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weakness. Scarlet fever is frequently followed by disease of the
kidneys which may have permanent injurious effects. Diphtheria may
leave an unsightly squint and perhaps permanent difficulty in walking,
due to paralysis resulting from the disease. Phthisis and bronchitis
sometimes result from whooping cough, whilst influenza frequently
causes nervous instability and anaemia. Of course all these consequences
have their influence on the appearance of the child in latter years.
Whenever the normal lines of health disappear the normal contour
of the face and form go with it. The teeth, too, are all important.
Nine out of ten children have teeth defective in one way or other. One
of the commonest faults is overlapping of the teeth, which leads to
early decay and much loss of beauty of the mouth.
Affections of teeth or of the tonsils or other parts of the mouth give
rise to the bad habit of mouth breathing, and perhaps no other single
cause is so active in spoiling the expression and symmetry of the face.
Now it is possible to deal with all these defects successfully, and it
behoves every mother to take proper measures promptly. The doctor
and tbe dentist can do a great deal to preserve the beauty of her
children. Every form of delicacy and invalidism in the child requires
attention. A child may not be seriously ill, and yet be in such a state
of health as to hinder the proper and harmonious development of its body.
Almost every defect may be remedied or mitigated and permanent
disfigurement avoided by early skilled attention. But the best and only
sensible course is to prevent the occurrence of disease as far as the
mother can do so. It cannot be too strongly insisted upon that beauty
is a manifestation of good health, and to secure it in a man or woman
the health of the child calls for scrupulous care.
When a person is deformed, whether in mind, feature, or body, his
chances in life are lessened sometimes on grounds of diminished
physical utility, but not infrenquently because a good personal
appearance is an important asset, the appreciation of a good appearance
being an inborn attribute of humanity.
The Prevention of Decay in Teeth.
RULES.
(l.) During the first two-and-a-half years of life all starchy or
sugary food (except milk) should be given in a firm or fibrous form,
so as to stimulate mastication and insalivation, and thus to promote
the healthy growth of the jaws and the regular arrangement of the
teeth. Bread, rusks, or any other farinaceous food should never be
added to or soaked in milk. Bread with crust (and butter), toasted