278 NORMAL PARTURITION. 



distended, and its cavity is so large that the arm can easily be intro- 

 duced into it. This inertia is not so much to be dreaded in animals 

 as in woman, though it is often troublesome and sometimes serious in 

 them. The cUbris of the decidua vera, and other effete matters, ac- 

 cumulate in its cavity, and the os being always more or less patent, 

 the air obtains admission, putrefaction commences, and grave results 

 may follow. An exploration will discover a variable quantity of sanious, 

 and more or less foul-smelling, matter in the cavity of the organ ; and 

 until this is removed, and the organ made to contract on itself, danger 

 may be apprehended. 



The gradual and steady involution of the uterus is therefore of much 

 importance after expulsion of the foetus. 



