Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1874-10-02

all shall now and for all time be
found one united and happy people.
speaking one language, obeying one
law, acknowledging one f.ith-the
home Of frcemcn, the refuge of the
of every cline, regardless
Of nativity, political or religious be.
lief, race color or previous condition!
Enthusiastic cheers.
Ton ling tho Eahy.
New rk Graphic
1t used ODE pleasant recreation.
Eut that was before mounted cradles
and baby,jumpers and nursery maids
were brought into general use. The
were cheap, if not hcmc-
made, ard we've exceedingly print
tive in their construction. \ cigar
box mounted on spools and drawn
with Il string, served as carriage,
and the doll drawn in it was made of
rags and .r sscd in calico. There
was jumping jack Of cardboard,
which furnished endless entertain
ment, and clam shells that made the
incest teacups, and Il top and whis-
tic that grandpa made out of Il poplar
stick, and score of blocks picked
up in the carpenters shop. Baby
watched the building with eager i'll
tercst, crowed when it was finished,
and Knocked it down with his feet
with inti..itc glcc. The peck meas
ure was seat for him to sit on, or a
little world for him to put i'll disorder
and upset when the whim struck
him, or car for him to get in. The
broom handle was an untailing horse
that always came to time. Grand
mas ball of yarn was always in or
der, and when other sources failed
there was the eats tail, the pulling
Of which Invariably produced music,
if it did not precipitatc catastrophe.
Sometimes drawer was opened and
baby rcvclcd in its contents, and
sometimes the button bag was mine
of treasures. There was endless fun
in getting the little toddllng, tumb-
ling fellow up on his feet for trot,
and tin pan with an iron spoon and
q handful of beans was sort of par
aaise and furnished delight for a
millennium. Baby grew and made
fun enough for the whole household
to pay for his care ten times over.
That way of tending the baby is row
obsolete. The hall has been car
pcted. The primitive playthings
have been burned to make room for
Il bushel or two of toys. \ hired
servant, who cares onl y for her pay
and carries a dime novel in her peck
ct to read by stealth, watches the
little fellow in an Indifferent way,
pushes the tops now and then, stutfs
him when he cries, and when he cries
from the stutiing, doses him from the
bottle she carries in her pocket. She
cannot play herself. All the play
has gone out Of her. She does not
quite see what babies arc born for.
She looks on them all us trials of pa
ten &c, and as sure to bring out the
bad temper in one "a mustard poul-
tee is to raise Il blister. The "dear
little fellow" is the one plague of her
life, and the onl " comfort she has is
when she has administered parcgoric
enough to make him sleep beyond
danger of waking, while she chats
with the groccr's boy or carries on an
incipient Irritation with a young sprig
of a gardener. Baby grows sickly
and irritable and pccvisF. He is cx-
acting of attention and unable to
amuse himself. His manners are too
demonstrative for the dlning-room,
and his temper too bad for the parlor
He has had bad nj ghts. The old
people look serious and say, ole
won't be raiscd," and even mamma
thinks something is really the matter
with her chernb, and wonders whcth-
cr soothing syrup or the doctor will
best meet his case. At any rate
something must be done right away,
Us she has got a new suit of clothes
for the little fellow, showing his
sweet little white knees, and must
trot him out so that the neighbors
can see what beautiful eyes and hair
he has, and how the blue jacket with
silk trimmings becomes his complex
ion. And baby endurcs it all, runs
the gauntlet, escapes from his enc
mics, and finally survives even his
school teachers, with the endless
examining, and appears with taultless
swallowtail and irrcproachablc kids
on his way somewhere. Some babies
are terribly tough. You can no more
kill them than YOU can give dyspepsia
to an Indian rubber doll. But for
every guttapercha baby that is proof
against nurses and parental folly,
there are dozen real tlesh-and-blood
creatures who cannot stand such
treatment, and fall by the way. They
make beautiful funerals; but if there
were an honest inquest held, in nine
cases out of ten the verdict would be
"Dicd of bad tending" Then this
sort of care never trains children to
amuse themselves. They have a sur
felt of toys but arc not taught how to
get amusement out of them. The
modern baby, with house full of
playthings, has very little of the real,
rollicking pleasure and fun that the
boys and girls used to get out of
single toys quarter Of century
ago. The trouble is not III the toys,
but in the tending. Then it enticed
by sympathy; now it repcls for want
of it. Then it trained to self care;
now it develops dependence and
creates a desire to be amused and
cared for by others. Then it un-
sealed a fountain of joy in the heart;
now it chokcs the inward spring and
breaks down vitality, if not consti-
tuition. Babies are very good things
in house where they are wanted
and rightly cared for.