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Show I.S ::: I vr.7 . V; tft ::: ' ::: ::i -- I f te ''1 iii iii ::: OtrWttBJ 1SIHTJ3 lOHON I sore, swollen gums. Lets baby sleep. e, no synthetic drugs. Used -by millions of mothers. One bottle lasts entire teething period. II: I Cushion HoMs FalseTeat h ::: lit ::: t:: ::: tft Eases Tight! Snug ture 5 t brand DenCwhiona are . triumph of . Mi- - sticks toltatwt re-lini-ng - rs Parents As the five little Fischers mark their first birthday on ediucator discusses the pleasures Monday, a highly respected family-lif- e and pitfalls of rearing such youngsters By REBECCA LISWOOD, M.D Dear Mr. and Mrs. Andrew Fischer: ta i:ilp$ i:xart actio:i rm rrrnl I When your Mary Ann, Mary Magdalene, Mary Catherine, James Andrew, and Mary Margaret were born last Sept. 14 in Aberdeen, S. Dak., you were faced with an enormous task. I congratulate you on how well you've handled it. The happiness of all the Fischers shines out of every family photograph. Wonderfully enough, there are as many or more pictures of the quintuplets with their five older sisters and brother asJthere are of them alone. This; unquestionably gives the older children a vital sense of their personal worth. Your babies, unlike the famous quintuplets, live as part of a close, loving family. There is no healthier or happier estate. It is now pretty evident that the Dionnes' upbringing deprived them of the happiness we would have wished for them. They were, from the earliest age, made aware that they were different the last thing any child wants to be. As infants, they were taken from their family to live in a house of their own with a glass wall through which they them a part,, but never a dominating part, of were regularly on public display. Attendants cared for them good home life. In this way, each of them will under the supervision of national interests. But neither grow up with a sense of his, or her own personal worth. I greatly admire the way you've managed to earn extra attendants npr national interests, however money by selling to a publishing company the exclusive they may be, are substitfttes for loving parents. Also, children brought up as part of a group (as the reporting and photographic rights of the whole family and to a calendar company the right to use paintings of your Dionnes were) , instead of as completely separate individu- family on calendars. Similarly, when you recently signed a als, tend to feel inadequate and insufficient, especially as contract with a large dairy company, you insisted that the they become adult and are called upon, practically and entire family be part of any endorsements. I assume that emotionallyto act as individuals. these arrangements have brought you less monejrthan you The story of the quintuplets, three girls and two boys, born to the Diligentisof Argentina 21 years ago is a hapfar less emmight have received. But they alsorhave-meaphasis on the babies, to the exclusion of the other children-.pier story than that of the Dionnes. Perhaps the Diligenti I applaud you both for finding the time tojrqJowling. familjr learned by the Dionne example: I think it is vital for parents to have time together, away The children's father, Franco Diligenti, was a million- from the children as well as definite time'fofTecreational aire, buUtwas not the material things he gavethem4hat e them."-H"activities with them. I think it isextremely important for-- a brought them happinessnrwasjiis attitude toward saw thatthey, unlike thei)ionnes,grew up as part of couple tV avoid the boredom that might descend when no it a closely-knfamily. And, again unlike the Dionnes, he 1 outside recreational interests are provided. For, without outside interests, a couple may lose the ability commutook every precaution against their merging into a group. nicate with each other, a chief cause of marriage failure. Ab(ve all," he did not want his girls and boys to get any It seems likely that during this last year you have had notion that they were in any way special or different. n d, he insisted the . outside advice on family and financial problems. But this, Although his house was in my opinion, does not detract one bit from the magnifimake their own beds and dust their own rooms. to cent job you" have done. For it signifies that rpt only were At seven, the Diligenti quintuplets were sent different e local schools. But in spite of this part-timseparation, they you aware enough to recognize the need of such advice but" continued to be dependent upon one another and to act as that you chose your advisors well. With respect and aaVni ration, a group, refusing the same foods and standing together Send NOW for Book 15' ffiff ::: s ::: iii Now t You can get the fast relief you need from nagging backache, headache and muscular aches and pains that often cause III restless nights and miserable tired-ofeelings. When these discomforts come on with overexertion or stress and strain you want relief want H fasti Another disturbance may be mild bladder irritation following wrong food and drink often set. iii ting up a restless uncomfortable feeling. Doan's Pills work fast in S separate iii action to rssys: 1 . by speedy ease torment of nagging backache, headaches, muse alar aches and pains. 2. by soothing effect on bladder irritation. 8. by . mild diuretic action tending to increase output of the IS miles of kidney tubes. ::: Enjoy a good night's sleep and the same happy relief millions have for over SO years. For convenience, ask for the :: large sisc. Get Doan s Pills today! ut ng ed nt Hafws Ssistitstes te pain-relievi- different boarding schools (with weekends at home). Today the Djligentis give every evidence of being adults. Two of the girls, married at16 and 18, are mothers. The two boys are university students in Canada, and the third daughter is a student in. Italy. I hope you will not think me presumptuous if, out of my long experience as a former pediatrician and a family-lif- e educator, I make a few suggestions. Let me recommend that you spare no effort to keep your five young ones from thinkingrof themselves as part of a group. Speak of them, please, not as "the quints" but by those names by which they're known in the family: Mary Ann, Maggie,Cathy, Jimmy, and Margie. Dress them differently. Send them to different schools. Encourage them to follow different pursuits and aptitudes. As soon as they're old enough, have them occupy rooms of their own or share rooms witruthe okjer children. , Publishing Co. -- An Open Letter to the Quints' well-intention- ed Toga 12: Wide World from Curtii STREK5TH $TAf.:::iA . Make PHOTO CREDITS VI03IL "... ' Di-on- ne ::: that rets rid of the annoytie ance of looee. badly flttimr falae teeth. Snug eases sore, irritated turns due to loose dentures. Helps prevent food particles retting; under plates. Applied in minutes, makes wobbliest plates stay firmly in place rives perfect comfort. Eat any- "stay put." .thing talk, laugh platesseveral weeks. last for Snug to gums Stay soft and pliable-harml-ess or dentures. Peel right out when replace, meat is needed. No daily bother with adhesive. Get Snug brand Denture Cushions today! S liners for upper or lower plates $1.80. At all druggists. - at five months (I. to r.) : Mary Margaret, Mary Magdalene, James Andrew, Mary Catherine, Mary Ann, well-adjust- Br. MAUD'S TCETHIK8 LOTION fete The Fischer (mints w V-,. i YEirraee benzo-taln- s ::: :: ::: ::: Fast Safe Contains no r ::; MAID'S" Works on contact to soothe and cool baby's - c-- ps iii vt ' t f chil-dre- well-staffe- against parental authority. So their father sent them to Former pediatrician 12 at present engaged in marriage counseling and Family Weekly, September IS, 1964 family-lif- e Rebecca Liswood, M.D. education; founder and executive director of the Marriage Counseling Service of Greater New York |