1000000031

1"1

Iy obliged to pUnl i, up, and feareh for the 1<&<; which

he1ng 10unJ , we pl oecod to ddiver ,he boJy, anJ

I, fily

t he hl"ad.

lhe head is

large,

a r lhe

pelvIs

narrow, anJ

l he

watels

mOl

difchargcd,

\Ve ougltt,

pof11ble,

la [uro

the chdd into {h e natural pofition .

For a funh !:r dlurl r:l.tion, and

inrorm young prac·

tition::rs that ddiicult c..

fes

nal

frl.!qucnd y oceu" (uP'

pare, o( three thour.tnd 'A'omen in one town or village,

one thourand

(h ,,!!

d:livereu

in the fpace

one

year,

and in ninc hunJred and ninety of

thefe binhs,

lhe

child

fh al l be born without any

olher

than ca mmon aOill;\Oce:

firty ehildren of ,his number (hall offer with the rore ·

head turned to one

fiJ e-,

lhe lowcr

pan.of

lhe pdvis,

where it wi ll

nop

for fome time; ten 01all come Wilh

the Joreh cad towards the groio. or middle of the pubes;

live (hall

pr~fent

with lhe hreech, two or three with the

face, and one or two with the eu; yer, :dl thefe (hall

be (art:ly ddivered , rtnd lhecare be more: or Ie;:r! lingering

and

la~orious,

:ilccordinc tO lhe:

fiz~

of lhe pelvis and child,

or Hr engtll of the woman : of ,he re-m:l.ining

tC'll'

that

make up lhe Ihoufand,

fi,x:

nlall prerent Wilh lhe head

difrerendy turned . and two with the breech ; 'and theCe

Clnnot be (aved without IIretehing the pans, ufing [he

forceps or crotcher, or

pufhin~

up the chi ld in orJrr tO

bring

by Ihe

re~et

; this nectnit y proceeding eithcr from

the weaknefs of die

WOIn an,

the:. rigidity of the parts. a

narrow pelvi.s. or a Jarge chi)d,

6&.

the olher lWO nloul4

lie acrors, and neither head nor breech. but fom e olher

part of the boC)', prefent. fo ,hat ,he ehi lJ mull be turn o

ed and delivered by the fee!. N ext year. let us fuppofe

another lbollfand women delivered in the Carne pl'lce ; not

above three, {ix, or eight, {hall want eXlr::!.ordinary af–

fi nance

nay. fometímes. though Celdom, when ,he child

¡s young, or unu(ually fmall, and lhe mother has firoog

pains and a large pelvis, it fh all be delivereu even in the

~ery

worn pofition. without any other help lhan that of

lhe labour. pains.

As the head, lherefore, prefenu right io oine hundred

and twcnty of a thoufand labours, all (ueh are

be ac–

counred natural; rhoCe of lhe other Ceveoty. that require

affillaoce; may be decmed laborious; and lhe other ten

to be denomin:ued laborious or preternaturat. as theyare

ddivered by the head or fe" .

In order thueEore to reodcr thi! t rcati(e as diflinét as

poffible, for lhe Cake of the reade-r's O1emory. as well as

rhe dependance and conneétion of che difrerent labou rs,

lhey are divided io lhe following man ner: that is

<lC–

countcd natural, in .u·hich the head prerents . and .he

WOrn3n

¡s deliverc:d without eXlraordinttry help; thufe

births are called laboríous or nonnatural, when lhe head

COmes along- with diffieulty, and muH be .fIilled either

with lhe hand

opening the pans. or with the fi llet or

forccps. or even when Ihere is a nccclJity for opening and

eX1ra.eting it with lhe crotcher

and tho(e in which the

c.hild is brough t by the breech or feet, are denominaled

prelernalllral, beeaufe the delivery is perforoleJ in a pre–

teroatura) way.

O} Jh( diff(r(nl po/t,ionl o['W')tJ/en in labour.

almon·al l countries. the woman

alJoweJ cither

to fit. walk abollt, or ren upon a ucd, until rhe os Ulcri

VOL .

