollars and 99 cents age is 20 to 55 in 35 years 1277 dollars and 50 cents a principal principal and interest 4367 dollars and 46 cents 20 to 60 in 40 years principal is 1460 dollars principal an interest 6078 dollars and 73 cents 20 to 65 years in 45 years principal will be 1642 dollars and 50 cents principal an interest 8378 dollars and 52 cents age is 20 to 70 in 50 years principal will be 1825 dollars principal and interest 11469 dollars and 25 cents boys i'm glad to be able to put these figures down where you can see them and study them for yourselves i want you to reflect upon them it is not what you make but it's what you save that makes you rich if you ever expect to be even well to do men not to speak of being rich men you must begin early to learn and practice the habit of saving your money if you will learn to leave out of your expenses the bills for whiskey and tobacco it will not be hard for you to see then how you can also save by cutting down your expenses for trifles such as knickknacks candy red lemonade peanuts etc first in importance among public institutions next to the church and the school house i place the savings bank no matter what your occupation no matter what your salary it is possible for every young person to save something out of his earnings however small they may be but if this habit of saving is not acquired in early life it will be very hard to learn it later saving is not the miser's habit necessarily nor is it the spirit of avarice and parsimony it is prudence and forethought money is a good thing it is the love of money not money that is the root of all evil end of chapter 59 chapter 60 of floyd's flowers by sylas x fluid this liberal vox recording is in the public domain the nickel that burned in frank's pocket deacon hepworth kept a little fish market do you want a boy to help you asked frank shaw one day can you give good weight to my customers and take good care of my pennies yes sir answered frank fourth with he took his place in the little store weighed the fish and kept the room in order a whole day for fun fireworks and noise tomorrow exclaimed frank as he buttoned his white apron about him the day before the fourth of july a great trout was thrown down in the counter by ned tan one of frank's playmates here's a royal trout frank i caught it myself you may have it for ten cents just hand over the money for i'm in hurry to buy my firecrackers said ned hurriedly the deacon was out but frank had made purchases for him before so the dimes spun across to ned who was off like a shot just then mrs sinclair appeared i want a nice trout for my dinner tomorrow this one will do how much is it she asked as she carefully examined it a quarter man and the fish was transferred to the ladies basket and the silver piece to the money draw but here frank paused he thought to himself ten cents was very cheap for that fish if i tell the deacon it costs fifteen cents he'll be satisfied and i shall have five cents to invest in firecrackers the deacon was pleased with frank's bargain and when the market was closed each went his way for the night but the nickel burned in frank's pocket burned like coal he could eat no supper and was cross and unhappy at last he could stand it no longer but walking rapidly tapped at the door of deacon hepworth's cottage the old man was seated at a table reading the bible frank's heart almost failed him but he told the story and with tears of sorrow laid the coin in the deacon's hand turning over the leaves of the bible the old man read he that covered his sins shall not prosper but whoso confesseth and forsakeeth them shall have mercy you have forgiveness frank he said now go home and confess to the lord and remember you must forsake as well as confess here you may keep this coin as long as you live to remind you of your first temptation end of chapter 60 chapter 61 of floyd's flowers by sylas x floyd this libra vox recording is in a public domain a monument to a black man in the city of columbus georgia there was erected in the year 1904 a monument to the memory of a colored man named brad smith mr smith lost his life in the autumn of 1903 in an effort to save the life of the city engineer of columbus who had been buried under an excavation in the street a large crowd of color men was at work digging deep trenches in which were to be placed pipes for running water about the city in some way the sides of the narrow trench had not been properly supported by planks or otherwise and by and by a great stretch of dirt caved in unfortunately the city engineer a white man was caught underneath the fallen dirt brad smith did not stop to say oh it's a white man let him die but at once jumped down into the ditch and tried to pull the white man from under the heavy dirt it was while he was engaged in his work that the dirt fell from both sides a second time and brad smith in his effort to save the life of the white man lost his own life the bible says greater love hath no man than this that a man will lay down his life for a friend the city council at its first regular meeting after the accident voted to erect a suitable monument to the memory of mr smith the monument was dedicated in april 1904 the monument is of vermont and georgia marbles and bears on one side this inscription erected by the city of columbus to mark the last resting place of brad smith who died on september 30th 1903 in the heroic but fruitless effort to save the life of the city engineer on the other side appears this quotation from alexander pope honor and fame from no conditions rise act well your part there all the honor lies end of chapter 61 chapter number 62 of floyd's flowers by sylas x floyd this libra vox recording is in the public domain the bad boy who he is my dear children i'm happy to say that all boys who are called bad boys are not bad boys there is quite a difference between a bad boy and a merely mischievous boy a boy is not necessarily bad because he makes unearthly noises about the house or now and then twist the cat's tail just to hear her mute or muddies his clothes in an effort to catch crawfish he is not bad just because he likes to play fantastic on the fourth of july so many people complain of their boys being bad when they're only mischievous that is to say when they're only full of life some people think that a good boy is one that has a pale face and looks sickly one that wears a sanctimonious look and moves along through the world as though he were afraid to put one foot in front of the other that isn't my kind of a boy i do not think that kind of a fellow is a boy at all he's almost a girl a boy who never enjoys a rump in the woods who never climbs the apple tree before or after the apples are ripe who never plays ball who will not shoot marbles and etc this sort of a boy usually dies young or he grows up to be a male woman i mean by that that he grows up to be a man who acts like a woman and that kind of a man is hardly fit for anything but there are some bad boys i'm sorry to say really bad boys bad in heart and indeed i have seen some on the chain gangs i have seen some hanging around the street corners especially on sundays with no clean clothes on i have seen them smoking cigarettes and a cigarette is something which no manly boy will use i have seen them in saloons drinking playing pool and playing cards i have sometimes seen them shooting dice in the streets for money there are probably 1000 boys in the jails reformatories in the penitentiaries in the single state of georgia to form anything like an adequate estimate of the total number of bad boys in the south we must add to that above number the boys imprisoned in the other states and also that much larger number who have never been in prison because they happen never to have been arrested or who have been arrested and have had their fines paid and money and finally we must add those who have already served their time and are again at large so you see there are many thousands and thousands of bad boys in the world and they are very easily found are you a bad boy or a good boy isn't it better to be a good boy than to be a bad boy end of chapter 62 chapter number 63 of floyd's flowers by sylas x floyd this liver vox recording is in the public domain the bad boy how to help him almost anybody can make something out of a boy who is naturally good but it takes one of very christian-like power and patience to make anything out of a really bad boy yet all boys may be reclaimed reform saved at least so i believe and the first step in making a good man out of a bad boy has to do with the boy's body the holy bible tells us that our bodies are the temples the dwelling places of the holy ghost and every boy and every teacher of every boy in the home or day school or sunday school should give more time and attention to the body in order to make it a fit place for such a holy being it is as true now as of old that plenty of soap and water will exert a wholesome influence in making bad boys good someone has said that cleanliness is next to godliness and somebody has added to that soap is a means of grace a boy who is taught to bathe regularly and who is taught to keep his clothing neat and clean at all times will in that way learn the greatest lesson of self-respect quicker than in any other way and in my judgment the shortest way to the purification of a boy's habits a boy's morals a boy's character is to teach him first to keep his body pure keep it pure not only by baths and clean clothes but keep it pure and sweet by keeping it free from whiskey and tobacco in every form exercise regular and systematic exercise whether as work or play will go a great way towards keeping the body clean and healthy every boy is mistaken every parent is mistaken who thinks that labor is unworthy or that any kind of honest work is degrading the body needs to be kept alive and vigorous by the frequent use of all its parts and there is no better way to keep the body vigorous than by doing some kind of work work that requires the use of the hands and legs and muscles work that stimulates the blood and makes it flow freely through the body another step in the process of making a good man out of a bad boy has to do with the mind the body grows not alone by exercise but the body grows by what we put into it the food we eat and the water we drink etc we might say i think that the boy grows on what it feeds on it is the same way with the mind the mind grows on what it feeds on if we feed our minds on obscene pictures on bad books on vulgar stories told by ourselves or