Morning journal and courier., 1880-02-26
American Motherhood.

No women under the sun, be they civilized or uncivilized, take maternity so hard as our American women. Maternal duties are, if fully and efficiently discharged, expressing and onerous under the most favorable circum- stances but they may be made by over-con- scientiousness much more wistful and wear ing than they need be, as is hourly evinced by the mothers of this country. The women of any other nation do not begin to be such slaves to their children, and it is altogether desirable that this slavery should be mitigated if not abolished. In the first place, it does the children no good so that it is waste of force and affection, and uDproduetive, be- sides, of any beneficial result.
 Where family is so very poor that nurse cannot be employed a mothers cares are ne- cessarily increased and her time absorbed. But such poverty is not common here among educated persons, and an American father must needs be in great pen1ry to expect his wife to look after her babies exclusively. Whether the mother have nurse or not whether her conditions be severe or easy, she is seldom free from excessive anxiety and un- due exertion in behalf of her offspring She is inclined to think that a nurse, however faithful, must be continually supervised and directed, and plentifully assisted to earn her wages. In fact, she is the actual nurse, and the nurse, more nominal than real, seems to be engaged mainly for the sake of appear ance. She is forever uneasy about her child or children; she necessarily worries them, herself and her nurse in her effort to see that everything should be done exactly as it should be. Who has ever known an American moth- CT content to allow nurse to render service without perpetual interference, and without performing the bulk of the service herself?
 In democracy like ours, where freedom of the individual Is so much insisted on, 1t might be natural to think that children would be al lowed to run wild. They are so allowed, to certain extent, after they have reached giv- en age; but while they very young they are attended to with intending supeIfuity. The native mother, plainly, has no confidence in the benefcent forces of nature. She is prone to believe that all the powers of evil are leagued against her child that humps, meas les, whoopipg cough, chicken pox, scarlet fever, and all other infantile diseases arelyipg in wait for the darling of her heart in every nook and corner of the neighborhood. If the little thing has contended successfully with these, she is not 0 jot relieved; she feels sure that foes equally formidable ambushed near that peerless, precious life, so late be- gun, and fated, as she often apprehends, to be so early lost. Buildings are watching for an opportunity to tumble on the boys or girls devoted head as he, she, passes; malig- nant dogs are standing on corners eager to rend him at sight; ferocious kidnappers prowl about her home, resolved to carry him of horses and carriages dash through the street searching for catastrophe, of which he is to be the victim. There is no security for her beloved anywhere. She may believe in special providences, but she cannot trust them in respect to her gifted boy, whom en- vious heaven may at any moment snatch away If he sneezes, he is in peril; if he have the slightest approach to co1ic, his hours are numbered; the key note of every direful tragedy is set to his slightest cry. Oh, the countless and distressing woes which an American mother is invariably imagining for her children How delightfully."- disappointed cy,o ham ha foJ1S tn nd swallow them up, or when the law of gravita- ton is not reversed to dash their brains against the over yawning sky! e~
 No inhabitant of this planet outside of an insane asylum, can be more hopelessly unrea- sonabIe than the average American mother on the subject of her child. She is little less than monomaniac; and her distemper is in curable until the child absolutely refuses to be longer kept in leading strings. She won ders every time he returns home that he has not been permanently disabled, and she fan cies that every coroner regards him with jealous eyes. The American mother, from the birth of her child until it is at least four
 five years old, is virtually deranged. She has no eyes, no ears, no thought, no hope, no wish, no feeling for anything but her off, spring. A young mother is said to be very attractive object, and she has been so repre- sented by artists from time immemorial. But in reality she can hardly be called attractive,
 
 ated and engulfed by her baby. She will talk about it from dawn to dawn but on any oth- CT theme be her knowledge and fuency what they may, she has not word to offer. Pres entation of topics once deemed fascinating are unavailing. She cannot be moved nor reach ed by aught that does not relate to her baby the small mass of crimson flesh and abun- dant scream about which she necessarily re- wolves. Those who have been her dearest, most intimate friends find neithec charm nor companionship in her during the eff1orescence of her motherhood. She has grown to be an intolerabie autocrat, who will listen to poth- ing, who has no sympathy with anything but that eternal child. A woman bound on every side by and permeated and overhowing with, an infant cannot be alluring to any one ex- cept the infants begetter, driven by the same egotism into crevice of commonplace.
 European mothers are not like ours; they have some freedom, some mental ease they can believe that their children will grow up and prosper, if they do not fret about, and toll for, them continually and oonsumedly. Children are, no doubt, better for not seeing so much of their mothers for understanding that they cannot tyrannize over them. It is the American womans unregulated nerves that are culpable herein. She acts unfavora- ply on her young, and the young act, in turn, unfavorably on her. They injure one anoth- CT by excess of intimacy. Considering the quality of American children, universally con- ceded to be the worst behaved on earth, the wisdom of their mothers management may we'll be questioned. The American mother of the future will be pretty certain to abate her motherhood, and with less unhappy con sequences.