In Atlas's defense, he might have sounded like he "punished" or "trained" his children harshly. However, he didn't do all of that just for the sake of training them.
When he threw them in the wilderness for a month, he had given his children weekly rations. By the second week, though, the children had already learned how to find edible food and survive on their own. They even made friends with the wild animals and looked more comfortable there than anywhere else.
Besides, Atlas was there. He stayed at a small camp in the wilderness for the entire month. His men remained close to his children, camouflaging themselves and ready to rescue the twins if anything went south. When he threw his children into the well, he also stayed right beside it and waited for them to climb out.
He would even deliver food to them. Otherwise, how would they survive with no food or bathroom breaks?
