What to do.—Notwithstanding these precautions, if the babe should still suffer, "One of the best and safest remedies for flatulence is Sal volatile,—a tea-spoonful of a solution of one drachm to an ounce and a half of water" [Footnote: Sir Charles Locock, in a Letter to the Author Since Sir Charles did me the honour of sending me, for publication, the above prescription for flatulence, a new "British Pharmacopoeia" has been published in which the sal volatile is much increased in strength it is therefore necessary to lessen the sal volatile in the above prescription one half—that is to say, a tea spoonful of the solution of half a drachm to an ounce and a half of water.] Or, a little dill or aniseed may be added to the food—half a tea-spoonful of dill water Or, take twelve drops of oil of dill, and two lumps of sugar, rub them well in a mortar together, then add, drop by drop, three table-spoonfuls of spring water, let it be preserved in a bottle for use. A tea-spoonful of this, first shaking the vial, may be added to each quantity of food. Or, three tea-spoonfuls of bruised caraway-seeds may be boiled for ten minutes in a tea-cupful of water, and then strained. One or two tea-spoonfuls of the caraway tea may be added to each quantity of his food, or a dose of rhubarb and magnesia may occasionally be given.
Opodeldoc, or warm olive oil, well rubbed, for a quarter of an hour at a time, by means of the warm hand, over the bowels, will frequently give relief. Turning the child over on his bowels, so that they may press on the nurses' lap, will often afford great comfort. A warm bath (where he is suffering severely) generally gives immediate ease in flatulence, it acts as a fomentation to the bowels. But after all, a dose of mild aperient medicine, when the babe is suffering severely, is often the best remedy for "wind."
Remember, at all times, prevention, whenever it be—and how frequently it is—possible, is better than cure.
What NOT to do—"Godfrey's Cordial," "Infants' Preservative," and "Dalby's Carminative," are sometimes given in flatulence, but as most of these quack medicines contain, in one form or another, either opium or poppy, and as opium and poppy are both dangerous remedies for children, ALL quack medicines must be banished the nursery.
Syrup of poppies is another remedy which is often given by a nurse to afford relief for flatulence; but let me urge upon you the importance for banishing it from the nursery. It has (when given by unprofessional persons) caused the untimely end of thousands of children. The medical journals and the newspapers teem with cases of deaths from mothers incautiously giving syrup of poppies to ease pain and to procure sleep.
98. What are the symptoms, the causes, and the treatment of "Gripings" of an infant?
The symptoms.—The child draws up his legs; screams violently; if put to the nipple to comfort him, he turns away from it and cries bitterly; he strains, as though he were having a stool; if he have a motion, it will be slimy, curdled, and perhaps green. If, in addition to the above symptoms, he pass a large quantity of watery fluid from his bowels, the case becomes one of watery gripes, and requires the immediate attention of a doctor.
The causes of "gripings" or "gripes" may proceed either from the infant or from the mother. If from the child, it is generally owing either to improper food or to over-feeding; if from the mother, it may be traced to her having taken either greens, or port, or tart beer, or sour porter, or pickles, or drastic purgatives.
What to do.—The treatment, of course, must depend upon the cause. If it arise from over-feeding, I would advise a dose of castor oil to be given, and warm fomentations to be applied to the bowels, and the mother, or the nurse, to be more careful for the future. If it proceed from improper food, a dose or two of magnesia and rhubarb in a little dill water, made palatable with simple syrup. [Footnote:
Take of—Powdered Turkey Rhubarb, half a scruple;
Carbonate of Magnesia, one scruple;
Simple Syrup, three drachms;
Dill Water, eight drachms;
Make a Mixture, One or two tea-spoonfuls (according to the age of the child) to be taken every four boors, until relief be obtained—first shaking the bottle.) If it arise from a mother's imprudence in eating trash, or from her taking violent medicine, a warm bath, a warm bath, indeed, let the cause of "griping" be what it may, usually affords instant relief.
Another excellent remedy is the following—Soak a piece of new flannel, folded into two or three thicknesses, in warm water, wring it tolerably dry, and apply as hot as the child can comfortably bear it to the bowels, then wrap him in a warm, dry blanket, and keep him, for at least half an hour, enveloped in it. Under the above treatment, he will generally soon fall into a sweet sleep, and awake quite refreshed.
What NOT to do—Do not give opiates, astringents, chalk, or any quack medicine whatever.
If a child suffer from a mother's folly in her eating improper food, it will be cruel in the extreme for him a second time to be tormented from the same cause.
99. What occasions Hiccup, and what is its treatment?
Hiccup is of such a trifling nature as hardly to require interference. It may generally be traced to over feeding. Should it be severe, four or five grains of calcined magnesia, with a little syrup and aniseed water, and attention to feeding are all that will be necessary.
100. Will you describe the symptoms of Infantile Diarrhoea?
Infantile diarrhoea, or cholera infantum, is one of the most frequent and serious of infantile diseases, and carries off, during the year, more children than any other complaint whatever a knowledge of the symptoms, therefore, is quite necessary for a mother to know, in order that she may, at the proper tune, call in efficient medical aid.
It will be well, before describing the symptoms, to tell you how many motions a young infant ought to have a day, their colour, consistence, and smell. Well, then, he should have from three to six motions in the twenty four hours, the colour ought to be a bright yellow, inclining to orange, the consistence should be that of thick gruel; indeed, his motion, if healthy, ought to be somewhat of the colour (but a little more orange-tinted) and of the consistence of mustard made for the table; it should be nearly, if not quite, devoid of smell; it ought to have a faint and peculiar, but not a strong disagreeable odour. If it have a strong and disagreeable smell, the child is not well, and the case should be investigated, more especially if there be either curds or lumps in the motions; these latter symptoms denote that the food has not been properly digested.
Now, suppose a child should have a slight bowel complaint—that is to say, that he has six or eight motions during the twenty-four hours,—and that the stools are of a thinner consistence than what I have described,—provided, at the same time, that he be not griped, that he have no pain, and have not lost his desire for the breast:—What ought to be done?Nothing. A slight looseness of the bowels should never be interfered with,—it is often an effort of nature to relieve itself of some vitiated motion that wanted a vent—or to act as a diversion, by relieving the irritation of the gums. Even if he be not cutting his teeth, he may be "breeding" them—that is to say, the teeth may be forming in his gums, and may cause almost as much, irritation as though he were actually cutting them. Hence, you see the immense good a slight "looseness of the bowels" may cause. I think that I have now proved to you the danger of interfering in such a case, and that I have shown you, the folly and the mischief of at once giving astringents—such as Godfrey's Cordial, Dalby's Carminative, &c.—to relieve a slight relaxation.
A moderate "looseness of the bowels," then, is often a safety-valve, and you may, with as much propriety, close the safety-valve of a steam engine, as stop a moderate "looseness of the bowels!"
Now, if the infant, instead of having from three to six motions, should have more than double the latter number; if they be more watery; if they become slimy and green, or green in part and curdled; if they should have an unpleasant smell; if he be sick, cross, restless, fidgety, and poorly; if every time he have a motion he be griped and in pain, we should then say that he is labouring under Diarrhoea; then, it will be necessary to give a little medicine, which I will indicate in a subsequent Conversation.
