SECT. VIII. Of difficult births, whether they pro∣ceed from Causes external or inter∣nal.

DIfficult births from external causes may be either, first, from excessive heat, dis∣solving the strength of the women; or se∣condly, excessive cold, condensing the womb; or thirdly, from sweet things, often applied to the nostrils of the woman, that by smelling to sweet things she may recover her strength and faintings; for sweet smells do attract the womb upwards, and so render the birth more difficult.

Difficult birth from internal causes may be either, first, from the woman; secondly, from the womb; thirdly, from the infant; fourthly from the membranes of the womb. 1. From the woman, as when she is too an∣gry, too fearful, or too modest; or if she be in age above 40 years, from whence the mus∣cles of the womb may be concluded to be dry, and so the less extenfible; or when she is so thick and fat, that the passages be narrow: Page  43 Or, 2. From the womb it self, as, when it is so small, and nature so weak and feeble that it cannot expell the birth: Or, if there be any inflammation; or unnatural affect in the pri∣vities, be it the stone, or piles, or extraordi∣nary costiveness; all which may so compress the womb with their weight, that it cannot expel the birth. 3. Is from the infant it self, as if it be of an unusual bigness, of a great head, or a monstrous birth, hydropical, full of wind, dead in the womb, or lying there in a posture beyond nature; as when it comes overthwart, with the feet forward, and not the head, or if the thigh before the head. 4. From the membranes of the womb, as when they are so forcibly broken by the child in the womb that the moysture floweth thence, leaving the infant behind, that when the child should come forth, that moysture fail∣eth, and so the membranes being dryer, mak∣eth the birth the more difficult; or when it is firm and solid that it is broken with much difficulty, and so makes the labour the har∣der.

And here we cannot but take notice how those Authors, who have not the perfect knowledge of the parts of a Womans body, attained to by Anatomy, do admire and cannot as they say, conceive how it is possible that an Infant so big can pass, in time of labour, Page  44 through an opening of the Womb so small; some of them being of opinion that the Wo∣mans share-bone is seperated at that time, to enlarge the passage; without which it would be impossible for the Infant to have room e∣nough to be born; and therefore Women that are a little antiquated suffer in their first labors more than others, because their share∣bone cannot so easily be seperated, which often kills their Children in their passage: others again are of opinion that it is the flank-bone, which is disjointed from the hoop-bone for the same purpose; and say both the one and the other of them, viz. That these bones thus separated at the hour of labor, are thereto so disposed by degrees, a little before, by the fly my humors which flow forth from about the Womb, and then mollifie the grisles and cords which at other times join them firmly together. But both these opinions are as different from truth as reason; for Anato∣my convinceth us clearly that the Womb by no means toucheth these places; whereby to moisten and soften them by its humors; as likewise that these bones are so joined by the gristle that it is very difficult to seperate them with a knife, especially the flank-bone from the hoop-bone, and almost impossible in some elderly Women without great violence; although Ambrose Parry, a most famous Chi∣rurgion Page  45 in his time at Paris, (quoting many witnesses to the thing) gives us an History of a Woman in whom (having been hang'd 14 days after she was delivered in Child-birth,) he found (as he saith) the share bone separated in the middle the bredth of half a finger, and the flanck-bones them∣selves disjointed from the hoop-bone. But we will not in this matter accuse him of an imposture as having too much respect, and a better opinion of so worthy a person, and believing him to be too sincere as to commit such a crime; but do indeed believe the good man might be mistaken in this separation; for we cannot probably conceive that being so at the time of her labor it would remain so a fortnight after, the breadth of half a finger; for then they would have been forc'd to carry this Woman to execution; (for they are ex∣ecuted at Paris within the City or Suburbs,) because she would not have been able to have supported her self, or climbe the ladder of the Gibbet; and keep her self on her Legs according to the custome of other Malefa∣ctors; because the body is only supported by the stability of these bones; wherefore we must believe, as most probable, that such a disjunction and separation was caused either from the falling of this Womans body from the high Gibbet to the ground after executi∣on; Page  46 or from some blow on that place from some hard thing. And if we thoroughly exa∣mine the different Figure and Structure of these bones between a Mans and a Womans Sceleton, we shall find a larger empty space and distance between these bones much more considerable in women then in men; and that to this purpose the least women have the bones of the hip more distant the one from the other, than the biggest man; and they have also the crupper-bone more outwards, and the sharebone flatter, which makes the passage from this capacity larger, and more able to give issue to the child at the time of labour: moreover they have besides this the flank bones much more turned outward, that the womb being filled may have more room to stretch it self out on the sides, and more at ease supported by such a disposition; as you will see explain'd in the figure.

A shews the Man's bones. B the Womans; for to know the difference that the Womans is more capacious then the Mans, for C and C, D and D, E and E are at a larger distance one from another, in a Woman than in a Man. And be∣sides that Women have the rump bone marked F. more turned outwards than Men, which gives way to the head to pass through the large passage be∣tween the 2 Hip-bones, marked E and E, without great difficulty; and without any necessity for the separation of the share-bone.

The bladder and great gut being emptyed of the excrements they contein hinder, in no wise but that the womb, made membranous or skinny for that purpose, can stretch forth it self as it doth to let the infaut pass in la∣bour, by this great empty space sufficient for it whithout any necessity that these bone-should be disjointed or separated; for if it should so fall out indeed women could not sustain themselves on their legs; as many of them do immediately after that they are brought to bed; because they are instead of a support to them, as is already exprest, and of a middle joincture to all the other, as well of the upper as the lower parts of the body. Which the learned and judicious and experi∣enced Chirurgion Mr. Francis Moriceau very well noted, when he lay'd so many Women in the Hostel de dieu in Paris; for when Wo∣men that are there to be brought to bed be∣gin to be in labor, they go into a little room call'd the stove, where all are delivered upon a little low bed made expresly, where they place them before the fire, afterwards as soon as they are delivered they conduct them to their bed, which sometimes is a good way off from this little chamber, whither they walk very well, which they could never do were their share-bone, or their flanck-bone separa∣ted the one from the other. Besides we of∣ten Page  48 see young Women that have concealed their labour, put themselves (the better to hide their faults,) immediately to their ordi∣nary business as if they had ailed nothing: neither could this ingenious Chyrurgion, in all women that ever he delivered, ever perceive this pretended disjunction, though he put his hand on the share bone when the child was in passage; but he sayes that indeed he hath found the hip-bone which is joyned with a loose Joint, to the lower extremity of the hoop-bone to bend outwards during labour: in which part the women feel sometimes much pain because the coming forth of the child of∣fers it a great violence, and because its head at that time doth much press the great gut against it.

Moreover having often seen and dissected women, being dead a few days after their de∣livery, it hath been found a very difficult mat∣ter to seperate these bones with a strong sharp Pen-knife; where could not be found any the least appearance of any forgoing separation: and if those advanced in years have more pain with their first children than the younger women, it doth not proceed from the difficul∣ty of the seperation of these bones (which never is, from the reason aforesaid) but be∣cause the membranes of their womb are dry, and hard; and particularly its internal orifice, Page  49 cannot therefore so easily be stretched open as young womens, which in them is much moister.