In traveling and other conditions which keep you away from your own toilets, especially in the public schools, the seats of the closets are often found to be covered with a form of lice――“crabs” they are vulgarly called. When these get on to you they cause a terrible itching. They will become so irritating that you cannot keep still. Many a boy has been sent home from school because he could not keep still or refrain from scratching himself. This form of scratching has often been thought by his teacher to mean evil thoughts or habits.
Poor fellows, how many of you have been unjustly accused!
If you will examine yourself closely, you will find the tiny lice. Little bits of things looking like a black pin-point. The best thing under these circumstances is to go to the doctor. He will give you an ointment to apply which will soon kill them. So don’t let some older boy, through fun and the love of scaring you, or perhaps through his own ignorance, frighten you. Some boys and shameful men will tell you that the itching is a sure sign of self-abuse, or that you have a bad disease which will soon rot your whole body. And as many boys have once or more done things of which they are ashamed――always a good sign is this shame――these mean tales do much injury. There is nothing in it, boys; just “crabs.”
It is every strange, little symptom which comes to the developing youth that is seized upon by the Quacks to exaggerate in their advertisements and try to make you believe that physical or mental ruin is right ahead of you――unless you buy their drugs. Here is one way they work upon the youth’s ignorance and fears.
You are just an ordinary boy; full of fun, play and no better nor worse than the rest of us. One day you receive a circular or booklet through the mail. There is no printing on the envelope. Just one of the catalogues or circulars you sent for, as you wanted to see the prices of bats and mitts for next season’s games.
So thinks your mother also. And your father? Well, he is too busy making money for you all to really know what his son needs and wants in the way of confidential talks. But you will know when you have a boy――I am sure of this.
But let us get back to the circular. You open it and at the first glance of the heading, down it goes deep into your pocket while you sneak off to read it.