Daily national Democrat., 1861-03-10


extent by voluntary contributions We're
the tax cquaized, in the way Of supporting
a State Hospital, it would be much better.
The money contributed would then not fail
20 be applied in proper manner, and great
suffering be amelorated and relieved. The
blind and the manned, however desperate
their condition, ns things are now, have no
place to 60, for the law does not allow them
in any Of the county or state institutions.
We trust the Legislature will give this
subject attention.
RESPECTING BABES AND SUCKLINGs 1t is
quite the fashion, now-a-days, with the Indies
OF wealth rank or position, to refuse to their
children the Offices Of maternity, turning
them over to hired nurses, in order to save
the trouble of nurturing them. The same
practice was followed anciently, and greatly
animadycrted against by the philosophers
and medical men of the period. We have
been considerably entertained by chapter
on this subject in the work of old Burton
written about two hundred and twen' Y years
go, and entitled ANATOMY Of Mehncholy.'
Citing the various causes Of melancholy, I'M
der which head he includes the various de-
grees of madness and insanity. he sets down
tle nursing Of children by other than their
mothers as one great cause of Il wrong bias
OF mind or body in the Child when it grows
up. And It's amusing to see with what an
array Of authority he forti6es the position.
'From Il child's nativity" he says, fhe
first i'll accident that can likely befall him is
ii bad nurse, by whose means he may be
tainted with this maady melancholy from
his cradle. Aulus Gellius brings in Phayori-
nus, the eloquent philosopher, proving this
at large, that there is the same property in
the milk as in the seed, and not in men aloe
but in all other creatures he gives instance
in Kid and lamb, if either Of them suck Of
the others milk, the lamb of the goats or the
kid of the ewes. the wool of the one will be
hard and the hair Of the other soft Gira
dus confirms this by a notable example which
happened in his time. A sow-pig 10y chance
sucked IA brach, and when she was grown she
would miracuously hunt all manner Of deer,
and that as well, or rather better than any
ordinary hound" A pretty steep story, but
old Burton gives lis authority. The SOW ac
tually hunted like "a dog
Barton goes on to say that Giraldus, in
whom he seems to have great confidence.
concludes from his observations and rcoson-
ings that "men and beasts participate of her
nature and conditions 10y whose milk they are
fed"
lie then quotes from Phavorinus, who, he
says, urges farther that, "if nurse be mis-
shapen, unchastc, dishonest, impudent, cruel
or the like the child that sucks upon her
breast will be so too" All affections ofmind
or body are ingrafted and imprinted into the
temperature Of the infant, by the nurses milk
Dion says that CT 'gula, the infamously cruel
tyrant Of the bad days of imperial Rome, had
neither cruel father nor mother, but cruel
nurse. She would "anoint', says this author,
her paps with blood still when he sucked,
ilitl lIldut nun ouCii Il iluIutEtE ana 10 6N-
press her cruelty to hair." He also says
that the other famous Emperor Tiberius was
common drunkard, because his nurse was
one. The son of Nespasian was a sicklv
youth, because his nurse was sickly phayo
rinus and Marcus Aurelius we're strict in their
injunctions, for these reasons, that every
mother should nurse her own child
Then the queer old Burton-queer, though
learned and wise-referring to cases where
children must Of necessity "be put forth, on
account of the inability of the mother sums
up for himself as follows:
"lf it be so, as many times il is, they must
be put forth, the mother be not fit or well
able to be nurse | would then advise such
mothers, as Plutarch doth, that they make
choice of sound woman, of good complex
ion down South they have negro nurses
Burton would object to that honest, free
from bodily diseases, if it be possible, all pas
sions and perturbations of the mind, as sor-
row, fear grief, folly, melancholy. And if
such nurse may be found out, that will he
diligent and careful withal let Phayorinus
and NJ. Aurelius plead how they can against
it. had rather accept of her in some cases
than the mother herself, and which Bonacia-
lus the physician, Me. Biesius, opposes
Some nurses are much to be preferred to ,me
mothers. For why may not the mother he
naught, pcevish drunken fiirt a waspish
choleric slut, a crazed piece, fool (as many
mothers are) unsound as soon as the nurse
lWhy not, sure enough, old boy There is
more choice Of nurses than mothers; and
therefore except the mother he most yiru-
Gus, staid, a woman of excellent good parts
and of a sound complexion, would have all
children in such cases committed to discreet
strangers"
There may be more in old Burton's view of
this thing than woud appear on the surface
But we quote him for the amusement of our
readers more than anything else
ARRESTED. On Wednesday last, says the
Butte Record Henry Fredercks was arrest
ed 10y Constable Parks, charged with stealing
a gold watch, the property Of MIR, Wyman
who resides on the South Ioncut Creek.
about twenty miles east of here. We are
Informed that the watch was taken from a
cabin some time in the afternoon of Thurs
day of last week, during the absence of the