The compleat midwife's practice enlarged in the most weighty and high concernments of the birth of man containing a perfect directory or rules for midwives and nurses : as also a guide for women in their conception, bearing and nursing of children from the experience of our English authors, viz., Sir Theodore Mayern, Dr. Chamberlain, Mr. Nich. Culpeper ... : with instructions of the Queen of France's midwife to her daughter ... / by John Pechey ... ; the whole illustrated with copper plates.

CHAP. IV. Of the Testicles in general.

THE Stones are in number two, very seldom one, and much seldomer 3 or 4 The situation of the Stones in Men is without the Midriff, at the root of the Yard under the belly; and that for two causes, to keep men more chaste; it being observed, that those creatures which carry their stones within their Bodies, are more salacious, and bring forth in great numbers.

Their bigness is not always alike in all Creatures, but in men as big as a Pigeons Egg, or as a small Hens Egg; and commonly the left is bigger than the right.

In the Anatomy of the Stones, divers things are to be considered. Their Tunicles, or the skins in which they are wrapt, as well those which are common to both, as those which are peculiar to either; next, the muscles; then, the substance of which they are com∣posed; and lastly, the Vessels which are dispersed through the body of the stones.

The Stones in Latin, are called Testes, either be∣cause they testifie one to be a Man, or because amongst the Romans, none could bear witness but he that had them. They have a peculiar substance, such as is not in all the Body besides, whitish and soft, made up of

an innumerable little Ropes of Seed carrying Vessels. There is no cavity in them, but those said Vessels are continued to one another, and carry the Seed in their undiscernable hollowness. Hippocrates held the right to be bigger and hotter than the left, and there∣fore called it the Male-getter, and the left the Female-getter; these fancies seem ridiculous, seeing there is no such difference of their bigness, and that their Vessels are common; they have Arteries and Veins from the preparing Vessels, which some have thought to reach only to the inmost coat, because they are not conspicuous in the inner substance; but that comes to pass, by reason that the arterial Blood presently loses its colour, and, by the seminifick faculty of the Stones, is turned into Seed, which being whitish, of the same colour with the Vessels, makes them undiscernible; yet in those men, that have died of languishing Dis∣eases, and whose Stones have their faculty impaired, Diemerbroeck says, that he has often seen Blood-bring∣ing Vessels in the inmost parts of the Stones, and has shew'd them to many, in the publick Anatomick Theatre: As to Nerves, Dr. Willis affirms, that he could never observe more to go to them, than one from a vertebral pair, and that too was most of it spent upon the Muscle cremaster. Concerning the Use of this Nerve, there is a great Controversie, Dr. Glisson, Dr. Wharton, and others, will have it con∣vey a seedy Juice, which makes the greatest part of the Seed: But Dr. Willis is of another Opinion; howe∣ver the Seed must needs consist of a nervous Juice, and plenty of Spirits brought from the Brain, because of the great weakness, and enervation that is induced upon the Brain, and Nerves, by too great an use of Venery.

Lympheducts they have also, arising from betwixt

their coats, and ascending upwards into the belly with the Vasa Deferentia: these have many valves looking upwards, which hinder any thing from de∣scending by them to the Stones, but permit the Lym∣pha to ascend, which they convey into the Chylife∣rous Vessels.