The Portland daily press., 1888-07-24
QUEER CRADLES.
How Babies of Various Peoples are
Rocked to sleep.

lDrake'S Magazine
Different peoples have cradles peculiar to
themselves, and merry little eyes sometimes
look out upon this big round ball that swings
in the air from from some novel houses,
There are persons living today whose era
dies were of the primative backwoods pat.
tern. Being roughly hewn troughs fastened
to clumsy rockers. From cradles Of this kind
have stepped Presidents, generals and states
men. and the frontier rockers, in more than
one instance. have rocked the world.
The Chinese have a queer institution
which they call the winter cradle. 1t is
shaped somewhat like an hour glass and
stands on end. There is an opening above
and below, and the waist, which is contract.
ed, serves to keep the celestial baby ON his
feet Day after day little almond shaped
eyes peep over the top Of this cradle and lit
tie hands play with miniature dragons and
other toys till the nurse puts In an appear.
ance. Some of these winter cradles are
made of wicker work and are beautifully
painted by Chinese women artists. IL is al.
most impossible for one to be upset; but
now and then. when two are placed together
and the occupants declare war and measure
arms, two cradles roll over the floor with
noises that bring down the house."
The Lapp baby very often has a snow era
die, for when the indulgent mother attends
church she makes hole in the snow outside
and deposits the young Laplander therein.
these snow cradles in front of Lapp chapel
and now and then a lot Of fierce looking dogs
are on guard to keep off the wolves thai
might mediate a raid Un the BABY contin-
gent-Thu Lapp cradle in material differs
essentially from that used by the Bushman
baby whose mother digs hole in the hot
sand and chucks him therein in the shadow
of some lonely bush. Sometimes the cradle
is ready to hand in the shape Of an ostrich
nest, and now and then some feathers lefi
by the mighty bird help TO soften the nest OF
the future Bushman warrior.
There is tribe in the palm region of the
Amazon that cradles the young in palm
leaves. A single leaf turned up around the
edges by some native process makes an
excellent cradle, and now and then 1t is made
to do service as a bath tub. Strong cords
are formed from the sinews of another Spe-
cies of palm, and by these this natural cradle
is swung alongside tree, and the wind
rocks the little tot to sleep. Long ago the
Amazonian mothers discovered that 1t wa:
not wise to leave baby and cradle under 6
cocoa palm, for the mischieyous monkey de-
lighted to drop nuts downward with unerrinl
precision. An older child is stationed neal
by to watch the baby during his siesta, and
the chatter Of monkeys overhead Is enough
Patagonian babies are kept in cradles
made:of fiat pieces of board. Two pieces oi
guanaco skin are so arranged across the era
die that the child is firmly fastened inside
and can be carried thus suspended from a
saddle bow without danger, In the rude
huts Of this people, the cradles are hung,
hammockwise, to the rafters, and. amid the
smoke that darkens everything, including his
very nature, it seems the Patagonian infant
passes the first stages Of babyhood; When
the village migrates the cradle is swung
from the saddle, and in swimming stream II
floats like canoe on the surface, while the
horse is almost entirely submerged. Sir
Francis Head, who saw great deal of Pata-
gonian life years ago, leaves on record the
statement that the Patagonian baby in his
queer cradle is one of the best natured rep
resentatiyes of the infant world.
The Samoan cradle, l am sorry to say, Is a
torture box. So is that used by the Chinooks
of our Northwestern coast. The baby is
laShed to a board with strong thongs. Under
the head is pillow formed of m0ff or rab-
bit skins. and piece of wood is placed over
the head at an incline and Is held in its
place by cords which reach to the foot Of the
the pressure of the inclined board gradua lily
flattens the head of the child to the desired
degree. Imprisoned thus the Chinook baby
passes the first eight months Of its existence.
During all of this time Ii is never wholly re-
leased, though the various bandages are
taken off at stated intervals frsm motives OF
cleanliness This is Chinook baby raising.
The Samoans incase their children in tor
ture cradles, face upward, aud impede the
stones There is no possible escape from the
cradle, and the Samoan and Chinook ba abies
are compelled to begin life in manner that
savors OF heartless brutality.