our associates we cannot expect to have minds that are keenly alive and active for good our thoughts control us boys and girls whether we understand the process by which they control or not our thoughts control us if our thoughts are pure and sweet and noble we will be pure and sweet and noble if our thoughts are impure vile and ignoble we will be impure vile and ignoble our thoughts rule us so every boy should guard well his thoughts every boy should guard well what he puts into his mind every boy's mind feeds on what he puts into it and every boy's mind grows on what it feeds it goes without saying then that a boy should not read blood and thunder detective stories stories about the james brothers and other outlaws and bandits nor should a boy read filthy so-called love stories all such literature should be shunned as a boy was shun deadly poison a boy who desires to become a good man should read only those things which will give him confidence in himself that he can and may become a good man good for the service of god and the service of his fellow men bad company must also be left behind if a bad boy wants to become a good boy those boys who tell smutty jokes and stories should not be allowed to associate with that boy whose eyes have been open and who want to feed his mind on good and wholesome food character boys in this last analysis depends chiefly on three things heredity environment and will now you cannot do much to change your inherited tendencies the tendencies you receive from mother and father at birth but you can do much in offsetting or overcoming these tendencies you can also do much with the aid of a generous and enlightened public to change your surroundings if they happen to be bad i confess that your mothers and fathers your teachers and pastors ought to do much more in this regard than you but if they will not exert themselves to get you out of evil surroundings then you as value of your own life and time and possibilities by the help of god try to get out yourselves the will is very largely influenced by your surroundings hence you can see the importance of having good books and good associates but whatever you do boys do not forget jesus christ the lamb of god who takes away the sins of the world the highest part of your nature is your spiritual nature and while you are building up the body and building up the mind do not forget to build up your soul if others will not assist you in this greater matter you can help yourself the master said suffer the little children to come on to me and forbid them not end of chapter 63 chapter 64 of floyd's flowers by sylas x floyd this liber vox recording is in the public domain tom is green bethune blind tom i suppose there's not a little colored girl or boy in america who has not heard of the wonderful blind tom one of the greatest musicians of the world i wish that every boy and girl might have seen him and heard him give one of his remarkable performances with the piano i had that high favor and privilege myself during his life on the stage or for more than 40 years blind tom was seen probably by more people in the world than any one living being his stage career was closed somewhere in 1900 i do not know whether he is living at present or not if he is still alive and he probably is he's very nearly 60 years old everywhere in this country and europe those who observed him most closely and attempted to understand him pronounced him a living miracle unparalleled incomprehensible such as had not been seen before in the world and probably never would be seen again tom is green bethune better known to the public as blind tom was born within a few miles of the city of columbus georgia on the 25th day of may 1849 he was of pure negro blood and was born blind he was little less than four years old when a piano was brought to the house of his master for he was born a slave as long as anyone was playing he was contented to stay in the yard and dance and caper to the music sometimes he was permitted to indulge his curiosity by being allowed to run his fingers over the keys one night the parlor and the piano had been left open before day the young ladies of the family awoke and were astounded to hear blind tom playing one of their pieces the family gathered around him to witness and wonder at his performance which they said was marvelously strange notwithstanding that this was his first known effort at a tune he played with both hands and used the black as well as the white keys pretty soon he was allowed free access to the piano and began to play offhand everything he heard as young as he was he soon mastered all of that and began composing for himself the record of his public life is too long for me to give but that blind tom was known and honored around the world is known to everybody but feeling that every colored boy and girl should be just as proud of blind tom's record i will give some words from the book of honorable james m trotter himself a colored man his book is called music and some highly musical people he says blind tom is unquestionably the most wonderful musician the world has ever known he is an absolute master in the comprehension and retention of all sound you may sit down to the piano forte and strike any note or chord or discord or a great number of them and he will at once give their proper names and taking your place reproduce them complete master of the piano forte keyboard he calls to his melodious uses with most consummate ease all of his resources that are known to skillful performers as well as constantly discovers and applies those that are new under his magnetic touch this instrument may become at his will a music box a hand organ a harp or a bagpipe a scottish fiddle a church organ a guitar or a banjo it may imitate the stump speaker as he delivers his glowing parade or being brought back to its legitimate tomes it may be made to sing two melodies at once while the performer with his voice delivers a third all three in different timing keys all in perfect tuning time and each one easily distinguishable from the other he remembers and plays fully seven thousand pieces some persons it is true have had the temerity to say that blind tom is an idiot out with the idea who ever heard of an idiot possessing such power of memory such finest of musical sensibility such order such method as he displays let us call him the embodiment of music the soul of music and there let our investigations rest for all else is vain speculation no one lives or so far as we know has ever lived that can at all be compared with him end of chapter 64 chapter 65 of Floyd's flowers by Silas X Floyd this LibriVox recording is in the public domain not fit to know Susan and Mamie and Lillian and Marjorie were all close friends they usually went together and played together and it was very unusual to see one of them without the others at school they always made it a rule to lunch together and play together one day at recess they were standing in a little group all by themselves when Francis joined them what are you talking about girls asked Francis in cheerful tones I'm telling them a secret said Susie and we'll let you know too Francis if you'll promise not to tell anyone I'll promise you not to tell anybody but my mother said Francis for I have made it a rule to tell my mother everything no you can't even tell your mother answered Susie you must not tell anyone in the world well then I refuse to hear it said Francis as she walked away for what I can't tell my mother is not fit for me to know don't you think Francis was right girls I think so as soon as little boys and girls begin to listen to words and stories which they would be ashamed to repeat to their mothers they are on the road to temptation and nobody can tell how soon they'll reach the end which is always disgrace and death I wish all the boys and girls who read this book would make the reply of Francis their motto what I cannot sell my mother is not fit to know stick to this rule through thick and thin and you will avoid many of the snares and pitfalls by which many of your companions and playmates sink into shame and sin don't read a note that you would be afraid to have your own mother read don't look at a picture that you would be ashamed to have your mother see don't speak any word and don't allow any to be spoken to you that you would not like to have your mother hear a girl's best friend is her mother a boy's best friend is his mother and boys and girls be very sure that if a thing isn't fit for your mother's to know it isn't fit for you to know end of chapter 65 chapter 66 of Floyd's flowers by Silas X Floyd this LibriVox recording is in the public domain the right way Henry Olafant always considered himself lucky whenever he was able to get a ride on the street cars without paying for it or get a glass of soda water or be admitted to some public place where an admission fee was charged without paying the price he was bragging one day to some of his boyfriends that he had not paid anything to witness the school exhibition the night before Frank Sewell was brave enough to shide him for having done so Frank was a plain spoken boy and Henry did not like what Frank had to say he thought that what he had done was right while Frank had said that it was all wrong anyhow Henry decided to get his father's opinion on the matter father he said when night had come I got in a hole last night for nothing how was that I just walked by the doorkeeper and he didn't ask me for any money did the doorkeeper see you well father that was his business he was put there for that purpose he ought to have seen me but I asked you Henry whether the doorkeeper saw you I want you to answer that question I don't know sir do you think he saw you I don't know sir well Henry if he had seen you don't you think he would have asked you for your money or a ticket I guess so father but he didn't ask me for anything well now Henry you know that a charge of ten cents was made at the door and that no one had a right to enter who had not paid the ten cents you did go in without paying now whether the doorkeeper saw you're not do you think that that was quite honest on your part was that the right way for you to act well I would have paid him if he asked me I wasn't the doorkeeper I guess the man who stole our wood last week would have paid me if I'd seen him and asked him but we call that stealing but father I didn't take anything from the doorkeeper who gave you the money with which to pay your admission mother where's that money now I have it but I didn't take