Milford chronicle., 1939-09-01
THE STRANGER CHILD
LAUHA uRAY

I
Miss Doane, maiden lady ol
means, adopted a baby from an
orphanage and named her Ann. A
couple OF years later she took another
child, Barbara, who was then two
years old. She cared for these lit
tie girls as any mother would for
her own; she dressed them dainJ-
! lily, had them taught music and took
them camping in the summer. Peo-
pie respected her highly for the way
she spent her time and money.
But as the children grew, Barbara
proved to be far more charming and
clever than her sister Ann, and an
unhappy rivalry sprang up between
the two. Barbara was popular both
at school and among friends. She
was promoted above Ann, and it
came about that this first child. who
was the fOster-mOther's favorite, was
more or less ignored by outsiders.
To remedy this, Miss Doane sent
Barbara back to the home. Imag-
inc the poor child's unhappines:i!
And. of course the injury to AIMS
character was no less serious.
Really adopting child embraces
more than giving him food, shelter,
intellectual advantages and pleas
ures. 1t includes providing the
security afforded by selfless love and
the development of mutual under
standing between the child and every
other member of the household. The
little stranger needs to know the
happy meaning of having folks.
Then he may forget he is an adopted
child He no longer is if all memb-
ers of the family have made him
their own.
A woman of my acquaintance once
Il woulden,t bring up
another PERSONS child, it might turn
out to be a failure"
So might our OwnI
Another remarked, my neigh
Dor adopted a daughter, and when
the thankless girl grew up, she went
away and left her mother!"
Isn't that what our own do? Why
should the foster child be expected
10 feel more grateful than other (
children?
Home" boys and girls in their !
-eens are sometimes sent to farms
where they work for their board and /
small wages. They are not consider ]
I'd hired hands, but foster child
en-.
Often one of these finds a happy .
home, where the parents take him
nto their large kindly hearts and /
heir children look upon the new
,Omer as a member of the family,
lot as family slave. Allowances
ire made for the strangers youth.
He is invited to share and contribute
o the happiness and well-being of
he household. He gets taste of
cal American home life.
Does he respond show himself
ppreciative? No matter whether he
oes or not. The family has done its
Iart, and who can say how deep the
influence has gone? Il
One of these boys had complained /
o his fostermother that be WASH I
Iaving as good a time as a friend of
is who'd been adopted into a house
old where there was radio and
line car. Did the woman i'll turn
omplain of the lads ingratitude- ,
ell her neighbOrs about it? Did she
hreaten to send him back to the !
lone? No; she explained to him |
nat all life was like that-some I
ere rich, some poor. She pointed q
ut that she was teaching him how !
} earn his own living, which was
etter than giving him luxuries, for !
he were attentive, industrious and /.
lithful, some day he'd be able to !,
ny luxuries for himself. She even \
,und ways in which he could earn &
xtra money in his spare time. so II
lat he could go to town occasionly y
} a good picture show.
The first time the boy started out q
n an evenings enjoyment of this v
md he turned and ran back hastily. u
hrs. Baldwin," he said, breathlessly u u
Won't you come too? l have enough =
oney for both of us, and - you - n
mt ever go to a show" d
With real pleasure the woman p
put on her coat and hat l.
Id went with him. The boy now b.
It himself one of the famliy-as M
sponsible for his foster-mother's r
joyment as for his own. u