Evening journal., 1897-07-24
CARE OF INFANTS.
Lessons in Training should BE Given
EARLY.

The time when the mother should b..
gin to enforce obedience in an infant
child is often a matter for discussion.
1t is very difficult to convince some
young mothers that ''wee bit" Of pink
and white humanity is capable of any
independence of will, although they will
often attribute the most precocious in
diligence to the child in other matters.
Yet the desires of the baby for various
things, and often things it should not
have, begin to assert themselves before
the child shows intelligence in any other
way. Most babies seem fascinated by
the presence of an artificial light, and
will often lie blinking and staring at it
Mt night in the most quiescent manner
in a state of thorough wakefulness.
They quite often resent the removal of
the light with screams. Every intelli-
gent nurse knows that the light is very
bad for this young persons eyes, and if
it is kept in the room, however shaded,
the baby win keep awake staring at the
glow
The first lessons in training a child
"the way he should go" thus begin
when the little one is less than a month
old. Fortunately, this portion of the
baby's training is not usually left TO
the mother, but to the more or less eN-
perienced nurse, who is not likely to be
swerved from her duty from fear of the
consequences. 1t is positively neees-
sary TO the health of the child that it be
fed regularly and only at stated periods,
and that it sleeps regularly. The duty
Of the nurse it to regulate these hours
on hygienic basis. Many babies offer
some resistance to such a system, be-
cause they are too often in a disturbed
nervous condition from the attention of
overfond relatives. There are always
some foolish people with the kindest
intentions who insist on rousing babies
to see if they notice" yet, or in chuck
ing" them under the chin to see If they
''smile," and the performance of those
various idiotic tests of the child's in
telligence at a period when any such
display of intelligence would mean alb
normal precocity.
Unfortunately, such disturbers of the
nursery cannot always be kept away
1t is usually such persons who dilate on
the cruelty of refusing to feed n ''help'
less baby" every time he cries and OF
keeping him awake the two hours pre-
ceding his meals at six p. IN. in order
TO insure his sleeping steadily during
the night. He will then wake to be fec
two or three times, and will not wake
up until the birds, at sunrise. 1t seems
natural for healthy babies to get VI
with the birds and sun, and they art
probably healthier for il. 1t is no
I natural for them to lie awake at night
and if the light is not lit and they ar
! ! not taken up they soon allow themselve
to be cuddled into sleep when the,
!. do wake without rousing anyone bu
/ the nurse or their mother.
/ 1t requires some strength of viii t
= resist the apparent effort of young chill
i dren to break away from rules. bu
when the mother thoroughly realize
that the health of her child depend
upon her adherence to law and orde
in respect to it's meals and sleeping
hours, the first battle for authority ha
been won. If she insists when it is
. little older that 1t shall respect tn
y rights of others, and shall not destro
s or tear up articles of however trivia
e a value, another step has been taken i
j. the right way.
h 1t is very amusing to baby of eigh
d or nine months of age to rattle an
s tear paper, and many mothers anus
!, little ones who would be equally d'
lighted with a rattle in this way.
little later the toddling child begin
to tear up books and valuable paper
~ and it is dificnlt to break up hab
> that should not have been formed. tn
n same rule applies to the frequent hab
Y of allowing babies to pull the hair an
y scratch the faces of older children b.
: fore their efforts are sufficient TO pr'
e duce any pain. 1t teaches the helplei
u baby a bad lesson.-N. Y. Tribune.