this, under urban or suburban conditions at any rate, a perambulator is
almost necessary. The room must be clean and brightly lit, and prettily
and interestingly coloured if we are to get the best results. These
things imply a certain standard of prosperity in the circumstances of
the child's birth. Either the child must be fed in the best way from a
mother in health and abundance, or if it is to be bottle fed, there
must be the most elaborate provision for sterilizing and warming the
milk, and adjusting its composition to the changing powers of the
child's assimilation. These conditions imply a house of a certain
standard of comfort and equipment, and it is manifest the mother cannot
be earning her own living before and about the time of the child's
birth, nor, unless she is going to employ a highly skilled,
trustworthy, and probably expensive person as nurse, for some year or
so after it. She or the nurse must be of a certain standard of
intelligence and education, trained to be observant and keep her
temper, and she must speak her language with a good, clear accent.
Moreover, behind the mother and readily available, must be a highly-
skilled medical man.

Not to have these things means a handicap. Not to have that very
watchful feeding and attention at first means a loss of nutrition, a
retarding of growth, that will either never be recovered or will be
recovered later at the expense of mental development or physical
strength. The early handicap may also involve a derangement of the
digestion, a liability to stomachic and other troubles, that may last
throughout life. Not to have the singing and talking, and the varied
interest of coloured objects and toys, means a falling away from the
best mental development, and a taciturn nurse, or a nurse with a base
accent, means backwardness and needless difficulty with the beginning
of speech. Not to be born within reach of abundant changes of clothing