Should there be both blood and slime mixed with the stool, the case becomes more serious; still, with proper care, relief can generally be quickly obtained. If the evacuations—instead of being stool—are merely blood and slime, and the child strain frequently and violently, endeavouring thus, but in vain, to relieve himself, crying at each effort, the case assumes the character of Dysentery. [Footnote: See Symptoms and Treatment of Dysentery.]
If there be a mixture of blood, slime, and stool from the bowels, the case would be called Dysenteric-diarrhoea. The latter case requires great skill and judgment on the part of a medical men, and great attention and implicit obedience from the mother and the nurse. I merely mention these diseases in order to warn you of their importance, and of the necessity of strictly attending to a doctor's orders.
101. What are the causes of Diarrhoea—"Looseness of the bowels?"
Improper food; overfeeding; teething; cold; the mother's milk from various causes disagreeing, namely, from her being out of health, from her eating unsuitable food, from her taking improper and drastic purgatives, or from her suckling her child when she is pregnant. Of course, if any of these causes are in operation, they ought, if possible, to be remedied, or medicine to the babe will be of little avail.
102. What is the treatment of Diarrhoea?
What to do.—If the case be slight, and has lasted two or three days (do not interfere by giving medicine at first), and if the cause, as it probably is, be some acidity or vitiated stool that wants a vent, and thus endeavours to obtain one by purging, the best treatment is, to assist nature by giving either a dose of castor oil, or a moderate one of rhubarb and magnesia, [Footnote: For a rhubarb and magnesia mixture prescription, see page 71 (note).] and thus to work off the enemy. After the enemy has been worked off, either by the castor oil, or by the magnesia and rhubarb, the purging will, in all probability, cease; but if the relaxation still continue, that is to say, for three or four days—then, if medical advice cannot be procured, the following mixture should be given:—
Take of—Aromatic Powder of Chalk and Opium, ten grains;
Oil of Dill, five drops;
Simple Syrup, three drachms;
Water, nine drachms;
Make a Mixture, [Footnote: Let the mixture be made by a chemist.] Half a tea-spoonful to be given to an infant of six months and under, and one tea-spoonful to a child above that age, every four hours—first shaking the bottle.
If the babe be at the breast, he ought, for a few days, to be kept entirely to it. The mother should be most particular in her own diet.
What NOT to do.—The mother must neither take greens, nor cabbage, nor raw fruit, nor pastry, nor beer; indeed, while the diarrhoea of her babe continues, she had better abstain from wine, as well as from fermented liquors. The child, if at the breast, ought not, while the diarrhoea continues, to have any artificial food. He must neither be dosed with grey-powder (a favourite, but highly improper Remedy, in these cases), nor with any quack medicines, such as Dalby's Carminative or Godfrey's Cordial.
103. What are the symptoms of Dysentery?
Dysentery frequently arises from a neglected diarrhoea. It is more dangerous than diarrhoea, as it is of an inflammatory character; and as, unfortunately, it frequently attacks a delicate child, requires skilful handling; hence the care and experience required in treating a case of dysentery.
Well, then, what are the symptoms? The infant, in all probability, has had an attack of diarrhoea—bowel complaint as it is called—for several days; he having had a dozen or two of motions, many of them slimy and frothy, like "frog-spawn," during the twenty-four hours. Suddenly the character of the motion changes,—from being principally stool, it becomes almost entirely blood and mucus; he is dreadfully griped, which causes him to strain violently, as though his inside would come away every time he has a motion,—screaming and twisting about, evidently being in the greatest pain, drawing his legs up to his belly and writhing in agony. Sickness and vomiting are always present, which still more robs him of his little remaining strength, and prevents the repair of his system. Now, look at his face! It is the very picture of distress. Suppose he has been a plump, healthy little fellow, you will see his face, in a few days, become old-looking, care-worn, haggard, and pinched. Day and night the enemy tracks him (unless proper remedies be administered); no sleep, or if he sleep, he is, every few minutes, roused. It is heart-rending to have to attend a bad case of dysentery in a child,—the writhing, the screaming, the frequent vomiting, the pitiful look, the rapid wasting and exhaustion, make it more distressing to witness than almost any other disease a doctor attends.
104. Can anything be done to relieve such a case?
Yes. A judicious medical man will do a great deal. But, suppose that yon are not able to procure one, I will tell you what to do and what NOT to do.
What to do.—If the child be at the breast, keep him to it, and let him have nothing else for dysentery is frequently caused by improper feeding. If your milk be not good, or it be scanty, instantly procure a healthy wet-nurse. Lose not a moment; for in dysentery, moments are precious. But, suppose that you have no milk, and that no wet-nurse can be procured: what then? Feed him entirely on cow's milk—the milk of one healthy cow; let the milk be unboiled, and be fresh from the cow. Give it in small quantities at a time, and frequently, so that it may be retained on the stomach. If a table-spoonful of the milk make him sick, give him a dessert-spoonful; if a dessert-spoonful cause sickness, let him only have a tea-spoonful at a time, and let it be repeated every quarter of an hour. But, remember, in such a case the breast milk—the breast milk alone—is incomparably superior to any other milk or to any other food whatever.
If he be a year old, and weaned, then feed him, as above recommended, on the cow's milk. If there be extreme exhaustion and debility, let fifteen drops of brandy be added to each table-spoonful of new milk, and let it be given every half hour.
Now with regard to medicine. I approach this part of the treatment with some degree of reluctance,—for dysentery is a case requiring opium—and opium I never like a mother of her own accord to administer. But suppose a medical man cannot be procured in time, the mother must then prescribe, or the child will die! What then is to be done? Sir Charles Locock considers "that, in severe dysentery, especially where there is sickness, there is no remedy equal to pure Calomel, in a full dose without opium." [Footnote: Communicated by Sir Charles Locock to the Author.] Therefore, at the very onset of the disease, let from three to five grains (according to the age of the patient) of Calomel, mixed with an equal quantity of powdered white sugar, be put dry on the tongue. In three hours after let the following mixture be administered:—
Take of—Compound Powder of Ipecacuanha, five grains;
Ipecacuanha Wine, one drachm;
Simple Syrup, three drachms;
Cinnamon Water, nine drachms;
To make a Mixture, A tea-spoonful to be given every three or four hours, first well shaking the bottle.
Supposing he cannot retain the mixture—the stomach rejecting it as soon as swallowed—what then? Give the opium, mixed with small doses of mercury with chalk and sugar, in the form of powder, and put one of the powders dry on the tongue, every three hours:—
Take of—Powdered Opium, half a grain;
Mercury with chalk, nine grains;
Sugar of Milk, twenty-four grains;
Mix well in a mortar, and divide into twelve powders.
Now, suppose the dysentery has for several days persisted, and that, during that time, nothing but mucus and blood—that no real stool—has come from the bowels, then a combination of castor oil and opium [Footnote: My friend, the late Dr Baly, who had made dysentery his particular study, considered the combination of opium and castor oil very valuable in dysentery.] ought, instead of the medicine recommended above, to be given:—
Take of—Mucilage of Gum Acacia, three drachms;
Simple Syrup, three drachms;
Tincture of Opium, ten drops (not minims);
Castor Oil, two drachms;
Cinnamon water, four drachms:
Make a Mixture. A tea spoonful to be taken every four hours, first well shaking the bottle.
A warm bath, at the commencement of the disease, is very efficacious; but it must be given at the commencement. If he has had dysentery for a day or two, he will be too weak to have a warm bath; then, instead of the bath, try the following:—Wrap him in a blanket, which has been previously wrung out of hot water; over which envelope him in a dry blanket. Keep him in this hot, damp blanket for half an hour; then take him out, put on his nightgown and place him in bed, which has been, if it be winter time, previously warmed. The above "blanket treatment" will frequently give great relief, and will sometimes cause him to fall into a sweet sleep. A flannel bag, filled with hot powdered table salt, made hot in the oven, applied to the bowels, will afford much comfort.
What NOT to do.—Do not give aperients unless it be, as before advised, the castor oil guarded with the opium; do not stuff him with artificial food; do not fail to send for a judicious and an experienced medical man; for, remember, it requires a skilful doctor to treat a case of dysentery, more especially in a child.
105. What are the symptoms, the causes and the treatment of Nettle-rash?
Nettle-rash consists of several irregular, raised wheals, red at the base, and white on the summit, on different parts of the body; but it seldom attacks the face. It is not contagious, and it may occur at all ages and many times. It comes and goes, remaining only a short time in a place. It puts on very much the appearance of the child having been stung by nettles—hence its name. It produces great heat, itching, and irritation, sometimes to such a degree as to make him feverish, sick, and fretful. He is generally worse when he is warm in bed, or when the surface of his body is suddenly exposed to the air. Rubbing the skin, too, always aggravates the itching and the tingling, and brings out a fresh crop.
The cause of nettle-rash may commonly be traced to improper feeding; although, occasionally, it proceeds from teething.
What to do.—It is a complaint of no danger, and readily gives way to a mild aperient, and to attention to diet. There is nothing better to relieve the irritation of the skin than a warm bath. If it be a severe attack of nettle-rash, by all means call in a medical man.
What NOT to do.—Do not apply cold applications to his skin, and do not wash him (while the rash is out) in quite cold water. Do not allow him to be in a draught, but let him be in a well-ventilated room. If he be old enough to eat meat, keep it from him for a few days, and let him live on milk and farinaceous diet. Avoid strong purgatives, and calomel, and grey-powder.
106. What are the symptoms and the treatment of Red-gum?
Red-gum, tooth-rash, red-gown, is usually owing to irritation from teething; not always from the cutting but from the evolution—the "breeding," of the teeth. It is also sometimes owing to unhealthy stools irritating the bowels, and showing itself, by sympathy, on the skin. Red-gum consists of several small papulae, or pimples, about the size of pins' heads, and may be known from measles—the only disease for which it is at all likely to be mistaken—by its being unattended by symptoms of cold, such as sneezing, running, and redness of the eyes, &c., and by the patches not assuming a crescentic—half-moon shape; red-gum, in short, may readily he known by the child's health being unaffected, unless, indeed, there be a great crop of pimples; then there will be slight feverishness.
What to do.—Little need be done. If there be a good deal of irritation, a mild aperient should be given. The child ought to be kept moderately, but not very warm.
What NOT to do.—Draughts of air, or cold should be carefully avoided; as, by sending the eruption suddenly in, either convulsions or disordered bowels might be produced. Do not dose him with grey-powder.
107. How would you prevent "Stuffing of the nose" in a new-born babe?
Rubbing a little tallow on the bridge of the nose is the old-fashioned remedy, and answers the purpose. It ought to be applied every evening just before putting him to bed. If the "stuffing" be severe, dip a sponge in hot water, as hot as he can comfortably bear; ascertain that it be not too hot, by previously applying it to your own face, and then put it for a few minutes to the bridge of his nose. As soon as the hard mucus is within reach, it should be carefully removed.
108. Do you consider sickness injurious to an infant?
Many thriving babies are, after taking the breast, frequently sick; still we cannot look upon sickness otherwise than as an index of either a disordered or of an overloaded stomach. If the child be sick, and yet be thriving, it is a proof that he overloads his stomach. A mother, then, must not allow him to suck so much, at a time. She should, until he retain all he takes, lessen the quantity of milk. If he be sick and does not thrive, the mother should notice if the milk he throws up has a sour smell; if it have, she must first of all look to her own health; she ought to ascertain if her own stomach be out of order; for if such be the case, it is impossible for her to make good milk. She should observe whether in the morning her own tongue be furred and dry; whether she have a disagreeable taste in her mouth, or pains at her stomach, or heart-burn, or flatulence. If she have all, or any of these symptoms, the mystery is explained why he is sick and does not thrive. She ought then to seek advice, and a medical man will soon put her stomach into good order; and, by so doing, will, at the same time, benefit her child.
But if the mother be in the enjoyment of good health, she must then look to the babe himself, and ascertain if he be cutting his teeth; if the gums require lancing; if the secretions from the bowels be proper both in quantity and in quality; and, if he have had artificial food—it being absolutely necessary to give such food—whether it agree with him.
What to do.—In the first place, if the gums be red, hot, and swollen, let them be lanced; in the second, if the secretion from the bowels be either unhealthy or scanty, give him a dose of aperient medicine, such as caster oil, or the following:—Take two or three grains of powdered Turkey rhubarb, three grains of pure carbonate of magnesia, and one grain of aromatic powder—Mix. The powder to be taken at bed-time, mixed in a tea-spoonful of sugar and water, and which should, if necessary, be repeated the following night. In the third place, if the food he be taking does not agree with him, change it (vide answer to question 33). Give it in smaller quantities at a time, and not so frequently; or what will be better still, if it be possible, keep him, for a while, entirely to the breast.
What NOT to do.—Do not let him overload his stomach either with breast milk, or with artificial food. Let the mother avoid, until his sickness be relieved, greens, cabbage, and all other green vegetables.
109. What are the causes, the symptoms, the prevention, and the cure of Thrush?
The thrush is a frequent disease of an infant, and is often brought on either by stuffing or by giving him improper food. A child brought up entirely, for the first three or four months, on the breast, seldom suffers from this complaint. The thrush consists of several irregular, roundish, white specks on the lips, the tongue, the inside and the angles of the mouth, giving the parts affected the appearance of curds and whey having been smeared upon them. The mouth is hot and painful, and he is afraid to suck; the moment the nipple is put to his mouth he begins to cry. The thrush, sometimes, although but rarely, runs through the whole of the alimentary canal. It should be borne in mind that nearly every child, who is sucking, has his or her tongue white or "frosted," as it is sometimes called. The thrush may be mild or very severe.
Now with regard to what to do.—As the thrush is generally owing to improper and to artificial feeding, if the child be at the breast, keep him, for a time, entirely to it. Do not let him be always sucking, as that will not only fret his month, but will likewise irritate and make sore the mother's nipple.
