Year: 1874

they are a year old. But respectable


mothers cannot do this. they are obligeC


to kill their babies at home, and give
them funeral; otherwise Mrs. Grundy
would be quite shocked


. In some families, as soon as the child
is washed and dressed, they give it mo
lasses and water. Its new and delicate
stomach has been constructed to hold
dozen or twenty drops, and to digest its
mothers milk, so when they force down
its throat three or four spoonfuls of mo
lasses and water, it soon begins to suffer
from indigestion and collie. Some pare
goric is given to relieve the pain, which
it does by paralyzing the sensory ganglia
at the base of the brain, and through re-
flex action, the motor nerves; the infant
now lies comatose and quiet, SO other
people can sleep in peace. The next
day it is fretful and restless Gas adults are
LATTER a debauch), and suffers from con-
stipation; dose of oil is given, which
acts as an emetic and purgative; it causes
gripping also, and more paragoric must be
| administered.


Between times the baby attempts to
get some food but it cannot be allowed
its natural nourishment-oh no! For
the object is to kill the troublesome lit
tie creature, SO they bring it up by the
| bottle; and instead of putting one-third
warm water and two-thirds of creamy
milk from healthy cow in the bottle,
they make an indigestible starch of
some sort and inflame the delicate stom-
ach with it. The baby feeds and starves
| and screams, more paregoric is given, and
then more oil. Soon paregoric loses its
effect, and, instead of administering once
for all good dose of strychnine or arse
| mic, the equally deadly but slower poison
of soothing syrup is doled out. Oil is
now useless to affect the already chronic
constipation, and a doctor is called in
who prescribes mercury because, as he
says, Il give mercury to children when
l wish to depress the powers of life"


Evidently the doctor understands that
he is expected to help the mother kill
the baby as quickly as possible, for
though he confesses that four grains of
colonel will sometime kill an adult, yet
he also confesses that from thirty to
sixty grains of calomel have been given
to very young children for Group" And
though he says "a single drop of lauda-
mum will often destroy the life of an IN
FAINT, and admits that there is at least
half drop of laudanum in every dose of
soothing syrup, yet he permits the infant
to have one or two doses a day of it.


But this depressing of the powers of
life is very trying to witness; the baby is
consumed by dry burning fever; it lies
motionless with wide imploriug eyes,
moaning in distressing tone; it refuses
food and wastes to a skeleton; it "hangs
like rag" as the nurse says, whenever
she takes it up; at times it is very rest
less, insists on being held in the arms
and walked with constantly, implores for
food every few minutes, and then will
not take it, cries for drink and screams
after drinking; on seeing its bottle of
Soothing syrup" is frantic for some, and
swallows it with the eagerness of an old
topper in "the trembles."


Still the little creature liAes on its
powers of existence is marvellous; it's
frail body is entirely adamantine. The
depressing system" is voted failure,
and another docter called in. This one
believes in the stimulating system" on
ly, and for stimulus he uses whisky.
Now if the infant was living on its natu-
raj food, and consequently receiving
some nourishment, 1t would simply un-
der this treatment grow up drunkard-
that's all But neither doctor nor par
ents desire this-the object being to
shol ten its existence-starch of barley
flour or some equally innutritious mate
rial is the sole food offered, and when
this turns sour from standing too long
pinch of baking soda is added to it be-
fore feeding the babyll did 1 not tell
you that these miserable little creatures
are severely punished for. intruding
themselves into respectable families
where they are not wanted?


OF course this practice soon finishes the
baby; it is really too stimulating, and he
is presently forced to succumb. An
adult would not have been able to endure
half so much starvation and torture;
but really an infant is very hard to kill
by any common means. All the adults
in the family are worn out by the tedious
and revolving process. 1t is, besides,
very expensive, involving nurses with all
their requirements, fashionable fees to
physicians, considerable outlay for med
icines, sedatives, and stimulants, and at
| last there is the funeral and the mourn
ing suits.


Now, for several reasons, would have
this process done away with. We live in
an age of motion-whether progressive
or not, is not to the point. We have done
away with various modes of torture that
were formerly practiced upon adults, and
why continue to needlessly torment lit
tie babies ? Since we are compelled to
kill them, why not adopt the quickest
and easiest mode of death Although
they have shown no consideration for us,
yet let US show generosity and magma
nimity towards them. 1t will be cheaper,
too, to kill them at birth, for then no
funeral will be called for, and no mourn
ing apparel needed.


We cannot very well administer at
that time deadly dose of strychnine or
arsenic, because these poisons, burning
and eating through the vitals, would
cause terrible screams and agonizing
writings, heart rending for even an ed
ucated parent to witness. And the Chi
nese fashion of drowning in tub of
cold water is open to similar objections
there is always struggle when want of
air causes the lungs to feel as if com
pressed in an iron vice.


The best and most humane plan of any
that have ever been tried, is for every
respectable family to keep large block
of wood outside the kitchen door, and
as soon as the baby has been properly
bathed and dressed, lay it down there
the clothing carefully protected by q
sheet of rubber cloth, and with large
sharp hatchet-chop it's head off There
will be only slight start, as of surprise
and it will soon be ready for b urial


from the Cincinnati Gazette.l