The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-08-24
TO TEACH CHILDREN TO WALK.
An Odd Mechanical Device Which Is
Used by the FilipinOs.
Washington Post.

Washington Post.
1t is somewhat remarkable that the
shrewd and dollar-hunting American, who
is now setting up in business in the Philip
pine islands, and from there branching out
in other quarters of the Malay archipelago,
, has thus far failed to make application for
patent on the Malay device for teaching
children TO walk. AS in all tropical coun-
tries, where there is an abundance of in
sects and reptiles, both large and small,
and where the chief aim of those erecting
houses is to render them cool posi-
BILE, the people of the Malay archipelago
build their bamboo habitations on posts.
piles, at some distance above the ground,
in order to insure free circulation Of air
under the buildings, and to, as far as pos
sible, prevent pestiferous insects and rep
tiles from entering their houses from the
ground.
Inasmuch also as the greater portion of
these people are rich farmers and fisher
men. and inhabiting the lowlands, they
have, in time, come to build little higher
above ground than is the case among most
tropical peoples.
When the Filipino sets out to build a
mouse there is one thing that he never
omits, that is to erect the apparatus by
means of which all his children will learn
! TO walk. This he does by cutting a hole
in the floor of his high and dry dwelling.
| through which he passes a long, hardwood
! pole sharpened at one end. which he drives
in the ground below, until the part in the
! mouse stands about nineteen or twenty
| inches above the floor.
He then makes that part of the hard
wood pole in the house firm and solid by
| driving wedges into the interstices formed
by the passage of the stake through the
/ split bamboo floor, and, when all this is
done, his next care is to secure a section
| of bamboo about half a foot longer than
! the length of the hardwood stake from
| its top to where it enters the floor and
/ double the circumference of the latter
This section of bamboo is, of course,
| hollow, and fits over the hardwood stake
| like glove. The apparatus is now about
|
| order TO be ready for business. This Mr..
! Filipino soon attends to. First, he bores
fnd hole lie through the two opposite walls Of
| extends upward about half a foot taller
than the stake, and into these two holes
he inserts a long, hardwood handle which
! extends ar right angles TO the upright
| stake and bamboo case, thus completing
the apparatus for teaching children TO
| walk
| The manner in which this curious ar
| rangement is operated is very simple
! When the mother of a family thinks that
| 1t is time for one of her youngsters to
learn to walk she simply places the child
| on its feet, and, with its hands grasping
| the bar or handle of wood extending out
| from the bamboo cylinder. Sometimes the
| child is tied by the w2ist to the handle
| which the yOungster grasps with that
| peculiar firmness characteristic of all chill
| dren and especially those of savage tribes
| and which, the evolutionists say, is leg
| acy from simian forefathers, who lived
| in trees and who were obliged to hold fast
| and firm 10 the limbs or fall. And the
4 minute that baby Tagalo does the pres
| sure of his body on the handle starts the
| bamboo cylinder TO revolving around the
| hardwood core, so that baby, fearing lest he
| fall, clings TO the rod with grim persever-
| ance, squalling for his mother and trying
| hard to support himself by the handle
| which continues slowly moving off and
| away from him. Thus. in an endeavor to
| keep pace with the slowly revolving CYL
| inder, the child learns in a short time To
| walk.