The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-06-25
Home Nursing
Why Babies Are Inquisitive

FTHE woman in plum colored velvet looked reprovingly at the eighteen
 months old baby who was creep ing inquiringly about the room.
 "Chiidren should be kept in the nur- sery," she said, sotto voice, to her neighbor. while her hostess was across the room pouring tea. They are never happy unless they are touching things And she drew her own handsome skirts aside as the blue-eyed baby approached her.
 After cursory survey of her rather unfriendly face the baby went on calm ly to the woman on the divan and diyed happily at her handbag. 1t was red, sparkling with beads and utterably desirable.
 With a smile she gave it to him and he settled. gurgling with joy to play with it in the sunlight. Firing Of 1t, he went after sunbeam that was dancing on the carpet, and the women who watched him laughed aloud when his rosy fingers sought to capture 1t and his faced showed amazement when his hand closed on nothing. He locked disahpointed, then crept eagerly off after the-sunbeam again. sss1s Sszs
 "Children are really wonderful, don you think? said the woman who had four and never tired of talking about
 T really can't stand them until they get fo an interesting age" said the woman in the plum-colored velvet lm- natiently. sSticky, restless little crea- lures! I never see anything to love about them."'
 When she rose to go she clutched a tov Pomeranian to her portly bosom and at least three women darted glances of disapproval at her as she rustled out of the room.
 "If I wouldn't rather have baby any day than a dog to carry around said Mrs. Norton indignantly.
 The baby's mother rescued the gold fish bowl just as he was about to pun himself up by the enchanting affair, and hugged him close to her as she
 .sof course, poor dear, she isn't talk, ing from experience. She never had any children and she really doesn [ know wh t she has missed. l heard what she said about babies touching things, but to me that is one or the interesting things about little children. They are explorers from the minute
 
 everything they see and action is en- tirely initiative on their part. Babies, I find, love to touch things and seize upon them because they experience joy in setting things in motion. It is 2 new sensation. I feel that it would be wicked to try to repress this ten dency in a child. don't want a child of mine to grow up with Don't ringing in his ears."
 q should say not" said Mrs. Felton complacently, rocking comfortably and regarding the baby with compassion: Poor little lambs, they have enough of that when they grow up!"
 Babies have no knowledge ot dis tanee and their reach always exceeds their grasp,' contributed another mother. ''I expect that is why the noor little tads over-balance so often. i've always noticed that as. soon as my babies begin to learn the limitations of space they learn to pick up objects and carry them to their mouths with un- canny precision"
 "As soon as their teeth begin to bother them, you mean," said Mrs. Gregg, who was a materialist.
 "No, I don't agree with you," said the baby's mother "The reason babies put things in their mouths is that the mouth, lips and tongues are very sensi- tive, and there again you get the ldea / of sensations! Babies are curious lit tie niortals, always looking for some thing to discover
 And the wise mother will be pa- tient with her baby when he creeps around touching things and throwing them from him, because he is only de- veloping his sense of touch and knowt edge of distances, and proving that he is intelligent"