When a child reaches the age of eighteen months without making any effort to talk, and if he points to objects rather than asks for them, he should be taken to a physician for physical and mental examination. It may be found that he is merely lazy, and he has learned that he can get what he wants without asking. Then he must be encouraged, not urged, to talk. The child who is not talking at thirty months is either mentally deficient or deaf. A mother should know why her baby cries. In a very young baby, as I have said before, a little crying is good exercise. This is baby’s way of demanding notice. If an ordinarily contented baby, presumably comfortable, dry and well-fed, persists in crying, the mother should investigate. Among small causes of discomfort may be mentioned an open safety-pin; an over-tight belly-band; folds in those instruments of torture, the muslin bands of skirts fastened with safety-pins; a small arm twisted under the body; sun shining into the eyes; flies or mosquitoes; and wet diapers. Make a baby absolutely comfortable in clothing and position, and he will not cry long. The following table of reasons why babies cry is reprinted, by permission, from “Hints to Mothers Who Want Better Babies,” issued by the Better Babies Bureau: His food is not right. He is fed too often. He is fed too much. He gets ice-cream or candy. He is fed or taken up whenever he cries. He is dressed too warm. He is dressed improperly. He needs a bath. His bowels do not move properly. He is wet. He is kept up too late. He sleeps in a hot room with windows shut. He is carried, rocked, or bounced. He is taken to the “movies.” He is given a pacifier, soothing syrup, or cathartics. If the mother’s conscience is easy on all these points, then she must look for a deeper and graver cause. To do this she must first learn to analyze the different forms and varieties of crying. In the new-born baby, crying is normal and useful. It expands the lungs and improves the circulation. This form of crying is loud and strong and has a healthy ring, not like a scream. The baby becomes red in the face from the effort, and generally turns silent as suddenly as he began to cry. A young baby can cry from fifteen to thirty minutes a day and be none the worse for this form of lung exercise. Young mothers frequently express fear that such crying will cause rupture. Nature has provided against this catastrophe.