BOY WANTEDÂ (Ca. 1917)
WANTED A boy that stands straight, sits
straight, acts straight, and talks straight;
A boy whose finger nails are not in mourning,
whose ears are clean, whose shoes are polished,
whose clothes are brushed, whose hair is combed,
and whose teeth are well cared for;
A boy who listens carefully when he is spoken
to, who asks questions when he does not under-
stand, and does not ask questions about things that
are none of his business;
A boy that moves quickly and makes as little
noise about it as possible ;
A boy who whistles in the street, but does not
whistle where he ought to keep still ;
A boy who looks cheerful, has a ready smile
for everybody, and never sulks ;
A boy who is polite to every man and respectful
to every woman and girl;
A boy who does not smoke cigarettes and has
no desire to learn how;
A boy who is more eager to know how to speak
good English than to talk slang;
A boy that never bullies other boys nor allows
other boys to bully him ;
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From:
The Looking Glass
By Dr. Frank Crane
New York: John Lane Company
Copyright, 1917,
By John Lane Company
(This also appears in William Bennet’s The BOOK OF VIRTUES