es' a piece of old spongy cloth ; for this is to destroy the very foundation of the au thor's new system, which consists in its not being cleaned by any means, not even by "soap and water, or plain water, or any other substance whatever." Now certainly, if the body of an infant may be rubbed with the receiver, which is usual ly flannel, or even with a piece of old cloth, there is no reason why he may not be rubbed with a little warm water,which has a far nearer approach to the nature of his prenascent element, than either of these substances, and is far less rough and uncomfortable to its tender and delicate skin.
We shall only offer another remark. Though the author be not able to.tell us what good purpose nature designs by dif fusing over the body a coating of mealy or viscid mucus, we can easily point out to him what bad purpose nature herself would accomplish by our suffering it to remain there after birth : and we will do it in his own words. "If left to itself, says he, at a certain period after birth it dries, and forms a crust, and gradually scales off." And it is for this very reason it ought to be removed : a dry crust and scurf, covering the hard and thickened skin even of an adult, must necessarily be productive of the double mischief of ex coriating the cuticle, and obstructing the matter of perspiration : how much more then must this double mischief be aug mented, when applied to the soft and tender cuticle of an infant : how exten sively must its delicate skin become in flamed by such harsh and perpetual pres sure ; bow continually exposed to cuta neous eruptions, from the acrimonious humour into which its obstructed matter of perspiration will be converted by this very obstruction itself.
Let us close by observing, that wher ever this kind of tenacious covering is found, as it sometimes is, spread in an un usual quantity over the bodies of other animals, the mother of the young com monly removes it by washing and wiping it away with her own tongue and saliva, or by encouraging the new born animal to roll itself on the grass or straw, or whatever other substance may be the bed that first receives it : thus teaching to mankind a lesson of cleanliness, which, in stead of despising, they will do well to follow. Cleanliness, indeed, from the commencement of life to its termination, may truly be said to be next to godliness ; its influence upon the mind is equal to that upon the body. The pleasurable sensation it excites is of no ordinary cha racter ; it is a powerful prophylactic against disease; it exhilarates the animal spirits, and gives a feeling of moral dig nity to the meanest and most indigent. A habit of cleanliness cannot be com menced too soon, nor persevered in too punctiliously.
The next point to be attended to in the treatment of infants, is that of lactation or suckling.
There is generally too much eagerness in putting the child to the breast, who is often worried to suck, before he be comes actuated by the instinctive prihci ple of nature, or before the mother finds her breasts sufficiently filled with milk to satisfy his desire. In consequence of
which the mother is as much and as vain ly fatigued as the infant, passes a restless night, and is harassed with a renewal of after pains, from which she would other wise have escaped.
It is generally about the third day, af ter child-bed, that both are fully pre pared; though it happens that the infant has a desire to suck, and the mother to suckle,within twenty-four hours from the time of delivery. While again the same mutual propensity will not in other cases occur till a week or a fort night, or even longer, from the same pe riod. In the latter case the infant should be supported by dilute gruel, a dilute so lution of tops and bottoms,with or without a little cow's milk, according as he seems best to relish it ; and if he appear in good health, no idea should be entertained of providing a wet nurse, till time has fully demonstrated that the mother will be in capable of supporting him herself.
This maternal support is a duty so im perative, that it should only be relinquish ed under the following circumstances : 1. Suppression of milk. 2. Extreme deli cacy, or disease of constitution, by which it may not be supplied in proper quantity or quality. 3. The indulgence in such a routine of fashionable amusements, as may render the mother incapable of ful filling her task with punctuality and sa tisfaction to her child.
This last conduct is unpardonable, but it is nevertheless common, and we are afraid will be so in the present day, not withstanding all that can be urged to the contrary, whether by divines or physi cians; and all that we attempt to do is to guard against the mischievous effects of such a conduct: for if, in this respect, the mother remains deaf to the voice of nature, and the languishing desire of her own offspring, we are fully convinced that all we, or any other body of phy siologists, could urge, would be in vain ; neither would she be persuaded though one rose from the dead. We will just observe, however, that the practice of repelling milk from a full breast is at times dangerous, and often accompanied with abscesses, that are more inconve nient, last longer in the cure, and are succeeded by far more injury to the po lish and harmony of the form, than the suckling a large family Let us add another reason ; the human body is so constituted, that one part as sists another in the operations of nature : consequently there is a necessity for re ciprocal action and rest. Whilst the womb, lately in a state of distention for many months, is thus allowed rest suffi cient, it recovers its former tone. Where as, where there is an annual repetition of pregnancy, the parts so distended sooner lose their elasticity,and become at length, perhaps, diseased, which especially hap pens in cases where the original habit has been weakly.