The Sterilization of Milk

By Kenyon West

It sometimes happens that there are certain disadvantages connected with the use of milk. It may cause derangement of the infantile digestion, and even with older children it may not always assimilate well. Then, too, milk is susceptible of almost any taint of disease from unclean or unhealthful conditions either of the cows or the environment of the cows; if the milkman has been where any contagious diseases are raging, milk, being a ready absorbent, may bring these dread maladies right into our homes; besides, it is subject to changes which, though at first almost imperceptible, gradually increase to the point of absolute fermentation. For many years the problem was how to prevent these changes. Chemicals have been used, intense cold has been tried, milk has been boiled; but inasmuch as the air is the developer or active agent in the growth of the germs which are at the root of the whole trouble, the final result is only delayed by cold; in boiling the air is not excluded and hence soon works its will upon the milk; and in most cases chemicals render the milk unfit for food. It is here that sterilization proves itself so useful; it acts as a perfect preservative, and yet in no way alters the character of the milk. It also makes milk more easily digested, and increases its power of assimilation. A child will thrive upon a much smaller quantity of sterilized than unsterilized milk. Here is encouragement for those children who have small appetites! Besides, sterilization renders milk free from contagion. Its practical value has been demonstrated under the writer's observation. A child of three years of age became so ill from drinking the milk from a feverish cow that his life was endangered; a baby living next door who used the same milk at the same time escaped with no harm whatever. In the latter case the milk had been sterilized by a watchful mother.

Now for a few practical hints for the sterilization of milk.

Put the milk which a child will require for one meal in a bottle with a generous-sized mouth. One with a rounded bottom is also preferable, because more easily cleansed. Have as many bottles as the child requires meals in the twentyfour hours. Let the milk come up to about two inches of the top. Cork with wads of pure cotton which have been slightly browned in the oven. Put the bottles into a close steamer, and expose to heat for fully an hour. The older the milk is, the longer it will require to be steamed in order to eliminate the germs. If a long journey, like an ocean voyage, is to be taken, it is well to steam the milk immediately after milking, in

order to guard against any chance of failure. Don't immerse the bottles in boiling water. Steam must be the agent in sterilization, in order not to change the character of the milk. Any kind of a steamer may do, but it is better to have one with two covers, one of which is called a hood. The Arnold steam sterilizer has the advantage of having this kind of a hood, and it requires very little attention after once being put on the fire. Then, too, bottles come with it of a desirable shape and size, and it has a convenient rack to hold them upright and keep them from jostling one another. The bottles can be kept in this rack, and it can be carried easily on a journey. It is obvious that after the milk has been once sterilized the air must be kept from it. Therefore the cotton must not be removed from the bottles till the child is ready to use the milk. If by any chance it has come out in the steamer, it must be replaced, and the bottle steamed a while longer. If it is desirable to carry the bottle on a journey, without the convenience of the rack to keep it upright, remove the cotton while the bottle is still hot in the steamer, substitute an ordinary well-fitting cork, replace the cover of the steamer, and let the process be carried on a few minutes longer. Then press the cork in firmly, and the milk will keep indefinitely.

Still a Problem

Dear Outlook: Is it too late for a word more about the child whom you discussed some weeks ago who elects herself de trop when a later comer appears? It seems to me not only "a question for mothers," but for any one who can sympathize with the child. I know how such children suffer, and how rarely any one takes the trouble to help them. Their faults are not attract ive ones, perhaps; at any rate, they are not the faults of the majority.

It is conveniently taken for granted that the child's conduct is owing to some bad traits or feelings which are to be punished or blamed. But she might be allowed the benefit of the doubt. I do not think she is jealous in the ordinary sense; and the suggestion that she is selfish or stingy" seems to me not only unkind but improbable. Selfishness, I should think, would induce the child to say to the newcomer," Go away, we don't want you;" rather than, "I will go away; you don't want me." There are some children who, when told in so many words that they are not wanted, will hang around and force themselves into whatever is going on. Would you hold that they are overburdened with generosity or self-forgetfulness? Could you tell a story about a selfish animal in which he was represented as offering to go away and leave the treat, dinner, or good time to the others?

Now, it is possible that the child simply tells the truth; that she has one of those unfortunate natures which are totally lacking in self-confidence, and really believes, or greatly fears, that no one does want her companionship if they can get any other. If she is allowed to go without protest, she may feel very lonely and left out, and all the readier to think she is not liked or wanted next time. It is easy to say that this is "morbid," but before she learns what the word means, the feeling may have got too strong to ever be overcome.

The suggestion of starting a game that it takes several

to play at is an excellent one (in fact, just what I was going to say myself), because it will be evident to her that she is contributing something to the occasion, and is not merely a fifth wheel. (Did you ever reflect how a fifth wheel must feel?)

There is a passage somewhere in "Friends in Council," that I think will bear me out. Elesmere is discoursing about the foolishness of feeling slights, which he thinks is a characteristic of jealousy, or "claimativeness;" and says that he always interprets an apparent slight in such or such a way (one which is rather flattering to himself). Some one interposes the remark that he should remember that what is called jealousy may have its root in modesty--because a person with a good opinion of himself has no reason to envy others. To which Elesmere merely replies, "I hate modesty." Elesmere was a charming person, but he certainly had a good opinion of himself.

Yours very truly,

FOR THE DEFENDANT.

This little girl, who has been the text of several interesting letters, is the child of a gentle, modest, retiring mother; a supersensitive father, who is painfully retiring, and never responds except to persistent attempts to engage his interest. Last Christmas morning she looked at all her gifts -and they were many. When all had been examined, she asked, discontentedly, "Is this all?" Her enjoyment in what she had received depended on the difference in the size or quantity between hers and her companions'. If hers were more or larger, they gave pleasure; otherwise there were tears or sulks or pouts. What would this indicate?

The Voice

Dear Outlook: That the action of the lungs and the vocal chords as used in the speaking voice exerts a great influence on the general health is apparent on a moment's reflection, but the fact that the culture of the voice has a close relation to the beauty of the face is a matter generally overlooked. The rustic boy who speaks in a guttural monotone is pretty apt to be disfigured with coarse lips, while the college lad, with his distinct enunciation, shows a mouth of clear-cut, classic form. And this difference is the result of a natural cause. The muscles of the lips are made flexible by use; and to acquire this flexibility nothing can be better by way of practice than the rapid repetition of the old jingling rhymes; repeating, for instance, "Peter Piper" as rapidly as possible and as many times as possible without pause. The ease with which this is done depends upon the flexibility of one particular set of muscles in the lips. Directly these muscles, becoming fatigued, refuse to act, another set of muscles will pronounce readily another rhyme, bringing the difficult "th" into exercise. The well-known jingle "Theophilus Thistle " will serve this purpose. Let it be pronounced rapidly, but distinctly and continuously. The set of muscles employed in doing this also soon becomes fatigued, too much so to enunciate clearly. But still another set is ready-quite able to pronounce the difficult consonance of which another jingle is composed, "A twister in twisting would twist him a twist," etc. All this is but for a little practice; distinct speech in conversation soon follows. And with clear enunciation the lips assume curves of beauty, while the mouth, being the mobile feature of the face, gives an ever-changing expression to the countenance. And more than this, from the training of the tones of the voice is developed that something that we call magnetism-that sympathetic current of feeling which reaches and moves the heart of the lis E. C. B. tener.

The voice is a clear indication of the physical and spiritual condition of the speaker, if used

naturally. The charm of the public speaker lies very largely in the quality of voice that is indic ative of the sincerity and freedom with which he presents his subject. The man whose power as a speaker is cumulative has his voice as his servant; his brain is represented or misrepre sented as his voice carries its product into the hearts as well as the ears of his audience. The nature that is cultivated to its highest development is the one that the voice best serves. No man is truly cultivated whose enunciation is not clear, whose voice does not carry. The perfect man makes every sense, every faculty, serve him; he trains his body to serve him. The ego is master.

Small Quarrels

Dear Outlook: My children are between the ages of five and eight, and have never seriously disagreed until within six months. I wish that parents who have been successful in transforming the spirit of quarreling among brothers and sisters into thoughtfulness for each other would tell their experience. Do all children quarrel? I have been advised not to worry about this recently developed trait, for I was assured that the chil dren will get over it. But I am not satisfied. I believe that quarreling is a habit that grows, and supplants true brotherly and sisterly relations for life. I am deeply interested in "the Law" and methods of the Quaker mother of which the Spectator wrote in last week's Issue of this paper. Do those children ever quarrel? If so, what would the mother do about it? S. A. S.

The bickerings and disagreements that prevail in some families can be traced sometimes to the failure of the parents to recognize the rights of the children as to time and to place. When there is this failure, the children are not taught to re spect each other's rights, and because of this there are interference and aggression, followed by retaliation. The kindergarten principle which compels the child to regard community rights should control every home. To prevent quarreling, find the cause. Is it due to trespass? Is it due to malnutrition? Is it due to overwork in school? Is there a lack of harmony in the mother? Have the children been taught to obey without a due regard to the wisdom of the law they were asked to obey? Are they trained to a common interest in any one thing-music, books. birds-any outside interest that can become a family interest?

An Educator on Manual Training

Dr. Gilbert, the Superintendent of Public Instruction in Newark, N. J., recently delivered an address in which he laid stress on the moral and intellectual training that comes through the use of the hands. He protested against the idea that manual training meant the learning of a trade; it is training in manual expression. He deplored the break in manual training between the kindergarten and the grades where tools are introduced. The hands could express an idea as clearly as language; the difference was in the form of expression. Dr. Gilbert's recognized position among educational experts makes his opinion authoritative.