R. Bismuthi subnitratis, 3j; Spiritûs chloroformi, fj; Mucilaginis tragacanthæ, Aquam ad f3vj. M. R. Acidi nitrici diluti, muriatici diluti. äā f3ij; Tincturæ gentianæ compositæ, 1388; Aquam ad fviij. M. S. Two tablespoonfuls three times a day. (See Vomiting.) Whooping-cough. B. Chloralis, gr. xij; S. A teaspoonful every fifteen S. Two tablespoonfuls every or twenty minutes. three or four hours. RULES FOR MANAGEMENT OF INFANTS The following special rules for the care of young chil dren during the summer season are those recommended by the Obstetrical Society of Philadelphia to the thoughtful attention of mothers. As they are of universal applicability in every portion of this country, and embrace in their recommendations so many points on which the prac titioner is frequently consulted by parents in connection with the hygiene and general management of infants, it is hoped that their reproduction here will be the means of giving them a still more widespread dissemination : RULE 1.-Bathe the child once a day in tepid water. If it is feeble, sponge it all over twice a day with tepid water, or with tepid water and vinegar. The health of a child depends much upon its cleanliness. RULE 2.-Avoid all tight bandaging. Make the clothing light and cool, and so loose that the child may have free play for its limbs. At night undress it, sponge it, and put on a slip. In the morning remove the slip, bathe the child, and dress it in clean clothes. If this cannot be afforded, thoroughly air the day-clothing by hanging it up during the night. Use clean diapers, and change them. often. Never dry a soiled one in the nursery or in the sitting-room, and never use one for a second time without first washing it. A committee of this Society, appointed "to consider the Causes and the Prevention of Infant Mortality during the Summer Months," reported these rules March 5, 1874. The committee consisted of Drs. William Goodell (Chairman), J. Forsyth Meigs, John L. Ludlow, Albert H. Smith, John S. Parry, and William F. Jenks. RULE 3.-The child should sleep by itself in a cot or a cradle. It should be put to bed at regular hours, and be early taught to go to sleep without being nursed in the arms. Without the advice of a physician, never give it any Spirits, Cordials, Carminatives, Soothing Syrups, or Sleeping Drops. Thousands of children die every year from the use of these poisons. If the child frets and does not sleep, it is either hungry or else ill. If ill, it needs a physician. Never quiet it by candy or by cake; they are the common causes of diarrhoea and of other troubles. RULE 4. Give the child plenty of fresh air. In the cool of the morning and evening, send it out to the shady sides of broad streets, to the public squares, or to the Park. Make frequent excursions on the rivers. Whenever it seems to suffer from the heat, let it drink freely of ice-water. Keep it out of the room in which washing or cooking is going on. It is excessive heat that destroys the lives of young infants. RULE 5.-Keep your house sweet and clean, cool and well aired. In very hot weather let the windows be open day and night. Do your cooking in the yard, in a shed, in the garret, or in an upper room. Whitewash the walls every spring, and see that the cellar is clear of all rub bish. Let no slops collect to poison the air. Correct all foul smells by pouring into the sinks and privies Carbolic Acid or Quicklime, or the Chloride of Lime, or a strong solution of Copperas. These articles can be got from the nearest druggist, who will give the needful directions for their use. Make every effort yourself, and urge your neighbors to keep clean the gutters of your street or of your court. RULE 6-Breast-milk is the only proper food for infants. If the supply is ample and the child thrives on it, no other kind of food should be given-while the hot weather lasts. If the mother has not enough, she must not wean the child, but give it, besides the breast, goat's or cow's milk, as prepared under RULE 8. Nurse the child once. in two or three hours during the day, and as seldom as possible during the night. Always remove the child from the breast as soon as it has fallen asleep. Avoid giving the breast when you are over-fatigued or overheated. RULE 7.-If, unfortunately, the child must be brought up by hand, it should be fed on a milk-diet alone-that is, warm milk out of a nursing bottle, as directed under RULE 8. Goat's milk is the best, and, next to it, cow's milk. If the child thrives on this diet, no other kind of food whatever should be given while the hot weather lasts. At all seasons of the year, but especially in summer, there is no safe substitute for milk if the infant has not cut its front teeth. Sago, arrow-root, potatoes, corn-flour, The practitioner is reminded that the periods of eruption of the teeth are the following: First Dentition. As a rule, the teeth of the lower jaw precede those of the upper, except in the case of the lateral incisors. |