121.
I daresay you have sometime been in a room where a person was sleepy, and kept yawning continually. You know that by-and-by you begin to do the same yourself, and it is very disagreeable. A good plan is to run out of the room and bathe your face in cold water: that will soon make you feel bright again. It is not nice to yawn, because it makes other people feel sleepy, and we should never forget to cover the mouth with the hand: it is very rude to open the mouth wide, and not to put the hand in front of it.
In coughing and sneezing, people should make as little noise as they possibly can. Sometimes we hear coughing in church, and the minister can scarcely speak for the noise. A pocket-handkerchief will soften the sound a good deal, both in coughing and sneezing.
These are only little things, but they can make others feel uncomfortable, and you remember we said that it was rude to do anything that caused people to be uncomfortable ([p. 110]), so do not forget to
(Blackboard)
Cover the Mouth when Yawning;
Make as Little Noise as Possible when Coughing
or Sneezing.
LXX. HOW A SLATE SHOULD NOT BE CLEANED.
122.
You will have noticed that there is always moisture in your mouth. Where do you think it comes from? Perhaps you did not know that there were six tiny fountains in your mouth, two on each side the tongue, and one in each cheek. When you are well these little fountains pour out the fluid which keeps your mouth so nice and moist. Sometimes when people are ill the little fountains do not flow, and the mouth is all dry and parched, and they are longing to drink all the time.
The fluid that comes from the tiny wells is called saliva, and, when we eat, it mixes with the food in the mouth, and goes down with it into the stomach. But this is what I want you to learn, the saliva is never to be sent out of the mouth in the way that is called "spitting" (an ugly word, is it not?), and you must remember never to do this, not even when you are cleaning your slate. You may breathe on your slate, and rub it dry with your slate rag, though that is not a very nice way. The best plan of all is to have a damp sponge, as well as a slate rag, and a well-mannered child would have both.