many modern houses the whole family is provided with outside sleeping
porches with absolutely no protection from the outside air but the
roof. I have followed the practice of sleeping in the open air for
some time, and in midwinter without discomfort have had the
temperature of my sleeping porch fall to six degrees below zero. Of
course it is foolish for any one to sleep exposed to rain or snow or
to think that there is any benefit to be derived from being cold or
uncomfortable. The whole idea of open-air sleeping is to breathe pure,
fresh air in place of the atmosphere of a house which, under the best
conditions, is full of dust and germs. If we become outdoor sleepers,
coughs and colds will be almost unknown. General Sherman once wrote a
letter in which he said that he did not have a case of cold in his
entire army and he attributed it to the fact that his soldiers slept
and lived in the open air.

[Illustration: A Child's May Day Party (Photograph by Mary H.
Northend)]

One can almost tell a man who sleeps in the open by looking at him.
His eye is clear and his cheek ruddy. There is no surer way to become
well and strong than to become accustomed to this practice. Then you
can laugh at the doctor and throw the medicine bottles away. In
stating this I know that many parents will not agree with me, and will
feel that to advise a boy to sleep in the open when the weather is
stormy or extremely cold is almost like inviting him to his death. It
is a fact just the same that every one would be healthier and happier
if they followed this practice. In a few years I expect to see outdoor
sleeping the rule rather than the exception. Progressive doctors are
already agreed on this method of sleeping for sick people. In some
hospitals even delicate babies are given open-air treatment in