Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-03-09
TO ENTERTAIN BABY
NEVER CHOOSE NOISY TOYS FOR
SMALL INFANTS.
Simple Rattles With Bells, Worsted
Balls and Woolly Sheep Are
Just Right.

Do you kuOW q MISTAKE tndt many NOUN.
ers make? 1t Is that of oyer-entertaining
baby. It Is a serious mistake, too, for a
child who is born with a quiet -empera-
ment may be made nervous and excitable.
while one who is naturally nervous is quite
likely to be made Ill by overstimulation.
I 1t may seem rather a severe thing to say
keep an infant quiet" but this is most
necessary to good state of health. lit
tie amusement, of course. should be pro-
vided. but 1t must be quiet, and there
should not be much of it. One must never
forget that to excite baby sends up it's
normal temperature. and any one who stops
to consider knows that this is not desirable
Ii there Is one thing 1 would say most
emphatically it is do not let a baby see
many people 1t is not only exciting, but
sometimes frightens the child, and showing
an infant to strangers is thing of which
you should be chary. 1t is a great tempta-
ton, L know, because. of course 1t Is the
sweetest baby in the world, and you want
others to see it, but all the same 1 say
don {. This is not rule without excep-
tons. but when baby is brought down to
see visitors do not let them hold nfrn kiss
MIN or speak in any but low voice.
am strongly opposed to strangers hold
ing small child. An infant is keenly
susceptible to touch, and only those whom
the little one knows will hold him precisely
as he Is in the habit of being held. The
grasp OF an unknown person. however safe
1t may be, is apt to brighten a child, or at
ieast make 1t nervous, SO that it wishes
to go back to the arms it knows and is ac-
customed to. 1t isn't that the visions may
not understand perfectly how to hold a
baby, but it is that the grasp differs, If
ever little
1t would be absurd to advise not to let
the baby's grandmothers and aunts hold
ana play with it, and l do not believe in
such sweeping extremes. But I do say
positively that they Should hold him very
little and that their loving baby talk to
him should be low and quiet, so as not to
excite. Instead of taking the baby in their
arms, persuade them to let him stay on
the bed and play with him there The
child is SO much more comfortable braced
with some pillows. the little feet left free
to kick than when he is being held tight
i'll arms. He does not quickly become tired
in this way and when fatigue does come it
is muscular, healthy one and not that of
the nerves. caused somewhat by the nerv-
GUS condition of the one who has been hold
ing him.
All conversation before baby, even when
playing with him. should be quiet and there
should be no noises, for small children are
very susceptible to loud sounds, and the
start of some at the sudden banging of a
door or an unexpected noise is pathetic,
because of the nervous disposition it ind-
Gates. When baby shows by this that
1t Is of nervous disposition the mother
should make every effort to keep it quiet
and by that mean to keep excitement from
It, The effort should be to soothe, that the
infant may not develop into highly strung
child.
AS for the toys used to amuse babies
many that have made their appearance in
the past few years are noisy and should
not be bought. l am not including the lit
tie woolly lambs that b-a-a that we all
We're brought up with but I prohibit those
that make loud sounds. and do not believe
in elaborate playthings for children. For
nd tha tatf
The soft. many-eolored worsted balls in
which are little bells are good, and a rattle
l like rattle to have smooth ivory or
pearl handle that will do no harm when
it is put into the mouth, as Will certainly
happen. There is, however nothing yet in
vented that for an infants pleasure equals
Its own toes. There is a fascination about
trying to catch and hold these ten points
which is like nothing else.
For exercise and play put with him on
the bed his ball and rattle and let him
learn to amuse himself. He will speedily
do it.
Quite as important. to my mind as quiet
for the baby is shading of light for that
which is too strong is exciting to the nerves.
as well as trying for the eyes. / cannot
imagine that the youngest mother need be
told not to have light, however low, shine
directly in an infants eyes at night 1t is
incidentally quite as necessary that there
should not be too strong daylight in the
room. Sun there must be, by all means.
but the window shades should be partly
pulled down, so that, though the sun comes
in. the glare is tempered.
I am appalled, when in the streets while
snow is on the ground to see the many ba-
bies who are lying face up in their car
riages with eyes quite unprotected from
the sun. This is bad enough at any time.
but with the snow glare it is really dan
gerous. There is no protection to the eyes
from the little caps and not enough from
wells. darkened shade should be arrang-
ed for every carriage. If the carriage has
hood a green grenadine veil may be
strung on a tape and tied across the front
Of the hood. like curtain. This is well
away from the baby's face. giving it plenty
of air, and at the same time protection. If
the carriage has not a hood the same thing
may be done by taking a piece of rattan
and bending it into the carriage from each
side of the back Of the seat Its own spring
will hold 1t in place without other fastening