it is necessary to change these dressings twice a day; as this exudation is of a somewhat gluey nature, it will be found that the dressings stick to the cord.  In removing the gauze great care must be used not to make any traction on the cord; when the infant is placed in the bath, the water loosens the dressing and it falls off in the water; at other times it must be removed with the greatest care.  There should never be any odor about the cord; it usually drops off about the fifth day.

The process of ulceration by which the cord falls off leaves an open surface on the child’s body which offers an avenue for septic infection.  Great care must therefore be taken that the nurse’s hands or anything which comes in contact with this surface should be perfectly clean.  The dressings used must be thoroughly antiseptic.

Care should be used not to fasten the abdominal bandage too tightly; the bath is given on an empty stomach, and allowance should be made for this; the binder should be loose enough to allow two or three fingers to easily slip under it.

The Meconium.—­ The First discharge that comes from the bowels is of a dark, greenish color, and should come away during the first twenty-four hours; if it does not, the baby may suffer a good deal of pain, and an enema of warm water must be given.  As this substance is very difficult to be washed out of napkins, the first ones used should be old and afterward be burned.

Cleansing.—­ Every time the napkin needs to be changed, even if it is only wet, the baby should be washed with warm water.  A napkin should never be used twice without washing; it chafes the child, and it is an unsafe as well as a filthy practice; the napkin must always be removed as soon as it is wet.

The Infant’s Toilet.—­ After the application of the binder and napkin, comes the undervest; the fingers of the nurse are passed up through the sleeve to seize the infant’s hand and pull it through; as soon as it gets a little older the child will grasp a finger laid in its palm, which greatly facilitates this part of the toilet.  The stockings are next put on and pinned with safety-pins to the napkin; then comes the petticoat, the band of which is also loosely fastened with safety-pins, and with the slip the toilet is complete.  All the clothing should be changed night and morning.

The eyes and mouth should be washed out with separate pieces of gauze or old linen.  For the mouth, a small piece of cloth wet in warm water is wrapped around the little finger of the right hand, going into the left angle of the baby’s mouth and coming out at the right, going between the gums and cheeks as well as over the tongue.  This procedure should be gone through with every time preceding and following the nursing, and in this way the milk is prevented from souring in the mouth, and the digestion is kept in good condition.  A sore mouth in a baby indicates carelessness on the part of the nurse.