it from the doorkeeper but you kept it from him Henry it belongs to the doorkeeper he gave you its value my son the right way is whenever you buy anything whether it be a ride or a glass of soda water or permission to see a concert whenever you buy anything you ought to pay for it if you don't you're no better than a common robber you must go today and give mr. Hall that ten cents end of chapter 66 chapter 67 of floyd's flowers by silas x floyd this liberal box recording is in the public domain keeping friendship in repair I sometimes think that boys and girls and even old people are often careless in the matter of their friendships not careless in the matter of selecting friends though I'm sure there's room for improvement along that line but careless in trying to keep the good friendships we have already formed we ought to keep our friendships in repair perhaps you think that our friendships are not things which need to be kept in repair how foolish it is to think so does a garden need to be weeded does an old fence need to be kept in repair do we paint our houses only once a century what about the musician does he not need to keep in practice supposing that you never kept your muscles in repair by constant use or exercise how long would you be strong or healthy and do you think that your friendships because they are in a way intangible you cannot see them handle them or taste them do you think that they grow and thrive of their own accord and therefore do not need to be kept in repair slight snubs angry words unpleasant conduct long continued lack of association long continued lack of familiar intercourse and coldness even where the meetings are periodic these things boys and girls will kill the warmest friendship and choke the tenderest love so we ought to be careful to keep our friendships in repair if we had no friends in this world no playmates and companions no kindred spirits into whose keen and sorrows and highest joys we entered with deep and full sympathy and who did not enter our sorrows and joys in the same way if we had no friends in this world with all of its wealth and splendor we should not desire to live very much longer but to have friends and to be friendly goes a long way towards making the world a beautiful and blessed place to live in how then may we keep our friends easy enough by cultivating them and we cannot keep them in any other way we should take time to be friendly little notes little presence little visits little social entertainment little kindnesses these things and things like them go a great way in cementing our friendships and tying people to us as it were with hooks of steel we should not neglect these means of keeping our friendships in repair always give your friends a cordial welcome in your homes and at your little children's parties make them feel that they're coming as to your pleasure without increasing your burdens don't be selfish and narrow be broad-minded and liberal keep your friendships and repair and then see if you do not find your horizons broadened your life sweetened and the weary weight of this sad old world lightened end of chapter 67 chapter 68 of Floyd's flowers by Silas X Floyd this LibriVox recording is in the public domain little Annie's Christmas Christmas morning came daylight was just peeping into the room poor little Annie the cripple awoke and turned her eyes towards a corner where she had hung her stocking the night before surely she thought as she watched it there could not be very much in it because it didn't seem to be any larger than it was when she had hung it up after a while she crept slowly to where it was she did not take her crutches for fear she would disturb her mother who slept in the same bed with her it was hard for her to move around without her crutches but she persevered and finally she reached her stocking she put out her little thin hand and felt it yes there was something in it then she put her hand inside and took out something which seemed round and soft she took it out and looked at it it was a little cake poor little Annie smiled and put her hand back into the stocking this time she found something which was done up in paper she opened the paper and found a whole dozen of gum drops how brightly her little eyes flashed she was only six years old and she had never had so much candy at one time in all her life by and by her mother awoke she raised her head and saw Annie's happy face poor girl she thought how happy I would have been to have bought something else for her but I wasn't able I hope she'll be happy with what she has see mother cried Annie I have 12 gum drops and a cake we will eat half of the gum drops today and save the other half for tomorrow you'll eat three and I will eat three no Annie said her mother you must eat everyone by yourself Annie smiled but did not say anything little Annie's mother was a widow and she was very very poor there were many times when they had only a little dry bread and water for the day's food for this bright Christmas season there were many things besides food which she would have liked to bought for her poor little crippled child but she did not have any money to pay for play things or toys after breakfast on this Christmas day Johnny Ray came to see them he brought with him a good dig shawl for Annie's mother and four pair of warm stockings which his mother had sent for Annie and also a large package of nice candy little Annie's mother cried for joy little Annie was too happy to speak she had never dreamed of having so much candy at one time end of chapter 68 chapter 69 of Floyd's flowers by Silas X Floyd this liberal box recording is in the public domain the velocity race one bright day archibald mounted his philosophy and rolled out into the long green lane where he could ride for long distance without interruption he had left his coat in the house because he knew that riding would make him very warm when he reached the lane the velocity moved along so smoothly that archibald was very happy by the time he had gone nearly half a mile he was tired and stopped for a rest pretty soon he heard a noise coming from behind and he wondered what rider might be on the same track that beautiful spring morning he looked up and saw John Smith coming riding a very large philosophy and going as fast as he could archibald quickly mounted his wheel and started on a swift run trying to overtake the flying John before they reached the end of the road they saw Clara Hampton standing by the fence with her little philosophy Clara watched the boys as they flitted past she thought that she could keep up with John but she was not sure that she could ride as fast as archibald while she was meditating archibald cried out Clara you went until we finished this race and then we three will go back together archibald reached the end first but John was not very far behind when Clara reached them archibald said now we will all have a fair start and see who reached the other end first so they all started on a line archibald knew that he was the largest and could go the fastest but as he had won the other race he did not ride this time as fast as he could he thought this was the right way to give the others a fair chance Clara and John reached the other end of the lane at exactly the same time with archibald a short distance behind them John and Clara were greatly delighted because they won the race from the big boy archibald archibald was pleased because they were pleased this was not the only time that archibald had proved that he was a good and kind boy and that he was thoughtful of little children younger than himself from this little story of the philosophy race many of the little boys and girls may learn a good lesson I hope that will do them good all through life end of chapter 69 chapter 70 of Floyd's flowers by Silas X. Floyd this book of arts recording is in the public domain fault finding faults are the easiest things to find in all this world a fault is something that can be found without looking for it and I guess no little boy girl in all the world knows anything that's easier to find than something that he or she doesn't have to look for well faults are the things that we can find without looking for them so faults are the easiest things to find in all the world yet boys and girls the habit of fault finding or the habit of finding fault is one of the worst habits that anybody could form it does nobody good generally speaking besides it stamps the person who's so easy to find fault with everything and everybody as being a mean low envious evil hearted person it is a good deal better to look for something to praise than it is to look for something to blame yet there are some people some little boys and girls who are so constituted that they do not see any good in anything when it is cold it is too cold when it is hot it is too hot they don't like vicky kids shoes they want patent leathers the singing at church or Sunday school last Sunday was just horrid old Mary Jones ought to be taken out of the choir the preacher preaches too long or the deacon prays too loud the school teacher isn't any good i can beat him drawing myself so they go on and on from day to day finding fault with everything and everybody nothing pleases them nothing delights them if by any chance or mischance they should get to heaven they would i believe find fault with the way the Lord has arranged things up there they are miserable people to have around these good for nothing lazy and trifling fault finders if you try real hard boys and girls you can find something good in everything and everybody that's one reason why we do not always see the good in people or things we don't look for it we can find out what is bad can find out the bad things without looking for them but if we want to see the good things we must be on the lookout for them if we are on the lookout if we make up in our minds that we're going to see the good and only the good we are always sure to find it there was an old woman once who was noted for being able to say something good about everything and everybody she was never heard to speak evil of anything or anybody once upon a time a gambler died in the city where she lived he was a miserable sinner and nobody liked him and nobody had a good word to say for him even after he was dead Aunt Maria the good old lady went to see him after he had been put in his coffin the people who were present wondered what good thing Aunt Maria could possibly say about the dead sinner Aunt Maria entered the room and walked around on tiptoe after a