Return the value of the boolean child element having *name*, e.g.
        'b', 'i', and 'smallCaps'.

def _get_bool_val(self, name):
        """
        Return the value of the boolean child element having *name*, e.g.
        'b', 'i', and 'smallCaps'.
        """
        element = getattr(self, name)
        if element is None:
            return None
        return element.val