Il[. N°. 79.

is prctty much lllLucd

b)~

the

gr.

'<,,"ion of

lh! \VateTl.

or, (when ,hey are in finall quant;,)' ) by ,he he.d or the

In::cus, (o that c1t:1ivery is

(00

ex pedc:u; whcn Ihe i! put

fueh por.tion as is judged more

l".t(e.

cafy, and conve.

n¡cm for rllat purpoCe:

bUI

lile palien! may be pue upon

l.tboll r too prcmalurcly,

and

bao coni'equences

will

attend

fuch llIi Hakes.

A mong the

Eg)'plian,. Gruior.I,

and

R/JJl/anl.

tll :

Vonl.ln

\Vas plé\ced upon an .high flool; in Germany and

lolland they ufe the chair whieh is d eferibed by Deventer

and Heif!er; and for ho, elinu,es the n ool is perfd ll r

well adctpted

CUl in northern eount:

io.

and cold wea.her,

fuch a po(irian muH cndaoger lhe pal1ent's hi:a lth.

In the \Ven Iodies, and fome pans of Britain, the

woman is fcated on a fiool made in form of a femi circle:

in other place! (he is pl.lced

0 0

a woman's lap; and fome,

kneeling on a large cu(h ioo, "'re ddivc:red backwards.

In Franee lhe pofition is chiellly that ofh.d F fiuiog and

half Iying. on ,he (,de or end of a bed ; or the woman

bcing in nakcd bed, is raifed up with pillows or a bcd –

chair.

The L ondon mcthod is very convenient in natural and

e:lry !abours; lhe palient líes in bed upon one fideo the

knees being contraéled to the belly, and a pillow put be·

tween lhem tO keep them afunder. But lhe moft com.

moJi.ous method is tO prepare a bed and a couch in lhe

Carne room; a píece of oiled cJath or d reJTed· lheep·fl<in is

laid acrofs the middle of each

over the unrler·lheet, and

above thís. are (pread feveral folds of lineo, pinned or tieu

\Vith tape to eaeh '¡de of Ihe berl and couch; theCe are de–

ligned tO (punge up the moillu're in time of labanr and af.

ter delivery, while

th~

oiled c10ths or fheep ikins beJow

preferTO the reather ·bed from being wetted or fpoiled:

for this purpofe, fome people lay b<C,des upon the beJ

feveral uoder·{heels uver one another. fo that by fliding

out the uppermort every day. they can keep the becl dry

and comfortable.

The couch mun be no more than three reet wide. anJ

provided with cafiors; and the woman without any other

drefs than that of a fhort or

ha~f

fhifl, a linen fk irt or pet–

ticoat open before, and a bed. gown, ought to lie down

upon it, and be covered with cJoath, according

the rea–

fon o( the yea r. She is eommonly Iaid 00 the left (,de,

but in Ihat particular fhe is

confult her own cafe ; aad

a large (heet being doubled four times or more. one: end

mufi be flipt in below her breech, while the other hangs

9ver lhe f¡de of lile couch . to be fpread upon lhe knee cf

o( the accoucheur or midwife. who lits behind her on a

Jow reAt . As foon

a-s

file is dclive rcd, this Oleet mult be re–

moved. a foft,warm c10th applied tO the os externuln.

and lhe pillow taken from beqvixt her

knet~ :

file then

mufl be thlftcd with a clean, warm, half fhif" lineo

ndrt,

and bed· gown. and her belly kopt firm with the ¡;ro.d

head band of lhe O,irt, the ends of which are to be pio–

ned acrofs each other. T fH.'fc:

me~rures

being taken. lhe

couch muO

run clore tO lhe bed fide. and the paticnt

gt.'ntl y mO\'c:d from oae

another

bUl, if there is no

conch, the: bed mufl. 1)(: furnifhed wi th Ihe fame appar_Hus_

Sorne, again , are laiJ acrofs tbe fool of lhe bed,

t!Jt:

hCi\d of which the c1o:11hsare pre\'ioully turned

tlp

till after

delivery, when Ihe woman's pofturc

:ubpted, anJ then

3 U

thc,.