14 The Time to Build 



pens. First, he is given a hearty meal, which is 

 followed at once by perhaps two hours of profound 

 sleep. Then, there is a gradual waking, the body 

 writhes and wiggles slightly, and then more, and then 

 still more, until a loud cry is set up. Under healthy 

 conditions the crying should go on for a very few 

 minutes, as it helps to send the good blood through 

 every part of the body, purifying and building up 

 the parts and carrying out the effete matter. The 

 function of excretion is not only thus much aided, 

 but the nervous equilibrium is completely restored. 

 The little life has now swung completely round to 

 the beginning point of two hours previously and it is 

 ready to start on another journey with the intake 

 of another hearty meal. 



It will be found that the life circle described above 

 continues with slight variations for the first few weeks, 

 the child sleeping probably twenty to twenty-two 

 hours out of twenty-four, if it be in a natural state 

 of health. But slowly the conduct of the infant will 

 become more complex, and that in response to the 

 growths and changes taking place within his body. 

 It will be found that he can take a heartier meal, 

 can stay awake longer, kick harder, wriggle more, and 

 cry louder as the days multiply. In a month or so 

 his eyes will be seen following some brilliant or attrac- 

 tive moving body, while the impulsive movements 

 of the hands will begin to suggest some slight defini- 

 tion of their conduct. Not long thereafter, the baby 



