Pike County press. (Milford, Pa.) 1895-1925, 1909-10-15

1t may be owing to natural progress
sion or to mothers meetings. OF even
to the new babyless language that the
modern mother has introduced into
the nursery, but for some reason or
another infants have changed most
remarkably.
Fifty years ago baby in the house
made great deal more fuss and trou-
Bile than It does at the present day.
Judging from an unpreIudiced grand
mothers description OF her progeny
of long ago one Is forced to the con
clusion that they must have been
squalling. red-faced little creatures.
whose department was most ungracs-
ful and undignified. Evidently they
we're not possessed with an atom Of
self-respect and usually succeeded in
upsetting the whole household.
Just ask grandma how her babies
used to act You will be a pessimist
before she has had finished her story.
She viii relate tales that will harrow
your soul Your exhausted ear will
hear all about the long nights Of
Group. when the youngster had to be
shaken by the heels. stood on its head,
hung cut of the window. slapped on
the back. creased about the nose.
poulticed all over and compelled to
swallow spoonfuls of suiet melted
over a smoky lamp.
II they didn't have Group they had
collie, which required trotting and
bouncing and floor walking. rocking
the cradle. not to mention pints OF
catnip tea In those days catnip tea
was omplpresent. There was always
q cup OF 1t brewing on the back cf
the stove in every properly conducted
household. When a dose was admin.
lstered the attendance OF the entire
family was required. In many cases
the farmhands had to be called in to
assist
II took one person to hold the
squirming infant. another to grasp its
feet and still another to keep Its club.
by fists from doing damage to the
many faces bending solicitiously
above It. somebody held the spoon,
while mother adjusted one OF more
extra bibs. When all was ready a
eold-blooded relative grasped the slip
perry little nose and In a twinkling
the spoon and its contents were
spilled over the bibs and trickling
down baby's neck.
II nothing else was the matter,
then Its food didn't agree with II, or II
was cutting teeth or had broken out In
A rash. 1t was in a chronic state OF
JwalloTing tacks and pennies. It was
llways hungry and never SLEEPY. ex-
epi In the daytime when there was
company that particularly wanted to
see its eyes. All that day II would
slunber SO sweetly and afterward
make the night hldeous with its
'ereSms for light or somebody to
Amuse H.
All the Jokes about walking the
door were not jokes at all. NewspaD-
er pictures were not caricatures;
they we're drawn from history and are
Ill that is left to remind us OF the old.
fashioned baby.
The twentieth century Infant would
not delgn to Initiate the conduct Of
its ancestral Juvenile. In the first
place. more than half the Ills that a
baby was heir to In the long ago have
been forgotten or have been eliminat.
ed; consequently there is less crying
and not nearly so much attention de-
handed.
In the modern baby the imp OF the
jerveTse has been to a great extent
conquered. If It lies awake at night
1t is really in pain and not rampagins
because its mother is worn out or the
poor father unusually sleepy.
An Investigation nf the subject re.
yeais that In these times babies gen.
orally sleep soundly at night. eat reg.
ularly, take one or more maps during
the day and are usually well-behaved.
normal children.
They do not insist upon being rock.
ed to sleep. nor annoy those within
hearing distance by bowling hour
after hour just because they cannot
have the electrolier for a toy or the
auto horn to cut their teeth upon.
The Transformation does not seem
so remarkable when one gets down
to the philosophy of the matter. How
can two human beings act alike, when
one is talked to like this, Mowers
little lam. tum det 90 miki," and the
'ther is addressed. Dorothy. come
ret your milk"