The interior journal. [volume] (Stanford, Ky.) 1872-1881, 1873-08-01
THE wuoOPING COUGH.
Something Mother. VIII Appreciate.

the whooping cough the other day, wife
and did not mind il much at first. But
J am satisfied now that the whooping-
cough is no joke. Wife asked Mrs. Hig-
ginson, a dear old desiple of catnip tea
and bOneset, what was good for whoop-
ingcough?
"Children got it ?" she inquired.
Terribly" replied Mrs. l..
Dear little hearts!" calculated the
kind lady. "They couldn't have il in a
better time. Jes let 'em have a little
lickerish to eat, and they'll get over it
lovely"
This made wife and me glad. Three
weeks Of the best time TO have whooping-
cough in have gone by, and our little
ones are still wrestling with the disease.
We comfort ourselves with the belief
that the good time" can't last much
longer, and that little johnny, who has
got it the worst, is certainly going to get
over it lovely"
For fortnight wife and l have not
slept a wink. 1t is not trifing task to
take good care Of seven children when
they are all afflicted simultaneously with
the whooping-cough. They will kick
the clothes off, The thought has come
over me with singular force frequently
during the last fortnight, as have STUN
bled around to the various cribs in the
night time, with bottle of ipecac in one
hand and glass of ice-water in the 9TH
er, that, in the language of the poet,
"this worlds a wilderness" vale of
tears, as it were, My shins are beauti-
fully variegated in blue, purple and yell
low tints, according to the dates Of the
bruises. | notice that jams on the shin
follow a regular law. When you first
fall over the chair the place looks red and
irritated; then it changes to a dark az
ure; by Wednesday little purple be-
gins to be mixed in around the edges I;
and fnally-it assumes a saffron tinge. /
watched the development of this law
with much interest, till the bruises got
too much confused to date them accu-
rately. My east shin now bears a strik-
ing resemblance toan old map of the
United States, with the Chicago fire,
Showing the burnt district" just below
the knee, and the Boston fire a little
lower down. The most discouraging
thing, though, about tour through the
who0ping cough-that is, when its
good time to have it's the joy with
which all your friends seem to be in
spired, when you tell them, with hag-
gard look, that all yonr children are
down with it. Mine is heart that nat
urally Graves sympathy. | yearn for it.
But not since my wedding day, eight
years ago, have been congratulated so
much as have since my seven children
took the whooping-cough. Every time
60 home to my dinner | tell Samantha
of some good friend / have met, and who
says there never was better time to
have the whoopiDg-cougk" samantha
sheds sickly smile, strangles a little,
and tries to look encouraged. Just about
this time Johnnie explodes, grabs mis-
little waistband, all the rest set up
whoop, and for a moment my usual quiet
home reminds one of Modoc strong
hold. Then grandmother, "Aunt Jane,
wife and | go back to the table again and
talk it ever, and wife says Goodness
knows, I'm glad the little dsars can't
catch it at any other season." And so
on struggled from day to day, the con-
slant recipient of hearty congratulations
that my children were so fortunate as to
have the whooping-cough at this season
of the year. Sometimes l think myself
that few people are blessed with so many
dear children and so much seasonable
whooping-cough. And yet | am con
WINGED thas if the number of children in
my family had been less, the whooping-
cough might have got the best of US, even
in this dear, delightful opportune whoop- |
ing cough time.