s carefully wrapped up, that
their little extremities might not suffer from cold. She never suffered
them to sleep in the open air, if it could be avoided; to prevent which,
as much as possible, she constantly charged the nurse to bring the
children home, as soon as she found them disposed to sleep, unless it
was when they were very young, at which time it was impossible to guard
against it.

And when her children were sufficiently old to walk, she took care to
prepare them properly for it, whether it might be in warm, cold, or
moderate weather. She never sent them abroad for pleasure at the risk of
encountering a storm of any kind; nor permitted them to walk at the
hazard of getting wet or very muddy feet.

Were the constitutions of your children pretty much the same? we
demanded of this lady.

"No; one of my boys was extremely feeble, from his very birth."

Did you treat him precisely as you did the others?

"Yes, as far as regarded principles; that is, I permitted him to bear as
much of cold, heat or wet as his constitution would endure without pain
or injury. The degrees, however, were very different from those his
brothers bore, had they been determined by the measurement of the
thermometer, but precisely the same in effect, as far as could be
ascertained by consequences. Thus, if he were exposed to the same
temperature as his brothers, he experienced no more inconvenience from
it, when it was very low, than they, because he had additional covering
to protect him."

CHAPTER XVII.

SOCIETY.

Duty of mothers in this matter. Children prefer the society of parents.
Importance of other society. Necessity of society illustrated. Early
diffidence. Selecting companions for children. Moral effects of society
on the young. Parents should play with their children.

Every mother is unquestionably as much bound to have an eye to the
society of her child, as to his food, drink or clothing. And if the
quality, amount and general character of the latter are important, those
of the former are by no means less so.

It is indeed true that many a child has been happy, in a degree, in the
society of its mother alone, where the father was seldom seen, and the
brothers and sisters never. And it is equally true; that a few children
have so far preferred the society of their parents alone, as to become
disinclined to other society. But cases of this kind are only as
exceptions to the general rule; and are probably mons