St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1893-04-15

This rs an era Of scientific inveStiga-
ton and development. If the next gen.
Grafton is not far in advance of the pres
ent one it will not be from lack of con-
scienIious effort on the part of those
having the care of the children TO-DAY.
And now comes Mary Schenck Wool
man and talks in this way about the
play of our children:
Civilization has now reached pitch
in which the inquiry, Where shall we
begin to train the child?" is receiving
more of the attention it requires. Due
respect to the health of the mother,
the hygiene of the nursery, and the
early training of the child at the kinder
garten are all becoming important
factors with writer's on these subjects.
One essential in this early curriculum
is not vet as prominently dwelt on as 1t
might be, and that is the play of the
child in its early years.
From the earliest notice babe takes
of an object until it begins to play
about by itself, q watchful person can
always decide what sort of a man he
will be. \ child that plays with all his
heart and will bent on his object till he
fairly falls asleep in the midst of his
TOYS, will shadow forth in his little per
sonality a determined, capable man.
While another. who grows weary, and
plays spasmodlcally, will grow up with
an accumulation of this same disposition.
Even at this early period mothers
fostering care can. by careful attention,
train the little one to deter mined effort
even here.
As you watch your child, and see how
he goes to work, reflect that his play is
showing his highest development, just
as when he is grown his business career
will show it. His games are ShadOwing
forth his future life. Now does ii not
seem important that he should be
trained to 40 even that thoroughly?
AS little plant puts forth its leaves
We can see the promise of its future.
1--WE cannot pull these close shut leaves
apart; time will reveal the calyXes of
gUld;" put we can make the conditions
which surround the tiny effort the best,
and rejoice in the reward we have in
its trnitlon. ANY injury which we do
to it now will stunt the later develop
meht. So it is with the child.
See the faces of the children in our
tenementS and alleys. Do they look as
if they ever really laughed? Is not their
expression, as a class, sad and old?
Have you ever watched the parents
with these children? They will sud
denly snatch the little ones playthings
away and uniustly intimidate the child.
Under surroundings such as these the
little germ cannot spread as 1t would.
The child, like its parents, has scant
self control and is rough and impatient
in its turn. Only the most favorable
later conditions, which it seldom has,
can keep il from descending in the So
cial scale.
A tWO-year-old child was brought to
one of our day nurseries who had never
been known to play or smile. Great
care was taken with it by the nurses
and managers, who realized that these
qualities must be fOstered to make the
Child life develop. Nothing was left un-
tried. Such interest was felt in the lit
tie one that after a committee meeting
all the ladies' would go TO the playTOOm
and vie with each other to make that
sad face happier, but it took almost
three months to gain even flicker, ana
still longer to get the child to play. At
last the other children at the nursery
accomplished the task, and the child is
now in fair way to became useful
member of the community.
Suppose that care had not been taken?
Could anything have saved this child
from permanent meIancholia? And yet
the mother had scarcely noticed the fact
till her attention was called 10 it.
This childish play, then, might be
considered the source of the mental
stream which is to flow out ana help
supply the earth. Dam up or injurf
the source, and the whole later life will
feel the effect.
In a child's mind pleasures ranl
equally. His toys and his mothers care
give him satisfaction without his being
able 10 analyze their different effects
He will Unfortunately pick flower;
and grass and bring them TO his mother
until she is deluged with old weeds and
stemless blooms. He is just as mucl
pleased with the flowers as with hel
notice, but both are necessary TO his de
velopment. In order TO foster his inter