Jasper County Democrat, Volume 3, Number 2, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 April 1900 — THE CHILD MIND. [ARTICLE]

THE CHILD MIND.

Ito Processes Often Inscrutable—Guile of Infant Guilelessness. The guilelessness and sincerity of the infant mind, so popularly accepted, admits of varied and alarming phenomena that wreck the temporary peace of many an innocent adult victim. Even the best little child in the world, excited by company or novelty of environment, is liable to bring the blush of mortification to its mother’s cheeks, by a flaunting of factitious ignorance, or by exclamations that mislead. Contradiction of the irresponsible little offender, or explanation, find slim credence. The grown-ups who hear smile inwardly. Would a dear little innocent like that be capable of misrepresenting? But the dear little innocent, stimulated into a distorted view of what has always been familiar before, becomes unconsciously a poseur, and does misrepresent. “Oh, mamma!” exclaims a precious little four-year-old, under the glow and excitation of sudden “company” to dinner, “A - hat have we got flowers on the table for? Oh! don’t they look pretty—flowers on the table!” Small purpose does it serve —the reproachful reminder of the humiliated parent: “Why, darling, you know we have flowers on the table every meal!” Not a guest but secretly believes the decoration novel to the baby eyes. “Papa, what is dat big brown sing dere by you?” queries artlessly the tiny maid, to whom turkey is the most ordinary of diet, but who is excited into a pose by the presence of guests. Few mothers but have known the exasperation sometimes of the little one’s gleeful cry before visitors: “Ofi, mamma, you all dressed up! What you put on your pretty dress for, mamma?” When mamma is really in her most ordinary attire. Everybody knows such instances, and yet evenbody secretly discounts parental contradiction. Truly, the processes of the infant mind are many a time inscrutable.— Demorest’s.