If he be not at the breast, but has been weaned, then keep him for a few days entirely to a milk diet—to the milk of ONE cow—either boiled, if it be hot weather, to keep it sweet; or unboiled, in cool weather—fresh as it comes from the cow, mixed with warm water.
The best medicine is the old-fashioned one of Borax, a combination of powdered lump-sugar and borax being a good one for the purpose: the powdered lump-sugar increases the efficacy, and the cleansing properties of the borax; it tends, moreover, to make it more palatable.—
Take of—Borax, half a drachm;
Lump Sugar, two scruples;
To be well mixed together, and made into twelve powders. One of the powders to be put dry on the tongue every four hours.
The best local remedy is Honey of Borax, which ought to be smeared frequently, by means of the finger, on the parts affected.
Thorough ventilation of the apartment must be observed; and great cleanliness of the vessels containing the milk should be insisted upon.
In a bad case of thrush, change of air to the country is most desirable; the effect is sometimes, in such cases, truly magical.
If the thrush be brought on either by too much or by improper food; in the first case of course, a mother must lessen the quantity; and, in the second, she should be more careful in her selection.
What NOT to do.—Do not use either a calf's teat or wash leather for the feeding-bottle; fortunately, since the invention of India-rubber teats, they are now nearly exploded; they were, in olden times, fruitful causes of thrush. Do not mind the trouble of ascertaining that the cooking-vessels connected with the baby's food are perfectly clean and sweet. Do not leave the purity and the goodness of the cow's milk (it being absolutely necessary to feed him on artificial food) to be judged either by the milk-man, or by the nurse, but taste and prove it yourself. Do not keep the milk in a warm place, but either in the dairy or in the cellar; and, if it be summer time, let the jug holding the milk be put in a crock containing lumps of ice. Do not use milk that has been milked longer than twelve hours, but if practicable, have it milked direct from the cow, and use it immediately—let it be really and truly fresh and genuine milk.
When the disease is severe, it may require more active treatment—such as a dose of calomel; which medicine must never be given unless it be either under the direction of a medical man, or unless it be in an extreme case,—such as dysentery; [Footnote: See the Treatment of Dysentery.] therefore, the mother had better seek advice.
In a severe case of thrush, where the complaint has been brought on by artificial feeding—the babe not having the advantage of the mother's milk—it is really surprising how rapidly a wet-nurse—if the case has not been too long deferred—will effect a cure, where all other means have been tried and have failed. The effect has been truly magical! In a severe case of thrush pure air and thorough ventilation are essential to recovery.
110. Is anything to be learned from the cry of an infant?
A babe can only express his wants and his necessities by a cry; he can only tell his aches and his pains by a cry; it is the only language of babyhood; it is the most ancient of all languages; it is the language known by our earliest progenitors; it is, if listened to aright, a very expressive language, although it is only but the language of a cry—
"Soft infancy, that nothing canst but cry."—Shakspeare.
There is, then, a language in the cry of an infant, which to a mother is the most interesting of all languages, and which a thoughtful medical man can well interpret. The cry of a child, to an experienced doctor, is, each and all, a distract sound, and is as expressive as the notes of the gamut. The cry of passion, for instance, is a furious cry; the cry of sleepiness is a drowsy cry; the cry of grief is a sobbing cry; the cry of an infant when roused from sleep is a shrill cry; the cry of hunger is very characteristic,—it is unaccompanied with tears, and is a wailing cry; the cry of teething is a fretful cry; the cry of pain tells to the practised ear the part of pain; the cry of ear-ache is short, sharp, piercing, and decisive, the head being moved about from side to side, and the little hand being often put up to the affected side of the head; the cry of bowel-ache is also expressive,—the cry is not so piercing as from ear-ache, and is an interrupted, straining cry, accompanied with a drawing-up of the legs to the belly; the cry of bronchitis is a gruff and phlegmatic cry; the cry of inflammation of the lungs is more a moan than a cry; the cry of croup is hoarse, and rough, and ringing, and is so characteristic that it may truly be called "the croupy cry;" the cry of inflammation of the membranes of the brain is a piercing shriek—a danger signal—most painful to hear; the cry of a child recovering from a severe illness is a cross, and wayward, and tearful cry; he may truly be said to be in a quarrelsome mood; he bursts out, without rhyme or reason, into a passionate flood of tears—into "a tempest of tears:" tears are always, in a severe illness, to be looked upon as a good omen, as a
"The tears that heal and bless"—H. Bonar.
Tears, when a child is dangerously ill, are rarely, if ever, seen; a cry, at night, for light—a frequent cause of a babe crying—is a restless cry:—
"An infant—crying in the night;
An infant crying for the light:
And with no language hat a cry."—Tennyson.
111. If an infant be delicate, have you any objection to his having either veal or mutton broth, to strengthen him?
Broths seldom agree with a babe at the breast I have known them produce sickness, disorder the bowels, and create fever. I recommend you, therefore, not to make the attempt.
Although broth and beef-tea, when taken by the mouth, will seldom agree with an infant at the breast, yet, when used as an enema, and in small quantities, so that they may be retained, I have frequently found them to be of great benefit, they have in some instances appeared to have snatched delicate children from the brink of the grave.
112. My baby's ankles are very weak: what do you advise to strengthen them?
If his ankles be weak, let them every morning be bathed, after the completion of his morning's ablution, for fire minutes each time, with bay-salt and water, a small handful of bay-salt dissolved in a quart of rain water (with the chill of the water off in the winter, and of its proper temperature in the summer time); then let them be dried; after the drying, let the ankles he well rubbed with the following liniment:—
Take of—Oil of Rosemary, three drachms;
Liniment of Camphor, thirteen drachms:
To make a Liniment
Do not let him be put on his feet early; but allow him to crawl, and sprawl, and kick about the floor, until his body and his ankles become strong.
Do not, on any account, without having competent advice on the subject, use iron instruments, or mechanical supports of any kind: the ankles are generally, by such artificial supports, made worse, in consequence of the pressure causing a further dwindling away and enfeebling of the ligaments of the ankles, already wasted and weakened.
Let him wear shoes with straps over the insteps to keep them on, and not boots: boots will only, by wasting the ligaments, increase the weakness of the ankles.
113. Sometimes there is a difficulty in restraining the bleeding of leech bites. What is the best method?
The difficulty in these cases generally arises from the improper method of performing it. For example—a mother endeavours to stop the haemorrhage by loading the part with rag; the more the bites discharge, the more rag she applies. At the same time, the child probably is in a room with a, large fire, with two or three candles, with the doors closed, and with perhaps a dozen people in the apartment, whom the mother has, in her fright, sent for. This practice is strongly reprehensible.
If the bleeding cannot be stopped,—in the first place, the fire most be extinguished, the door and windows should be thrown open, and the room ought to be cleared of persons, with the exception of one, or, at the most, two; and every rag should be removed. "Stopping of leech bites.—The simplest and most certain way, till the proper assistance is obtained, is the pressure of the finger, with nothing intervening. It cannot bleed through that." [Footnote: Sir Charles Locock, in a Letter to the Author.]
