Chapter II: Part 2

Providence, we see, without any Expence to us, kindly sends Food into the World along with the Child, by giving to the Mother a Breast flowing with Milk. But to what purpose is this bestow’d? To be neglected and render’d fruitless? No surely; we cannot think thus indignantly of so great a Blessing. But besides this evident Design of Providence, there is another important Consideration; which is, that Mothers by suckling their Children cherish that Tenderness which Nature has implanted in them towards their Offspring. For Experience shews, that the Office of suckling considerably augments in them the Affection from whence that Tenderness flows; serves as Fuel to keep their fond Breasts in one perpetual Glow; and by sweetening their Care, enables them likewise to bring the tender Infants thro’ their helpless Age?

Another Argument for suckling, which is not sufficiently attended to, because not sufficiently known, is, that the Anxiety and Fatigue is perhaps fully compensated by the Pleasure. The provident Author of Nature has order’d in this, as in all, or most other Things, right and natural, that the Inducement shall more than balance the Discouragement. All Mothers who have experienc’d it, whose Minds are temper’d with natural Affection, assure us, that there is an inexpressible Pleasure in giving Suck, which none but Mothers know; for besides that the Sensation itself is said to be mighty pleasing; to behold the Innocence, the Cunning, the Tricks, and the various Whims of a Child; to observe likewise the early Sentiments they discover; must doubtless give a Pleasure which no Words can describe. Now if thus much be granted (and surely no Arguments can reason it away) I cannot help advising in the strongest Terms, that every Father consent, and even promote, that the Child be suckled by it’s Mother; if the Mother be in a Condition for it. But then, this Compliance, this Leave, if I must call it such, should be cordial, and from the Heart; otherwise a Mother, tho’ the best Nurse in the World, may become the most improper one, by a Husband’s so far souring her Temper, as to render her Milk, not only good for nothing, but even pernicious.

The general Good of all being what I aim at, I mean to offer the same Advice to all, as far as it can be practised; and therefore speak according to the Nature of Things. Still I am not insensible how little Probability there is that my Advice herein will be follow’d by Persons in high Life. For what Room is there in general to hope, that a fine Lady will lay herself under any of the necessary Restraints towards acting the Part of a good Nurse, and generously give up some of the vainer Pleasures of Life, in order to stoop to this Part of domestic Care? It is true that there may sometimes be important Reasons which may make their doing so improper; but it is greatly to be fear’d that those Reasons are oftener affected than real; and as this is a Duty not so easily dispensed with as People are apt to imagine, it is incumbent on Parents of the highest Rank to consider how far they are really justifiable in deviating from the Laws of Nature. But there is another important Consequence attends the Neglect with which People of Rank treat their Offspring in this Particular; that it thereby becomes a national Evil. It is universally known that the Little imitate the Great, and mostly too in what is wrong; that is, they catch their Vices sooner than their Virtues. Hence it happens, that because a Woman of the first Rank does not deign to suckle her Child, the Neglect descends to almost the lowest Rank; and many Men whose Figure in Life is very inconsiderable, scorn to bear the Noise of a Child, tho’ their own Flesh and Blood, only because it is a Practice among their Betters to remove them. And hence too the Great have two Reflections to make on this Point, the Duty they owe to their Children, and, (tho’ perhaps it is not a proper Observation here) the Influence which a Neglect of this Duty has on all beneath them.

While I am enforcing to Mothers the Duty of suckling their Children, I must endeavour to omit no material Circumstance, either that will contribute to the Ease of the one, or the Advantage of the other. The first that naturally occurs, is, the Time when a Child should be put to the Breast: and as this is a Matter variously thought of, and often erroneously managed, tho’ I could say a good deal from my own Observation, I have endeavour’d to settle it upon a much stronger Basis, _viz._ the Experience of competent Judges. Dr. _Hunter_, well known to the Public both by his Lectures in Anatomy, and his Practice in Midwifry, and one of the Men-Midwives of the Lying-in-Hospital in _Brownlow-Street_, informs me, that at the first opening of that Charity, they generally conducted the Business of suckling in the following Manner. The Child was not put to the Breast till the Milk came freely, or run out of itself; and as the Breasts commonly began to fill in about eight and forty Hours after Delivery, sooner or later, they were allowed to fill more and more, perhaps as much longer, ’till the Milk began to discharge itself: to forward this, the Breasts were frequently embrocated with warm Oil; to invite the Milk both by the Softness of the Oil, and the Motion given the Breasts by rubbing it in with the Hand. This Method was adhered to pretty generally, ’till they found by Experience that it was wrong. For besides that the Child might probably suffer in some Degree, by being so long depriv’d of it’s most natural Physick and Food, many grievous Effects often attend the Mother; _viz._ painful Swellings and Inflammations of the Breasts, Milk Fevers, and Milk Sores.

