Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1869-07-22
VIRGINIA FREE PRESS.
Baby's RIGHTS.
4 Baby,s Story---By a Baby.

was III Ut4t4Edy gSStSiN"y, ""N' ''N'- '
milk out of my bottle any more-l have bread
and milk out of bowl. Bridget ties my bib
under my chin and feeds me very fast-sho
doesn't understand that ought to have time
to swallow. When l shut my lipsand putter,
she says "Therc now take your supper good,
like darlin," l can't swallow whole bowl
at time; aud cry, and she gives me 4 shake
After that have the stomach ache.
Lying awake with it one night, began to
think that hadn't my rights; and want en-
How to get EN- | don't know. cry all can
but that's no use. 1 kick, too-but what
comes oft? They only give me drops to make
me sleep then feel hot and sick and stupid
all the next day. One of my rights is not to
have drops; but there now, how am | not to
have EN-. There it comes again
The most comfortable thing | ever had was
an India rubber bottle. What are mothers
made for, if baby isn't to have one? Who
invented nursing bottles? hate him, who
ever he was
have a mother, you know-a lady who
saws she is, comes in sometimes aud tells other
ladies that she is mot ccntentcd with Bridget y
Neither am l. for that matter but you see my
mother is not thinking Of my rights, but OF
hers. She wants to vote, and wanting to dol
takes a great deal of time. She writes, too,
for the newspapers When l want to find out
whether she is really my mother, and begin to
talk to her, she says, bridget, you must really
take that darlin' child away-ho diSturbs me
drcadfully|
Bridget is big and coarse; her great knobs
of knucklcs hurt me. She ties strings too
tight, and joys Inc too hard.
Ny own mother is soft and fair, and her
skin is like silk, and like to touch her I'm
lady's baby, and one of my rights is, that a
lady should handle and dandlc me. No one
sees it. I'm put off on Bridget
Mamma don't like to sit at the table with
Bridget, but she lets her feed me. Perhaps
have aristocratc notions, too; who cares for
them
One day Bridget had big pewter breas.-
pin, with yellow stone in it, on her collar, and
it kept scratching my head; nobody knew it.
One day she took me out in my wagon and up
set me; no one knew that either.
She takes me out to her cousins shanty
where little Pat has the measles or the small
pox, and if don't catch EN- both, its because
.sThere's a sweet little chcrub that sits up a.
loft" to keep watch for poor motherless babies.
Sometimes she leaves me alone in the room
with crate fire. | always put my fingers
into it. and then they always burn. Once
mamma found it out aud | had different
Bridget. They are all alike; they came from
the intelligence Office, and are rough and course,
and smell of smoke, and take care Of me for
money and not for love. The new one is sleepy,
and mods over and props me sometimes. One
got tipsy and lay on me. Some day one will
tumble down stairs with her big feet and slip
shod shoes, and break my neck, dare say.
A father, too, have a right to father
Mine is Wall street man, he goes out early
and comes home to dinner. | should think he
might be very nice to know, but I'm not ac-
auainted with him; he has nice black whis-
kers. and he laughs and says, hello, old iel-
low" when we meet, and try to tell him
about Bridget; and my feelings over-powerme
and cry, and he says, Take the little rascal
away, Biddy."
One dreadful thing have; it is a family
doctor, he says I'm very fine child, and does
dreadful things to me. Once he lanced my
Gums. once he yaccinatcd me. After that |
had a sore arm, and BriJget's blue mcrino hurts
it.
In summer there used to be some comfort in
going out in my perambuator, and seeing that
after all was not worse of than other babies,
all given over to Bridgets, whom | met; but
now its winter, and | have to stay in my nur-
sery. in a flannel shawl, and DO nothing but
think; and I've decided that must have my
rights. a whole mother ought to belong to
every baby: and Bridget is an imposition
A ladys baby ought to lie sometimes in lady's
arms, and be talked to by lady. When l
am able to speak, I shall say what Bridget says,
and with her accent, and then | shall be scold-
ed. as if it were my fault. That's the way
with brother Tom.
Here I lie now, while Bridget talks to the
milkman in the area. I'm hungry; and damp
and wretched. I'm tired Of being in the cra-
die. and shall hurt myselfif roll out. /
want the big orange on the mantlepiece, and
to sit in somebody's lap and have M feet tos-
sod, and hear, Little pig goes to market )" but
mamma is at political meeting, and papa IN
Wall street, and Bridget in the area, and who
cares for what want? Rights! l wonder
where my rights are? Nobody talks about
them. No matter, I'll yell till get EN-.
P. ST have yelled, and Bridget has given
me drops. No matter, when I'm man III
20 for the rights of babies. I'm going to sleep.
Cd L,-