while she raised her head and said friends i tell you he makes a mighty nice looking corpse end of chapter 70 chapter number 71 of Floyd's flowers by Silas X Floyd this Libervox recording is in the public domain the Puritans Sabbath if all the little boys and girls in America today knew how the people of the new england states were compelled by law to keep the Sabbath day i think they would realize how much better it is to be living in these days and times than to have lived in those the laws concerning the keeping of a new england Sabbath were very severe that is before the Revolutionary War when what was called colonial rule was in force no manner of work was allowed to be done no visiting no playing no gait of any kind was permitted just think boys and girls it is said that one man was brought to trial and fined for kissing his wife on a Sabbath morning slowly and solemnly just as if they were going to a funeral the families all walked to the meeting house on Sundays some of them having to walk many and many miles on reaching the church the men took their places on one side of the house and the women on the other they didn't allow many women to sit together the children also had to sit by themselves and there was a man appointed to keep them quiet this man carried a long stick with a hard knob at one end and a little feather brush at the other the feather end of this stick he would use to tickle the faces of the men and women who might chance to get sleepy and to go nodding during the preaching the other end he used on the children i guess this poor man must have kept busy all the time for the sermons were very long lasting for whole hours sometimes a man would begin a sermon in the morning and preach up to dinner time the congregation would then go out for dinner and come back and sit for hours during afternoon to hear the sermon concluded the men carried their muskets to church with them so that they might have them ready in case of an attack from the wild indians the meeting houses were not warmed even in the very cold weather the people thought that in some way it would make them better christians if they bore such discomforts without a murmur of course we know better now and wouldn't think of doing such a foolish thing after a time the people began to carry hot bricks and stones to keep their hands and feet from freezing and by and by they carried foot stoves these stoves were little tin boxes with holes on the side a cover a door and handles with which to carry them in these boxes were put live coals and in that way the fire would last throughout the sermon i fear many and many a little boy and girl dreaded to see sunday come for as a rule it was a long dreary day and i'm sure that they must have been glad when it was over i know you must be glad that people no longer have the idea that sunday should be such a dismal sober day and i believe that our heavenly father is much more pleased to see the children spending the lord's day happily in their homes with their mothers and fathers their little brothers and sisters of course no christian boy or girl even now believes in making sunday a day of riot and fun and no christian man or woman believes in having the saloons open on sundays anywhere but most of us are away beyond the old period and idea of sadness and gloom for the Sabbath next sunday boys and girls when you enter your pleasant sunday school rooms and find your schoolmates and teachers so glad to see you and where everything is bright and pleasant think of those poor little children who had no books and cards and no pretty songs and who were made to pass the whole day without even be allowed to laugh end of chapter 71 chapter number 72 of floyd's flowers by sylas x floyd this liberal box recording is in the public domain the devil won an excursion i wonder how many boys and girls have ever witnessed a cyclone a great big hurricane of wind and rain of lightning and thunder that just knocks down all the trees and takes the roofs off all the houses it is a terrible thing the cyclone is the other day one came to our town we could look up into the sky and see coming from afar a great big black cloud that looked for all the world like a balloon a great big balloon ever so large the wind was blowing at a rapid rate the dust flying and everybody was frightened the roof was lifted off the schoolhouse a church was blown down many houses were unroofed and men and beasts were alike hurled right and left i do not think anybody was killed but a great many were frightened nearly to death the cyclone took one poor little boy and landed him in the midst of a mud puddle the little fellow stretched out stiff and stark as if he had been killed an old man ran up to the edge of the ditch and said is it is you dead is it said nothing but his eyes were rolling in their sockets the old man asked again is it is you dead because if you was dead there ain't no use of my coming in there to try to get you out this time isa grunted rolled his eyes and asked where is he uncle ruben why who asked uncle ruben the devil said isa he done gone said uncle ruben he done clean gone but you better get up from there i can't say isaac i can't i'm most dead uncle ruben studied a short while he was planning what to do next he didn't want to go into the mud and water get his clothes soiled and trying to rescue the little boy by and by uncle ruben threw up his hands looked up the big road and said the goodness gracious i see that old side cloning the corn and back again he looked blacker and what's the thing he done before run isaac run you ought to have seen isaac jump out of that hole he got out hallowing and he ran and hallowed for nearly a quarter of a uncle ruben hallowed after him to stop but it did no good the poor little fellow was well not scared to death a few days after the cyclone uncle ruben was telling some of his friends about the occurrence among other things he said little isaac wasn't ready for judgment that's all he wasn't ready when the man's ready to go to judgment he ain't afraid of nothing no sir he ain't afraid of nothing isaac wasn't ready and he's hallowed a squeal just like that done struck him men's i tell you that old sly clon just stuck the roof off in everybody's house looking like everybody's house he come to dip down and say take your ass off to me don't you see me coming ain't you got no manners then he struck him and take the ass off himself he took the roof off of the color school house and he took the roof off of the white school house the cyclone ain't no respect of persons he sure ain't when little isaac done come to his senses and done got clean over his fright i asked him what a cyclone was he told me that a cyclone wasn't nothing tall in this world but the debilin on a flying scurgeon the more i think about it the more i believe that boy was right the cyclone show is the debilin on a scurgeon and when the debilin's arrived you better lay low end of chapter 72 chapter 73 of floyd's flowers by sylas x floyd this little box recording is in the public domain random remarks in the olden times parents used to rule their children but in these days and times there are many people who believe that the children rule their parents so many misguided parents in these days and times believe in sparing the rod and spoiling the child boys don't get many whippings at home nowadays and if a boy happens to get a good flogging at school it will cause a big row and sometimes cause the teacher to be threatened with arrest whenever my teacher used to whip me i was always afraid to mention it at home for fear of getting another i heard a man say the other day never whip a child raise your boy on love and kindness and reason yes and when that boy is 12 or 13 years old somebody will have to go to him and talk to him and try to persuade him not to whip his father or mother i was at church the other day and i saw two boys about 10 or 11 years old after service they lit their cigarettes and went marching off as big as trip a man of the old school looked at them for a while and then turning away he said i just wish i could have my way with those boys for about two minutes i didn't say anything but deep down in my heart i sympathized with the old man and felt that both the youngsters ought to have had a good whipping some girls are almost as bad as some boys girls are most too fast in these days as soon as they get their dresses to their shoe top they're gone they go crazy over their clothes for they think that they must keep in the fashion they read too much trash for they think that is the way refined and cultured people do old fashion modesty is at a discount the girls don't wait for the boys to come now that is many of them don't they go after them i have seen some girls running around in these new fashion nightgowns and they call it a mother hubbard party if their mothers don't allow them to go with the boys they will slip around and meet them somewhere anyhow and where they are allowed to go with the boys they generally go to extremes what business has a little girl 10 or 12 or 14 years old to be locked arms with the little stripling of a boy going home at night from church or some social entertainment it always disgusts me whenever i see it worse than a managed boy is a womanish girl what business has a little girl a larger one to allow a man to throw his arms around her waist in the round dance it is immodest to say the least and there's not a good mother in the land who approves it a girl who goes to a promiscuous ball and waltzes around with promiscuous fellows puts herself in a promiscuous fix to be talked about by the dudes and rakes and fast young fellows who have encircled her waist slander is very common i know especially slander of young ladies there are not many young ladies who escape it but the trouble about it is that it's not all slander some of it is the truth in the olden times when folks got married they stayed married but nowadays the courts are full of divorce cases the land is spotted with what are called grass widows and in many a household there is hidden grief over a daughter's chain why is it what causes it lack of proper training and care of the young habits are great things good habits or bad habits if girls are reared to clean their teeth and keep their fingernails clean they will keep them clean all their lives if boys are reared to chew tobacco and smoke they will never quit the same about loving and courting and getting married much depends upon training upon habits young flirts make old flirts young devils make old