In 1858, Dr. L. H. Tanner of London published an excellent book entitled, A Practical Treatise on the Diseases of Infancy and Childhood.1 The quotation below illustrates both the style of Victorian medical writing as well as the concern of physicians of that era for the moral training of children:
The rectitude of the father, the self-denial of the mother, and the earnestness with which both pursue their daily avocations, make a great impression on the youthful mind; and even much slighter incidents, which the thoughtless may only regard as trifles, often serve either to develop good qualities, or to pervert the yet unformed judgment.