of the Human Uterus. 75 



fox ? The female horse may die with her foal in her 

 matrix ; there are birds of prey and quadrupeds, fierce 

 and carnivorous : who is to save from the talons of 

 the one, and the jaws of the other, the objects of our re- 

 search? In speaking of the brute, the Doctor cannot 

 certainly allude to such as browse our meadows, bound 

 along our plains, or to the trusty animal that faithfully 

 guards the shepherd's flock. Such news, bearing the 

 stamp of authenticity, would be joyous tidings to the 

 farmer. 



The Abbe Raynal wrote a book, the object of which 

 was to prove to the credulous world, the deterioration 

 of all animals, even man, in this western world. From 

 whom did the Abbe get his information ? From tra- 

 vellers. From whom do learned gentlemen get their 

 information? From travellers. 



From the most correct view I can get of the subject, 

 I am inclined to believe, that natural labours (all labours 

 are natural in themselves, and only unnatural in their 

 circumstances) are as frequently interrupted by rigidity 

 of the os uteri, with or without inflammation, among 

 the laborious negroes of the farm, or the peasants of the 

 thatched hut, as among the most delicate ladies, who 

 live amidst all the luxuries of civilization and refine- 

 ment ; indeed, much more so. My opportunities, on 

 this head, are not very limited. 



It avails nothing to say, that we have departed from 

 the life of the savage, and that an equal departure from 

 the simple dictates of nature, in search of a corrective, is 



