revent a baby from becoming
liver-grown; nor would Miss Liston or Pearl the mother, permit Alfred to
kiss the baby on the mouth. Miss Liston asserted that kissing was most
dangerous in spreading microbes and germs; therefore, the baby must not
be kissed on the mouth.

"All right, little baby," Alfred would say, "I can kiss his little
tootsie ootsies."

"Please don't kiss his foot," appealingly pleaded Pearl. "Please don't
kiss his foot, he might put it in his mouth."

"I kissed you on the mouth a thousand times when you was a baby, and I'm
living yet," snapped Alfred.

[Illustration: Field]

Baby cried at night. Alfred declared it was unnecessary to lose sleep on
account of a baby crying. All required was a cradle. Every person that
expected to rear a baby should have a cradle.

Alfred visited every furniture store in the city. Not one had a cradle.
Few understood what they were. One young clerk advised that his
grandfather in the country, near Alfred's farm had one and he had heard
the grandfather say his father before him had used it.

Alfred sent his colored man, Doc Blair, to borrow or buy the cradle.

The cradle was borrowed. The man did not care to sell it. He sent the
wagon to get the cradle.

"Hide it in the barn until I return; I want to introduce baby to it.
This will prevent his crying at night, that is so wearing on his mother
and so irritating to Aunt Tillie, and leg-breaking to his daddy."

He explained to Hattie, who knew all about babies. Hattie just smiled:
"You just rock him to and fro and he will go to sleep any time. You
can't raise a baby without a cradle, it is impossible."

"Bring in the cradle," was Alfred's command to Doc Blair.

"Mister Field, you can't bring that thing in hyar. Some of you all will
get your legs cut off. You can't get it through the door nohow. We
couldn't get it in the top wagon. We had to take the farm wagon."

[Illustration]

On the lawn near the front door reposed an old fashioned cradle for
reaping grain, such as farmers used before the horsepower reapers came
into use--a hand cradle with rusty scythe and hickory fingers.

Alfred called at a cabinet maker's and ordered a cradle made to order.
The rockers must be pointed and have plenty of circle so it would not
overset easily. The German agreed to have the cradle completed by
Saturday.

Sunday was selected as the day to introduce baby Field to the soothing
influence of a cradle. Alfred advised "All you