Many babies, by excessive loss of blood from leech bites, have lost their lives from a mother not knowing how to act, and also from the medical man either living at a distance, or not being at hand. Fortunately for the infantile community, leeches are now very seldom ordered by doctors.
114. Supposing a baby to be poorly, have you any advice to give to his mother as to her own management?
She must endeavour to calm her feelings or her milk will be disordered, and she will thus materially increase his illness. If he be labouring under any inflammatory disorder, she ought to refrain from the taking of beer, wine, and spirits, and from all stimulating food; otherwise, she will feed his disease.
Before concluding the first part of my subject—the Management of Infancy—let me again urge upon you the importance—the paramount importance—if you wish your babe to be strong and hearty,—of giving him as little opening physic as possible. The best physic for him is Nature's physic—fresh air, and exercise, and simplicity of living. A mother who is herself always drugging her child, can only do good to two persons—the doctor and the druggist!
If an infant from his birth be properly managed,—if he have an abundance of fresh air for his lungs,—if he have plenty of exercise for his muscles (by allowing him to kick and sprawl on the floor),—if he have a good swilling and sousing of water for his skin,—if, during the early months of his life, he have nothing but the mother's milk for his stomach,—he will require very little medicine—the less the better! He does not want his stomach to be made into a doctor's shop! The grand thing is not to take every opportunity of administering physic, but of using every means of with-holding it! And if physic be necessary, not to doctor him yourself, unless it be in extreme and urgent cases (which in preceding and succeeding Conversations I either have or will indicate), but to employ an experienced medical man. A babe who is always, without rhyme or reason, being physicked, is sure to be puny, delicate, and unhealthy, and is ready at any moment to drop into an untimely grave!
I will maintain that a healthy child never requires drugging with opening physic, and that costiveness is brought on by bad management. Aperient medicines to a healthy child are so much poison! Let me impress the above remarks on every mother's mind; for it is a subject of vital importance. Never, then, give a purgative to a healthy child; for, if he be properly managed, he will never require one. If you once begin to give aperients, you will find a difficulty discontinuing them. Finally, I will only say with Punch,—"Don't"
CONCLUDING REMARKS ON INFANCY.
115. In concluding the first part of our subject—Infancy—I beg to remark: there are four things essentially necessary to a babe's well-doing, namely, (1) plenty of water for his skin; (2) plenty of fresh genuine milk mixed with water for his stomach (of course, giving him ONLY his mother's milk during the first six, eight, or nine months of his existence); (3) plenty of pure air for his lungs; (4) plenty of sleep for his brain: these are the four grand essentials for an infant; without an abundance of one and all of them, perfect health is utterly impossible! Perfect health! the greatest earthly blessing, and more to be coveted than ought else beside! There is not a more charming sight in the universe than the beaming face of a perfectly healthy babe,—
"His are the joys of nature, his the smile,
The cherub smile, of innocence and health."—Knox.
PART II.
CHILDHOOD.
The child is father of the man.—WORDSWORTH. Bairns are blessings—SHAKESPEARE. These are MY jewels!—CORNELLA.
ABLUTION.
116. At twelve months old, do you still recommend a child to be PUT IN HIS TUB to be washed?
Certainly I do, as I have previously recommended at page 6, in order that his skin may be well and thoroughly cleansed. If it be summer time, the water should be used cold; if it be winter, a dash of warm must be added, so that it may be of the temperature of new milk: but do not, on any account use very warm water. The head must be washed (but not dried) before he be placed in a tub, then, putting him in the tub (containing the necessary quantity of water, and washing him as previously recommended), [Footnote: See Infancy-Ablution, page 6.] a large sponge should be filled with the water and squeezed over his head, so that the water may stream over the whole surface of his body. A jugful of water should, just before taking him out of his bath, be poured over and down his loins; all this ought rapidly to be done, and he must be quickly dried with soft towels, and then expeditiously dressed. For the washing of your child I would recommend you to use Castile soap in preference to any other; it is more pure, and less irritating, and hence does not injure the texture of the skin. Take care that the soap does not get into his eyes, or it might produce irritation and smarting.
117. Some mothers object to a child's STANDING in the water.
If the head be wetted before he be placed in the tub, and if he be washed as above directed, there can be no valid objection to it. He must not be allowed to remain in his tab more than five minutes.
118. Does not washing the child's head, every morning, make him more liable to catch cold, and does it not tend to weaken his sight?
It does neither the one nor the other; on the contrary, it prevents cold, and strengthens his sight; it cleanses his scalp, prevents scurf, and, by that means, causes a more beautiful bead of hair. The head, after each washing, ought, with a soft brush, to be well brushed, but should not be combed. The brushing causes a healthy circulation of the scalp; but combing the hair makes the head scurfy, and pulls out the hair by the roots.
119. If the head, notwithstanding the washing, be scurfy, what should be done?
After the head has been well dried, let a little cocoa-nut oil be well rubbed, for five minutes each time, into the roots of the hair, and, afterwards, let the head be well brushed, but not combed. The fine-tooth comb will cause a greater accumulation of scurf, and will scratch and injure the scalp.
120. Do you recommend a child to be washed IN HIS TUB every night and morning?
No; once a day is quite sufficient; in the morning in preference to the evening; unless he be poorly, then, evening instead of morning; as, immediately after he has been washed and dried, he can be put to bed.
121. Ought a child to be placed in his tub whilst he is in a state of perspiration?
Not whilst he is perspiring violently, or the perspiration might he checked suddenly, and ill consequences would ensue; nor ought he to be put in his tub when he is cold, or his blood would be chilled, and would be sent from the skin to some internal vital part, and thus would be likely to light up inflammation—probably of the lungs. His skin, when he is placed in his bath, ought to be moderately and comfortably warm; neither too hot nor too cold.
122. When the child is a year old, do you recommend cold or warm water to be used?
If it be winter, a little warm water ought to be added, so as to raise the temperature to that of new milk. As the summer advances, less and less warm water is required, so that, at length, none is needed.
123. If a child be delicate, do you recommend anything to be added to the water which may tend to brace and strengthen him?
Either a handful of table-salt, or half a handful of bay-salt, or of Tidman's sea-salt, should be previously dissolved in a quart jug of cold water; then, just before taking the child out of his morning bath, let the above be poured over and down the back and loins of the child—holding the jug, while pouring its contents on the back, a foot distant from the child, in order that it might act as a kind of douche bath.
124. Do you recommend the child, after he has been dried with the towel, to be rubbed with the hand?
I do; as friction encourages the cutaneous circulation, and causes the skin to perform its functions properly, thus preventing the perspiration (which is one of the impurities of the body) from being sent inwardly either to the lungs or to other parts. The back, the chest, the bowels, and the limbs are the parts that ought to be well rubbed.