devils end of chapter 73 chapter number 74 of floyd's flowers by sylas x floyd this libra vox recording is in the public domain benjamin bannaker the negro astronomer the little colored boys and girls of america should be proud to know as i suppose the little white boys and girls will be surprised to learn that the first clock of which every portion was made in america was made by a colored man the colored children will also be glad to know i think that among the earliest almanacs prepared for general use in this country were those which were published for several years by the same colored man his name is benjamin bannaker i have found a good and true account of this wonderful man in the atlantic monthly for january 1863 i'm going to give a good portion of that account in this book because i believe every colored person in america should be acquainted with that man's history the account says benjamin bannaker was born in baltimore county maryland near the village of ellicott's mills in the year 1732 there was not a drop of white man's blood in his veins his father was born in africa and his mother's parents were born natives of africa what genius he had then must be credited to that race when he was approaching manhood he went in the intervals of toil to an obscure and remote country school at the school benjamin acquired a knowledge of reading and writing and advanced in arithmetic as far as the double position beyond these rudiments he was his own teacher young bannaker had no books at all but in the midst of labor for living he so improved upon what he had gained in arithmetic that his intelligence became a matter of general observation he was such an acute observer of the natural world and has so diligently observed the signs of the times in society that it is very doubtful whether at 40 years of age this african had his superior in maryland perhaps the first wonder amongst his comparatively illiterate neighbors was excited when about the 13th year of his age benjamin made a clock it is probable that this was the first clock of which every portion was made in america it is certain that it was purely his own invention as if none had ever been made before he had seen a watch but never a clock such an article not being within 50 miles of him he used the watch as a model for his clock he was a long time at work on the clock his chief difficulty as he used often to relate being to make the hour minute and second hands correspond in their motion but at last the work was completed and raised the admiration for bannaker took quite a high pitch among his few neighbors the making of the clock proved to be of great importance in assisting the young man to fulfill his destiny it attracted the attention of the alicotte family who had just begun a settlement at alicotte's mills they were well educated men with much mechanical knowledge and some of them quakers they sought out the ingenious negro and he could not have fallen into better hands in 1787 mr. george alicotte gave him mayor's tables ferguson's astronomy and led better's lunar tables from this time astronomy became the great object of bannaker's life and in its study he almost disappeared from the site of his neighbors he slept much during the day that he might the more devotedly observe at night the heavenly bodies whose laws he was slowly but surely mastering very soon after the possession of the books already mentioned bannaker determined to compile an almanac that being the most familiar use that occurred to him of the information he had acquired to make an almanac then was a very different thing from what it would be now when there's an abundance of accurate tables and rules bannaker had no aid whatever from men or rules and mr. george alicotte who procured some tables and took them to him states that he had already advanced very far in the preparation of the logarithms necessary for the purpose the first almanac prepared by bannaker for publication was for the year 1792 by this time his requirements had become generally known and among those who were attracted to them was mr. james mchenry mr. mchenry wrote to goddard and ango then the almanac publishers of baltimore and procured the publication of this work which contained from the pen of mr. mchenry a brief notice of bannaker when his first almanac was published bannaker was 59 years old and had received tokens of respect from all the scientific men of the country among others thomas jefferson then secretary of state under george washington wrote him a most flattering and complementary letter in his letter jefferson said nobody wishes more than i do to see such proofs as you exhibit that nature has given to our black brethren talents equal to those of other colors of men and that the appearance of a one of them is owing only to the degraded condition of the existence both in africa and america bannaker continued to calculate and publish almanacs until 1802 mr. benjamin h ellicott who was a true friend of bannaker and collected from various sources all the facts concerning him wrote in a letter as follows during the whole of his long life he lived respectively and much esteemed by all who became acquainted with him but more especially by those who could fully appreciate his genius and the extent of his requirements bannaker's head was covered with a thick mass of white hair which gave him a very dignified and venerable appearance his dress was invariably of super fine drab broadcloth made in the old style of a plain coat with straight collar and long waistcoat and a broad brimmed hat his color was not jet black but decidedly negro in size and personal appearance the statue of franklin at the library of philadelphia as seen from the street is a perfect likeness of him bannaker died in the year 1804 beloved and respected by all who knew him though no monument marks the spot where he was born and lived a true and high life and was buried yet history must record that the most original scientific intellect which the south has yet produced was that of the pure african benjamin bannaker the above is the story of that wonderful black man told in splendid terms of high and well-deserved praise by a white man every little black boy in america may well be fired with inspiration to do something beyond the ordinary by reading the story of benjamin bannaker's life end of chapter 74 chapter number 75 of floyd's flowers by silas x floyd this liver vox recording is in the public domain a little child shall lead them it is truly astonishing what a boy can do when once he is made up his mind to do his best dr len g broden the famous pastor of the tabernacle baptist church at lanta georgia in a little book which he calls the modern prodigal has told a very pathetic story about a little boy it is so true to life and so typical of what a black or white boy may do under similar circumstances if he only decides for the true and the right that i have decided to reproduce the little story in this book it is well worth reading dr broden says not long after i entered the ministry i went to a certain town to hold a series of meetings it was one of these good old southern towns the inhabitants of which banked on aristocracy and fed their souls upon the glory of departed days they had never known what it was to be spiritually worn the first night i was there i preached to a great audience it was in my early ministry when i made many propositions the first one i made that night was for anyone to stand who wanted prayers offered for their friends as soon as i made it a little boy got up and walked out in the aisle where he stood looking me square in the face i said god bless you little man and he sat down then i asked anyone who wanted the prayers of god's people to rise that boy got out in the aisle again and looked me in the face and again i said god bless you i asked if there was anybody present who was willing to accept jesus that boy stood up again and looked me in the face and again i said god bless you nobody else stood up that night and i began to think i had struck about the hardest and coldest crowd i had ever run up against the next night i preached as hard as i knew how to sinners and when i finished i asked anybody who wanted to be prayed for to stand up the same little rascal popped out into the aisle as he had done the night before and stood looking at me until i saw him and said god bless you i thought i'd vary the thing a little so i asked if anybody present was willing to come forward and give me his hand as an indication that he would accept jesus that same boy came shuffling out of his seat straight down the aisle and gave me his hand i saw smiles on the faces of some in the congregation nobody but the boy showed an interest and i went off somewhat disheartened the third night i preached and when i asked all who wanted prayer to rise that boy popped out into the aisle the people had begun to regard this as a joke and they nudged each other with their elbows while a broad smile flared from one side of the house to the other when i asked anybody who was willing to accept jesus to come and give me his hand that boy came and the congregation smile broader than before after the meeting the deacons came to me and told me that the boy must be stopped he was a half idiot and was throwing a damper on the meeting i said stop nothing how are you going to throw a damper on an ice house for the whole of that week that boy was the only person in the house who showed any interest in the meeting then he wanted to join the church the pastor was absent and i was to open the doors of the church the deacons came to me and said i must not receive that boy as he didn't have sense enough to join the church i said look here brethren i won't take this responsibility on my hands i'm going to put that boy on you and if you choose to reject him his blood be on your hands at the conclusion of the morning service i invited all who wanted to unite with the church to come forward that boy came i asked him if he had accepted christ for his personal savior that's all i ever asked he said he had brethren i said you hear what this boy has to say what would you do with him an ominous silence fell on the congregation after a time from way back by the door i heard a muffled and rather surly i move he be received another painful silence followed and then from the middle of the church i heard a muffled i second the motion when i put the motion about a half dozen members voted i in a tone so low that it seemed as if they were scared i gave the boy the right hand of christian