WATTS AND THE BABY.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 253, 23 October 1907, Page 3

WATTS AND THE BABY.

CBy James Xj. so-weno John Watts was a young professional roan —a clergyman in charge of Us first parish, and a reformer on a small scale. He was not a political reformer, for he did not believe in mixing religion and politics; nor a theological reformer, for he had grown up iftder the shadow of a creed—no matter which particular one—that suited him exactly, and he proposed to devote the remainder of his life to its propagation. But the reform that he did advocate was of a domestic nature. Now, friend John had been married some two y«ars, and there was a little John of the mature age of six months. Sometimes the father was out of the study when the mother was enjoying herself with the infantile smiles of the t>aby, and, as John had left college only a lew years ago, and was, of course, greatly given to the contemplation of the magnificent periods of Greek and Roman orators in the original tongues, the conversation between mother and son often grated very harshly upon his cultured ears. It he did not immediately remonstrate with Mrs. W., he took pains to enlighten her in regard to his preferences by preaching to Ms congregation the necessity for avoiding 'all idle words, even when speaking to the smallest children. Every word ehould have an educational power. It should be pronounced in accordance with the most approved rules of our language, and so, in time, our nation might become a nation of -scholars and orators, such as the Greets and Romans were." _J?erhaps Mrs. Watts didn't know who her iriisTSina" was preaching at—perhaps she did; but he continued to write sermons and she to mind the baby, as before. ' Occasionally the lather would chuckle the pet under the chin with a few woras of praise, very properly spoken, and. the pet would smile In appreciation; whereupon the young minister would become more than ever .convinced that "children naturally admire perfection of speech," and that he had really struck a field of special endeavour, which would eventually vastly benefit mankind. So he resolved to' lay the matter somewhat elaborately before the denominational publications, and had actually half-completed an essay on tlie subject, which was to find ■place, he trusted, in the leading magazine of his faith, when a little incident occurred as often happens in this incidental state of' existence. Bnby was sleeping one ijay, and Mrs. Watts desired to visit a slckTaeighbour just, across the street. Would* John remain within hearing, and, if baby should wake, soothe him till the mother's return? Certainly; John would be delighted, especially ns it would assist in carrying out the sacred duty of ministering to the si«l>. So the father paced back and forth beside the cradle, evolving sentence after sentence, and argument upon argument, which he noted in shorthand, till aa infantile clamour broke in upon his meditations. John tried to calm the troubled juvenile and complete the thought upon which he was engaged, but didn't make much progress in either. Finally, when young John had warmed up to a perfect scream, and the redness of a beet, the father thrust the unfinished notes into his pocket, and raised the openfeatured babe. Suppressing an impulse to shake the young offender, Watts proceeded to hold 'rational argument" with him —a proceeding evidently unsatisfactory to the jnuior, for he suddenly pitched his notes in a higher key, and turned a shade or two more deep-coloured. Finally, almost in despair, the preacher moved to the window, and invited his first-born to behold the beauties of nature and art as there exposed to view. For a moment there -was a partial hush, and Watts took occasion to point out a lumbering vehicle then passing. "Behold, John," he said, "a means of artificial transit from place to place known as an omnibus, sometimes in the haste of speech, designated Improperly 'bns.' Its motive'power, as you see, consists of two animals called horses, which are very strong in limb, and with great powers of endurance, which, guided by the snpertor intelligence of man, the head of all earthly creatures, move it rapidly and safely from point to point." What information the father would have further communicated can only be surmised, for John, jun., at this moment set up such a howl as to drown the more cultivated tones of Johu, sen., and bring the stout cook from the kitchen, who, grasping the struggling fellow, and pouring out a torrent of "baby-talk" which no skill of linguist could ever reduce to any known language, speedily calmed the infant grief, ana restored a smile to the face of the still robbing babe. Five minutes later a rising young divine might have been seen industriously tarusting some unfinished manuscript and some shorthand notes into the kitchen stove, with a very unsatisfied expression upon his features, and from that day the world has lost the services, I fear forever, of one heretofore Tery earnest young reformer.