The Waterbury Democrat., 1934-03-02
UYYQUR CHILDREN
Rx Olive Roberts Bsrtoo
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A house that is too flne can Io
 as much damage to cnlIds ue.e,-
 onn,enf os the house that Is too
 noor In this article, the fourth in
 i,er series on Child Training, Olive
 Roberts Barton points out the dh.
 ference between q "house" ai~
 "home."
 The ideal place to bring up
 family is a house-a house III
 heafthful neighborhood, with
 yard given partly to beauty anu
 partly to exercise ground.
 The house itself should be sa1e,
 ly plunbed and heated. It shoulu
 have enough windows to let in the
 sun and enough rooms to avoid
 crowding. The perfect way wouio
 be a room for each child but this is quite often impossible.
 However, space for groWlns children plays such a part Tn tnelI training that it is worth strlvIns for, even to sacrificing other tninss the parents may wish. The too close contacts of small quarters, the cramping of limbs and conse- uuently spirits, and the difficulty or order multiply the daily problems of a mother a hundred fold. Other Side of Picture Unfortunately the history of the depression is now being told III the chiIdren's records. Social tras-
 edy has resulted as well as pnyci-
 cal disaster. Children do not uo
 well in undesirable surroundings. Lest some of us are batting our selves on the back and surveying our own premises with a too com placent pride, the other side or the picture must be presented. There are houses that cost thou
 sands of dollars containing TOT tunes in furnishings and rugs, that l Are truer prisopS than anylnlnS found in the slams. ' Tn such a house we frequently find the mother (and father, too) setting more store by her posses sions than by her children. Indeed, almost all of us are guilty at least part of the time, even in our more modest homes. We buy tables and chairs that l mean too much to us, not that we ] haven't q right to nice things, TOT after all 1t is our castle as well as the children's, but we develop a certain protective policy about | Il l fairness toward the younger ones: Certain rooms are worshfpped or special articles enshrined. Ana we expect the children to develop | the eyes and feelings Of Il syco- phant and adore with us. s | They won't because they can l. Moreover they are impulsiVe, ac- tive, and prone to accidents. It IS all right to teach children to ad- mire beauty and to learn care ana order. but it takes time. They will ,Isualiv try to avoid hurting things because i've" like them, but their own sense of appreciation ana therefore their cherishing Will pc largely lacking. As a result we put an embargo on certain rooms and places ana pieces. Don't touch" becomes our war cry on every occasion. Ihe | house stays just house ana no. a home. If we go still further and do this with a child's own room we will find him courting the street corner or the homes of his frlenos' The Child's Room How may a child's room become | a place to stay out or rather lndn | to play in? How can we possibly he driving him away? By the sim ple expedient of making it part of our color scheme instead of his life. Too good to use-to perfect | to be mussed up. ,,,. By all means make any. childs room attractive. but attractive ac- cording to his standards rather than our own. A place, it should he. for all his possessions, and let
 us not shudder over them too much. A place to bring his friends to, rather than for our Mrs smith or our Mrs Jones to rave apou'' His room. Not our room.
 Two kinds of prisons-houses
 too poor and houses too fine. Both do damage. The child who lives in a real home is fortunate: Are we mothers housekeepers or home makers? There. is differ ence.
 NET-Knowledge, help not
 hindrance.
 (Copyright 1884. NEA Service 1ne)