Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1872-06-27
The New Baby.

scarcely animated natureI Harry, all
brightness and quickness and sturdy
strength, all determination and purpose
and eager liking and definite willard
this little lump of flesh and flannel,
nothing but creases and folds and bulg-
ings and fumblings, and girl at that
But Harry the Magnanimous knows no
envyings nor jealousies. He cares not for
crown and throne, admits his little sister
with whole souled enthusiasm, and shows
her off to the visitors as if she was pano-
rama and he exhibitor. "Dat's her hair, "
rubbing up the golden haze that clouds
her head. " See her eyes !" and he pokes
his dimpled fingers into the staring, blink
ing orbs, under the firm conviction that it
is an entire novelty for babies to have
eyes
They are strange creatures, these babies.
You do not expect them to walk and
talk, turn out their toes and be generally
decorous; but it does seem as if they
might know enough to keep their heads
from dropping off their shoulders. They
do not. True, / never knew a baby to
jerk Its head of, but no thanks to baby.
From honorable, even Christian, motives,
from benevolent desire to evince your
sympathy with the fond parent, you hold
out your arms to receive the proffered in
FAINT For an instant all goes well, but
the next, without warning or provocation,
fop goes the head back over your arm
with jerk, as if the vertebr9 were re-
solving themselves into the original lime
and phosphorous. And then baby is
so voluminously dressed that you can
never be sure yon have clutched the real
article unless you take it by the neck,
which hardly agrees with baby, though it
is the favorite mode of handling kittens
The trouble is, there is nothing human
about baby. 1t has no sympathy, no
love, no hope nor fear 1t sometimes con-
torts its face into grimmace which par
tial friends fondly call smile, but it is
just as likely to be followed by a scream
as to subside into sobriety, and it certainly
looks as much like pain as pleasure. No,
there is no good in talking about it. The
baby being here, and being subject to
cold and heat and hunger and thirst, must
be warmed and fed and sheltered; but as
to being interesting as comparing it with
Harry
But the wonder, the marvel, the mira
Gle! Eastern jugglers show you palm
tree bursting the soil, branching to the
heavens, putting forth leaf, and bud, and
fruit before your eyes; but baby is more
wonderful than the palm tree. For the
change has come so fine, so subtle, that
your eye cannot see it. Even while you
were looking, even while you were revil-
ing the little atom, it ceased to be an
atom. Imperceptibly, undetected, the
mlcrocosm put off its impersonality and
stepped into the ranks of humanity. The
midget has found her soul. In her eye
recognition, in her smile expression. How
it came about none can tell; but yesterday
she was isolated, and to-day she is linked
with all the world. Oh, but now she
strikes out gloriously into life, and puts
her foes to shame! No more aimless,
and setting in directions whithersoever
she would push her researches. Now for
parents and nurses who shall be humble
and meek in spirit, and willing to follow
nature and not set up theories founded on
their own conceit! We shall never cease
to have the church broken up with dis
sensions between old school and new, the
state fuming over tariff and tax, families
torn with internal dissensions, until we
bring up children logically. How can a
man be logical when his parents were
continually interposing to make him il
logical from his infancy? A child should
be permitted to follow out his own con-
clusions. The adult world agrees that it is
not polite to interrupt. The learned world
understands that the sequence of thought
is not to be lightly disturbed. Let US take
our politeness and our philosophy into
the baby world. The little sister is gaz-
ing steadfastiy at the chair. Her blue eyes
are fixed and bulging. You will immedi-
ately begin to toss her and coo her, dis
tract her attention, and prevent her solu-
ton of the problem of the chair. So her
mind loses the power of fixation, and by
and-by you will have an unreasonable and
unreasoning woman on your hands.
l, on the contrary, reverence her maiden
meditations, hold my peace, and simply
and silently watch her. Presently she
stretches out her tiny hand. Nature is
fumbling for the evidence of touch as
well as sight But she cannot quite
reach the chair. She leans forward, I
obey nature and let her slip toward the
chair. She feels it all over with her ex-
perimental hands. She applies it to her
little toothless experimental mouth. Of
course she drools somewhat on the silk
cover, but it is far more important that a
child should be brought up logically than
that chair should be kept unspotted.
She evinces desire to investigate the
lower part of the chair and the under
part of the seat. Thoreughness, dispo-
sition to go to the root of the matter, con-
tinuity of attention, are traits which can
not be too highly valued or too fully
cultivated. She leans out and strikes
forward with force that shifts her CEN
ter of gravity. Nature, as if for the very
purpose of aiding her in the pursuit of
knowledge, has made her utterly without
fear. We adults would not dare look
over corresponding precipice; but she,
with blind faith In the unseen holding.
back power of the universe, filings herself
forward. do not falsify her faith, but
gather her long petIicoats, for such case
made and provided, into my hand, and
holding her like a bag let her descend
head first to look at the legs and rungs OF
the chair. Prejudiced and self-conceited
adults make a great outcry, as if you
we're letting the baby down to perdition;
but it is pure logic. I want her to con
tinue her investigations so long as they
have interest for her. You talk about hel
brains. Why, her brains are in her head
and turning her upside down is not going
to take them out. Does not Nature know
as much about her brains as you and
and would she impel her downward anC
keep her fumbling and stretching anC
staring if it was not a good thing to do
! Only be humble and not self-conceited
and baby will presently give sign thai
| she is through with that branch of the
subject and ready to come right side W
with care.
And up she comes, bright and satisfied
to give the lie to all your narrow brair
theories, and prepare to study the mex
subject with the attention which BELTS
reasonable being.
And she had suddenly blossomed int
beauty Those be who think she was al
ways beautiful. ''The baby is splendidl' ,
says doting partiality, while as yet no un
prejudiced person can see aught but shape
lessness and discoloration-a head sunl
in shoulders, pudgy, puffy wab. Blu
the wab has unfolded like flower. TIL
stately head rises from the shapely shoul
ders; the yellow furze curls into silkel
hair. The nose asserts itself, the moutl
unfolds and curls into Cupid's bow, tn
plumb and perfect arm, the dimpled
dainty hand, rise and reach with matches
grace, or lie folded in tender repose Sh
looks and listens; what spirit in the erec
head, in the straight and supple neck
what bold outlook in the eagle eyes! wha