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Show If. Roof Garden is li Baby's Air House $jg 1 &; Fire Escape Sometimes Used to Give the Little One jjfjSj Fresh Air Must be Carefully Screened M By DR. EMMA E. WALKER 5i' ITi -A-B now 9harcs wllh n,3 ciders fa IHiL in the advantages of all health-J'2' health-J'2' giving dovlcfs, and do he has Ft his 'ulr house." This dellglu- 'iXft, ful dwelling place offcrn surnclent vn-AjQ vn-AjQ OK rlfil' to suit mothers wherever found "R Although tho marvelous elTucl.s of rryUf fresh air have so long beon recognized, tlUiSlf nevertheless various methods for its rrA7j. "administration" aro distinctly novel iVrym I shall tell you of oomo that I have inSM seen, with effects on body and char-1U char-1U acter. lfMl 0nc a,r house instituted In several (UJVX famlllca is a frcsh-alr nursery under rtfft? W; cover. This lnrge room with south-i" south-i" 4w crn exposure is practically out-of-lflCiJlf uoors. bccauBo both by day and night IlMv the windows aro left wldo open Baby mV 5 arcs8cd nccordlng to the weather, nlVjK' a sleeping-bag costume being part of rCnf hls outfit. Another essential Is the HjgJH hot bag, be Its Interior water or 3alt. rr'lifM A cheerful firo always burns brightly rjUHr In hc open fireplace. J ffi' Tno crlb Ja protected by "tub cur-U cur-U 13' tains." Bcsldrs, there Is a set of t'rJL screens to be used ns occasion iIiwVm demands. A roomy divan is at hand ZffSM to receive tho email occupant while "gJlM1 the crib Is having Its dally airing, dUt- These particular bablr-s have never flSSS v.a a s'c'c day Isor nas tnc mother tmV henrt ever sunk on account of a drop nlW' ln hcr "tt,Q on0's weight. Tho gon- jjVjjjB c"rt tonic effect of the dcllclously Mr fresh air has done its work, and appetite ap-petite ha mver to be coaxed. Now for Baby's roof garden! Let me toll you of a most successful ono. There were four children, the baby under a year, her brothers of three apd soven and ulster of five Although ln the country whero the aummer was spi-nt the little onos were happy and robust, color bean to pale, llstlcssnesa Increased and uppctlte waned on the family's return to town. "What Is to bo done?" the physician was asked. "Tako them to the roof," was tho answer "But they go to tho park every day now. And Mary begins to cry the minute her wraps aro brought ouL" "Did she cry last summer when she went outdoors? ' "Never. But. you sec. the children had no special tlmo for going out They actually lived out-of-doora ln the country. And then there were so many things to amuse them." "Follow the same plan here. Feed them on air, but do it without effort." Going out to walk nt a certain flxod hour ovory day Is to Baby what our "constitutional" Is to us. i And has not Baby an much right to complain of monotony as havo wc? If, however, his playground is out-of-doors then indeed Is he a happy mortal. Two essentials there aro for Baby's roof garden; presence of sun, absenco of wind This particular air garden Is on a tin loof Tho ent pipes run up another story thus aro out of the way Tho roof Is aunny, quiet and wt-lJ abovo tho dust line Flr.st, flooring floor-ing was laid ln sections. Boards were used four Inches in width with one-fourth one-fourth inch space between. A wire net Inclosed the space, and tho "baby run" was nearly ready. A wooden partition was erected to shield the "run" from northwest winds. By a system of canva3 slides or screens the playgiound can be converted con-verted Into n "pen." Then In times of drlzzlo there is an awning fastened to tho house cornice supplemented by an apron that serves to make weatherproof weather-proof practically the entire space. The littl( floor spaco that might get wet in a driving rain easily dries on account of Its structure. Tho garden has 3tood tho teat even of blizzard days There Is so much for tho oldr children to do that time flies on wings The snow family to !? made, the "street cleaning" to bo done, the trolley trol-ley cars (old chairs, tables and boxes) to be motored, tho gardens to he planted, the shoveling and spading to bo accomplished! All consumes time and air. TI1I3 special group of citizens havo grown so warm bloudod and rosy checked that mittens generally prove a superfluity Before the Innovation, of all the children, tho boy of threo wn.s the most in need of change Tho parents arcrolly feared for his strength of character. They now fear that lie may develop an excess Ho has already al-ready vanquished hl,s older sister and looks with envy and secret lopglng on tho prowcjK pf the first-born. A warning hint worth consideration Is that babies and older children should bo wntched by a wtj,'e eye during dur-ing the first few w'ecks of their "cliff dwelling." Soon, however, they become be-come resistant to cold. But tho baby It Is that is of special Interest to us, "Wliat advantages accrue ac-crue to a baby that Is not "taken nut'" In either of these air houses described. Baby Is above the dust lino, ho lives constantly in fresh air. Sources of contagion, so frequent In country and city, aro avoided. The nervous wear and tear Incident to eyestrain eye-strain do not enter Into his dally routine, Tho "passing show" through sight and sound, so disturbing to Baby's delicate nervous organization, Is far below, and thu llttlu lifo develops de-velops placidly but vigorously. Baby No. 2, after spending five hours a day ln tho lamlly eyrie, proceeds pro-ceeds to pass fourteen more ln a room like that of Baby No 1. Tho coat must be mado to flt tho cloth. Hut few families there are who cannot mako some fairly comfortable arrangement to keep tho baby ln an air houso. I know a numbor of children who have been practically brought up tor tho first few months on thu fire cscape effectively protected, of course. |