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Show V? 7 n er nails Is a per- Sjfe iibimi-i h-'Mt which has Its evil I 1 '(" -t not only upon the physical b auty Of Its unfortunate pos-j pos-j sessor. but also upon her character, as any other habit has, that is beyond the mental control. Once well established estab-lished in adult years this habit Is almost al-most impossible to break, and can only be broken by a supremo and persistent per-sistent power of tho will; and as tho nerves ff women too often control the will, and as biting the nails Is essen- II ill , a nervous habit, few of the unfortunates un-fortunates concerned ever succeed in entirely eradicating tho weakness. Every mother should watch carefully care-fully for the very beginning of the finger-nail nibbling tendency. Usually the little daughter is ten or twelve years old l. fore serious consideration is given to the fact that she bitc3 her j nails. The habit is sometimes in-1 herlted but it seldom makes its appearance ap-pearance before the sixth year and is not noticed for somo time. Oft-times it Is Ignored as a passing phase of childhood; or its presence may not give the mother a great deal of concern. con-cern. Shu believes that with a grow- ' lng personal vanity the young girl will "stop biting her nails" on behalf of I pretty hands. But alas, by the time personal vanity awakens the shape of the nails and the finger-tips may have been hopelessly spoiled, for like every ev-ery other member of the little body, the nails may be made or marred in the plastic stage. A certain mother who has herself thick, clumsy fingers, and whoso mother moth-er before her had equally unbeauuiful lingers, resolved that her own daughter daugh-ter should have tapering finger-tips. She commenced when her baby girl was leas than a year old to press and manipulate the tiny finger-tips, curving curv-ing the soft little nails Into arched daintiness instead of allowing t hem to grow out flat and spatulate, and tne delicate, tapering finger-tips of this maiden are a delight to bohold. An-ofher An-ofher mother Who aaw signs In her baby of an ugly fiat nose which had been a disfigurement in her husband's family for generations, dally massaged the tiny nose of her Infant, drawing thumb and fore-finger down oach side of tho bridge and lightly pressing the nostrils. This baby grow up with a perfect nose which undoubtedly owea its Greek outlines to the gentle massage mas-sage in Infancy. There are mothers 1 who would be horrified if the little , daughter plucked out her lashee and spoiled her eyes, or acquired tho ' thumb-sucking habit and pushed out the front teeth in a disfiguring slant, but who give no thought at all to the equally disastrous habit of biting the finger-nails. The hand Is as potent a I feature, of charm as the eyes, or the j mouth, and is ono of the unfailing I revelations of character. Lucky the! woman whose mother took great care in those first important years of childhood, child-hood, of the future beauty of the tiny j hands entrusted to her care! Before tho ago of twelve or thirteen j years, it Is of little avail to appeal to the vanity of a child. Future lovell- j ' ness is a distant and nebulous good I w hich if scarcely Important enough to j j be worth severe self-sacrifico now. Some little girls can be bribed out of nail-nibbling. The promise of a gold watch at the end of a year; or of a ring If the nails are kopt in j- I - perfect condition for, say two months, ' may serve to cure a little maid who adores go-c-gaws and who has con-sJderable con-sJderable will-power at the tender age i of ten or eleven. A moro nervous ! child may have the best intentions In the world "to bo good and not nibble" but the habit will get the best of good intentions. She must be cured j by more stringent means. Bitter aloes I painted on the finger-tips will serve as a potent reminder, and gloves should be worn during sleep, and also when the little girl Is occupied with an ab-sorblng ab-sorblng book which causes her to for- I get herself and her well-meaning watch over tho habit to be oonquered. Pride in the hands should bo en-cmiraged en-cmiraged to the utmost, and some re- ; ward offered for their constant good condition. The little girl should have I her own dainty monogrammrd towels, her own scented soap In a pretty soap-dish, soap-dish, her own nail-brush and kit of manicure Implements. She should be taught h"w to keep her hands white, soft and smooth with lemon juice and 1 cold crc-om, and how to shape and polish her nails, and push back tho cuticle to show the pretty half-moon at the base. She should never bo scolded or nagged nag-ged at because of the bad habit, but gently reminded, with the effort to stimulate her own desire to conquer it. The habit of oonqucring or trying to ; conquer will be established to fight salss I r : the bad habit, and by and by personal pride and feminine vanity will rally themselves also to the battle. 'I M rT' H 1 Bitter Aloes Should Prove An EffectJvr f Reminder. |