Uncle John’s Presents Mom’s Bathtub Reader (31 page)

Though too frail to do much active work herself, Mrs. Van Lew used her own formidable weapon—her mansion. When Union agents crossed into Confederate territory for information, they hid in the back bedrooms on the third floor. A space behind a panel under the roof hid escaping Union soldiers if the house was searched. The two women even hid a horse in an upstairs bedroom to keep it from being seized by the Confederate government.

Perhaps the Van Lews’ greatest achievement arose from an action they’d taken before the war. When they’d freed
an exceptionally intelligent slave, Mary Bowser, they also sent her to school in Philadelphia. Mary returned to Richmond and Elizabeth, through a friend, secured a job for Mary in the Confederate White House. Of course Jefferson Davis never suspected that Mary could read or write. But while she dusted his desk, Mary also read his secret papers and quietly relayed that important information back to the Van Lews.

On April 2, 1865, the day came that mother and daughter had longed for. The Confederacy evacuated Richmond as the Union soldiers marched in. Their neighbors could hardly believe it when Crazy Bette and her servants clambered up to the roof and unfurled a huge American flag. The Stars and Stripes were once again waving in Virginia.

After General Grant arrived in Richmond, he sent his calling card to the Van Lews. He wanted to thank the two women for all they’d done for their country. As Eliza and her daughter served tea to General Grant and his wife at the Van Lew mansion, we can just imagine the polite conversation. “General Grant,” they might have said, “When we said we’d help the Union, we weren’t just whistling ‘Dixie.’ “

Dr. Spock would have felt right at home with the nurturing moms of ancient Egypt.

E
gyptian moms loved kids—and lots of ’em. In ancient Egypt, mothers nurtured and cared for their children with a devotion unmatched in the ancient world. All babies were welcome, boys and girls, and a woman with many children was the envy of her barren sisters and the apple of her husband’s eye.

Since Egyptian moms were often anxious to know if they would soon hear the patter of lots of little feet, Egyptians developed fertility aids and even an ancient home-pregnancy test.

To increase her fertility, a wannabe mom would “squat over a hot mixture of frankincense, oil, dates, and beer, and allow the vapors to enter her.” To discover whether or not she was pregnant, she used her urine to moisten seeds of emmer and barley. If a plant grew in a few days, she would bear a child. If the plant didn’t grow, it was time to go back to bed (so to speak).

Though the fertility aids are suspect, modern scientists have tested the Egyptian pregnancy test and found that watering either seed with the urine of nonpregnant women resulted in no growth for many of the seeds, just as
the ancients said it would. Although the “no growth” test did fail in about 30 percent of the cases, this was cutting-edge thousands of years ago!

Once a happy mother-to-be was in labor, she often went to a cool spot like the breezy roof of a house or to a special pavilion made of papyrus stalks and decorated with vines. Midwives or friends came to help the mother give birth.

Though children were a blessing, every mom knew that childbearing could be a fatal pain, and they wanted all the divine help they could get. Since illness was often believed to be the result of evil spirits, women lined up divine allies like the powerful sun god, Horus, and the goddess Hathor, guardian of women and domestic bliss. Sometimes the god Amun blew in as a northern breeze to cool mothers during the hard work of labor.

You would be hard-pressed to find an epidural in ancient Egypt, so women sought relief in spells and amulets. An amulet was placed on the mom-to-be’s forehead when this spell was repeated four times:

Unfortunately, Horus’s help wasn’t foolproof. Many women died in childbirth, even in royal families. In King Horemheb’s tomb, the body of his queen, Mutnodjmet, was found along with the tiny bones of a fully developed fetus
who is believed to have died inside the dying mother.

If Mom and her precious baby survived the birth, she named that baby immediately. In case of sickness or death, a name ensured the infant’s survival in the afterlife. Some names expressed a mother’s joy, so a baby might be called “Welcome to You” or “This Boy I Wanted.” A baby might also be named for his or her physical characteristics, with a handle like Pakamen, meaning “The Blind One.” Names of gods and goddesses abounded, along with names from the pharaoh’s family.

Babies were given constant care. To keep them close, mothers carried babies in a sling around their neck and breast-fed their children for up to three years. They were even encouraged to eat sour barley bread to increase their breast milk—talk about devotion! As babies grew up, doting moms provided plenty of toys. The children of ancient Egypt played with carved animal figures, painted wood or simple rag dolls, boats and balls, and even pets like dogs or kittens or birds.

Since children were so valued in Egypt, it comes as no surprise that grown children were expected to cherish their moms right back. That didn’t always work out, of course. A will still exists that preserves the indignation of Lady Naunakhte, who declared: “I am a free woman of Egypt. I have raised eight children and have provided them with everything suitable to their station in life. But now I have grown old and behold, my children don’t look after me
anymore. I will therefore give my goods to the ones who have taken care of me. I will not give anything to the ones who have neglected me.”

However, most Egyptians agreed with the ancient text that read: “Repay your mother for all her care. Give her as much bread as she needs, and carry her as she carried you, for you were a heavy burden to her. When you were finally born, she still carried you on her neck and for three years she suckled you and kept you clean.” Sounds fair to us.

Test your knowledge of fascinating factoids about moms and their nearest and dearest.

Turn the page for the Answers.

1. False

Statistics show that fall is the time to try for a baby if you want to have a boy.

2. True

In a Harvard medical study, pregnant women carrying boys ate up to 190 more calories than those who were carrying girls. Does this mean that girls come into the world on a diet?

3. True

University of Washington researchers found that if their mom suffered from moderate to severe morning sickness their babies showed a preference for salted water over regular water. Older children whose moms had similar levels of morning sickness also craved salty foods.

4. True

The average baby weighs about seven pounds at birth. Only about 10 percent of all babies weigh more than eight pounds 13 ounces. Rarely do babies weigh more than 10 pounds.

5. True—sort of

Breast-feeding burns about 500 calories a day, so a breastfeeding mom can lose weight faster—unless, of course she starts eating more.

6. False

The familymoon is a new trend among remarrying couples that have kids from a previous marriage. They invite the kids along on their honeymoon! How’s that for togetherness?

7. False