There are various ways of giving advice of this character.  It requires some ingenuity to invent them, and some degree of tact and skill to apply them successfully.  But the necessary tact and skill would be easily acquired by any mother whose heart is really set upon finding gentle modes of leading her child into the path of duty.

James and his Cousins.

James, going to spend one of his college vacations at his uncle’s, was taken by his two cousins, Walter and Ann—­eight and six years old—­into their room.  The room was all in confusion.  There was a set of book-shelves upon one side, the books upon them lying tumbled about in all directions.  There was a case containing playthings in another place, the playthings broken and in disorder; and two tables, one against the wall, and the other in the middle of the room, both covered with litter.  Now if James had commenced his conversation by giving the children a lecture on the disorder of their room, and on the duty, on their part, of taking better care of their things, the chief effect would very probably have been simply to prevent their wishing to have him come to their room again.

But James managed the case differently.  After going about the room for a few minutes with the children, and looking with them at their various treasures, and admiring what they seemed to admire, but without finding any fault, he sat down before the fire and took the children upon his lap—­one upon each knee—­and began to talk to them.  Ann had one of her picture-books in her hand, some of the leaves torn, and the rest defaced with dog’s-ears.

“Now, Walter,” said James, “I’m going to give you some advice.  I am going to advise you what to do and how to act when you go to college.  By-and-by you will grow to be a young man, and will then, perhaps, go to college.”

The idea of growing to be a young man and going to college was very pleasing to Walter’s imagination, and brought his mind into what may be called a receptive condition—­that is, into a state to receive readily, and entertain with favor, the thoughts which James was prepared to present.

James then went on to draw a very agreeable picture of Walter’s leaving home and going to college, with many details calculated to be pleasing to his cousin’s fancy, and came at length to his room, and to the circumstances under which he would take possession of it.  Then he told him of the condition in which different scholars kept their respective rooms—­how some were always in disorder, and every thing in them topsy-turvy, so that they had no pleasant or home-like aspect at all; while in others every thing was well arranged, and kept continually in that condition, so as to give the whole room, to every one who entered it, a very charming appearance.

“The books on their shelves were all properly arranged,” he said, “all standing up in order—­those of a like size together.  Jump down, Ann, and go to your shelves, and arrange the books on the middle shelf in that way, to show him what I mean.”