MECHANICAL EXTRACTION OF THE F^^TC/S. 527 



have passed through the inlet ; as by this means the top of the withers is 

 depressed, and this part enters the pelvis before the sternum. The 

 operator stands behind the parent, his hands on the sides of the vulva, 

 v.hich he depresses with the cubital border of one hand, while, with the 

 back of it he separates the lips, and prevents their being abraded by the 

 cords. It is better to engage only one shoulder of the foetus *at a time, 

 if possible ; and when the sternum and one shoulder have been carried 

 into the passage, then the other shoulder is brought forward by directing 

 the assistants to pull a trifle towards the opposite side. By acting in this 

 way, with care, and by slow though continued efforts while the parent is 

 straining, delivery will be effected, if this be possible by traction. The 

 operator must not act hurriedly or brusquely, and his hand should care- 

 fully attend the advance of the foetus : facilitating its passage, and aiding 

 the progress of the haunches by passing his open hand between them 

 and the maternal pelvis. 



In the posterior presentation, when at least one assistant must be told 

 off to each cord, the traction should be moderate, or even gentle at first, 

 until the operator's hand has adjusted the foetus as much as possible. In 

 addition, the latter, besides directing his assistants, must frequently him- 

 self guide the traction by the disengaged hand, and personally exert him- 

 self in the extraction of the young creature : separating the lips of the 

 vulva, and pressing them towards the pelvis when they are pushed out- 

 wards by the advancing foetus ; lubricating the latter and the genital canal 

 when necessary, etc. 



Means of Developing the Necessary Force. 



Hitherto we have only been alluding to the employment of human or 

 manual force in the extraction of the foetus ; and this, of course, is that 

 which is generally resorted to at first. But it is not the only force w^e 

 may employ, and especially if it is desirable to exercise very powerful 

 traction. It is true that empirics and amateurs have often adopted the 

 barbarous expedient of attaching the cords fixed on the foetus to a horse 

 or ox, and by making the latter exert its strength, to tear the young crea- 

 ture through the maternal passage. Rainard mentions that in the Ca- 

 margue, those who have the charge of droves of Mares, not having the 

 services of a veterinary surgeon, yoke another Mare to the cords they 

 fasten on the foetus, and deliver the parturient animal in this cruel fash- 

 ion. Being destitute of anatomical knowledge, they act blindly ; and 

 not understanding how to adjust a malposition, the foal is nearly always 

 extracted dead, and only too frequently the mother perishes. 



With the object of extracting the foetus by force when manual traction 

 is not sufficient, the windlass, capstan, wheel, cart, and pulleys, have fre- 

 quently been used, and with great benefit. Many veterinarians consider 

 the employment of machines as equally barbarous with the ox or horse 

 traction, but this opinion is scarcely just. They say such machines are 

 blind instruments which cannot be directed at will, and they prefer in- 

 creasing the number of men indefinitely rather than resort to them. 



But some of the most intelligent and experienced veterinary obstetrists 

 — Lecoq,Gunther, Binz, Leconte, Rainard, Baumeister, Saint-Cyr, Franck, 

 etc. — speak in the highest terms of the utility of these machines ; and 

 some of them state that whenever the combined strength of six men is 

 not sufficient to extract the foetus from the larger animals, they do not 

 hesitate to employ one of these articles. Not only can a greater tractile 



