CLEANLINESS. 271 



The houses of many poor people in towns are 

 filthy, and are situated in back streets, which are 

 seldom swept, and are badly paved. This makes 

 them liable to contagious diseases. Not only does 

 the general health suffer, but the skin, when it is 

 allowed to be dirty, contracts a number of dis- 

 gusting and malignant eruptions. 



If a child is regularly washed, its skin will be 

 free from rashes, and as soft and smooth as velvet; 

 but what wretched objects do we often see the 

 face and body covered with blotches, and the eyes 

 red and inflamed. 



To keep ourselves free from these dangerous 

 and unsightly affections, the use of soap and water 

 is all that is necessary. Not only should the face, 

 hands, and feet, but the whole body also, be con- 

 stantly washed, and bathing should be resorted to 

 as often as possible. 



All boys should be taught to swim, and no child 

 should ever venture into the water except in the 

 presence of a grown-up person. 



When you bathe, plunge at once over head, and 

 keep constantly moving about. Never bathe just 

 after violent exercise, and when you are over- 

 heated and perspiring: this is very dangerous, and 

 may bring on cramp of the stomach or limbs. 



If the health is delicate, it is safer to bathe in 

 the sea than in rivers ; but, as a general rule, we 

 ought to be in good health when we go into the 

 \yater. After bathing, we should never sit or 

 stard still 5 if we do so, we are apt to get chill v 



