The rules in "Child Psychology", authored by Helen Highwater, that Barney tries to use on Wee Willie are:
Rule 1. Gain the child's CONFIDENCE-be sure to get started on the RIGHT FOOT! (Willie gives Barney a hot (right) foot with over a dozen matches.)
Rule 2. Develop the child's sense of FUN ... try - GAMES! (In Pin the Tail on the Donkey, Willie spins Barney and pushes him toward a real donkey.)
Rule 3. Build character through SPORTS - try FOOTBALL! (As Barney backs up to kick the football, Willie unlaces the pigskin and replaces the bladder with a rock.)
Rule 4. Humor his childish WHIMS ..... go along with the GAG! (Willie ties Barney to his toy train tracks, then routes a real train onto them.)
Rule 5. Develop his love for NATURE ... try GARDENING (Barney gives Willie a "Junior Garden Set" and goes and lies in his hammock. Willie finds "Quick Grow" plant food in his set and applies it to the trees holding the hammock.)
Rule 6. Give him a HOBBY ... try PHOTOGRAPHY! (As Barney prepares to take Willie's picture, Willie spins the camera around and loads it with a very large bullet.)
Rule 7. Win his undying AFFECTION ... bake him a CAKE! (When Barney goes to find a match to light the cake's candle, Willie connects the gas line from the stove to the cake.)
FINAL RULE. If all else Fails, BOTTOMS UP! (Both Barney and Willie's Dad spank the child.)
At the end of the short, Wee-Willie says, "He don't know me very well, do he?" This catch-phrase originated by Red Skelton as his character Junior, the Mean Widdle Kid. The phrase was co-opted by several cartoon characters, most famously Bug Bunny.
The characters are shown enacting a scene from the silent film series The Perils of Pauline (1914), where the villain ties the heroine to railroad tracks. The scene was commonly used in cartoons and films, usually in a humorous way, as shown here.