CLOTHING
125. Have you any remarks to make on the clothing of a child?
Children, boys and girls, especially if they be delicate, ought always to wear high dresses up to their necks. The exposure of the upper part of the chest (if the child be weakly) is dangerous. It is in the upper part of the lungs, in the region of the collar bones, that consumption first shows itself. The clothing of a child, more especially about the chest, should be large and full in every part, and be free from tight strings, so that the circulation of the blood may not be impeded, and that there may be plenty of room for the fall development of the rapidly-growing body.
His frock, or tonic, ought to be of woollen material—warm, light, and porous, in order that the perspiration may rapidly evaporate. The practice of some mothers in allowing their children to wear tight bands round their waists, and tight clothes, is truly reprehensible.
Tight bands or tight belts around the waist of a child are very injurious to health; they crib in the chest, and thus interfere with the rising and the falling of the ribs—so essential to breathing. Tight hats ought never to be worn; by interfering with the circulation they cause headaches. Nature delights in freedom, and resents interference!
126. What parts of the body in particular ought to be kept warm?
The chest, the bowels, and the feet, should be kept comfortably warm. We must guard against an opposite extreme, and not keep them too hot. The head alone should be kept cool, on which account I do not approve either of night or of day caps.
127. What are the best kinds of hat for a child?
The best covering for the head, when he is out and about, is a loose-fitting straw hat, which will allow the perspiration to escape. It should have a broad rim, to screen the eyes. A sun-shade, that is to say, a sea-side hat—a hat made of cotton—with a wide brim to keep off the sun, is also an excellent hat for a child; it is very light, and allows a free escape of the perspiration. It can be bought, ready made, at a baby-linen warehouse.
A knitted or crocheted woollen hat, with woollen rosettes to keep the ears warm, and which may be procured at any baby-linen warehouse, makes a nice and comfortable winter's hat for a child. It is also a good hat for him to wear while performing a long journey. The colour chosen is generally scarlet and white, which, in cold weather, gives it a warm and comfortable appearance.
It is an abominable practice to cover a child's head with beaver or with felt, or with any thick impervious material It is a well-ascertained fact, that beaver and silk hats cause men to suffer from headache, and to lose their hair—the reason being, that the perspiration cannot possibly escape through them. Now, if the perspiration cannot escape, dangerous, or at all events injurious, consequences must ensue, as it is well known that the skin is a breathing apparatus, and that it will not with impunity bear interference.
Neither a child nor any one else should be permitted to be in the glare of the son without his hat. If he be allowed, he is likely to have a sun-stroke, which might either at once kill him, or might make him an idiot for the remainder of his life; which latter would be the worse alternative of the two.
128. Have you, any remarks to make on keeping a child's hands and legs warm when in the winter time he it carried out?
When a child either walks or is carried out in wintry weather, be sure and see that both his hands and legs are well protected from the cold. There is nothing for this purpose like woollen gloves, and woollen stockings coming up over the knees.
129. Do you approve of a child wearing a flannel nightgown?
He frequently throws the clothes off him, and has occasion to be taken up in the night, and if he have not a flannel gown on, is likely to catch cold; on which account I recommend it to be worn. The usual calico night-gown should be worn under it.
130. Do you advise a child to be LIGHTLY clad, in order that he may be hardened thereby?
I should fear that such a plan, instead of hardening, would be likely to produce a contrary effect. It is an ascertained fact that more children of the poor, who are thus lightly clad, die, than of those who are properly defended from the cold. Again, what holds good with a young plant is equally applicable to a young child; and we all know that it is ridiculous to think of unnecessarily exposing a tender plant to harden it. If it were thus exposed, it would wither and die.
131. If a child be delicate, if he have a cold body, or a languid circulation, or if he be predisposed to inflammation of the lungs, do you approve of his wearing flannel instead of linen shirts?
I do; as flannel tends to keep the body at an equal temperature, thus obviating the effects of the sudden changes of the weather, and promotes by gentle friction the cutaneous circulation, thus warming the cold body, and giving an impetus to the languid circulation, and preventing an undue quantity of blood from being sent to the lungs, either to light up or to feed inflammation Fine flannel, of course, ought to be worn, which should be changed as frequently as the usual shirts.
If a child have had an attack either of bronchitis or of inflammation of the lungs, or if he have just recovered from scarlet fever, by all means, if he have not previously worn flannel, instantly let him begin to do so, and let him, next to the skin, wear a flannel waistcoat. This is important advice, and ought not to be disregarded.
Scarlet flannel is now much used instead of white flannel; and as scarlet flannel has a more comfortable appearance, and does not shrink so much in washing, it may be substituted for the white.
132. Have you any remarks to make on the shoes and stockings of a child? and on the right way of cutting the toe-nails?
He ought, daring the winter, to wear lamb's wool stockings that will reach above the knees, and thick calico drawers that will reach a few inches below the knees; as it is of the utmost importance to keep the lower extremities comfortably warm. It is really painful to see how many mothers expose the bare legs of their little ones to the frosty air, even in the depths of winter.
Be sure and see that the boots and shoes of your child be sound and whole; for if they be not so, they will let in the damp, and if the damp, disease and perhaps death. "If the poor would take better care of their children's feet half the infantile mortality would disappear. It only costs twopence to put a piece of thick felt or cork into the bottom of a boot or shoe, and the difference is often between that and a doctors bill, with, perhaps, the undertaker's besides."—Daily Telegraph,
Garters ought not to be worn, as they impede the circulation, waste the muscles, and interfere with walking. The stocking may be secured in its place by means of a loop and tape, which should be fastened to a part of the dress.
Let me urge upon you the importance of not allowing your child to wear tight shoes; they cripple the feet, causing the joints of the toes, which ought to have free play, and which should assist in walking, to be, in a manner, useless; they produce corns and bunions, and interfere with the proper circulation of the foot. A shoe ought to be made according to the shape of the foot—rights and lefts are therefore desirable. The toe-part of the shoe must be made broad, so as to allow plenty of room for the toes to expand, and that one toe cannot overlap another. Be sure, then, that there be no pinching and no pressure. In the article of shoes you ought to be particular and liberal; pay attention to having nicely fitting ones, and let them be made of soft leather, and throw them on one side the moment they are too small. It is poor economy, indeed, because a pair of shoes be not worn out, to run the risk of incurring the above evil consequences.
Shoes are far preferable to boots: boots weaken instead of strengthen the ankle. The ankle and instep require free play, and ought not to be hampered by boots. Moreover, boots, by undue pressure, decidedly waste away the ligaments of the ankle. Boots act on the ankles in a similar way that stays do on the waist—they do mischief by pressure. Boots waste away the ligaments of the ankle; stays waste away the muscles of the back and chest; and thus, in both cases, do irreparable mischief.
A shoe for a child ought to be made with a narrow strap over the instep, and with button and button-hole; if it be not made in this way, the shoe will not keep on the foot.
It is a grievous state of things, that in the nineteenth century there are but few shoemakers who know how to make a shoe! The shoe is made not to fit a real foot, but a fashionable imaginary one! The poor unfortunate toes are in consequence screwed up as in a vice!
