Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1873-05-23

AN INFANT PROCESSION -Staunton has every
J sprine a novel institution in the way of baby
carriage professions. The first of the season
passed our office Saturday evening on the way
to the Asylum grounds for an airing. There
were twelve carriages containing twelve babies
and from the vehicles were stuck out two dozen
fat little legs in all sorts of acrobatic contortions.
II is astonishing what an utter disregard these
babies show of the simplest prophecies of life
They don't seem to have the first idea of delca-
cy. Its really Notifying. The procession was
new thing to us, and we strolled after it to see
how it was received. The first person meeting
it was an old lady with spectacles, who would
have passed on without any violence, put the
nurse in an unguarded moment told her " dar
was Miss Julias baby" the old lady said liz
sharp key "what Julia Brady, that Jo-o-o lila
Bradys baby?' and dved into the carriage and
hauled out the unresistng infant, who had bsen
quietly staring out in some astoalshme Mt,
at what, to its young mind, seemed sn OLD LADY
with the unusual addition of four eyes. And
then she Rugged it, and punched it n the ribs,
and kissed it on the nose, all at the same time
Iutu BIG uiSCOVeTeu Iudt IL was FiAo NO oeNi
MAJ and punched it for that, and then that it
had its Fspa's nose" and punched itfor shat, and
finally, giving it stunning kiss between the
eyes, laid it back in the carriage, where it
lay painting and gazing at her with a mingled
air of terror and anguish. The Did lady dived
into three or four carriages in the line ,smuch to
the alarm of the rear baby who, in his frantic
struggles to get away, got his ltte legs over the
wheel, which being mistaken by the old lady
for agility she gave him an unusual quantity of
hugging and rib breaking lelving him under
the impression that his life hsd been attempted
The veteran had hardly gotten out of sight
when gang of school girls advanced on the
first baby, whereupon the young gentleman in
the rear carriage gave wall of mortal terror
and made another desperate effort to escape. 1t
was hopeless for the Phuistines vera upon him.
The Modocs are nothing to what school girl is
in handling baby. They tuck him up to see
how pretty the covering IS, and then they un-
tuck him to see how pretty be is, and then they
poke their fingers in his mouth to see if he's
got any teeth, and then hey slap bis legs to
show how fat he is, they make him say ''pa"
and when he says it they choke him and kiss
him and say t'oh it can TAX" and make him say
it again. And if he amt smart he says it again
and gets more punching. We don't want to
Interfere in the family affairs of any body but
are bound to say that, if these professions are
kept up there will be dead babies in Staunton
before the spring closes.
We cannot Close this Article with out mention
ing one of the most painful exhibition that any
right minded man can witness The most hui
initiating spectacle on earth is when man, for
the sake Of popularity, at 'the house" goes
through with kissing baby. He thinks it
sounds we'll for the nurse to go home and he
is nice man. He asks how old he is and it,
promptly put down with the information that it
is a she. He says "oh yes I had forgotten"
which is subterfgue for he never knew. And
then he takes it out of The nurses arms and gets
Nc pin in his fngeraud burns the child'S arm
with his cigar. Then he throws away the ci-
gar and says "poor itls sing did it hurt it p
and for answer gets shrek that is dilu-
ton of steam whistle. And then he gets
frightened and asks tie nurse if she thinks it is
hurt, and she says she don't know but it never
''holered' that way before. And then he
steals off with a heavy sense of ha wing murder
ed baby on his mind. 1t is such failures as
these that ought to De warning to man.