THE MOTHERCRAFT MANUAL
Training in Mothercraft, at the School of Mothercraft,New York City. Frontispiece.
THE
MOTHERCRAFT
MANUAL
BY
MARY L. READ, B.S.
ILLUSTRATED
BOSTON
LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY
1921
Copyright, 1916,
By Little, Brown, and Company.
All rights reserved
INSCRIBED TO
MY MOTHER AND FATHER
[Pg vii]
INTRODUCTION
“Seventy-five per cent. of the women of Americaare married, and most of these have children.” It isnot conceivable that women entering into any othervocation of life would think of undertaking it withoutdeliberate preparation. Motherhood is so preciousand wonderful that we fear to think of it in terms ofdefinite preparedness. We like to think that it comesnatural to be good mothers and that to study in preparationfor it or to analyze it might produce moreharm than good.
Let me use my own case as an illustration of how ill-preparedeven earnest women are for motherhood. Iwas married twenty-nine years ago. I wanted childrenwith all my heart. My first baby came sixteen monthsafter I was married. I bought all the literature Icould find on my new occupation, kindergarten booksbeginning with Froebel and ending with Susan Blowand her contemporaries; I studied Spencer’s Education,William James’ chapters on habit and attention, andread biographies of great people. My first ambitionwas to be a good mother, and I was eager to learn allI could about it. My college studies for five yearswere Greek, Latin, and higher mathematics, with anoccasional semester of botany, evidences of Christianity,physics, etc. I do not remember hearing a referenceto motherhood during my college experience.
[Pg viii]
I have had six children, four of whom are living.Had I had the knowledge I now have, or know how toget, it seems that the little seven-months-old boy couldhave been saved. I was called a scientific mother,my babies were fed regularly, put to bed regularly,and were dressed as sensibly as babies are now, but atthat time we did not have the knowledge about thephysical care of babies which we now have. What Iobject to is the amount of time I had to give when mychildren were little to learn things which I ought tohave known before motherhood c