Let me strongly urge you to be particular that the sock, or stocking, fits nicely—that it is neither too small nor too large; if it be too small, it binds up the toes unmercifully, and makes one toe to ride over the other, and thus renders the toes perfectly useless in walking; if it be too large, it is necessary to lap a portion of the sock, or stocking, either under or over the toes, which thus presses unduly upon them, and gives pain and annoyance. It should be borne in mind, that if the toes have full play, they, as it were, grasp the ground, and greatly assist in locomotion—which, of course, if they are cramped up, they cannot possibly do. Be careful, too, that the toe-part of the sock, or stocking, be not pointed; let it be made square in order to give room to the toes. "At this helpless period of life, the delicately feeble, outspreading toes are wedged into a narrow-toed stocking, often so short as to double in the toes, diminishing the length of the rapidly growing foot! It is next, perhaps, tightly laced into a boot of less interior dimensions than itself; when the poor little creature is left to sprawl about with a limping, stumping gait, thus learning to walk as it best can, under circumstances the most cruel and torturing imaginable." [Footnote: The Foot and its Covering, second edition. By James Dowie. London: 1872. I beg to call a mother's especial attention to this valuable little book: it is written by an earnest intelligent man, by one who has studied the subject in all its bearings, and by one who is himself a shoemaker.]
It is impossible for either a stocking, or a shoe, to fit nicely unless the toe-nails be kept in proper order. Now, in cutting the toe-nails, there is, as in everything else, a right and a wrong way. The right way of cutting a toe-nail is to cut it straight—in a straight line. The wrong way is to cut the corners of the nail—to round the nail as it is called. This cutting the corners of the nails often makes work for the surgeon, as I myself can testify; it frequently produces "growing-in" of the nail, which sometimes necessitates the removal of either the nail, or a portion of it.
133. At what time of the year should a child leave off his winter clothing?
A mother ought not to leave off her children's winter clothing until the spring be far advanced: it is far better to be on the safe side, and to allow the winter clothes to be worn until the end of May. The old adage is very good, and should be borne in mind:—
"Button to chin
Till May be in;
Ne'er cast a clout
Till May be out."
134. Have you any general remarks to make on the present fashion of dressing children?
The present fashion is absurd. Children are frequently dressed like mountebanks, with feathers and furbelows and finery; the boys go bare-legged; the little girls are dressed like women, with their stuck-out petticoats, crinolines, and low dresses! Their poor little waists are drawn in tight, so that they can scarcely breathe; their dresses are very low and short, the consequence is, that a great part of the chest is exposed to our variable climate; their legs are bare down to their thin socks, or if they be clothed, they are only covered with gossamer drawers; while their feet are encased in tight shoes of paper thickness! Dress! dress! dress! is made with them, at a tender age, and when first impressions are the strongest, a most important consideration. They are thus rendered vain and frivolous, and are taught to consider dress "as the one thing needful" And if they live to be women—which the present fashion is likely frequently to prevent—what are they? Silly, simpering, delicate, lack-a-daisical nonentities; dress being their amusement, their occupation, their conversation, their everything, their thoughts by day and their dreams by night! Truly they are melancholy objects to behold! Let children be dressed as children, not as men and women. Let them be taught that dress is quite a secondary consideration. Let health, and not fashion, be the first, and we shall then have, with God's blessing, blooming children, who will, in time, be the pride and strength of dear old England!
DIET.
135. At TWELVE months old, have you any objection to a child having any other food besides that you mentioned in answer to the 34th question?
There is no objection to his occasionally having, for dinner, either a mealy, mashed potato and gravy, or a few crumbs of bread and gravy. Rice-pudding or batter-pudding may, for a change, be given; but remember, the food recommended in a former Conversation is what, until he be eighteen months old, must be principally taken. During the early months of infancy—say, for the first six or seven—if artificial food be given at all, it should be administered by means of a feeding-bottle. After that time, either a spoon, or a nursing boat, will be preferable. The food as he becomes older, ought to be made more solid.
136. At EIGHTEEN months old, have you any objection to a child having meat?
He ought not to have meat until he have several teeth to chew it with. If he has most of his teeth—which he very likely at this age will have—there is no objection to his taking a small slice either of mutton, or occasionally of roast beef, which should be well cut into very small pieces, and mixed with a mealy mashed potato, and a few crumbs of bread and gravy; either every day, if he be delicate, or every other day, if he be a gross or a fast-feeding child. It may be well, in the generality of cases, for the first few months to give him meat every other day, and either potato or gravy, or rice or suet-pudding or batter-pudding on the alternate days; indeed, I think so highly of rice, of suet, and of batter-puddings, and of other farinaceous puddings, that I should advise you to let him have either the one or the other even on those days that he has meat—giving it him after his meat. But remember, if he have meat and pudding, the meat ought to be given sparingly. If he be gorged with food, it makes him irritable, cross, and stupid; at one time, clogging up his bowels, and producing constipation; at another, disordering his liver, and causing either clay-coloured stools—denoting a deficiency of bile, or dark and offensive motions—telling of vitiated bile; while, in a third case, cramming him with food might bring on convulsions.
137. As you are to partial to puddings for a child, which do you consider the best for him?
He ought, every day, to have a pudding for his dinner—either rice, arrow-root, sago, tapioca, suet-pudding, batter-pudding, or Yorkshire-pudding, mixed with crumbs of bread and gravy—free from grease. A well boiled suet-pudding, with plenty of suet in it, is one of the best puddings he can have; it is, in point of fact, meat and farinaceous food combined, and is equal to, and will oftentimes prevent the giving of, cod-liver oil; before cod-liver oil came into vogue, suet boiled in milk was the remedy for a delicate child. He may, occasionally, have fruit-pudding, provided the pastry be both plain and light.
The objection to fruit pies and puddings is, that the pastry is often too rich for the delicate stomach of a child; there is so objection, certainly not, to the fruit—cooked fruit being, for a child, most wholesome; if, therefore, fruit puddings and pies be eaten, the pastry part ought to be quite plain. There is, in "Murray's Modern Cookery Book," an excellent suggestion, which I will take the liberty of quoting, and of strongly urging my fair reader to carry into practice:—"To prepare fruit for children, a far more wholesome way than in pies and puddings, is to put apples sliced, or plums, currants, gooseberries, &c., into a stone jar; and sprinkle among them as much Lisbon sugar as necessary. Set the jar on an oven or on a hearth, with a tea-cupful of water to prevent the fruit from burning; or put the jar into a saucepan of water, till its contents be perfectly done. Slices of bread or some rice may be put into the jar, to eat with the fruit."
Jam—such as strawberry, raspberry, gooseberry—is most wholesome for a child, and ought occasionally to be given, in lieu of sugar, with the rice, with the batter, and with the other puddings. Marmalade, too, is very wholesome.
Puddings ought to be given after and not before his meat and vegetables; if you give him pudding before his meat, he might refuse to eat meat altogether. By adopting the plan of giving puddings every day, your child will require less animal food; much meat is injurious to a young child. But do not run into an opposite extreme: a little meat ought, every day, to be given, provided he has cut the whole of his first set of teeth; until then, meat every other day will be often enough.
138. As soon as a child has cut the whole of his first set of teeth, what ought to be his diet?—What should be his breakfast?