These Inconveniences induced the Physicians of that Hospital to alter the Method, which for some Time past has been as follows. The Child is put to the Breast commonly within twenty-four Hours after Delivery: and tho’ at first it sucks little, and that only a thin Serum, (which however is of singular Service to the Infant by discharging the _Meconium_ that fills the large Intestines) yet the Advantage to the Mother is, that by this means the Milk comes gradually and kindly; and before the usual Time of the Breasts hardening in the other Method, the Difficulty is conquered in this; the Milk flows freely, the Breasts are soft and easy, and the Heat of the Body continues temperate: insomuch that Dr. _Hunter_ farther assures me, that there has been much less of Inflammations of the Breasts and Milk fevers, and but one Milk Sore among upwards of fourteen hundred Women that have been deliver’d there since this Method has been pursued.[2]

Here, tho’ it is a Digression from my Subject, I cannot help reflecting with Pleasure on the Benefit arising to many industrious virtuous People from the Institution of this Hospital. Every Charitable Foundation, every Contribution to relieve the Needy, does Honour not only to those who give, but to the Nation where it is given; for when Individuals are known to be humane and benevolent, Strangers will conclude it as a national Virtue. It is certain that all public Receptacles for the Comfort and Support of the Distressed Indigent argue a compassionate Heart in those who support them, and a just Sense of others Woe; but the Lying-in-Hospital has a Delicacy in it peculiar to itself. The Ladies who contribute to it’s Support, prove, in Terms far more expressive than Words, their Sympathy with the Sufferings of their Sex; and particularly with those whom Fortune has placed the farthest from them. The Gentlemen who encourage it, and labour for it’s Promotion, shew a Tenderness which can only dwell in manly Hearts: for he certainly comes nearest to the Dignity of a Man, who has the tenderest Sense of the Sufferings of the opposite Sex; and particularly of those, which his own Existence is the necessary Cause of. But farther, most other Public Charities seem in their Nature limited; seem to extend no farther than the immediate Relief of those under their Care; whereas this is far more extensive: the Mother is comforted, and with tenderest Care brought thro’ her Child-bed; the Child (as far as Skill can reach) is safely entered on the Stage of Life; and thus is Mankind not only preserved, but perpetuated; and thus too is Society enlarged, and improved, to a boundless Degree. Thus much have I said to do justice to an Undertaking in itself highly laudable, and infallibly productive of the greatest Good. But there is another Effect, perhaps hitherto unthought of, which will necessarily attend this Hospital, and is no less than a general Concern; that of the Improvement of Midwifry: the several Gentlemen who attend it in that Capacity, cannot but have the best Foundation in their Art, that which is extended and strengthened by the frequent Occurrence of the more nice and uncommon Cases among such Variety: and the Women whom they educate to Midwifry in that Hospital, must from their many Opportunities become valuable Practitioners for such of their Sex as are inclined to employ them rather than a Man.

But to return to the Matter in hand. This Method of putting Children to the Breast much sooner than usual, corresponds with the Opinion of Dr. _Cadogan_, who in a small Pamphlet on the Management of Children, has said a great many sensible useful Things; and among the rest, he proposes, that a Child be put to the Breast in seven or eight Hours after it is born; whereby, says he, “It would not only provide for itself the best of Nourishment, but by opening a free Passage for it, take off the Mother’s Load as it increased, before it could oppress or hurt her; and therefore effectually prevent the Fever; which is caus’d only by the painful Distention of the lacteal Vessels of the Breasts, when the Milk is injudiciously suffer’d to accumulate.” To this I have two Things to add; First, to recommend to Parents that the Advice here given be reduced to Practice, unless some extraordinary Circumstances intervene; in which Case, their own Judgment must direct them to seek an Opinion suitable to the Exigence. Secondly, that all Precautions be taken to prevent the Mother’s catching Cold, or being too much fatigued in the first Days after Delivery. It is here meant, besides the Child’s having it’s most proper Nourishment, the Breast, as soon as possible; that the Mother be secured not only from the Danger of sore Breasts, but even from Inflammations and Fevers so common to the Sex in Child-bed. But while we are guarding against Mischief one way, it is no less our Duty to prevent it, if possible, every way; therefore do I again caution that the utmost Care be taken to prevent the Mother’s catching Cold, or sitting up in Bed too long for her Strength in the first Attempts to suckle her Child. It is common for a Child, when first put to the Breast, to be unapt; the Mother, especially if a young one, is often awkward; and if the Nurse be unhandy or careless, the Consequences may be fatal; and indeed frequently are so: the Reason is plain. The Perspiration which usually follows Delivery is necessary; and where Nature is defective, Art is employ’d to keep it up: if then these Sweats are salutary, whatever obstructs or checks them must be dangerous; and nothing sooner or more certainly effects this than the being injudiciously uncover’d. But besides catching Cold, there is great Danger to be apprehended from Fatigue. That too much Fatigue in these early Days after Delivery may be very pernicious, every body knows who is experienced. Nothing so common as a Woman’s having had a good Labour, and being so extremely well, that on the second, third, or fourth Day she indulges herself with the Conversation of a Friend, or sits up in Bed for some time for Refreshment; in Consequence of which she grows hot, has a restless Night, and before Morning is in a raging Fever; perhaps delirious.

The precise Time of a Child’s sucking is a Point much controverted, particularly among Ladies, but nothing ascertain’d. The present Fashion ’tis true, is to let Children suck only three or four Months; but surely this is too important an affair for Fashion to take place of Reason. From my Acquaintance with the Learned on this Head, I gather, that generally speaking a Child should not suck less than six Months, nor more than twelve; but that the Medium, that is, nine Months, is for the most part the best. Still there may be Reasons for varying these stated Times; if so, Reason in that as well as in other things should be our Guide. And farther, there may be Circumstances which impede the Mother’s suckling her Child at all; the want of Health is a principal one; but then it should be a real want of Health, not an imaginary one. Where then a Doubt arises, I advise Parents not rashly and hastily to resolve for themselves, but to consult proper Judges, and always, where it is in their Power, be determined by their Physician.

But here, as an Encouragement to Mothers to suckle their Children, I must observe, that it is the Opinion of Physicians that many Women would mend their Health by it; and very few, if any, hurt a good Constitution, unless thro’ Imprudence or Ignorance: now to obviate these, let Mothers be careful to set out right, and then they have very little to fear.

Hunger, Fatigue, and Fretting, are the three most obvious things that impair a Mother’s Health in Nursing. I say nothing of gross Intemperance, violent Passions, and the like, for they are always to be banish’d; nay we are not once to suppose they exist in the Sex. Hunger is carefully to be avoided: while the Mother gives suck, she should never let the Keenness of her Appetite go off by waiting long for her Meals; for that often repeated will sink the Spirits, fill her with Wind, impair her Strength, and consequently not only hurt herself, but prejudice her Milk also.

I confess it is my Opinion that a very nice regard to a Nurse’s Diet is not so generally necessary as is imagined. Temperance is universally to be held as a Rule; but under the appearance of avoiding one Error, they run into a greater; they often eat of very rich Dishes, and shun the use of Vegetables: whereas to People who are young and healthy, nothing is more wholsome than Vegetables blended with Meat: and the only Caution that is material to be given, is, that they guard them with Pepper; whereby they will keep under the Effect they sometimes have, of producing Wind. But should Garden Stuff, after all this, disagree, Prudence will certainly direct the Mother to disuse it; tho’ at the same time it must be own’d, that where this is the Case, her Digestion is not what it ought to be to constitute perfect Health. To this Head I will add, that where a Woman has been accustom’d to drink a glass or two of Wine or Ale at Meals, she should not debar herself from it now; as her waste of Strength and Spirits certainly demand at least her usual way of Life; tho’ it does not seem needful for her to go far beyond it.

By Fatigue I mean so much Exercise as manifestly impairs the Strength, or brings on various Pains, so as to render a Mother incapable of executing what she has begun; or at least makes the Office extremely slavish to her. Exercise is good, but Fatigue is bad. There are so many different Conditions in this great Family of the World, and so many different Circumstances in each Station, that it is impossible to lay down Rules for every Individual, or prescribe an universal one for all; in general I recommend on this occasion the joint Attention of both Father and Mother. If a Man reflects that while his Wife is suckling her Child, she is labouring to compleat the principal Work for which they came together, he cannot surely suffer her to endure Fatigue beyond her Power to bear; nor can he feel for her that Tenderness he ought, if he imposes any Hardship on her that can be dispens’d with. On the other hand, the Mother is to remember, that besides being chearful and keeping her Mind at rest, she must keep her Limbs at rest too; that is, she must often forego other Exercise, that she may be enabled to bestow a larger Portion of Kindness on her Child.

But there are several ways a Woman may be fatigued with Nursing without the least necessity. The first thing a Mother has to do, is, to use her Child to such Positions in suckling as she likes best, and is most convenient to herself. When up, the Mother should by all means sit upright, and the Child be rais’d to the Breast: the Child should yield to the Mother, and not the Mother to the Child. That distorted Posture so commonly seen in suckling gives great Pain to the Back, and cramps all the Limbs; and this without any other effect on the Child than indulging a manifest Wilfulness. When in Bed, the Child should take the Breast as it lyes; and not incommode the Mother by making her sit up in Bed by the Hour, purely to humour it, as is too common: for this too, without any Benefit to the Child, greatly increases the Mother’s Fatigue, by robbing her of her Sleep, and by exposing her to catch Cold from the various Seasons it happens in. But these Inconveniences may farther be obviated, by letting the Child lye in a Cradle without the Breast the Night thro’, or with a Maid in another Room; for it is certain, that neither Breast, Drink, nor Feeding are so absolutely necessary in the Night as is commonly imagin’d. Some of my fair Readers will, I doubt, reject my Counsel in this particular; but I urge it on the double Motive of Benefit to the Child, and Ease to the Mother. Yet not to be too rigorous in this Point, not to affect too sensibly a Mother’s Tenderness, suppose a Child be sometimes allow’d the Breast in the Night, it certainly should be only sometimes; for the Practice of letting it drag at it the Night thro’ is a grievous Error: it hurts both Child and Mother; the Child by this Means is continually wrangling, fretting, and dissatisfy’d, and the Mother is often so sensibly affected by it, as even to be thrown into Hysteric Fits.

Difficult as I acknowledge it is to lay down an universal Rule, I will here attempt what appears to me to be generally practicable. According to the usual Management of Children at the Breast it may be averr’d, that they have too little Sleep, and too much Food: that is, their Sleep is short and broken thro’ Mismanagement, and they are suckled or fed oftener than is conducive to Health. Now to remove this Error, I will not offer any Restraint in the Day-time, (tho’ that in the opinion of an ingenious Writer[3] requires it) but endeavour to effect it by regulating the Night. To this End let a Child be undress’d, it’s Night things put on, and be fed or suckled at seven o’Clock, and then put into it’s Cradle; where without rocking (if used to it and in Health) it will fall asleep. Supposing the Mother to go to Bed at ten or eleven, if the Child should happen to be awake, let it be turn’d dry (as the Nurses term it) and suckled again; and it will sleep soundly for six or seven Hours: perhaps now and then it will whimper a little, but if it is not touch’d it will fall asleep again immediately. But supposing it is not awake when the Mother goes to Bed, let it not by any means be disturb’d, for that breaking of Childrens Rest so common with Parents makes them vastly tiresome; all that the Mother has to do in this Case is, to keep a warm Cloth in Bed with her, and when the Child awakes take away the wet one as soon as possible, that it may not be too much disturb’d by the Sense of Cold; that done, let it have the Breast, and it will commonly sleep again till it is time for the Family to rise. The Child should not have its Cloth shifted again; for frequently opening it when it ought to sleep is a great Impediment to it’s Rest; and while wrapt up warm, and it lies still, it receives no Harm from being wet: to this must be added, that the Mother be very hush; no talking, no shewing the Candle, the Daylight, or any thing that may awaken it thoroughly. If this Method be adher’d to, I am persuaded it will have many good Effects; it will give a longer respite than usual from feeding or suckling; it will obtain what is of great Consequence to a Child’s Health, Sleep; and it will facilitate the Mother’s Task by lessening her Fatigue.

To suffer by Hunger or Fatigue does great injury to the Mother principally, but Fretting has always a double Consequence; it hurts the Child too. A fretful Temper turns even Pleasure into Pain; well then may it make a necessary Care a Fatigue. One Distinction however I would make that I think deserves Attention; whether the Fretfulness be in Nature, be fixt and incurable; or whether it be owing to external Accidents, the Occurrences of Things; such as frequent Provocations from a Husband, untoward Children, wasteful Servants, vexatious Law Suits, and many other Evils Life is fraught with. In the first Case, Women would do well to let suckling alone; for warm as I am in recommending this Practice, it is certain there are some few Exceptions, and this is one. But in the other, I urge suckling in great measure as a Remedy. For let the naturally good-temper’d Mother but once reflect that Fretting hurts her Child, and she will avoid it for her Infant’s sake: besides, the Love created in her for it by the Exercise of this natural Duty, will make her forget many other Cares; at least it will counterpoise her Troubles, by mingling Pleasure with Pain.

There is a Class of Women who are lifeless and sluggish, an insipid Race that do neither good nor harm; these should by all means suckle their Children, for by so doing they would be enliven’d, and animated with a Desire to become useful. If too they reflect, that the Intention of Nature is, that they should rear their Children as well as bear them, they will soon be ashamed of doing their Work by halves: and thus become much happier in themselves, and of much more Consequence to Society.

By the Observance of these few Rules, Mothers in general may suckle their Children, not only without Pain or Injury, but even with Pleasure and Profit. They may sometimes improve their Health; often lessen their Cares, and mend their Temper and Dispositions; and will always have a pleasing Consciousness that they have obey’d the Laws of Nature, by having done all that was incumbent on them.

If after all that has been said it is not thought expedient that a Child should suck it’s Mother; a Breast is certainly the best Substitute: but great Care should here be taken, in the Choice of a Nurse. She should be young, healthy, good-humour’d, sprightly, and temperate. The newer her Milk the better; it is best not to be above three Months old; and should never exceed six Months, when the Child is first put to her Breast; if beyond that, either the Child must be wean’d too soon, or suck a staler Milk than perhaps it ought. Some are of Opinion, that Breast-milk begins to lose of it’s nutritious Quality after the Expiration of a Year; but let us here observe the Operations of Nature. The younger Breast-Milk is, the thinner and lighter it is; fitted by Nature for the tender Stomachs of new-born Babes: as it grows older, it becomes thicker, richer, and more stubborn of Digestion; by which gradual Change it is suited to the relative rising Powers of Digestion in the Child. Hence it would seem, that Breast-milk, does not at this stated Time become poorer, but richer; rich perhaps to a degree of Rancidity; which, like gross Food to others, is sometimes stronger than Children can bear: and on this Principle it is I recommend where a Breast is to be sought, that either the Milk be young, or the Child wean’d soon.

But supposing a Child to have no Breast (as Arguments whether good or bad will often be brought against it) the want of it must be supply’d by coming as near to Nature as we can. In order thereto, it is the Opinion of a Physician[4] in the Practice of Midwifry, whose Judgment in this Matter ought to have weight, that Cows-milk be diluted with Water, ’till it becomes as thin as Breast-milk, and given warm several times in the Day; that is, as often as a Child would have the Breast were it to be suckled: besides this, it should sometimes be fed with other Milk Diet; viz. Bread and Water boil’d lightly together, and Milk added to it.

When a Child sucks it is usual to feed it with nothing but Water Pap, that is, Bread and Water boil’d together, without the Addition of Milk; from a Notion that it should not have two sorts of Milk; but this Treatment is surely erroneous. Nay, there are some who improve upon this Error, and give their Children (at least for the first Month) Water Pap only, even tho’ they have no Breast.

It is both natural and commendable in Parents to inform themselves what Distempers Children are subject to, and usually dye of; and if we farther refer them to the Bills of Mortality, they will constantly find, that Gripes, Looseness, and Convulsions make a great Part of the Account. Now besides the latent Causes of these Diseases, they have a very obvious one, _viz._ improper Food. For my own part I am convinc’d, even to Demonstration, that many Infants owe their Death to the Mistakes committed in this Point; and often to the false Practice of giving them Bread and Water only, and omitting that most salutary part the Milk. Milk (again I repeat it) is the Food of Nature; with that alone, to an Infant, we may do almost every thing; without it, nothing.

Tho’ these first Rules here laid down should meet with general Approbation, and Parents from seeing how natural and reasonable this Doctrine is, be induced to follow it; they have still many things both to do and avoid, that are greatly conducive to their Childrens Health; and therefore demand their Attention and Regard.

As we have urg’d that Milk is the Food of Nature, so we may with equal Propriety call Bread the Staff of Life. Breast-milk my Readers will observe, is preferred to every other; but where that cannot be obtain’d, then Cows-milk, made thinner and lighter by the Addition of Water, is to supply its place; and, between whiles, the Child is to be fed with Milk-victuals; from which, as it is thicken’d with Bread, it will receive great Nourishment. But here great care must be taken to keep up its Appetite for this Food at first setting out; as it is of all others the most proper; and not spoil its Relish for it by the Admixture or Intervention of any thing else while in Health, ’till a more advanc’d Age.

The first Error usually run into, is, the immoderate use of Spice and Sugar; which Physicians who have consider’d these matters positively condemn: and if a Child is well, putting either of these in it’s Victuals, answers not the least good End. Spice and Sugar are certainly fine natural Productions, and of vast Use to Mankind; but the Food of Infants should be as simple as possible; and if it is made otherwise by the early use of these, the Effects will always be very troublesome, and oftentimes mischievous. What is more common than to give young Children Lumps of Sugar to eat; yet what more erroneous? Every Day’s Experience shews us how wrong the Practice is: it vitiates their Taste; creates in them an unconquerable Fondness for it, even to a Degree of Vulgarness; and manifestly clogs their Stomachs.

The Error next in rank to these, or rather a part of the same, as Sugar is greatly concern’d in it, is, the Custom Parents have of giving Children Tea. Tea, to a young Child, if we omit the Milk, has not a single Ingredient to recommend it: the Sugar in it has already been treated of; the Water, (as Tea is usually drank too hot,) serves to scald it’s Mouth and Throat, or at best to relax the Stomach and weaken the Tone of it; and the Plant or Shrub it self has Qualities, which, to say the least of it, seldom contributes to promote it’s Health.

That this Herb of which our Tea is made has had many Tongues to speak it’s Praise, I am convinc’d; or it would not have obtain’d that universal use we now see made of it: and some likewise have taken up their Pen, and with great Labour describ’d its Virtues and Utility to Mankind: but all this is too weak to stand against that infallible Guide, Experience. To insist that Tea has no good Qualities would be offering an Affront to the Judgment and Experience of many wise People, and is very far from being my Design; on the contrary, I am convinc’d it has. Bohea Tea is esteem’d balsamic, and Green is allow’d to be an astringent Stomachic. Still these or any other particular Qualities, do not justify it’s general use; for while the same Experience proves that for one who receives Benefit by drinking it, ten receive Harm, it must upon the Whole be condemned.

Tea may be consider’d like some certain Drugs, which in skilful hands are safe and useful, but in ignorant ones, poisonous. That the intemperate and indiscriminate use of Tea is hurtful, is too well known to be disputed; some it is true are manifestly refresh’d, comforted and enliven’d by it; others feel not the least sensible effect from the longest use of it, and drink it purely thro’ Custom; but again there are others, and those much the Majority, who impair their Health so visibly by this pernicious Practice, that they shorten their Lives, or at least render them comfortless, if not miserable. Now who that considers these things well, or but once reflects that ’tis at least ten to one that their Children are Sufferers by it, can reasonably speaking be hasty in bringing them to it; especially too if we farther reflect, that by a seeming magic Power it often enslaves People even to Infatuation. Infants then have nothing to do with this darling deluding Liquor; and when at a more advanc’d Age, Parents should still give it them very sparingly, if at all; and be careful to keep them if possible from ever being attach’d to it.

Before I take my leave of this Article, let me recommend to Parents some Observations for their farther guidance herein. Those Children who have weak Nerves should not by any means drink Tea at all. Tea should never be made strong; nor drank in large quantities, nor hot, nor without Milk, nor very sweet. Tea should not be drank in a Morning by those who cannot eat; nor can it in general be drank in the Afternoon with Safety, but by those who have eat a hearty Dinner, and drink it soon. Bohea Tea is found to affect the Nerves the most sensibly; and Green, from its Astringency, is not only the most grateful, but its Effects prove it to be least hurtful.

Many are the Errors which Parents fall into in the Management of Children, especially at first setting out. I have often seen Children wash’d away with the watry Gripes, when upon inquiry it appear’d they had no other Food but Water Pap: others reject this, and fall into the Error of giving Children Broth; which alone, is in it’s Nature too laxative for Infants. But Water Pap must be condemn’d as far the most improper; for it is manifest that Bread, of which it is made, besides the Fermentation it undergoes in the Hands of the Baker, has, according to the Juices it meets with, a farther Power of fermenting in the Stomach: therefore, should Nature by chance be thwarted, should universal Observation be for once contradicted, by shewing a Child whom Milk is unfit for; in that case I recommend, that Broth be added to the Pap; which will bring the Food nearest to the Quality of that animal Fluid, Milk, the natural Nourishment. And as watry Gripes are often owing to ill-digested Pap, Broth, tho’ laxative, would certainly from its Smoothness prevent or lessen the Stimulation in the Bowels; as we find in the Cure of such Gripes great Service from Glysters of Oil, Chickens-guts, and other things of the like Kind.

But farther; I am clearly of Opinion, that the first Change in Childrens Diet should be from Milk to Broth, and not from Milk to Meat: their tender Stomachs ought not to be put too early upon the Office of digesting the fleshy Fibres of Meat; but they may, as they approach to a Year old, by way of Introduction to eating Flesh, and by way of changing Diet, sometimes have Broth; but by no means for constant use, to the neglect of Milk.

It is universally confess’d, that in _England_ we eat too much Flesh; and were I to urge all that might be said on that Head, it would be dwelling too long on a single Point. But since this Error of our Country is acknowledg’d by many of the wisest Men in it, let it serve as a general Caution to Parents; let them turn it to the Advantage of the rising Generation; by being neither hasty in giving Flesh Meat to their Children, nor even permitting them to be intemperate in the Use of it.

To enforce this Precept, and prove the Reasonableness of not giving Children Meat so soon as is usual, I will here observe, that Physicians say the first Digestion should be in the Mouth, the second in the Stomach; whence it appears that Children have no Business with Meat ’till they have Teeth to chew it; nay, not ’till they have their Mouths almost full of Teeth; for they have not the Power of grinding down their Meat sufficiently ’till they have got some of their strongest Teeth, and those every one is sensible do not come first. Hence we are furnished with an admirable Hint, which not to endeavour to reduce to Practice, would be injuring our Children, and baffling the Labours of learned Men, who make the Good of Mankind the Study of their Lives. Parents by the same Lesson are instructed likewise, to make their Children accustom themselves to chew their Meat well their whole Lives; for it is certain they would thereby prevent many ill Effects arising from Indigestion.

Having thus, as near to Nature as I am able, led Parents into the first Steps of the Management of their Childrens Health, I shall now touch on Art; a little of which may, and will be necessary. It is plain that Children are born full of Foulness, full of Excrement; and Nature to remedy this, gives a purgative Quality to the Mother’s first Milk; which Quality, as the Child cleanses, goes off. But if this first Milk be drawn away by another, as is frequent, in order to ease the Breasts; or the Child does not suck it’s Mother, but an older Milk; in that Case it should most certainly be purged three or four times in the Month. For my own Part I have gone farther, and tho’ my Children had the first Milk, I always began by giving them a little Syrup of Rhubarb and Oil of Almonds; which has constantly had a good Effect, not only on them, but on many others under my Care: the Rhubarb scours and cleanses them, and the Oil in some measure blunts its griping Quality, and prevents its leaving a Costiveness so common to that Drug. But tho’ I have frequently given this, yet Rhubarb in Substance, corrected with a small Portion of Aromatic, or mix’d with Gascoign’s Powder, is found by Experience to agree very well: Syrup of Violets or Marshmallows, join’d with Oil of Almonds, are frequently given in order to cleanse the first Passages, and are very proper; tho’ not so efficacious as Rhubarb. Nor are there any better Purges than these for new-born Infants, unless, (which very seldom happens) in great Costiveness, and then a little Manna. What farther relates to Physic and physical People, shall be spoken of hereafter.

In a Treatise of this Kind nothing must pass unobserved that is important; and nothing is more so, than the destructive Practice of drinking spirituous Liquors. For a Woman to have a Habit of Dram-drinking is always detestable; but for one who gives Suck, it is horrible beyond Expression: it is fraught with double Mischief, Destruction to herself, and Destruction to the Child. One would imagine, that so odious a Vice wanted not to be inveigh’d against; or at most that the Caution could no where be useful, but amongst Basket-women and Billingsgates. ’Tis true indeed, that the Illiterate and Vulgar are the most addicted to it; but melancholy Experience shews us, that Women every way happy in Life, Women of the best Understanding, and the best Education, are but too often tainted with it.

It is not my Design in general to write on the Foibles or Vices of Parents, but of Children; yet it must be owned, that where the Actions of the one have an Influence on the other, where the Connection is so close that the Health or Morals of Children are affected by the Conduct of Parents, it is perfectly consistent with the Plan I have laid down; and consequently is within my Province. Thus then I observe, that there are many Women who never tasted spirituous Liquors ’till they gave Suck. A Child is kept lugging at the Breast ’till the Mother is ready to sink, and a Friend recommends a Dram: the innocent Woman starts at the Proposition; but it being strenuously urg’d that it will do her good and the Child too, she follows the Counsel and drinks it. How reluctantly and with how much dislike may be known by her shaking her Head at the very Smell of it, making Faces when it is down, and declaring it is nasty Stuff. Now for a while let me talk like an Apothecary. The Nerves give Sensation to our whole Frame whether of Pain or Pleasure. This Dram acts immediately on the Nerves of the Stomach, and instantly communicates itself to those of the Brain, which are exquisitely fine; the Sensation is pleasing, a general Glow is felt, and the temporary Relief it gives, persuades her that Drams are not so pernicious as People pretend. But by and by the Languor returns, and she has recourse to her Dram again; tho’ perhaps with this Difference, that instead of being persuaded into it she seeks it herself; and thus by a Return of Wants, she finds a Return of Desire; she flies so often to her fancied Remedy, that at length she is innocently and insensibly led into a Habit which infatuates her: even so far as often to rob her of the Power of getting rid of it. But the Habit contracted, what is the Effect? Why, that which at first was only a slight Injury, by this means becomes a mortal Wound.

The Human Frame, that Master-Piece of infinite Wisdom, is compos’d of a great variety of Parts, of different Make, Texture and Quality; each of which has it’s Use, and proper Office assign’d it. But that I may not confound any of my Readers by nice or obscure Physical Divisions, I will say it is compos’d of Solids and Fluids: the Fluids, that is, the Blood and other Juices, are allotted to nourish and preserve the Solids; and the Solids, that is, the Flesh and other hard Parts, serve as Pipes or Channels to convey in a due Course the several Fluids to their destin’d End. Now to preserve Health, it is necessary that our whole Machine acts regularly; which it cannot do for any long Time with the pernicious Habit we have been speaking of. Drams, which at first give only a slight Wound to the Nerves, by frequent Repetition enfeeble them; and in the End totally disable them; as is evident by their bringing on Tremblings, weakening the Memory, and impairing the Understanding. To maintain Health, the Solids are to keep up their due Force or Spring, that they may propel the Fluids, and prevent their breaking them down by too great a Resistance. The Fluids are to be kept in such a state, that they may neither run too rapidly, nor clog by the way for want of the circulating Power. Thus in Rivers, where the Banks and Fences are weak, the Pressure of the Water will break them down; or if the Water be clogg’d and render’d foul by any Mixture foreign to it’s Nature, or is otherwise obstructed in it’s Course, it cannot reach those various Meanders, those small Canals it was allotted to fill.

Hence every Eye may see how destructive this unnatural Habit must be to our Frame. The Tone of the Stomach is weaken’d, and with it, the Power of Digestion; Obstructions of the Liver and other Parts ensue; the Solids are broke, and the Fluids forsake their proper Channels: hence Jaundice, Dropsies, Palsies, and various other Distempers, fatal in their Consequences, and doubly acute to those who reflect, that they have brought them on themselves: for however thoughtless or indifferent they may be while in Health, when bitter Remembrance accompanies the severe Effects, the Situation must be dreadful.

I have observ’d that many are innocently led into this grievous Habit: and they are the more liable to it, as the Goodness of their Constitution preserves some longer than others, from being sensible of it’s ill Effects. But they must beware of Illusions, and convince themselves of one Truth at least; that instead of that Nutrition which proper Food yields, the Blood and other Juices are by this means vitiated; and with them that most salutary Fluid the Milk. It is true indeed that all Drams are not alike pernicious; nor do they, as I have just hinted, act alike on all Constitutions. Yet thus much is certain; that they all contain fiery Particles, a Portion of caustic inflammable Matter, in general very injurious to our whole Frame; very unfit to circulate in our Blood and Juices; and above all, extremely prejudicial to those Infants who imbibe the Infection by sucking at a Breast thus unhappily tainted.

But besides this dreadful Habit in the Mother or Nurse, there is a Practice among the Vulgar still more shocking; and which must make every reasonable Creature shrink with Horror; that of giving Drams to the Children themselves, even while Infants. Nothing is more strongly urg’d by all moral Writers than the Force of Example; and when they mean to paint a bad Parent, they describe a Child imitating those Vices his Father acts before him. But here Description is too weak; no Language has Force enough to express the Horror of this Vice! These unhappy wretched Parents forestall Imitation; they stay not ’till the Child has Power to follow their Example; but pour the deadly Poison down the poor Babe’s Throat, even before it can speak! What, I say again, what Language can describe the Horror of this Vice? Surely none.

All wise Men agree, that Virtues flow, or ought to flow, from the Head; that the Inferior receive their Influence from the Superior; and most act by Imitation of their Betters: but Experience shews us, that the Little can sometimes teach the Great Virtues they were before Strangers to; and by a still stranger Inversion of the natural Order of Things, it often happens, that the Great imitate the Vices of the Little. But here I cannot refrain from exhorting Parents of every Rank never to suffer themselves to fall into so dreadful an Error as that just hinted at. Those who are already tainted with it are perhaps too abandon’d to be reclaim’d; or have it not in their Power to remove the Mischief they have caused: but those who are happily Strangers to it, must keep their Attention awake; must live in a constant Resolution never to let a Child so much as touch so dangerous a Weapon; unless they choose to be their Childrens Murderers; choose to have them fall a Sacrifice to some dire Disease; or become Cripples, Idiots, or Brutes.

Before I quit this Head, I must take Notice of an inferior Degree of the same Error; less a Vice indeed, because there is an Intention of Good in it, tho’ generally a mistaken one; I mean that of putting Brandy and other spirituous Liquors into Childrens Victuals. How this Practice came to be introduced is amazing! But tho’ the general Pretence is preventing or curing Wind and Gripes, it is highly erroneous: for where these Disorders really exist they should be treated in another Manner; and by People whose Judgment can be depended on.

The next Degree of Error to this, is the early Custom Parents have of giving their Children Wine. Grown People, even among the Temperate, often drink much more of it than is either needful or beneficial; but Children want it not at all. To give Wine to Infants is a gross Error; and even to those who have pass’d that Stage, the Practice is very wrong.

