What is the appearance of the stool?  It is soft, yellow and smooth and should not contain any lumps.

How about the urine?  It should pass from six to ten times a day, and it should be colorless.

What is the average weight of a healthy baby?  Seven to seven and one-half pounds.

Does it lose any weight during the first week?  Yes, generally a few ounces, then it begins to gain at the rate of four to six ounces each week.

Should the newly-born babe have its eyes exposed to the light?  The eyes are very sensitive, and the sun or artificial light should not be allowed to shine on them.  The first day the baby is deaf, but his hearing develops and becomes very acute so that he is very much disturbed by sudden, sharp noises.

[548 Mothers’ remedies]

What is the “soft” spot on a baby’s head?  This is called the “fontanelle.”  Do not touch this spot.  This closes in time.  At six months of age the fontanelle is somewhat larger than it was at birth because the brain expands faster than the boney matter deposited around the edges in the skull bones.  After this another deposit of bone goes on more rapidly than the growth of the brain substance, and by sixteen or eighteen months the opening should be entirely closed.

When should the baby be given the second tub bath?  Not until the cord has dropped off.

How and when should this be given?  The room should be warm.  The head and face should be washed first and dried; then the body soaped and the infant placed in the tub with its head and body well supported by the hands.  The bath should be given quickly with no special rubbing, drying with a soft towel. (An hour after feeding).

What should be the temperature of the bath?  One hundred degrees F. for the first few weeks, later ninety-eight F. After six months ninety-five F.; during the second year from eighty-five to ninety degrees F.

What should you use in giving the bath?  Soft, clean sponges or smooth cloths.  There should be separate pieces for each eye, for the head, face and buttocks.

What are the objections to sponges?  They are very apt to become dirty and are hard to keep clean.

When should the daily bath be omitted?  In the case of infants who are delicate and feeble, when the bath seems to harm them; in all forms of acute sickness, unless the bath is directed.  In eczema and many other forms of skin diseases a great deal of harm is often done by soap and water or water baths.

How should a genuine bath be given?  If possible the bath should be given in front of an open fire, in a room where the temperature is from seventy to seventy-two F. and the draughts kept off by a large screen.  Have everything at hand with which to give the bath.  A folding rubber bath-tub is the best, next a papier-mache one; or if tin must be used, put a piece of flannel in the tub to protect the baby from the tin.  If necessary place the tub on a