Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1885-09-24
MRS. CARRIERS EXPERIMENT..

A Mothers Mi,take in Wasting Her
Strength in Preparation for Illness.
Eyes, always save all the old linen.
it's so handy in Sickness. remarked
Mrs. Carter. carefully removing the
buttons from a garment and cutting it
into convenient sizes.
Mrs. Carter was diligent woman
and a devoted mother. She was con-
tinually planning for illness in the
family, and kept on hand stock of
simple remedies and appliances ready
tor use at a moments notice. She
gave herself with as much zeal to this
department of her household economy
as to stocking the cellar closet with
generous supply of jellies and pre-
serves.
Perhaps it is not strange, in home
with several children. an aged father
and feeble sister-in-law. that some
body was always ailing at the Carriers
But, singularly enough, Mrs. Carter,
who looked out so religiously for a
supply of all needful articles to meet
lust such emergencies, was never able
to give anything in the line of personal
services without paying a severe PEN
alty 1t was source of real distress
to her that if Eddie had the Group or
Susie the humps, an hours attendance
upon them. or the loss of sleep for
single night, would so react upon her
system that she would be compelled to
60 to bed herself and let hired hands
give all the sweet and tender ministries
in the sick-room, so precious to low
ing heart to render.
"Oh, if only could wait upon my
children myself" she moaned one day,
as sat by her bedside. plying her suf-
ferings from a neuralgia headache.
You might. if you choose was the
thought which L did not express in
words till some days later. as we sat
together and she was engaged IN cut
ting up the aforesaid garment. Then I
took an opportunity to remark:
Mrs. Carter, your medicine closet
lacks one essential"
Dear me! what is it? A new water
bagP l thought ours leaked the last
time Norah filled it.
mo" ] replied, ''but it wants a
good. full supply of vital force
Evidently she Id not comprehend my
meaning. and L continued:
"As a wise and provident mother you
have a splendid equipment for illness
in everything except your own physical
condition. I've been here dozen
times within the last six months in the
vain endeavor to lure you out into the
open air. but Invariably you
are occupied in getting ready
for somebody to get sick. You
expend as much time and nervous en-
ergy in the preparation for this as would
be sufficient. if properly husbanded.
for you to carry every one of the chill
dren through an ordinary attack of
mumps or measles. AS it is, however,
you furnish the tools and let somebody
else do the work which your mother
love Graves to do. Now suppose you re-
verse the order of things. Hire some
one to come in and cut up the band
ages and do the weeks mending. and
see that the medicine closet is kept re-
plenished, while you devote yourself in
laying up stock of vitality which will
enable you to substitute your own low
ing ministrations, when members of
the family are ailing, for hired service.
For prudent woman you are fear
fully eXtrayagant one! You use up
every day little more vital and nerV-
Gus power than you manufacture. Ma
present it for surplus funds of strength.
Now, it is perfectly possible for you to
lay up a reserve of force. There is no
necromancy or medicine about it. You
need not take a trip to Europe. nor
spend months in Il nervine asylum. /
know that Americans, as rule, do not
believe in condition of sustained en-
durance. The highest ideal of health is
to run along smoothly for awhile, then
break down for a season, be patched up
and begin again. A man or woman
who can keep up continuous work of
any kind. within the house or out of it,
is looked upon as an anomaly. They
take their recreation in a lump, in q
summer vacation. always expensive
and often disappointing, instead of
sprinkling it along all through the
daily life and toll. Now l claim that
you can so subsidize the forces of ma
ture, wrappad up in pure air and va
ter simple diet, abundant sleep and
proper exercise and recreation, as to
make yourself an infinitely greater
blessing to your family than you now
are. Pardon my plain speech, but you
are giving them things and they want
yourself.
For six months Mrs. Carter tried the
experiment of living hygienically. natu-
rally and simply. With how much sue
cess l leave the reader to Judge when
say that she carried Susie through an
attack of scarlet fever without the aid
of hired nurse, and no warrior was
ever prouder of brilliant military
achievement.
Are there not other mothers who
think the experiment worth trying?-
Frances j. Dyer, in Philadelphia Press.