Page:The Art of Helping People Out of Trouble (1924).pdf/41

 she was of sound mind, it was thought that she might possibly be feeble-minded. The difficulty had its chief cause in the behavior of the child's mother.

Martha's parents had wanted their first born to be a boy. That the baby should have been a girl was a great disappointment, and when a son came as their next child, Martha was thrust into the second place. Harry was given precedence in everything. Reproach was always her portion. She was continually being compared with her brother to her own disadvantage.

She would hear her mother tell visitors:

"Martha is stupid, but Harry is bright. Why, Harry even has to help Martha with her lessons."

If it was suggested that Martha run an errand, her mother would say:

"Oh, Martha can't do that. I'll have Harry do it."

When an operation to remove adenoids was prescribed for Martha, her mother exclaimed in her presence:

"Martha will never go to the hospital. She'll just cry. I'll never get her to go."

On another occasion the child was obliged to listen to this comment upon her character: