A Treatise on Domestic Economy; For the Use of Young Ladies at Home and at School

to this healthful operation. For this purpose, a large tin wash-pan should be kept for children, just large enough, at bottom, for them to stand in, and flaring outward, so as to be very broad at top. A child can then be placed in it, standing, and washed with a sponge, without wetting the floor. Being small at bottom, it is better than a tub; it is not only smaller, but lighter, and requires less water. These remarks indicate the wisdom of those parents, who habitually wash their children, all over, before they go to bed. The chance of life and health, to such children, is greatly increased by this practice; and no doubt much of the suffering of childhood, from cutaneous eruptions, weak eyes, earache, colds, and fevers, is owing to a neglect of the skin. The care of the teeth should be made habitual to children, not merely as promoting an agreeable appearance, but as a needful preservative. The saliva contains tartar, an earthy substance, which is deposited on the teeth, and destroys both their beauty and health. This can be prevented, by the use of the brush, night and morning. But, if this be neglected, the deposite becomes hard, and can be removed only by the dentist. If suffered to remain, it tends to destroy the health of the gums; they gradually decay, and thus the roots of the teeth become bare, and they often drop out. When children are shedding their first set of teeth, care should be taken, to remove them as soon as they become loose; otherwise the new teeth will grow awry. When persons have defective teeth, they can often be saved, by having them filled by a dentist. This also will frequently prevent the toothache. Children should be taught to take proper care of their nails. Long and dirty nails have a disagreeable appearance. When children wash, in the morning, they should be supplied with an instrument to clean the nails, and be required to use it. CHAPTER X. ON EARLY RISING. There is no practice, which has been more extensively eulogized,