The San Francisco call., 1895-05-21

inspiring though II vs. 10 mink OF the power we
hold over the future through the laws of in
heritance-each one that is ever to be par
ent holding his mental and bodily powers in
trust for his heirs-nevertheless, the very
vastness of this movement OF evolution dwarfs
individual responsibility little; we are in the
hands of mighty forces, and they do with us
they will. thwarting our best efforts some
times, and sometimes bringing about our as
pirations without help of ours. But the re-
sponsbility for the tiny life laid in the
mothers lap is something near, definite, in
tense, almost beyond any other responsibility.
That lifelong habits OF mind or character can
be formed in these most tender and helpless
years is no new idea. Plato in this as in most
subjects ANTICIPATED Later thought. Froebel
development is of the utmost Importance for
the present and later life OF the human oeing
Often the hardest struggles of man
with himself, and even the later most adverse
and oppressive events in his life, have their
origin in this stage OF development; for this
reason the care of the infant is SO important.
Positive testimony to this can be borne by
mothers who have nursed some of their chill
dren themselves, have relegated the nursing of
others 10 attendants, and have observed both
in later life" The early kindergartners even
tried to lay out, in detail, system of educa-
tion from birth on, and held that the kinder
garten system as practiced began at 3
not yet prepared to take 1t up during
the earliest period. But when the great evo-
lutionary wave swept over and through all our
modern thought its tremendous enforcement
overshadoWed the looser speculation OF pre-
Darwinian philosophers about the infant
mind: They had observation and they had
insight; but they were uncritical, and their
doctrine was not based on plain physiological
knowledge of the condition OF the baby's
brain--such knowledge as We are even now
of accustoming the babe in his first three
months 10 orderly conceptions of the universe
by systematic movements OF the ball, joined
with the rhythmic words Sup, down. or
LEFT, right" ETC., seemed tenabe enough
theoretically; but mothers found soon enough
that it was impracticable, even though they
did not know that the actual condition of the
brain-cells was such that no systematic asso-
Citations of the sort could possibly be received
or held.
DR.. Hall is disposed to think that especially
in the direction of the religious nature the
bent for life may be given in these first years
"Froebel perhaps is right" he says, that thus
fundamental religious sentiments can be
cultivated in the earliest months OF infancy
The mothers emotions and physical
and mental states, indeed, are impaired and
reproduced in the infant so Immediately, un-
consciously and through many avenues,
that it is no wonder that these relations seem
mystic. Whether the mother is habituaily un-
der the influence OF calm and tranquil emo
tions, or her temper is fiuctuating or violent,
or her movements are habtually energetic or
soft and caressing, or II she be regular or ir-
regular in her ministrations to the infant in
her arms, all these characteristics ana habits
are registered in the primeval language of
touch on the nervous system of the child.
From this point OF view poise and calmnesS,
the absence of all intense stimuli, and OF
sensations or transactions which are abrupt
or sudden, and an atmosphere OF quieting in
fluences = is the general line OF relig-
Ious culture"
So the future possibility of relation to God,
he suggests, is developed in the little child's
relation to its mother; and to give it the power
of reverent yet unafraid dependence and loving
ligious life than can be done by forcing any
dimly understood theology on the little brain.
Again, it is probable that every exercise of
resentful or fretful feeling, every ebulli1ion of
temper, leaves its mark in a greater liability to
such exercise, or in a Jared nervous poise.
The wisest parents avoid rousing temper, in
stead of trying to control it when reused.
Plato says that ''the soul of the nursling
should be made cheerful and kind by keeping
away from him sorrow and fear and pain"
Froebel insists everywhere that steady,
cheerful and equable tenderness surround the
child, and especially that no sense OF injury, of
discomfort unnecessarily inflicted, shall breed
in him resentment and all evil passion. 1t is
a significant fact that mothers are less severe
with their latest children than their first, and
grandmothers are notably indulgent.
In the third place the power OF attention, L
am persuaded, is largely made or marred in the
earliest years. And this is the power, psycholo-
gists tell u.s. that is the basis of all others. "If
you can give child the power of sustained
attention. psychologist said to me, "you are
giving him the key TO all intellectual achieve
ment. Nothing will be impossible to him.
The baby must have enough occupation sup
piled him to keep his mind active, or he grows
up uninterested and inattentive, as may con-
stantly be seen in the children of the DOOR,
who, as babies, were set down anywhere and
left to themselves, or in the almost equally neg
lected children OF the rich, who have
been brought up by nursemaids. Froebel says
"From very earlv period, therefore, children
should never be left too long to themselves, on
beds or in cradles, without some external OBJ
ject to occupy them" have on another oeca-
sion called attention to the lovely aliyeness
and responsiveness that early appears in the
child whose natural craving for mental oceu-
patton has been amply ministered to; and the
difference is visible far on into school life.
But in modern American life we have in
troduced danger to the power of at
is the distraction and over-stimulation
of the power by a surplus of toys,
of amusements, of excitements The baby that
is flooded with expensive toys is perhaps even
in the back yard to contemplate his fingers,
without even the "immemorial string of
pfaything OF the baby to amuse themselves
with. An absorbed baby, SO deep in some in
vestigation or contemplation that it sees and
hears nothing else, is an actual temptation TO
many people to try to divert it in mere wan
tonness. The old rule, "Neyer disturb the
baby when he is good" may have rested on
purely utilitarian grounds, but it is sound ped
agogics.
1t would be sad If the fate of the human race
were to depend on any wisdom that only few
scholars could have. No one believes more in
entrusted the practical application of sound
principles about the environment of little
children mainly TO the good sense and sympa-
thy of mothers, even simple and unlearned
mothers; might say to their instinct, If the
word instinct were not used so much TO
mean the whims of silly people. Instinct GER
tainly will not make q silly woman good
mother. do not know any rules that will. 1t
seems pity such q woman could not be for
ever young and pretty enough to entertain
men that like Stiffness in women, for do not
know any other niche in life where she can be
useful. But give the baby. mother of
good sense and sincere love for her
child, and then let her be the child S
near comrade, and she will succeed well
enough in shaping his home environment if
she have fair chance She should be herself
her childs environment, and the wiser and
better she is the safer will ne dwell inside tba
sweet encrcling. If the father can be as one
with her in her influence, then it is doubly
well; and aunt, or grandmother, or older sis
ter, or brother las in Froebels case), have been
able to take the place of a mother or 10 supple
ment her influence. 1t is in the spirit which
makes in innate comradery with children DOS
sible that the power comes in; not in physio-
logical motherhood after all, and childless men
have had that spirit sometimes. FroebePs
.'Come, now, and let us live with our chill
dren" is the one rule. / cannot see what posi-
Bile right or temptation wealth or social occu-
pations can give to mother to sacrifice this
close comradery with her child, this intimate
personal care and responsibility for him.
Given this fine human environment it does