welcome awaiting baptism and then dismissed the congregation the next day the boy went out to see his old grandfather a man whose whitened head was blossoming for the grave and whose feet were taking hold upon the shifting sands of eternity grandfather he said won't you go to church with me tonight and hear that preacher we always feel kindly towards those who are afflicted you know and are willing to please them so the old man agreed to go that night i saw the boy and the old man sitting away back by the door when the sermon was finished one of the members of the church arose and said i have a request to make we have with us tonight mr blank one of our oldest and most respected citizens but he is out of christ i want special prayer offered for this my special friend with that he laid his hand upon the head of the old man down whose furrowed cheeks the tears were streaming the next night i saw the old man sitting about halfway down the aisle when all who wanted to accept jesus were invited to come forward and give me their hands i saw the half idiot boy coming down the aisle leading the old man by the hand that little boy's father kept the saloon the following day the child went there and climbing up over the high counter he peeped down upon his father and said papa won't you go to church with me tonight to hear that preacher you get out of here child said the father go out of here don't you know you mustn't come in here strange strange how fathers will keep places where their children cannot go but papa continued the boy won't you go to church with me tonight yes i'll go but you get out of here that night the man came with the half idiot boy and sat about where the old man has sat the night before when i asked all who would accept jesus to come forward he walked down the aisle and gave me his hand he asked if he could make a statement and when i said yes he faced the congregation and said my friends you all know me and i want to say that so long as i live i will never sell another drop of risky for i have given my heart to god tonight and from this day forward i propose to serve him the meeting warmed up at last the town was set on fire for god every saloon keeper was converted and every saloon was closed the feeling spread and a saloon seven miles in the country were closed and the keeper was converted to god at the close of the meeting i sat on the front seat and saw the pastor lead three generations into the baptismal waters the old man in the front his son behind him and at last in line the little half idiot boy the only mistake that was made to my mind was that the boy who had led the others to christ should not have been first in line where is the little half idiot boy now he has grown much brighter within the last few years and is now going to school he says he wants to be and will be a missionary what a lesson for the young today persistent self-surrenderer ever doing the best we can is a never-filling way that leads to victory end of chapter 75 chapter number 76 of floyd's flowers by sylas x floyd this liver voxel courting is in the public domain directions for little ladies one a little lady always says i thank you whenever anybody assists her in any way and always says if you please whenever she makes any kind of request two a little lady is never loud and boisterous on the streets in public places or at home sometimes girls are so rough that they are called tomboy's no tomboy ever was a true little lady three a true little lady will always see that her linen is clean and spotless collars and cuffs aprons and dresses handkerchiefs and all articles of clothing every true little lady hates dirt four a little lady will not be guilty of idol gossip she will not tattle will not go around hunting all the evil things that are said or known about other little ladies she closes her ears tight against the slanderers of the town five a little lady will love the sunday school and the church she will love the society of good people and the society of good books she will have higher notions of life than that life is something to be spent in a merry round of pleasure six a true little lady loves her mother and she will show that she loves her mother in various ways she will help her about the housework she will be fond of going out in company with her mother often she will not think that anybody else's mother is or can be better than her own mother seven every true little lady will be a christian she will early give herself to jesus she will delight to help the poor to visit the sick carrying the cheer and comfort and something good to eat and flowers and many other things she will love everybody do you end of chapter 76 chapter number 77 of floyd's flowers by sylas x floyd this live of also courting is in the public domain three words to young people the first word is be true the second word is be trustworthy the third word is dare to do right first be true be what you seem to be or what you pretend to be do not be a hypocrite be firm and steady in adhering to friends promises or principles be a true boy be a true girl secondly be trustworthy be worthy of trust be reliable make your word your bond conduct yourself in such a way that people can depend on you thirdly dare to do right whatever comes or doesn't come stand by what you believe is to be right even if you have to stand alone be honest upright faithful sincere abhor that which is evil cleave to that which is good true boys and girls are scarce they are not easily found they do not grow on trees but to tell you the truth we need good boys and girls true boys and girls much more than we do educated boys and girls all education without character is a dead weight let me give you one or two reasons why you should be true trustworthy and brave for the right in the first place for the sake of your influence every boy and girl in this world has some influence every boy in this world white or black rich or poor high or low is helping his friends and playmates to grow better or worse higher or lower in the scale of being every girl in this world is likewise helping or hindering others if we are harsh and unkind cruel and unjust in every wrong every baseness meanness selfishness we are harming not ourselves alone but the whole great family of man on the other hand when we speak fearlessly a brave true word when we perform cheerfully a hard and trying task whenever we are faithful honest earnest patient pure trustworthy whether we know it or not we are strengthening the unseen impulses which make for nobility and higher manhood and womanhood throughout the world in the economy of god by his infinite wisdom the humblest life reaches forward to the highest and the highest life reaches backward to the lowest perhaps you are saying that i'm taking too much for granted perhaps you think that it is not true that there is not one of the very least of the great human family who is not every day exercising some personal influence for good or evil upon the world if you think so boys and girls or older people you are mistaken no human being can escape from the world's atmosphere though you fly to the uttermost parts of the sea or hide in the depths of the dense city some life is affected by your life not only some life is affected by your life but many lives are affected by your life it is a thought of this kind that Charles Dickens beautifully expresses in his story called David Copperfield he says there is nothing no nothing beautiful and good that dies and is forgotten an infant a prattling child dying in his cradle will live again in the better thoughts of those who loved it and plays his part though his body be buried to ashes or drowned in the deepest sea there is not an angel added to the host of heaven but does its blessed work on earth in those who love it here dead oh if the good deeds of human creatures could be traced to their source how beautiful would even death appear for how much charity mercy and purified affection would be seen to have their growth in dusty graves no children it is no idle dream no fancy story that i tell you when i say that the homeless member of the family as well as the highest is exercising daily whether he is conscious of it or not some influence for good or evil upon the world viewed in this light who can measure the possibilities the divine possibilities that are wrapped up in little boys and girls viewed in this light how the slightest action the smallest of our little duties takes on new importance it was with this thought in mind that James A Garfield said i feel a profounder reverence for a boy than a man i never meet a ragged boy in the street without feeling that i owe him a salute for i know not what possibilities may be buttoned up under his shabby coat yes boys and girls by every brave and cheerful effort that we put forth we are reforming uplifting renewing inspiring hearts and souls we never heard of never knew the whole world becoming stronger for every bit of moral courage we create sweeter for every kindly look we give and holier for every good deed we do and of course the contrary is true when we fail when we come short when we sin the consequences are not ours alone they extend to all humanity we are all white and black rich and poor old and young male and female children of one family just as the quivering circles from a pebble thrown into a lake stretch on and on from shore to shore so the silent impulse of a single life thrills from heart to heart until the very edges of humanity are touched there's another reason still why we should be true trustworthy brave that reason is that somebody else takes us as his ideal his standard poor as we are weak as we are as unworthy as we are somebody else is looking up to us especially those of us who have been favored with educational advantages and opportunities and you know that the failure of one who is invested in another's mind with ideal qualities is the failure beyond the actual that is one reason why people say that as a rule a preacher's children are the worst children in the world as a matter of fact they are not the worst children in the world but being the children of preachers everybody expects more of them than others they are taken as ideals as standards that's all and one might be excused and others will not be excused in one who is taken as an ideal Nathaniel Hawthorne one of america's greatest writers in speaking of this truth says in his story called the marble fawn the character of an individual beloved one having invested itself with all the attributes of right that one friend being