The Fremont weekly journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1867-1877, 1869-02-05
Curious ParentnI Training

CURIOUS RafenIaA Training.
James Parton contributes to a New
York paper an article on the early
life and training Of Fredrika Bremen,
lThe Swedish authoress. Fredrika's
mother had three inviolable rules for
the management of her children:
l. They were to remain in perfect
Ignorance of all evil; 2, They were
to eat as little as possible.
In order to keep them from a knowl-
edge of evil, they we're baDished from
the dEsWing-room as soon as visitors
were announced, and they were strictly
forbidden ever to speak to the servants,
except one old woman, and she was
commanded never to tell them anything
savoring of evil. There was no oeca-
sion to urge them to learn, for all the
children, and especially Fredrika,
had an insatiate craving for knowledge.
Such was the activity of her mind, that
when her lessons were finished she
used to amuse herself by learning
whole scenes and acts of French plays.
Of her mothers three principles the
one which caused these children the
severest suffering was that which con-
demned them to eat less than they
desired. Their mother had a particu-
lar dislike of strong, tall, aud stout
women, and she thought that the less
her children ate the more likely they
were to grow up like the delicate hero
ines of the romances which she contin-
ually read. At eight o'clock 10 the
morning, these eager, hungry, growing
children had each a small basin Of |
cold milk with a small piece of a kind |
of thin, hard rye biscuit, and this was
their whole breakfast. No matssr how
hungry they might be, they dared not
so much as ask for another moFsel till
dinner-time which was two o'clock. 1t
did once or twice happen that the old
servant who waited upon them ven
tured to give each of them a piece of
dry bread but their mother found it
out and scolded her SO severely that
she dared not repeat the ofense.
When dinuer-time came they were
allowed to eat of only three dishes,
and of them only so much as their
mother considered sufficient. Tea was
served at six and the children were reg
ularly summoned-not to partake of
the meal but look on while the parents
and goyerness enjoyed it At eight /
o'clock the children were each supplied
with small glass of cold milk, and a
small piece of rye biscuit, and then
went to bed. What aggravated the
cruelty of this regimen was, that their
parents we're particularly fond of the
pleasures of the table, and the chill
1ren were continually tormeuted with :
the sight of delicious food, of which ,
they were sternly forbidden to partake. 3
1t is the opinion of the survivors of
he family that this regimen stunted t
he growth snd impaired the cOnstitu- :
ion of Fredrika.
Then, again, these cruel, kind parents
we're unrelenting rigorists in regard to
he manners and demeanor of their off Y
pring, At eight o'clock in the NOR
ing, the children were required to be q
lressed for the day, and to pay 8 for \
nal visit to each of their parents /
first 10 their mother in her boulder, +
While she was taking her morning \
Office. When they entered the room, a
instead of welcoming them with smile | h
nd pleasant word, she would look at q
hem with sharp, critical eye, and n
7atch them closely during their walk Fl
rom the door to her chair. If they a
Talked badly, she made them go back o
% the door and walk the whole dis
snce again. When they had succeed 9,
d in walking to her satisfaction, the q
ext thing was to make courtesy to N
er, which had also to be repeated till it "
-as correctly performed. Finally they S
ad to kiss their mothers hand, and
o it with the requisite grace.
When they had accomplished the
ainful ceremony of saying good NOR L
Ing to their mother, they had to 90 in
ito another room and salute their fo
ther, who at that hour was always
nder the hands of the hair-dresser. tb
hen they had co1rtesied to their co
ther, then they were allowed to go th
their breakfast of cold milk and rye Sc
scuit RI,
Another whim of their mothers 1t
lded:greatly to the misery caused by or
le scantiness of their fare. She had te
Ie notion that children ought to be m
inly dressed, and go with bare necks liz
ID arms, even when the ice, for DAYS nc
gether was so thick upon the window vi
ines that the shivering children could an
1t see out of them, nj
All this seems strange to US and wi
'rdly credible. Parents are now so ag
ine-ally indulgept to their children, otl
at many of US find it difficult to be- wi
we that people who could treat chill te:
en- thus Sara not unfeeIing and cruel. on
ut elderly people tell us, that fifty or of
xty years ago, parents generally ca
sated their children in some such of