Part 18

The mother who is strict in her own conduct and who pays careful attention to the home conduct of her children will seldom be ashamed of their deportment. Good habits may not be assumed at a moment's notice. The good breeding of parents is very truly reflected in the manners of their children.

It is sad to have the children learn the laws of politeness and good breeding outside the home, and to watch them assume that which should be innate.

It is sad to hear little children lie about their home training pretending that "My mother makes me do this or that" when they know that the mother has failed to make a strong point of this particular fault.

It is sadder still to hear colored children say, "I can't." The colored mother should put success in the child's thought and teach it to believe in himself and his race. It is the duty of every mother to preach success and one's duty to aim to excel along all lines.

How can the child be clean and love cleanliness when its mother is habitually untidy and slovenly? The colored mother beautiful would no more exhibit herself unclean than naked. She would no more walk slovenly than to dress slovenly. If a mother wears unclean clothes, has unclean thoughts or unclean manners, her children will reflect her.

How can a child hold her head up and her back straight when her mother slouches around and forgets that her body belongs to God as well as her soul.

The colored mother beautiful makes a point of teaching her child to be true and helpful to the race, and to speak up for the good points and keep silent about the weaknesses when before other races. Every race has strong and weak points.

She should take part in efforts for the advancement of the race. No one can lift the race unless he stays in it. A child should be taught not to depreciate the race any more than it would itself.

No one is so big and strong that he can exist alone. All of us are dependent to a degree. Each one will need friends. There are no friends which mean so much to us as those of our own race.

The percentage of physical deformities in colored children is lessening. Colored mothers are learning to study children's faces and bodies in order to change and correct their physical defects. Bowed and weak legs, outstanding ears, misshapen mouths, noses and teeth are being corrected according to scientific rules. Then, too, they are training children to do things to improve their own physical defects without--of course--causing them to be over conscious.

The colored mother beautiful is the health officer of the race as well as her own posterity. It is her duty to see to it that her children have clean bodies inside and outside. She will see to it that in her neighborhood there will be more regard for health, drainage, and other sanitary conditions. She will pursue the deadly fly and cause this pest and all vermin to be eradicated.

She will study up on the kinds and amounts of food to give children that they may not be fed the coarse, greasy food which coarsens the instinct, or may make them gluttonous, which will abuse the stomach and cause unnatural heat that may wreck them morally. Instead, she advocates the light brain forming food to lift them above the dominant animal tendencies.

She controls the child's play which is so necessary to health and which at the present day aims for educational results.

A colored girl's estimate and idea of colored womanhood comes from her mother.

The colored mother beautiful will not give the best to strangers in preference to home folks, nor will she expect her daughter to receive politeness from other boys and men when her brothers and men in the house keep their hats on, smoke and talk in loud disrespectful tones before her.

A colored mother will teach her daughter to command respect from all boys and men and not to capitulate in any way. To do this she will teach her daughter that she must conquer or control her lower nature and not permit privileges with her body or her given name. Her conduct at home and on the street must also command this. Her daughter will no more use the Lord's name in exclamation than any other profanity. She must be taught not to hang out or talk outside of the windows.

She must be taught that she is never to stand and talk to men on the street, also that she must not continue a conversation with a man or boy who shows he has no respect for her. She will demand a respectful attitude if she is a good girl or else she should excuse herself from further conversation and association.

The daughter of the colored woman beautiful will be taught to expect boys and men to tip their hats in meeting and parting, and she will not encourage them to sit in her presence if she stands unless they are her elders, superiors, or invalids. If necessary she will exaggerate the importance of these seemingly small courtesies to impress them upon other younger and less thoughtful girls.

Such a daughter will be taught to count for something besides clothes and looks. She will pass an intemperate or immoral man as she would something polluted, for both are irresponsible and she may suffer from even a moment's contact.

This daughter must be taught not to marry for support or for money. That is selfish and cowardly. Love should be the basis of marriage because after the honeymoon is past there are responsibilities, troubles, sorrows and self-sacrifice which need the stimulation of the "Love light."

The daughter of the colored woman beautiful will aim to marry a man mentally and physically fit to be the father of her children. An immoral, vile-tongued, untruthful or diseased father is a curse to his race. It is her duty and aim to improve racial stock.

This daughter will study the ethics of the period of engagement and will not abuse or destroy the mysterious charm which belongs alone to the early period of wife-hood.

A girl should be taught the duties of married life; to fulfil the beautiful aim of motherhood should be her ambition and her daily prayer.

Boys, also, get their estimate of colored womanhood from their mothers.

A whipping, striking, scolding, threatening, "shut-up" mother presents him a wrong view point of real motherhood.

The colored mother beautiful will teach her son to respect colored womanhood and to show this respect in every word and action. He is not supposed to know the "wheat from the tare." To any woman in all the small courtesies of life he will reflect his mother's home training. He will be taught to look up to, and to show special respect and reverence for the great women and men of the race.

Even in the way he puts on or takes off his hat he reflects his mother.

If a colored boy is expected to tip his hat to any woman, he should tip it to the women of his mother's race.