Practical Suggestions for Mother and Housewife Part 6

The child should be early accustomed to take cold baths, and then run about naked in a room under the impulse given by the tingling glow of reaction. If a play is made of the bath the habit will be formed for life, and in this way, one of the mother's chief struggles, to make the children clean themselves, will be abolished. It is natural for a child to get dirty, and therefore it should be made as habitual an impulse for them to get clean again.

Of all such habits, keeping the teeth clean is most important.

Children's teeth are a chief source of anxiety to the mother even before they make their appearance.

Troubles in teething are generally due to innutritious and illy-digested food. Sometimes, however, when the food is all right, the teeth will still have difficulty in coming through the gums. Whenever the mother observes that her crying child refuses to bring its gums together on anything, she should examine them, and, if they are swollen, have them lanced.

The "milk-teeth," even though they are temporary, should be looked after carefully, as their decay will often spread to the coming permanent teeth. Besides, they should be preserved as long as possible, and in the best condition, to aid in mastication. Accordingly, young children should be taught regularly to rinse out their mouths and to use a tooth-brush and tooth-powder.

A child should run barefoot as much as conditions and climate permit.

When it wears shoes, these should conform as much as possible to the shape of the foot. With such footwear, the active child may form for life the habit of a natural gait, especially if parents will point out the beauty and advantages of this, and praise the men and women of their acquaintance who possess it. It is about the time when a girl is learning _Virgil_ in the High School that she is tempted by vanity and the desire to be "like the other girls" to put on French heels.

Then it is that the teacher or mother should quote to her the line of the _Aeneid_ about Venus:

"The true G.o.ddess is shown by her gait,"

and save her from an irreparable folly.

If mothers will remember that children are not dolls, and that mothers are not children to take pleasure in bedecking them, they will need no advice about dressing their little ones. There is only one rule for her to follow: She should consult the comfort and health of the child, and, as far as consistent with these, the convenience to herself. It may be "cute" to dress a child like a miniature man or woman, but it is cruel to the child. There is no reason for distinguishing s.e.x by dress in young children. "Jumpers" form the best dress for either a little boy or little girl in which to play. Even when they are older and a skirt distinguishes the girl, bloomers or knickerbockers of the same material beneath, approach the ideal of dress for comfort, health and decency more nearly than white petticoat and drawers. Indeed, the skirt is best when it is a part of a blouse, which is also a suitable dress for a boy.

A child should never be tortured with a large or stiff hat. The heads of children come up to the middles of men and women, and such a hat will be crushed in a crowd, and its poor little wearer placed in mortal terror.

Indeed, children should be allowed to go bareheaded as much as possible, and, when they wear hats, have these simple in shape and soft in material. The plain cap is the best head covering for a boy. The girl's may be a little more ornamental, especially in color. The universal seizure by the s.e.x upon the boy's "Tam o'Shanter" as peculiarly suited for a play and school-hat, is therefore right and proper. For a more showy style, lingerie hats are justified. But the most beautiful and appropriate form of the "best hat" for a little girl is one of uniform material, straw, cloth or felt, with simple crown, and wide, and more or less soft brim, ornamented by a ribbon alone. The addition of a single flower may be permitted, though this is like the admission of the camel's nose into the tent,--it may lead to the entrance of the hump--the monstrosity of the modern woman's bonnet, which of late years has by terms imitated a flower garden, a vegetable garden, an orchard, and, finally, with the Chanticler fad, a poultry-yard.

The knickerbocker and the short skirt are aesthetic, that is eye-pleasing, because they mark a natural division of the body at the knee. There is an artistic justification, therefore, in mothers keeping their sons out of "long pants" as long as possible, and in fathers (for it is they who are the chief objectors) in opposing their daughters'

desire to don the dust-sweeping skirt that marks attainment to womanhood. Here, however, it is proper that the wishes of the younger generation triumph. It is a social instinct to conform to the custom of one's fellows, and the children have reached "the age of consent" in matters of fashion. Their fathers and mothers may lend their influence to abolish foolish customs, or to modify them in the direction of wisdom, but it is best that this be in their capacity as citizens, and not as parents.

CHAPTER X

CARE OF THE PERSON

The Mother's Duty Toward Herself--Her Dress--Etiquette and Good Manners--The Golden Rule--Pride in Personal Appearance--The Science of Beauty Culture--Manicuring as a Home Employment--Recipes for Toilet Preparations--Nail-biting--Fragile Nails--White Spots--Chapped Hands--Care of the Skin--Facial Ma.s.sage--Recipes for Skin Lotions--Treatment of Facial Blemishes and Disorders--Care of the Hair--Diseases of the Scalp and Hair--Gray Hair--Care of Eyebrows and Eyelashes.

