to be applied every evening just before putting him to bed.
If the "stuffing" be severe, dip a sponge in hot water, as hot as he can comfortably bear; ascertain that it be not too hot, by previously applying it to your own face, and then put it for a few minutes to the bridge of his nose. As soon as the hard mucus is within reach, it should be carefully removed.
108. Do you consider sickness injurious to an infant?
Many thriving babies are, after taking the breast, frequently sick; still we cannot look upon sickness otherwise than as an index of either a disordered or of an overloaded stomach. If the child be sick, and yet be thriving, it is a proof that he overloads his stomach. A mother, then, must not allow him to suck so much at a time. She should, until he retains all he takes, lessen the quantity of milk. If he be sick and does not thrive, the mother should notice if the milk he throws up has a sour smell; if it has, she must first of all look to her own health; she ought to ascertain if her own stomach be out of order; for if such be the case, it is impossible for her to make good milk. She should observe whether, in the morning, her own tongue be furred and dry; whether she have a disagreeable taste in her mouth, or pains at her stomach, or heart-burn, or flatulence. If she have all, or any of these symptoms, the mystery is explained why he is sick and does not thrive. She ought then to seek advice, and a medical man will soon put her stomach into good order; and, by so doing, will, at the same time, benefit the child.
But if the mother be in the enjoyment of good health, she must then look to the babe herself, and ascertain if he be cutting his teeth; if the gums require lancing; if the secretions from the bowels be proper both in quantity and in quality; and, if he have had artificial food—it
