Many parents overrate the stability and good qualities of their children. They do not seem to consider that they will be exposed to the deceptive influences of vicious youth. Parents have their fears as they send them some distance away to school, but flatter themselves that, as they have had good examples and religious instruction, they will be true to principle in their high-school life. Many parents have but a faint idea to what extent licentiousness exists in these institutions of learning. In many cases the parents have labored hard and suffered many privations for the cherished object of having their children obtain a finished education. And after all their efforts, many have the bitter experience of receiving their children from their course of studies with dissolute habits and ruined constitutions. And frequently they are disrespectful to their parents, unthankful, and unholy. These abused parents, who are thus rewarded by ungrateful children, lament that they sent their children from them to be exposed to temptations and come back to them physical, mental, and moral wrecks. With disappointed hopes and almost broken hearts they see their children, of whom they had high hopes, follow in a course of vice and drag out a miserable existence. {3T 149.1}

Mange forældre overvurderer deres børns stabilitet og gode egenskaber. De synes ikke at tage i betragtning at de vil blive udsat for umoralske unges påvirkninger. Forældre har frygt når de sender dem bort i skole, men de bilder dem selv ind, da de er belært med gode eksempler og fået en religiøs belæring, at de vil være principfaste i højskolen. Mange forældre har kun en svag ide om den udbredte tøjlesløshed i disse læreanstalter. I mange tilfælde har forældre arbejdet hårdt og lidt mange afsavn med det for øje at deres børn skal have en uddannelse. Og efter alle deres anstrengelser, har de den bitre erfaring at få deres børn færdig med studierne med udsvævende vaner og ødelagte legemer. Og ofte er de respektløse over for deres forældre, utaknemmelige og uhellige. Disse uheldige forældre, som således belønnes med utaknemmelige børn, jamrer sig over at de har taget deres børn fra dem og udsat dem for fristelser og kommer tilbage til dem som fysiske, mentale og moralske vrag. Med skuffelse og næsten sønderbrudte hjerter se de deres børn, som de havde så høje håb om, opføre sig ondt og føre en frygtelig tilværelse.