Certainly this is a duty, not a sin. "Cleanliness is indeed next to G.o.dliness."--JOHN WESLEY--_On Dress._

In all her mult.i.tudinous concerns the housekeeper should not forget her duties toward herself. Many a mother in looking out that her children are a credit to the family in dress and manners and care of their persons, gives up all thought of standing as an exemplar of these things among the ladies of the community. This is a sacrifice of self that is not commendable, since it defeats its purpose. The mother should always be herself an ill.u.s.tration of the lessons she teaches, else they will not be seriously considered.

It is impossible here to give more than a few general suggestions as to the dress and millinery of the mother. She should have a variety of simple house-dresses, suited to her various duties, and these should be kept as neat as possible. Each should be made for its purpose, not converted to it from one of her fine dresses. Nothing gives an impression of slatternliness more than the wearing about the house of a frayed and soiled garment "that has seen better days."

The best dresses and hats of a woman, even one who goes little "into society," should also be sufficient in number and varied in style to suit the changing seasons of the year, and the widely differing occasions for use which occur in every station of life. The purchase of several good articles of attire rather than one or two is economical in the end. There is not only the obvious mathematical reason that, if one dress wears a year, four dresses must be bought in four years, whether this is done simultaneously or successively, but there is the physical reason that a dress, like a person, that has regular periods of rest, becomes restored in quality. Accordingly, all dresses should be laid very carefully away when not in use, and the proper means taken to refresh them.

Unfortunately the arbitrary and senseless changes in fashion render this practice hard to follow. No woman likes to look out of style.

However, by a little cleverness garments and hats may be adapted to the prevailing mode (although the arbiters of fashion, in the interests of manufacturers, try by violent changes of style to render this impracticable). These adaptations may not be in the height of fashion, but they will be in good form and taste. Indeed, it is never good taste to follow extremes of style. The well-known lines of Pope on the subject hold true in every age:

"....in fashions the rule will hold, Alike fantastic if too new or old; Be not the first by whom the new are tried, Nor yet the last to lay the old aside."

Some of the best-dressed women in artistic and musical circles design their clothes wholly to suit their personal appearance, with such success that their independence of the prevailing mode of large or small hats or sleeves, striped or checked fabrics, etc., wins universal admiration.

Remember that a dress or a hat is never a "creation" in itself. The wearer must always be considered. Short, stout women should avoid horizontal stripes or lines of ornamentation that call attention to breadth, and should choose those perpendicular stripes and lines which tend to give an impression of height and slenderness. A hat lining may be used to put rosiness into a pale face, and a color may be selected for a dress which will neutralize too much redness in the skin. But these are matters of common knowledge to all women. The trouble is, that in their desire to be "in style," many women forget, or even deliberately ignore these fundamental principles of art in dress.

Fondness for a particular color, as a color, causes many women to wear it, regardless of its relation to their complexion; and there have been women of mystical mind who, believing that each quality of soul had its correspondent in a particular hue, wore those colors which they thought were significant of their chief traits of character--with weird results, as you may imagine.

It is unnecessary, in this book of "practical suggestions," to discuss in detail the question of etiquette, which may be defined as "the prevailing fashion in social intercourse." Styles in visiting cards change from year to year, and the social usages of one city differ from another. If it is required to know these, the latest special work on etiquette should be procured.

The general principles of good manners, however, which lie at the basis of etiquette, just as good morals form the foundation of law, although there are discrepancies in both cases, may appropriately be presented here, though briefly.

Good manners and good morals alike follow the Golden Rule: "Whatsoever ye would that others should do to you, do ye even so to them." Egotism and selfishness are the bane of both. True politeness consists in considering the pleasure of others as a thing in itself, without regard to your own advantage. If an attention is paid, a gift given, a service rendered, these should be done solely for the recipient's happiness, not with a view to his making a return in kind, possibly with interest.

It is good manners to call on people who will be pleased to see you; not on those whom you wish to see, but to whom you and your affairs are of no concern. A first visit to a newcomer in town is right and proper.

A stranger is presumed to be desirous of making friends, but the first call ought to indicate whether or not he and you have that community of interest which is essential to friendship. If you are the newcomer, it is your duty to show your appreciation of the attention by returning first calls, but you should so act that your hosts will feel free to continue the acquaintance if it will be agreeable to them, or discontinue it if it is not. Indeed, in every situation you should give the other party this choice. Friendship is one of the most valuable forms of social energy, and it should carefully be conserved. Yet more than any other form it is wasted, because of a false regard for social conventions. At how many calls are both parties bored! How many persons--women in particular, who have not the man's freedom in selecting a.s.sociates--continue in the treadmill round of an uncongenial social circle! To escape from this may require the special exercise of will, and the incurring of criticism, but these ought to be a.s.sumed.

However, in most cases, a woman may gradually escape from the distasteful circle and form new and more congenial friends without remark.

