HOW LONG SHOULD A BABY SLEEP?--A perfectly healthy baby should sleep, while very young, eighteen or twenty hours out of the twenty-four. As it grows older it will sleep less. It should have, and nothing should interfere with its having, two sound naps every day,--one in the forenoon after its bath, and the other in the afternoon. When four or five months old, it should also sleep from 7 P. M. until 10 P. M., then it should be fed and allowed to sleep until morning. It has been aptly said, that, "a child might easily overeat, but he practically never oversleeps." During the second year a child should sleep twelve hours at night, and about two hours during the day. The twelve-hour night rest should be continued until the child is six years of age. The practice of taking a nap at noon is a very good one, and it should be encouraged as long as possible. It can usually be kept up until the child begins school life. The strenuous activity of childhood, makes some such rest highly desirable, and the result will necessarily be a stronger body, a better disposition, and firmer nerves than otherwise. The practice of retiring early should be strictly enforced during childhood. Children of two years of age, should retire at 6:30 P. M., or at latest at 7 P. M., those from three to five years, may remain up an additional hour. At thirteen or fourteen the regular bedtime should be at 8:30 P. M. There is no justification for the late hours which growing children are allowed to keep, especially in large cities. Regular sleep is largely a matter of habit, and if the infant is started right, with suitable feedings, given at definite times, followed by the proper periods of sleep, but little trouble will be experienced with sleeplessness. When sleep is disturbed and broken, it means bad habits, unsuitable food, minor forms of indigestion, or positive illness of some kind. Sleep is absolutely essential in infancy and all through childhood for purposes of growth. It is wrong to permit a child to sleep too much during the day; it will become a habit, and it will not sleep well during the night as a consequence. In order to prevent or break this habit, the child should be kept in a well-lighted room and should be amused and entertained so as to keep it awake. The nap during the middle of the day is an exceedingly important factor in keeping the average child in good physical condition. It is a valuable adjunct in preventing, and in treating, nervousness in children. Children who are anemic should be encouraged to sleep long and freely in well-aired rooms.