object of the
treatment should be to strengthen his intellect and to accustom his
emotions to find outlet in wholesome, helpful activity.

One wise mother made it a rule to pet the next to the baby. The
baby, she said, was bound to be petted a good deal because of its
helplessness and sweetness, therefore she made a conscious effort to
pet the next to the youngest, the one who had just been crowded out
of the warm nest of mother's lap by the advent of the newcomer. Such a
rule would go far to prevent the beginnings of jealousy.

SELFISHNESS.

This is a fault to which strong-willed children are especially liable.
The first exercise of will-power after it has passed the stage of
taking possession of the child's own organism usually brings him into
conflict with those about him. To succeed in getting hold of a thing
against the wish of someone else, and to hold on to it when someone
else wants it, is to win a victory. The coveted object becomes dear,
not so much for its own sake, as because it is a trophy. Such a child
knows not the joy of sharing; he knows only the joys of wresting
victory against odds. This is indeed an evil that grows with the
years. The child who holds onto his apple, his Candy, or toy, fights
tooth and nail everyone who wants to take it from him, and resists all
coaxing, is liable to become a hard, sordid, grasping man, who stops
at no obstacle to accomplish his purpose.

Yet in the beginning, this fault often hides itself and escapes
attention. The selfish child may be quiet, clean, and under ordinary
circumstances, obedient. He may not even be quarrelsome; and may
therefore come under a much less degree of discipline than his
obstreperous, impulsive, rebellious little brother. Yet, in reality,
his condition calls for much more careful attention than does the
condition of the younger brother.

[Sidenote: The Only Child]

However, the child who has no brother at all, either older or younger,
nor any sister, is almost invited by the fact of his isolation to fall
into this sin. Only children may be--indeed, often are--precocious,
bright, capable, and well-mannered, but they are seldom spontaneously
generous. Their own small selves occupy an undue proportion of the
family horizon, and therefore of their own.

[Sidenote: Kindergarten a Remedy]

This is where the Kindergarten has its great value. In the true
Kindergarten the children live under a dispensation of loving justice,
and selfi