460 FCETAL DYSTOKIA. 



as far as possible from the inlet. It has been recommended in those 

 cases in which the head, lying towards the flank, cannot be reached, that 

 the fore-part of the mother be raised ; that the abdomen be elevated by a 

 plank, sheet, or sack ; that the flank be pressed upon externally by an intelli- 

 gent assistant ; that the animal be placed on its back ; that sharp hooks be 

 implanted in the neck, occiput, or other part of the foetus, etc. Schaack, 

 who has had a large experience in such cases, and appears to have made 

 this subject a special study, points out that all these devices gain the 

 proposed end with difficulty, and" have one capital defect — they do not 

 act on the proper part. With regard to traction, he says that it is neither 



n> 



Fig. 123. 

 Long Blunt Chrotchet. 



on the ears, occiput, nor even the head, that this should be applied in such 

 cases, but on the point where the neck is bent. It is necessary, there- 

 fore, to introduce the hand into this part, and, by repeated tugs or jerks, 

 to widen the bend ; this done to some extent, the hand is moved to an- 

 other point nearer the head, retropulsion being at the same time practised. 

 By acting in this manner, he assures Saint-Cyr that he has always suc- 

 ceeded in bringing the head sufficiently near to be able to manipulate it. 

 Delafoy {Recueil de Med. Veterinaire, 1832, p. 313) many years ago 

 described his method, which consists in carrying a good firm cord, about 

 twelve feet long, and with a knot at the end to hold it by, by the hand into 

 the uterus. The knot, held at the end of the fingers, is passed between 

 the neck and chest of the foetus ; there it is left while the hand seeks for 

 it at the other side of the neck, where it is seized, drawn through, and 



Fig. 124. 

 Nelson's Serrated Forceps 



carried without the vulva, the double of the neck being included in it. 

 The hand is again passed into the uterus, and the cord is pushed as near 

 the head as possible ; and there it is held, while an assistant twines the 

 two ends until they form one piece closely fixed on the neck — care being 

 taken that the membranes are not entangled in it, or cotyledons, if it is a 

 Cow. The hand is then placed on the point of the sternum or one of the 

 shoulders of the foetus, and while this is pushed forward into the uterus, 

 the assistant is told to pull steadily. If this movement is well managed, 

 the head of the foetus is brought sufficiently near the os to. be secured and 

 adjusted. Delafoy states that he has practised this procedure a great 

 number of times, and always with success ; and others have been equally 