After the brightening effects on mind and spirits of social intercourse comes the advantage of toning up the personal appearance. A decent self-respect in dress should always be flavored with a touch of pride, for this is an excellent preservative. To have a proper pride, there must be the incentive of the presence of other people whose admiration we may win. Pride in dress is naturally conjoined with the care of the person. There is an excellent term for this, which, though borrowed from the stable, carries with it only sweet and wholesome suggestions. It is "well-groomed." A well-groomed woman is not only a well-gowned woman, but one who, like a favorite mare, is always spick and span in her person, and happy in her quiet consciousness of it. And every woman, whether she possesses a maid or not, indeed, whether she has fine gowns or not, may win the admiration of all her a.s.sociates by her "grooming."

CHAPTER XI

GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF COOKING

The Prevalence of Good Recipes for All Save Meat Dishes--Increased Cost of Meat Makes These Desirable--No Need to Save Expense by Giving Up Meat--The "Government Cook Book"--Value of Meat as Food--Relative Values and Prices of the Cuts of Meat.

We may live without poetry, music and art; We may live without conscience, and live without heart; We may live without friends; we may live without books; But civilized man cannot live without cooks.

("OWEN MEREDITH")--_Lucile_.

All the other duties of the housewife are subsidiary to the great subject of preparing food for the household. The care of the home, the care of health, etc., all either bear upon this work or require ability to perform it.

With decks cleared for action, therefore, we will proceed to discuss the fundamental principles of cookery, the application of which, in the form of specific recipes, will follow in a separate chapter.

In the limited s.p.a.ce which can be here devoted to the subject, it will be a.s.sumed that the housewife is a cook, and can follow plain directions, and that she is familiar with the methods of preparing the ordinary meals that are universal throughout the country. It will be also taken for granted that she has one or more general cook books containing a wide variety of recipes for the making of bread in its various forms, cakes, pies, omelettes, salads, desserts, etc., and the discussion will be confined to meats, wherein, owing to advancing prices, new economical methods of preparation are coming into practice, based upon a scientific knowledge of food values.

Vegetarianism and fruitarianism are being adopted by many households, less as a matter of principle than as a recourse from what are considered the present prohibitive prices of meats. Now the proper way to solve a problem is not to evade it, but to face it and conquer it, and this is eminently true of the meat problem. Granted that the proportion of family income devoted to food cannot be increased, it is a fact that, by an intelligent study of the food value of the different kinds of meat, and of economic ways of preparing them, the expense of living may be maintained at the former rate, if not, indeed, materially lessened, with a great increase in both the nutritive value and the palatability of the family meals.

The "new nationalism" of America, which, after all, is only the turning to newer needs of the old nationalism that gave homesteads to the people and supplied them with improved methods of agriculture, is rightly taking the lead in the scientific education of the housekeeper in this household economy.

With special regard to the requirements of the people in these days of rising prices, especially of meats, the United States Department of Agriculture has issued a booklet, prepared by C.F. Langworthy, Ph.D., and Caroline L. Hunt, A.B., experts in nutrition connected with the Department, which gives authoritative information about the cheaper cuts of meat and the preparation of inexpensive meat dishes. This has become generally known as "The Government Cook Book." By the permission of the Department we here present portions of the information it contains, together with those recipes which best ill.u.s.trate the principles of meat cookery for the home table.

VALUE OF MEAT AS FOOD

Considering the fact that meat forms such an important part of the diet, and the further fact that the price of meat, as of other foods, has advanced in recent years, it is natural for housekeepers to seek more economical methods of preparing meat for the table, and to turn their thoughts toward the less expensive cuts and ask what economy is involved in their use, how they may be prepared, and whether the less expensive dishes are as nutritious and as thoroughly and easily digested as the costlier ones.

The value of meat as food depends chiefly on the presence of two cla.s.ses of nutrients, (1) protein or nitrogenous compounds, and (2) fat. The mineral matter it contains, particularly the phosphorus compounds, is also of much importance, though it is small in quant.i.ty. Protein is essential for the construction and maintenance of the body, and both protein and fat yield energy for muscular power and for keeping up the temperature of the body. Fat is especially important as a source of energy. It is possible to combine the fat and protein of animal foods so as to meet the requirements of the body with such materials only, and this is done in the Arctic regions, where vegetable food is lacking; but in general it is considered that diet is better and more wholesome when, in addition to animal foods, such as meat, which is rich in proteins and fats, it contains vegetable foods, which are richest in sugar, starch, and other carbohydrates. Both animal and vegetable foods supply the mineral substances which are essential to body growth and development.

The difference between the various cuts of meat consists chiefly in amount of fat and consequently in the fuel value to the body. So far as the proteins are concerned, i.e., the substances which build and repair the important tissues of the body, very little difference is found.

This general uniformity in proportion of protein makes it easy for the housekeeper who does not wish to enter into the complexities of food values to make sure that her family is getting enough of this nutrient.