THE WOMAN'S WORLD.

Marlborough Express, Volume XXXIX, Issue 225, 23 September 1907, Page 6

THE WOMAN'S WORLD.

SCIENTIFIC BABIES. (By Mrs J. D. Hay Shaw). There are few creatures who suffer more from the present-day mania for experiments in diet and hygiene than the luckless first-born infant, who is absolutely helpless and at the mercy of tho whims of its owners. If it were only its owners things would not be so bad for it, but every relative, friend, or acquaintance has always a fund of advice and experience 4o place at tho disposal of the bewildered young mother,, and this, combined with the avalanche of sample bottles, tins, and packages of various kinds of patent foods £.nd prepared milks with which she is overwhelmed immediately the advent of the baby has been made known to the world through the medium of the daily papers, is usually sufficient to- plunge her into the lowest depths of doubt and despair. Even within the last few years the methods of bringing up children have undergone a complete revolution. That tyrant of one's youth, the old and trusted nurse, who had successfully brought up one's parents from infancy t oyouth, has almost disappeared from the modern nursery, and her place has been taken by a smart, young, uniformed attendant full of the very latest theories on the law of hygiene and the most up-to-date methods of rearing children. It is merely a change from one autocrat to another as far as the mother is concerned, and whether the change is for the better it is hard to say. REGULAR MEALS. The modern baby lives entirely by rule. It must not be fed when it is hungry, but only at stated intervals with a stated amount of nourishment carefully measured out and prepared, regardless of the fact that what may satisfy one infant may be totally insufficient to quell the cravings of another. If it is not enough it must go without, for that is all the food which, according to the chart, an infant of that age should require. It must sleep a certain number of hours, and only wake at the recognised intervals for its food, and under no consideration whatever must it be rocked or jigged, or any of the oldfashioned methods of soothing be resorted to. If the baby does not like it, it must scream until weariness or resignation convinces its infant mind that protest is futile against the stern doctrines under which its existence is conducted. *" *

One thing that within the last few years has brought about a great change for the better is undoubtedly the modern passion for open windows and fresh air, as against the views of the older generation, when a nursery was kept heated to the verge of stuffiness day and night, the windows were opened a few inches for a short time every morning, and a change from one room to another necessitated the baby being swathed in woollen wrappings and a constant risk of chills and colds, while the outing for the day consisted of, perhaps, half an hour on sunny mornings, the rest of the time being spent in a close nursery. THEN AND NOW. I can remember what the atmosphere of that nursery used to be when the babies were small and no breath of wind must be allowed to blow on them. Now what- a change has come over the scene. A thermometer registers a medium 000 l temperature which must not be exceeded, the windows are open day and night, all unnecessary curtains, unventilated coverings, and superfluous furniture are excluded, and the value of open spaces and a free circuit of fresh air is demanded. There is no doubt, however, that the baby of to-day is a much more expensive possesion than were the infants of a few years ago, more especially if it has to be moved from one place to another, when the number and weigth of patent collapsible cots, patent baths and patent everything else, including a large perambulator, necessitate the, employment of no smaller vehicle than an omnibus or a cart, and cause the expenditure of appalling sums in excess luggage and porters tips. Like everything else, although things have changed for the better in-many ways, there is tendency to overdo it and fad the children to death. Under the old conditions, babies lived and flourished and grew up apparently none the worse for the older methods of up-bringing, whereas in the present day they are likely to suffer from too great care and rule of thumb. After all, the average baby is a much more hardy little animal than most people give it credit for, ana much more determined to live than people would have us believe; and it is a matter of indifference to most of them whether they sleep in a cradle or a patent swing-cot; are bathed in a patent bath or a galvanised tub, or take their food from a patent bottle or a spoon, provided all are at hand when they happen to want them.