472 OF GENERATION AND DEVELOPMENT. 



The most remarkable examples of the influence of such stimuli on the 

 Mammary secretion, are those in which milk has been produced by 

 girls and old women, and even by men, in quantity sufficient for the 

 support of an infant. The application of the child to the nipple in 

 order to tranquillize it, the irritation produced by its efforts at suction, 

 and the strong desire to furnish milk, seem in the first instance to 

 occasion an augmented nutrition of the gland, so that it becomes fit for 

 the performance of its function ; and then to produce in it that state 

 of functional activity, the result of which is the production of Milk. 



837. It is not only in this wayj that the Mammary secretion is 

 influenced by the condition of the mind ; for it is peculiarly liable to 

 be affected as to quality, by the habitual state of the feelings, or even 

 by their temporary excitement. Thus a fretful temper not only lessens 

 the quantity of milk, but makes it thin and serous, and gives it an 

 irritating quality ; and the same effect will be produced for a time by a 

 fit of anger. Under the influence of grief or anxiety, the secretion is 

 either checked altogether, or it is diminished in amount, and deteriorated 

 in quality. The secretion is usually checked altogether by terror ; and 

 under the influence of violent passion, it may be so changed in its 

 characters, as to produce the most injurious and even fatal consequences 

 to the infant. So many instances are now on record, in which children, 

 that have been suckled within a few minutes after the mothers have 

 been in a state of violent rage or terror, have died suddenly in convul- 

 sive attacks, that the occurrence can scarcely be set down as a mere 

 coincidence; and certain as we are of the deleterious effects of less 

 severe emotions upon the properties of the milk, it does not seem un- 

 likely that, in these cases, the bland nutritious fluid should be converted 

 into a poison of rapid and deadly operation. 



838. Of the quantity of Milk ordinarily secreted by a good Nurse, 

 it is impossible to form any definite idea ; as the amount which can be 

 artificially drawn, affords no criterion of that which is ordinarily secreted 

 at the time of the draught. The quantity which can be squeezed from 

 either breast at any one time, and which, therefore, must have been 

 contained in its tubes and reservoirs, is about two ounces. The amount 

 secreted will depend upon several circumstances ; such as the nature 

 and amount of the ingesta ; the state of bodily health ; and the condi- 

 tion of the mind. An adequate but not excessive supply of nutritious 

 food, in which the farinaceous, oleaginous, and albuminous principles 

 are duly blended ; a vigorous but not plethoric constitution, regular 

 habits, and moderate exercise, together with a cheerful and tranquil 

 temper, altogether produce the most beneficial influence upon the 

 secretion. It is seldom that stimulating liquors, which are so commonly 

 indulged in, are anything but prejudicial; but the unmeasured con- 

 demnation of them, in which some writers have indulged, is certainly 

 injudicious ; as experience amply demonstrates the improvement in the 

 condition both of mother and infant, which occasionally results from 

 the moderate employment of them. In the administration of medicines 

 to the mother, it is very desirable that the tendency of soluble saline 

 substances to pass into the milk, and thus to affect the child, should be 

 borne in mind. The vegetable substances used in medicine seem to 



