The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-08-04

Something About Hts Home Life ard Hh
New York Tribune.
NJ. de Lesseps returned in haste from Lon
don to see how his ninth child, Paul, was
getting through a typhoid fever. This is the
one talr-haired member of the family. He
looks a youthful Hebrew OF the German
type, and does not resemble either father or
mother, Not one OF the ten has De Lesseps
physiognomr. They are all, with the ex-
cepuon of numbers nine and ten, the pic
lures of Nine. dc Lesseps. She is a Creole
lady. The Maurtius was her birthplace, ami
her parentage was Anglo-French. Benjamin
is the name of the baby boy, who Is Just ten
days old. He was exhibited by the proud
father to his visitors on the morning on which
he told me OF the negotiations which he had
brought, as he believed, to a successful issue
in England. The infant Benjamin was not
more clothed than bambino in a Holy FAM
lily. lie had on little sleeveless garment OF
soft woolly sort of cotton, which did MOI,
when lie wanted to kick, restrain the action
OF his neither limbs. NJ. de LesSeps hates 10
see finely-dressed child. Nature he say.
does better for the inlaut in temperate and
warm climates than the dressmakers art can
possibly do. She gives it an envelope of fat
tissue which keeps it warm and the beauty
OF fresh skin and graceful movements. He
never suffered more clothing on any of his
/ boys and girls than what the standard of de-
cency required. Those little dressed-up
creatures with frills, sashes and knitted leg
gings which makes them seem first cousins
to bantam fowls, positively crate upon his
nerves.
NJ. de Lesseps asked his visitors to stay aud
take pot-luck with him at deieuner. His
two elder boys did not join at table the fam
lily party, which included Miss Pryse a
Welsh governess, and her French colleague,
whose name did not catch. NJ. de LeSseps
had on his right hand and his left his
daughters Solange and Consuelo. Solange is
his fayorite. Both girls names were bor-
rowed from romanceS OF Georges sand, and
emotional character is more strongly ex-
pressed IN their eyes than in those OF their
other three sisters. Solange, though pretty
big, is always carressing and leaning on her
| head on her fathers arm. She follows him
about with her eyes, and, lie says, pines
when he is long absent from home. As she
is delicate he is afraid to take her about win
him. but has promised that when he next
makes an excursion into the desert of Tunis
she is TO bear him company.
The dejeuner was extremely simple. There
was dish OF spinach and poached eggs; FOL
lowed by boiled potatoes in their skins, which
(the potatoes, not the skins) were eaten win
little butter and powdered sugar TIE
plat de resistance was u mutton hash l 90
served that the children who sat down 10 tie
repast were moderate eaters. Nj. De Lesse. s
seemed glad to hear me notice their sd
briefly. Here are some OF the rules by which
his nursery maids ami govsrnesses are
bound:
Little meat; less clothing; unlimited ex-
ercise; food to be given in the hand whenever
it is asked for, but only twice a day at table.
A child who plays while eating merely eats
to appease hunger, and does not run into
gluttony. A child who is only allowed To
eat at fixed hours and at tabe-meals, is sure
to gorge itself and take more than it re-
qures"
NJ. De Lesseps breaches that the children of
the rich are over-dressed, over-fed and under
| exercised. He was brought up in many re-
spects like young savage-just as he is
! ing his little folk-and ne thinks that had it
not been for his fathers appreciation of the
unadorned beauty of infants and dislike OF
fnely-clad and pampered babyhood, lie M.
De Lesseps) would not have preserved his vi
tality SO far into old age ne has done. The
basis of strong constitution was laid in 4
free and natural childhood. At the age OF
five he was no more afraid to ride a mettle-
some horse than an Arab of the desert. Be
fore his boys and girls were old enough to
play marbles and dress dolls he gave them
ponies and took them out to ride in the ell
virouS of Paris