4. _At what age do you recommend a mother to commence washing her
infant either in the tub, or in the nursery basin_?

As soon as the navel string comes away [Footnote: Sir Charles Locock
strongly recommends that an infant should be washed _in a tub_ from
the very commencement. He says,--"All those that I superintend _begin_
with a tub."--_Letter to the Author_.] Do not be afraid of water,--and
that in plenty,--as it is one of the best strengtheners to a child's
constitution. How many infants suffer, for the want of water from
excoriation!

5. _Which do you prefer--flannel or sponge--to wash a child with_?

A piece of flannel is, for the first part of the washing very
useful--that is to say, to use with the soap, and to loosen the dirt
and the perspiration; but for the finishing-up process, a sponge--a
large sponge--is superior to flannel, to wash all away, and to
complete the bathing. A sponge cleanses and gets into all the nooks,
corners, and crevices of the skin. Besides, sponge, to finish up with,
is softer and more agreeable to the tender skin of a babe than
flannel. Moreover, a sponge holds more water than flannel, and thus
enables you to stream the water more effectually over him. A large
sponge will act Like a miniature shower bath, and will thus brace and
strengthen him.

6. _To prevent a new-born babe from catching cold, is it necessary to
wash his head with brandy_?

It is _not necessary_. The idea that it will prevent cold is