He can, then, have nothing better, where it agrees, than scalding hot new milk poured on sliced bread, with a slice or two of bread and butter to eat with it. Butter, in moderation, is nourishing, fattening, and wholesome. Moreover, butter tends to keep the bowels regular. These facts should be borne in mind, as some mothers foolishly keep their children from butter, declaring it to be too rich for their children's stomachs! New milk should be used in preference either to cream or to skim-milk. Cream, as a rule, is too rich for the delicate stomach of a child, and skim-milk is too poor when robbed of the butter which the cream contains. But give cream and water, where new milk (as is occasionally the case) does not agree; but never give skim-milk. Skim-milk (among other evils) produces costiveness, and necessitates the frequent administration of aperients. Cream, on the other hand, regulates and tends to open the bowels.
Although I am not, as a rule, so partial to cream as I am to good genuine fresh milk, yet I have found, in cases of great debility, more especially where a child is much exhausted by some inflammatory disease, such as inflammation of the lungs, the following food most serviceable:—Beat up, by means of a fork, the yolk of an egg, then mix, little by little, half a tea-cupful of very weak black tea, sweeten with one lump of sugar, and add a table-spoonful of cream. Let the above, by tea-spoonfuls at a time be frequently given. The above food is only to be administered until the exhaustion be removed, and is not to supersede the milk diet, which must, at stated periods, be given, as I have recommended in answers to previous and subsequent questions.
When a child has costive bowels, there is nothing better for his breakfast than well-made and well-boiled oatmeal stir-about, which ought to be eaten with milk fresh from the cow. Scotch children scarcely take anything else, and a finer race is not in existence; and, as for physic, many of them do not even know either the taste or the smell of it! You win find Robinson's Pure Scotch Oatmeal (sold in packets) to be very pure, and sweet, and good. Stir-about is truly said to be—
"The halesome parritch, chief of Scotia's food."—Burns.
Cadbury's Cocoa Essence, made with equal parts of boiling water and fresh milk, slightly sweetened with lump sugar, is an admirable food for a delicate child. Bread and butter should be eaten with it.
139. Have you any remarks to make on cow's milk as an article of food?
Cow's milk is a valuable, indeed, an indispensable article of diet, for the young; it is most nourishing, wholesome, and digestible. The finest and the healthiest children are those who, for the first four or five years of their lives, are fed principally upon it. Milk ought then to be their staple food. No child, as a rule, can live, or, if he live, can be healthy, unless milk be the staple article of his diet. There is no substitute for milk. To prove the fattening and strengthening qualities of milk, look only at a young calf who lives on milk, and on milk alone! He is a Samson in strength, and is "as fat as butter;" and all young things if they are in health are fat!
Milk, then, contains every ingredient to build up the body, which is more than can be said of any other known substance besides. A child may live entirely, and grow, and become both healthy and strong, on milk and on milk alone, as it contains every constituent of the human body. A child cannot "live by bread alone," but he might on milk alone! Milk is animal and vegetable—it is meat and bread—it is food and drink—it is a fluid, but as soon as it reaches the stomach it becomes a solid [Footnote: How is milk in the making of cheese, converted into curds? By rennet. What is rennet? The juice of a calf's maw or stomach. The moment the milk enters the human maw or stomach, the juice of the stomach converts it into curds—into solid food, just as readily as when it enters a calfs maw or stomach, and much more readily than by rennet, as the fresh juice is stronger than the stale. An ignorant mother often complains that because, when her child is sick, the milk curdles, that it is a proof that it does not agree with him! If, at those times, it did not curdle, it would, indeed, prove that his stomach was in a wretchedly weak state; she would then have abundant cause to be anxious.]—solid food; it is the most important and valuable article of diet for a child in existence. It is a glorious food for the young, and must never, on any account whatever, in any case be dispensed with. "Considering that milk contains in itself most of the constituents of a perfect diet, and is capable of maintaining life in infancy without the aid of any other substance, it is marvellous that the consumption of it is practically limited to so small a class; and not only so, but that in sick-rooms, where the patient is surrounded with every luxury, arrow-root, and other compounds containing much less nutriment, should so often be preferred to it."—The Times.
Do not let me be misunderstood. I do not mean to say, but that the mixing of farinaceous food—such as Lemann's Biscuit Powder, Robb's Biscuit, Hard's Farinaceous Food, Brown and Polson's Corn Flour, and the like, with the milk, is an improvement, in some cases—a great improvement; but still I maintain that a child might live and thrive, and that for a lengthened period, on milk—and on milk alone!
A dog will live and fatten for six weeks on milk alone; while he will starve and die in a shorter period on strong beef-tea alone!
It is a grievous sin for a milkman to adulterate milk. How many a poor infant has fallen a victim to that crime!—for crime it may be truly called.
It is folly in the extreme for a mother to bate a milkman down in the price of his milk; if she does, the milk is sure to be either of inferior quality, or adulterated, or diluted with water; and woe betide the poor unfortunate child if it be either the one or the other! The only way to insure good milk is, to go to a respectable cow-keeper, and let him be made to thoroughly understand the importance of your child having genuine milk, and that you are then willing to pay a fair remunerative price for it. Rest assured, that if you have to pay one penny or even twopence a quart more for genuine milk, it is one of the best investments that you ever have made, or that you are ever likely to make in this world! Cheap and inferior milk might well be called cheap and nasty; for inferior or adulterated milk is the very essence, the conglomeration of nastiness; and, moreover, is very poisonous to a child's stomach. One and the principal reason why so many children are rickety and scrofulous, is the horrid stuff called milk that is usually given to them. It is a crying evil, and demands a thorough investigation and reformation, and the individual interference of every parent. Limited Liability Companies are the order of the day; it would really be not a bad speculation if one were formed in every large town, in order to insure good, genuine, and undiluted milk.
Young children, as a rule, are allowed to eat too much meat. It is a mistaken notion of a mother that they require so much animal food. If more milk were given and less meat, they would he healthier, and would not be so predisposed to disease, especially to diseases of debility, and to skin-disease.
I should strongly recommend you, then, to be extravagant in your milk score. Each child ought, in the twenty-four hours, to take at least a quart of good, fresh, new milk. It should, of course, be given in various ways,—as bread and milk, rice-puddings, milk and differents kinds of farinaceous food, stir-about, plain milk, cold milk, hot milk, any way, and every way, that will please his palate, and that will induce him to take an abundant supply of it. The "advice" I have just given you is of paramount importance, and demands your most earnest attention. There would be very few rickety children in the world if my "counsel" were followed out to the very letter.
140. But suppose my child will not take milk, he having an aversion to it, what ought then to be done?
Boil the milk, and sweeten it to suit his palate. After he has been accustomed to it for a while, he will then, probably, like milk. Gradually reduce the sugar, until at length it be dispensed with. A child will often take milk this way, whereas he will not otherwise touch it.
If a child will not drink milk, he must eat meat; it is absolutely necessary that he should have either the one or the other; and, if he have cut nearly all his teeth, he ought to have both meat and milk—the former in moderation, the latter in abundance.