Idleness.—Idleness among children, as among men, is the root of all evil, and leads to no other evil more certain than ill-temper.—Hannah More.
Learning to Sew.—Every reasonable mother knows that it is wise to teach her little daughter to sew. Let her begin on the tiny garment of her doll. She will easily form the habit of mending torn places in dolly's clothes and replace absent buttons. With this experience, it will not be long before she will begin to take an interest in her own clothes, and so will not need to be warned that a button is coming off or that the hem of her skirt is coming out. But, of course, she could not begin by sewing or patching her own clothes, nor by mending intricate tears. First see that she sews on buttons correctly and then let her do some basting.
A Good Rule.—St. Edmund of Canterbury was right when he said to somebody.
"Work as though you would live forever; but live as though you would die
today."
—Henry Giles.
Double Duties.—Children should never be required to do housework to the extent a housekeeper must do it, for the strength of a growing child should be applied almost wholly to duties at school. A growing child cannot do mental and hard physical labor at the same time. Wiping dishes and assisting in the dusting do not interfere with school work, and are really good exercises. But the young girl who is compelled to rise early in the morning, prepare breakfast, assist with the family washing or ironing and prepare herself for school will lose out somewhere.
[NURSERY HINTS AND FIRESIDE GEMS 805]
THE BABY-CLASS TREE.
We little folks planted a wee, wee, tree,
The tiniest tree of all;
Right here by the school-house door it stands
With two little leaves like baby's hands,
So crumpled and soft and small.
And I really believe it is ever so glad
That we planted it there to grow,
And knows us and loves us and understands,
For it claps them just like two little hands,
Whenever the west winds blow.
The Flannel Binder.—The flannel binders for baby should be cut from the softest kind of flannel and on the bias to increase their elasticity. They should be about five inches wide and twenty inches long, with the edges raw, or pinked, perhaps, but not hemmed. After the first six or eight weeks the knitted, circular band which can be bought ready made or may be crocheted at home, is substituted for the flannel binder.