Rensselaer Semi-Weekly Republican, Volume 19, Number 24, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 26 November 1897 — ABOUT THE BABY. [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

ABOUT THE BABY.

Being pleasant Is largely a matter of habit, and the little baby may be taught to cultivate good humor. “Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it” is a maxim as true to-day as it was when the world was young. Discourage impatient behavior at all times. First, by Imparting the knowledge to the unolding consciousness that nothing is ever gained by crying. Primarily, the child must be taught through Its recognized desires; the ethics of conscience may be appealed to later. Then, by convincing him of the potency of a smile. A baby of six months has a pretty well defined idea of his importance and will become a small despot if he is not made to see, through the gentlest but most persistent training, that there are other needs besides his own to be considered. I have in mind a little one who, the minute it was time for her bottle, screamed until it was given to her. Then a wise woman begun to “bend the twig.” “Smile and coo, baby,” she said, over and over again, “and I will give you your bottle.” For a while it seemed the experiment would fall. The little limbs straightened and the small back was curved backward alarmingly, but through the sharp cries the nurse’s voice continued smoothly: “Smile and coo, baby; stop crying, and smile if you want your bottle.” Suddenly the wee girl looked up; the red faded from her face. “Agoo!” she said, and received the bottle smilingly. Worn by Women. A new boa is flat, made of ermine and tied in a broad bow in front edged with ermine tails. Most stunning muffs are made long and narrow of deep tawny orange or Wedgewood blue velvet trimmed with fur. The newest dress models tighten the atrocious bloused waist and do not permit the cloth to overhang the belt in the back or on the sides. Skirts are guiltless of stiff linings and hang in soft folds. Cloth skirts with pouched velvet waists are fashionable. A green-plaid skirt with a green-velvet waist is a pretty combination.