Southern standard. (McMinnville, Tenn.) 1879-current, 1890-03-29
Karm 1#tsFfsh,
A Plea for the Daily Bath.

Ilo Whyi WHCu uohJf Ddth 70 WI
sidered an imperitive necessity for an
infant under twoyears Of age, yet for
children past that age and for grown
people, much less frequent bathing
should be deemed sufficient. After
a child Is old enough to run about
and take vigorous exercise which
throws 1t into a profuse Precipitation
many times during the day, it would
seem that for the sake of cleanliness a
daily bath was quite as much needed
as when 1t vas an infant in arms.
And as far as its generl health is con-
cerned, nothing could be more adj
vantageous. l heard Ia thoughtful
father say that ever since the nurse
had ceased to give his little daugh-
ter her duly bath the little ones
health had not been nearly so good.
Children naturally love water,
and when evening comes and finds
them tired and %fretful, nothing puts
them ina good humor SO quickly
and soothes their restless nerves like
a good warm bath pleasantly admin
istered. Such a remedy, timely Civ
en-, would tide them over many fit
of discomfort and ill-humor, which,
if allowed to run its course, would
probably eliminate in a perfect tam
trum of bad temper. Fretfullness is
often caused by bodily uneasines, and
a warm bath both relieves the ems
Of discomfort and acts rs a sedative,
soothing the tired little one to sleep.
For many childish ailments it is bet
ter than a dose Of medicine, giving
almost instantaneous releifin cases of
congestiOn-when the water in which
the child is immersed should be as
warm as can be comfortably borne in
order to, relax the rigid muscles.
Not long ago l heard a mother say
that she had broken up the habit her
baby had of crying every night with
the collie by giving her a warm bath
at bed time, .'#. II4 SO IN
When properly managed, the wa
ter made neither too warm nor too
cold, the child finds in its bath a
source of continual pleasure, and
with good management on the part
of its mother or nurse it need con-
sumo but very little time; so instead
of dropping down to once or twice a
week as the child grows older, it
seems 20 me that the custom of TAX
ing a bath daily had better be contin-
on through life.
lam agreat believer in an outward
sign of inward grace, and think that
if child can be induced to acquire
habits of purity and cleanliness the
tendency is that he will makei it the
rule of his after life, both spiritually
and physically.
The temperature of the ordinary
bath should be from 750 to 900, and
soap used of a good quality. A gen.
uine article of white CASTLE is to be
preferred rather than the highly
perfumed, tinted toilet soaps OF
doubtful composition.
One should never battle within
two hours after eating a hearty meal,
or just before going out into the open
air. / have known persons to take
deep cold from standing in a draft
Immediately after having taken 6
warm bath, when the whole system
was relaxed and particularly sensi
tive. Hot baths are facilitating
and should not be INDUCED in unless
prescribed by a physician or admin
istered by a professional. By indi
vidual experiment, each should fine
out for himself the temperatur,
which best suits his system, a cole
bath being usually most inyigoratinl
to the warm-blooded person, while t,
one reduced vitality a warm or tepiC
bath will bring greater comfort. Ii
every instance, however, care shoulC
be taken to rub the body for severa
minutes after it has been wipet
thoroughly dry, with a rough tewe
or flesh brush, until a warm, pleasan
glow is felt, and a slight rednsss o
the skin is visible. fTEAV
The time for bathing may be ar
ranged to suit ones convenience
The person of active habits will gen
orally prefer a bath Immediately OIL
rising in the morning, while for tn
more delicate just before retiring a
night is propably the best, as there i
less danger then from taking cold
Then, too, a quick bath, followed b.
vigorous friction, is often succeeded
by a feeling of drowsiness, and con
duceS to sweet and refreshing slum