Wine, tho’ a general Term for the Juice produced from Grapes, is undoubtedly a very different Liquor, not only in Colour and Flavour, but in Quality, according to the Country it grows in; as is manifest by the different Effects of it on the Human Body. One Sort is found to constringe too much; another is loaded with Tartar; a third abounds with a large Portion of inflammable Spirit; and so on. But not to enter into a physical Analysis of Wine, we will say it is allow’d to assist the Digestion, to warm the Blood, and give a certain Sprightliness, which, in other Words, we call a Flow of Spirits. Now in the Case of Children we injure them if we give them gross Food, such as requires Wine to digest; and if Wine be added to it, we put Fuel to Fire, Flame to Flame; nor does the Blood and Spirits need this foreign Assistance while young: the one is by Nature sufficiently warm’d; and the other are best supported by Temperance and a chearful Disposition.

I will not take upon me to fix precise Rules on this Head, both because it is very difficult, and in general they would not be adher’d to: but thus much I seriously recommend, that Children in the first Septenary taste no Wine at all; in the second be vastly sparing; and in the third fix a Temperance built on solid Principles of Reason and Virtue; such as will best secure to them Health and Happiness for their whole Lives.

I am here naturally led to speak of Malt Liquor, the native Produce of our Country: but on this, as well as the two foregoing Heads, we must keep Temperance in View, from the double Motive of Health and Virtue. Experience teaches us, that Malt Liquor can be rais’d to any Degree of Strength; that it is capable of inflaming the Blood and intoxicating the Brain; consequently it is capable of weakening and destroying our Frame when intemperately used. But besides these Effects, it has others often very hurtful, but less regarded, because less sensible. One, from a natural Weakness of the Bowels, it throws into habitual Purgings; another it oppresses with Wind; and in a third, from its glutinous Quality, it obstructs some of the Viscera, and has a peculiar Tendency to clog the Vessels of the Lungs, and thereby hinder Respiration, produce Coughs, and those fatal Circumstances frequently attending them. Hence it is easy to see how necessary the Parents Attention is, to guide their Children herein. Infants, at least for the first Year, have no Business with Malt Liquor at all; they ought not to taste it: Milk, or Water, or both together, is their proper Drink; and if after this Age, these were made the Liquor to drink with their Food, it would be no worse for them. However, not to be too rigorous in this respect, let Children after the first Year, wash down their Victuals with light clear Small-beer; and nothing beyond that for the first seven Years. In the second and third Septenary, the same Rule which has been laid down concerning Wine, should be observ’d in all strong Malt Liquors; they should be very sparingly used. Nothing is more dangerous than the Indulgence of Parents in this Point; for besides the many ill Effects already mentioned, ’tis coarse and vulgar; it clouds the Understanding, and renders young People unfit for Study. Besides these, it gives them an early Bloatedness; and greatly endangers the laying the Foundation of a Sot for Life: or at least gives them such a Hankering, as cannot but be a great Impediment to their Happiness.

Nothing is more talk’d of for the Good of Children, and yet nothing more unsettled, than the necessary Degree of Warmth; and while some Parents are sanguine in maintaining the Necessity of much Cloathing, there are others as obstinately prone to freeze their tender Babes: even skilful and ingenious Physicians disagree in this Particular.

It is a Maxim in Philosophy, that Heat is a Principle of Life: and indeed, without the Assistance of the Schools, every one knows the Truth of it. All know, that Life is warm, Death is cold; and therefore to support Life, there must always be a Degree of Warmth. This premised, it appears that Warmth is natural to us; but where to begin, or how to maintain such a Degree of it in our Children as will keep us from either Extreme, is not easy to determine. However, to keep as wide of Error as we can, we must keep close to Nature’s Laws.

Nature then, I think, points out to us, that new-born Children want more Cloaths in Proportion than others. When we consider how warm a Bed they have long been wrapp’d in before their Birth; when we consider too how tender all their Fibres must be; and see them shivering, trembling and cold as soon as the external Air surrounds them; we cannot but conclude that they are greatly cherished and comforted by the Addition of Cloaths.

It is true that the same Philosophy which teaches us that Heat is a Principle of Life, teaches also, that Action is the Cause of Heat: but new-born Infants being incapable of Action to any Degree, it appears to me, that for the Reasons already given, they stand in need of an additional, or rather, an adventitious Warmth, from Cloaths, Fire, Sun, or all, in their proper Time and Place.

Should any one urge that thin Cloathing of Children is the rational Way to make them hardy, and inure them to Cold, I am ready to grant it; but I cannot help being of Opinion, that it ought not to be begun with. In most other Things relating to Children we succeed best by beginning at once; but here I think we should proceed by Degrees. Let Parents then at the Birth give Children all the Comfort Cloaths can afford them; and when some Months Time has hardened their Fibres, and thereby strengthened their Solids, let them be thinned gradually. One sensible Distinction may be made that should be universally regarded: that is, the Difference of Climate and Seasons. A Child born in the midst of Summer, or where the Air is incapable of affecting it very sensibly, need not to have so much cloathing as one born in the Depth of Winter, or in a colder Climate.

It is easy for my Readers to see that I am an Advocate for Warmth; and that I do not only recommend it as yielding great Comfort to Infants, but esteem it highly necessary and useful to them: and should any farther Proof be required to support this Opinion, we may refer to all created Nature, animate and inanimate.