But, children, you should never let
Such angry passions rise;
Your little hands were never made
To tear each other’s eyes.

These lines come from Isaac Watts’s didactic verse for children, written in the early 18th century as part of his effort to provide moral and religious instruction in simple, memorable rhymes. Watts, a Nonconformist minister, was influential in shaping English hymnody and also produced widely read children’s poems that addressed everyday behavior—anger, quarrelling, honesty, and kindness—through short scenes and direct admonition. The speaker addresses children after a moment of conflict, warning them against letting anger escalate into physical harm, and uses the image of “little hands” to stress both their innocence and the unnaturalness of violence among the young.

The stanza warns that anger is a passion that can quickly overtake self-control, especially in childhood, and that unchecked emotion can lead to cruelty. By contrasting “angry passions” with “little hands,” Watts frames violence as a betrayal of what children are meant to be—small, vulnerable, and capable of gentleness rather than injury. The specific image of tearing out eyes is deliberately shocking: it dramatizes how childish squabbles can turn into serious harm if not restrained. More broadly, the verse reflects Watts’s moral pedagogy: cultivating restraint, empathy, and peaceful conduct through vivid, easily remembered language.