254 The Philippine Journal of Science 1919 
exclusively made all the measurements with the exception of 
those of the diagonal conjugate, which were determined by Doc- 
tor Calderon. 
METHOD OF MEASUREMENT 
The spines, the crests, and Baudelocque’s diameter were meas- 
ured from two different points. One is on the outside of the 
bone, which is the method practiced by most obstetricians ; the 
data obtained from these measurements are the figures used in 
comparing these diameters with those of other nationalities. 
The other point is in the inner boundary of the bone: namely, 
in the spines, the inner part of the anterosuperior spines; in the 
crests, the inner border of the ilium; and in the Baudelocque’s 
diameter, the upper border of the symphysis. 
The diagonal conjugate had been determined in two ways. 
One way, which is the method practiced by most investigators 
on living subjects, is the introduction of the fore and middle 
fingers into the vagina, reaching thereby the promontory of the 
sacrum. For one who has a small hand and short fingers, this 
method is impracticable; so, in the absence of Doctor Calderon, 
another means had to be thought of that could give just as good, 
if not better, results. An ordinary uterine sound is bent slightly 
near its tip to make it correspond with the natural curve of the 
pelvic canal. With the whole gloved and lubricated right hand 
_ in the vagina, the left hand introduces the uterine sound, whose 
tip is guided by the internal hand to the promontory where it 
is kept in firm position, while the external hand determines the 
level on the sound of the lower border of the symphysis pubis. 
The firmness of the sound and its freedom from any movement 
that the examining hand may have after the important points 
have been determined make this method, we believe, give more 
accurate results. For one who has a small, short hand, this 
method is of special advantage, for it is easily done and causes 
relatively less discomfort to the patient. : 
In the 1917 edition of his text book on obstetrics, Williams 
has quoted one of us (H. A. S.) as stating that the Filipino pelvis 
corresponds most closely to that of the American Negress. Since 
the writer made no such statement, it seems probable that Wil- 
liams arrived at such a conclusion by comparing the Filipino 
measurements given by the writer with the Negro measurements 
reported by Riggs. 
While admitting that the measurements given by the writer 
do correspond in a superficial way with those of the Negress, a 
closer study shows certain important differences. Such study 