to us the symbol and representative of whatever is good and true when he falls the effect is almost as if the sky fell with him bringing down in chaotic ruin the columns that upheld our faith we struggle forth again no doubt bruised and bewildered we stare wildly about us and discover or it may be we never make the discovery that it was not actually the sky that has tumbled down but merely the frail structure of our own rearing which never rose higher than the house tops and has fallen because we founded it on nothing but the crash and the affright and trouble are as overwhelming for the time as if the catastrophe involved the whole moral world remembering these things let them suggest one generous motive for walking heatedly among the defilement of earthly ways let us reflect that the highest path is pointed out by the pure ideal of those who look up to us and who if we tread less loftily may never look so high again now i have said my three words you see they have stretched themselves out to a great length but i hope that the boys and girls who read this book may profit from them strive to be true strive to be trustworthy strive to be brave in the long run the prize of the world and of that which is to come are won by boys and girls of strong moral character not by those who are merely learned or rich but of course i believe in education and i believe in money i think you ought to strive to obtain both both are useful and both are necessary but with all your getting boys and girls be sure to get those things which will reach beyond this world and which will count for the more than money or good looks or education or any such thing when the world is on fire when the moon shall be turned into blood when the trumpets sound and all must go to stand before the great king to give an account of the deeds done in the body. End of chapter 77 chapter number 78 of floyd's flowers by sylas x floyd this sliver vox recording is in the public domain a lamp unto my feet once upon a time so it is said a little ragged boy was carefully printing these words with a stick upon the ground thy word is a lamp unto my feet on looking up from his work the little fellow was surprised to find a kind-looking old man watching him where did you learn that my boy asked the man at sunday school sir what's your name crawford so crawford you learned that text at sunday school do you know what it means no sir what is a lamp a lamp why sir a lamp is the thing that gives light that's correct well what is the word that the text speaks of the bible sir that's right now how can the bible be a lamp and give light i don't know said the boy unless you light it and set it on fire there's a better way than that my lad suppose you were going down some lonely lane in a dark night with an unlighted lantern in your hand and a box of matches in your pocket what would you do why i'd like the lantern why would you light it to show me the road sir very well now suppose you were walking behind me someday and saw me drop a quarter what would you do pick it up and give it to you sir wouldn't you want to keep it yourself crawford hesitated but he saw a smile on the old gentleman's face and smiling himself he finally said i should want to sir but i shouldn't do it why not because it would be stealing how do you know it would be taking what wasn't my own and the bible says we are not to steal i said the old man so it's the bible that makes you honest is it yes sir if you had not heard of the bible you would steal i suppose lots of boys do say crawford hanging his head the bible then continued the old man shows you the right and safe path the path of honesty does it like the lamp exclaimed crawford seeing now what all the old man's questions meant is that what the text means yes my boy the man answered there's always light in the bible to show us where to go and what to do don't you think it would be a good thing to take the bible the good old lamp and let it light you right through life yes sir do you think you'll be safer with it yes sir why because if i'm honest i will never go to prison and what else asked the man crawford thought a while by and by he said if i mind the bible i shall go to heaven when i die yes and that's the best reason for taking the lamp it will light you right into heaven end of chapter 78 chapter number 79 of floyd's flowers by sylas x floyd this liver vox recording is in the public domain three brigades there are three brigades or three little companies which i think ought to be organized among the boys and girls in every sunday school in america can't you form them in your sunday school it is a very simple matter it will not cost any money only a little time and forethought and a will to do one brigade is called the rainy weather brigade and all the little boys and girls who joined this company pledged themselves to go to sunday school every sunday when they are not sick even if it's raining the second brigade is called the front seat brigade and all the members of this company pledge themselves to occupy front seats in the sunday school during the opening exercises before they pass to their classes the third brigade is called the on timers brigade and the children in this brigade pledge themselves to be present on time at the opening hour you can see it once how helpful these little brigades are in every sunday school where they exist to the officers and teachers some children will not go to sunday school when it's raining or when it threatens to rain some will not go forward and occupy front seats when they do go and there are others who are always tardy what a blessing it would be if all the little children would organize these brigades at once in their schools and try to get every scholar to join each one of them end of chapter 79 chapter 80 of floyd's flowers by sylas x floyd this liver vox recording is in the public domain home sweet home go with me boys and girls to the gay streets and gilded saloons of the great city of paris far across the sea here is said to be the center of all the world's follies and pleasures it is at night an american who has left his home and native land to view the splendor of the wicked city is passing along the streets he has been held with delight its paintings its sculpture and the grand and graceful proportions of its buildings in the midst of his keenest happiness when he was rejoicing most over the privileges which he possessed temptation assailed him sin was presented to him in one of its most bewitching guards and he yielded to the voice of the siren he drank wildly and deeply of the intoxicating cups and his draft brought madness reason was overthrown and he rushed out all his scruples overcome careless of what he did or how deeply he became immersed in the hitherto unknown sea of guilt the cool night air settled damp and heavy upon his heated brow walking on and on not knowing or caring where he went by and by strains of music from a distance met his ear pretty soon following in the direction from which the sound came he was able to distinguish the words and air of the piece the song was well remembered it was home sweet home clear and sweet the voice of some singer using his native tongue rose and fell on the air and the poor wild man stopped and listened to the soft cadences of that beloved melody motionless he stood until the last note floated away and he could hear nothing but the ceaseless murmur of the great city then he turned away slowly with no feeling that his man who was shamed by the tear which fell as a bright evidence of the power of song and also as an evidence that he the guilty sinner was not yet absolutely lost beyond recall the demon of the wine cup had fled and reason once more asserted her right to control as the soft strains of home sweet home had floated to his ear memory brought up before him the picture of his own sweet home he saw his gentle mother and heard her speak while honest pride beamed from her eye she seemed to speak again to her son in whose nobleness and honor she could always trust his heart smote him as he thought how little he deserved such confidence he remembered her last words of love and counsel and the tearful farewell of all those dear ones who gladdened that far away home with their presence the tide of remorse swept over his soul as he thought of what the sorrow of those at home would have been could they have seen him but an hour before subdued and penitent he retraced his steps and with his vow never to taste of the terrible stuff that could so excite him to madness there was mingled a deep sense of thankfulness for his escape from further degradation the influence of home had protected and shielded him although the sea rolled between how strong such memories are to prevent the commission of crime how powerful is the spell of home how important then is it to make home pleasant and lovable many a time a cheerful home and smiling face will do more to make good men and good women than all the learning and eloquence that can be used it has been said that the sweetest words in our language are mother home and heaven and one might almost say that the word home included the others who can remember home without remembering the gentle mother who sanctified it by her presence and is not home the dearest name for heaven oh then may our homes on earth be as green spots in the desert to which we can retire when weary of the cares of life and drink the clear waters of a love which we know to be sincere and always unfailing. End of chapter 80. Chapter 81 of Floyd's Flowers by Silas X. Floyd. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Edmund Asa Ware. In another chapter of this book I have told you boys and girls something of the story of General S. C. Armstrong the founder of Hampton Institute. I am now going to tell you something about another white man who was the founder of another great school for colored people. His name is Edmund Asa Ware and he was the founder of Atlanta University. Of course you know that I must love Atlanta University because I was graduated there myself a long time ago but I think that Atlanta University should have a warm place in the heart of every black boy and girl in America. It is done and is doing a great work for the higher training of our men and women. Mr. Ware was born in North Rentham now Norfolk Massachusetts December 22nd 1837 when 15 years old he was removed with his father's family to Norwich Connecticut where he entered the Norwich Free Academy. In 1859 he entered Yale University from which institution he was graduated four years later. In 1865 he went to Nashville Tennessee where he served for a year as principal of one of the newly organized public schools of that city. In 1866 he came to Atlanta Georgia and under the auspices of American Missionary Association began the educational work to which he devoted the rest of his life. In 1867 he was appointed superintendent of schools for the state of Georgia under the Freedmen's Bureau and traveled widely in the prosecution of that work. The same year a charter was obtained for Atlanta University which institution was not opened however until 1869 and Mr. Ware became his first president and continued as president until his death. He died suddenly of heart disease September 25th 1885 in Atlanta and was buried September 29th in Westview Cemetery in the suburbs of the same city. A few years later his body was removed to the campus of Atlanta University where it now sleeps. A huge granite boulder was brought from Massachusetts his native state by funds contributed by the graduates of Atlanta University and this boulder suitably inscribed marks his last resting place on earth. At the memorial service is held in honor of President Ware in Stone Hall Atlanta University December 22nd 1885 on the 48th anniversary of the birth of the dead president professor Bum said who is now president of Atlanta University spoke the following words about Mr. Ware's boyhood and early life. It was a pleasant boyhood and his joys were innocent and wholesome ones. A white rabbit a goat and two hounds were the pets with which he played at home. He threw the line for speckled trout in the metal brooks and he rode his boat upon the pond to gather the fragrant water lilies. It was an industrious boyhood. In the summer he gathered blueberries huckleberries and blackberries for market. When 12 or 13 years old he spent his school vacations in service as a clerk in a village store. When 14 he cultivated and harvested $30 worth of vegetables. It was a conscientious boyhood. His mother has no recollection of his ever being untruthful. His village teachers all commended him for his unvarying conformity to the right in school. It is said that when he was 15 years old he had never been absent a day nor had a mark for tardiness. When serving as clerk in the village store his employer showed him a certain article which had some defect about it. Not very readily noticed and made him say nothing about it. He promptly told his employer that he could obey no such instructions. It was an ambitious boyhood, ambitious of course in the best sense of the word. He eagerly seized upon and improved every opportunity for self- improvement. He read the best books and periodicals. He heard lectures from such men as Beecher, Phillips, Curtis, Everett and Gull. In the autumn of 1859 he found himself a member of the largest freshman class which at that time had ever entered Yale College. Here for the first time I grasped the hand and looked into Ernest's eyes of my friend. I remember him in those early college days for the unaffected modesty of his bearing, the simplicity of his dress and his manifested hatred of all pretense and shams, his keen sense of humor and his dry wit. His professively religious life had been begun at the Norwich Academy but a few months before he entered college. Both in the academy and college he was active in religious work and his face was set like a flint against all forms of iniquity. Mr. Ware was married in 1869 to Miss Sarah Jane Twigel of Plantsville, Connecticut. His wife served with him long and faithfully at Atlanta University and continued to serve long after he had passed to his rest. She was left a widow with three daughters and one son. She herself died subsequently. The son has since been graduated from Yale University and from Union Theological Seminary New York City and is now chaplain of Atlanta University. Mr. Ware was a good man who believed that God had made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on the face of earth and that Christ had redeemed us to God out of every kindred tongue and people and nation. He believed in the common origin and common destiny of the whole human family, in the fatherhood of God and the brotherhood of man and therefore recognized no distinctions among men except those founded on character or merit. Along with a host of pioneer New England missionaries who came south to help us shortly after the war, Mr. Ware's name deserves to be honored and revered by a grateful people to the end of time. End of Chapter 81 Chapter 82 of Floyd's Flowers by Silas X. Floyd. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. An antebellum negro preacher. Once upon a time I heard Bishop Fitzgerald of the ME Church south tell the following story. I give it in his own words. The antebellum negro preachers were the product of the times and differed from the mass of their race only in the fact that they were shrewder and more eloquent. Among them were many men of piety and good sense and burning zeal. In others there was a combination of cunning, superstition, excitability, and vulnerability almost indescribable. To the former class belonged a noted negro preacher of Colberba County, Virginia. An old man of blameless life and venerable appearance who so entirely commanded the confidence of the white people and whose influence with the people of his own race was so awesome that no one thought of enforcing against him a statute then existing which required that in any gathering where six or more negroes were assembled a white man should be present. Despite this statute uncle Jack came and when as he pleased trusted by the whites and venerated by the blacks. At one of his meetings a party of mischievous young white men planned to have a little fun at the old man's expense. Waiting near the door of the rustic chapel until the services were concluded the company approached the old preacher and his spokesman said oh man where officers are the law and are patrolling this beat. You have violated the law and we are going to whip you for it. Come along with us. They led the way to the ticket knee at hand. Uncle Jack followed in silence. Have you nothing to say oh man? asked the spokesman. Nothing master? said uncle Jack. Perhaps you don't think that we really intend to whip you? said the old man. But we will. You have you nothing to say to that? No sir said uncle Jack. I has nothing to say. The fact is master eyes often wondered that I'd never been whipped before. Saint Paul was a much better man than I is and they whipped him most everywhere he went. I has preached much longer than he did and I's never got a weapon in my life. It seems to me that I ought to have at least a few licks. The young scrap graces looked at each other in confusion and it was needless to say that uncle Jack was not whipped. End of chapter 82. Chapter number 83 of Floyd's Flowers by Silas X. Floyd. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Purity of character. Boys and girls if you will take a plum or an apricot you will find that over the outer coat of either one of them their glows of bloom more beautiful than a fruit itself. A soft delicate powder that over spreads its rich colors. Now if you strike your hand over that you will find that the bloom will at once depart and when it goes it's gone forever. It only appears once. You go out in the flower garden early in the morning. The flower that hangs there imperiled with dew like so many jewels you shake it once so that the drops or beads will roll off. You take that same flower after the dew has been shaken off and you may sprinkle water over it as you please yet it can never be made again what it was when the dew fell on it so gently from heaven. Again on a frosty morning you may see the panes of glass covered with landscapes, mountains, lakes and trees blended into a fantastic picture. Now lay your hand upon the glass and by the scratch of your fingers or by the warmth of the palm all of the delicate tracery will be obliterated. All the beautiful picture will vanish and you could not reproduce it. Although you tried for a hundred years once wiped out the picture on the glass is wiped out forever. So there is in youth a purity of character which when once touched and defiled can never be restored. A fringe more delicate than frostwork or the dew on the flowers or the bloom on the plum or apricot. Character is a thing which when once stained can never be again what it was. When a young boy or girl leaves the home of his or her parents with the blessing of a mother's tears upon the cheek or the blessing of a father's hand upon the head if earthly purity of character be once lost it is a loss that can never be made up again. Though by God's mercy the sin may be forgiven yet its effects cannot but be in some way felt and the boy or girl will never be what he or she was before. End of chapter 83 chapter number 84 of Floyd's Flowers by Silas X Floyd. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Each one of us of importance. Never think yourself whoever you are of small importance. Never think that it is of little account whether you're good or bad or what your example is to others. Each mere particle of dust every tiny grain of sand the minutest atom is an active agent in the whole universe so each one of us is of importance in our sphere however isolated and insignificant that sphere may appear to be. A few particles of dust in a watch will stop its motion. Small barnacles on a ship's bottom will hinder its journey and a little shifting sand in the Great River will change its current. So little boys and girls exercise their influence for real or well upon the world. Don't you believe for once that the world is moved only by great forces the great men and the great enterprises. Little folks and little things likewise help to move the world along. Great generals are necessary but what would they be without the soldiers behind them? Every boy has his part to do in the great work of the world and every girl has her part to do. Every boy and girl is of importance. How important nobody knows and perhaps never shall know until eternity reveals it. There are to be in this truth great encouragement and great comfort to all who think that they are insignificant and have no work to do in this busy world. Perhaps in the distant future many a man who estimated himself great shall be found to have been insignificant because of unfaithfulness to his trust and many another man who perhaps thought himself of little worth will find himself glorified because he did what he could. End of chapter 84