his back with his
right leg crossed over the left, and whose daughter, whilst an infant
in the cradle, followed exactly the same habit, though an attempt was
made to cure her. Left-handedness is not unfrequently hereditary. It
would be very easy to go on multiplying instances, but we forbear.

HOW TO HAVE BEAUTIFUL CHILDREN.

A practical question now naturally suggests itself. How can the vices of
conformation be avoided, and beauty secured? The art of having handsome
children, known under the name of _callipaedia_, has received much
attention, more, perhaps, in years gone by than of late. The noted Abbot
Quillet wrote a book in Latin on the subject. Many other works, in which
astrology plays a prominent part, were written on this art in the
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

We have already stated that well-formed parents will transmit these
qualities to their children, with scarcely an exception. Like begets
like. Unfortunately, all parents are not beautiful. Yet all desire
beautiful offspring. The body of the child can be influenced by the mind
of the parent, particularly of the mother. A mind habitually filled with
pleasant fancies and charming images is not without its effect upon the
offspring.

The statues of Apollo, Castor and Pollux, Venus, Hebe, and the other
gods and goddesses which were so numerous in the gardens and public
places in Greece, reproduced themselves in the sons and daughters of the
passers-by. We know also that marriages contracted at an age too early
or too late, are apt to give imperfectly-developed children. The
crossing of temperaments and of nationalities beautifies the offspring.
The custom which has prevailed, in many countries, among the nobility,
of purchasing the handsomest girls they could find for their wives, has
laid the foundation of a higher type of features among the ruling
classes. To obtain this desired end, conception should take place only
when both parents are in the best physical condition, at the proper
season of the year, and with mutual passion. (We have already hinted how
this can be regulated.) During pregnancy the mother should often have
some painting or engraving representing cheerful and beautiful figures
before her eyes, or often contemplate some graceful statue. She should
avoid looking at, or thinking of ugly people, or those marked with
disfiguring diseases. She should take every precaution to escape injury,
fright, and disease of any kind, especial