The National tribune., 1908-06-11
BY SONORA SARA.

into the custard. let it boil up just once
and take Immediately from the fire
We are nearing the hot months when
the infantile death rate will take its
annual abrupt upward turn. and in four
or five weeks this mortality will once
more show itself in its customary shock
ing totals. Much of it is due to milk,
and not necessarily to milk that was
impure before delivery. IL the parents
of the community wish to save the
babies, the remedy for the Summer ills
rests to a large extent with themselves.
Watchfulaess of the milk bottle from
this time on will go long way in pre-
venting the dreaded diseases which
mean so much to the countrys vital
statistics.
Just now great cry is being made
n New York about hungry school
children, and the rich society women
of the city are subscribing literally to
relieve the situation. 1t is not aiona
the children of the poor who go hum
CRY. The children of the well-to-do
are just as likely to go to school with
unnourished stOmachs as their poorer
classmates. This is a vital question which
concerns all mothers, and should be
carefully considered. The child that
rises just before school time and has
to rush to dress for school so as to
get there before the .'tardy' bell rings,
usually grabs piece of pie or cake.
and dashes off eating as ii runs I
have seen this done hundreds of
times. In fact, I used to do it myself.
And L can remember how fearfully
hungry i got before the noon hour.
was always in too big hurry to get
lunch ready to carry with me. A
blessed, good mother used to catch me
on the fly and make me carry a sand
wich of her good bread and butter,
with minced egg in it, or something
of that kind. and she tried very hard
TO break me of the pie and cake hab-
it. by having something that / could
eat in hurry, but unless the food
prepared could be taken in the hand.
l usually stuck to the pastry and
sweets.
Now, anybody with any sense at
all knows that such stuff is not fit
for a growing child to make a meal
on. 1t has not sustenance enough in
it, and the stomach of the child Graves
good, healthy food after the long
nights fast. That is, the child will
want the food if it is up and gets its
lungs full of good. fresh air, and has
bath and is fully Weakened up. The
half-asleep child will not wan. much OF
anything The hard work in school de-
mands that the mind and body shall
be properly nourished The simpler
the food and the llainer it is cooked.
The better. Not that child should
be denied sweets; they are absolutely
essential to the weIl-being of the .
child. Sugar will not hurt a child
given at the proper time. and pure
candy is good food if not taken in
excess and at the wrong time. TIE
Improperly neuriShed child has head
n 81 a hanLanna Gil he MI
a gone to pieces feeling. 1t is not
natural for the young to be complaint
ing, il they do something which is radi-
caliy wrong. and the "eating and
drinking should be attended to at
once: also the child should have plenty /.
of sleep in a room that has sunlight,
with open windows Summer and VIM
ter.
The philanthropy which supplies the
little slum waits with good bread and
butter is finer and more helpful than
that which gives them flowers when
they are ill, and street car ride once.
in so often. Flowers are beautiful. but
they are n luxury, not a necessity.
Bread and butter is luxury to many
and a necessity to all. Feed the child's
body, rather than his. artistic sense, il
you cannot feed both, and when the g
child arrives at maturity it will have ]
vitality and energy to provide its own
Injuries in time. There is a good deal
of maudlin sentimentalty about the
work for the very poor. but in the
many thousands of misdirected efforts
there Is always some good, so it is well
enough to let the work go on. But
feeding the child and teaching it to use
soap and water with religious feryor.
will bring about all reforms in time.