The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-08-23
rHE BABY MADE THEM SLEEP.



with which to Sing rtself 70 sleep.
Yes, tho folks are all pretty well. thanks, '
said tho tired-looking family man in answer
10 his friends inquiry. THAT is to say,
they're as we'll as could be expected. You
sec they've lost good deal Of sleep lately
ON account OF the baby.
What Lord bless you, mol ,'Tisn't the
baby's crying that keeps en- awake. Why
the baby's UP in the country with it's mother.
| Had to send EN- away. Baby needed
the rest. That's why the rest OF the family
can't get to sleep
you don't understand? Well, Ill tell
| you
1T all started because my wife's mother
insisted on rocking the baby to sleep every
night. She's awfully fond of childre n,
anyhow, and particularly this one because.
although no can't talk a word yet, he once
made public a series OF noises that to her
ear sounded like grandmother To me 1t
sounded more like 'dambother, but, what
ever it was, it made an awful hit with the
old lady
We'll. every night after that she'd take
chair and start off on some such game as.
"sle-ee-eeep. my little one.
OO--ooo-eeoep.
Now, my wifes mothers temperament
fairly oozee music, but the baby takes more
after me and wouldn't know an adagioin
Asia Minor from a dinner whistle in Har-
lem.
$50, Of course, any lullaby the old lady'd
hand out would appeal TO her good deal
more than 1t did to the baby. While she'd
keep getting sleepier and eleepier the oaby'd
become frettier and frettier.
Consequence was that at the end Of an
hour or SO she'd be fast in the arms OF
Morpheus, while babyd be making bigger
holes In the silence than ever before.
When matters would reach that stage.
my wife's sist er Mary usually tip-toed over
quiet him you'd think Mary could.
She belongs to three or four mothers
clubs and knows a heap more about chill
dren than the baby's own mother does.
My wife, being married, you know. hasn't
got the time for all that sort Of thing.
But Marys 'Over-the-W West ern- se-eeeea
song didn't seem to make much more Of q
hit with the boy than the little vocal gem
which his grandmother rendered. Finally
when Mary had succumbed to her own
soothing Influence, Jennie would ask per-
mission to take hand.
Now. you'll think I'm knocking my wife's
relations. but I'm not at all Jennie's an
awfully nice woman. The only thing 10
her voice.
When she was young she had one OF
those very high sopranos, and it's become
more and more so. and lost weight as she's
grown older. Honest. after hearing her
sing, you wonder what made the canary
bird talk so gruff
But, anyhow, after all the others had
taken a whack at soothing my unresponeiye
son. Jennie would always butt In with her
little song recital As I've minated. her
voice isn't exactly suited to lullaby music,
and it would usually take at least five num-
bers before the sandman could DO per-
suaded to back up at her eyelids and dump
his load.
BY the line she got to sleep 1t used to be
IL o'clock, and it always took at least fifteen
minutes after that to convince tho baby
that tho house had really quieted down for
the night.
Il had letter from my wife the other
day saying that the baby was making up
for lost time and pounding the pillow to
beat the band. OF course, was glad to
| hear it. but 1t certainly does seem tough
that the rest OF the family should be left
without any one to sing themselves L sleep
on. doesn't itf"