426 SURGICAL DISEASES. 
“ Sent. 4th, 1820.—A very diminutive terrier, weighing not 5 lbs., was sent 
to my hospital in order to lie in. She was already restless and panting. About 
eight o’clock at night the labour pains commenced ;, but until eleven scarcely 
any progress was made. The os uteri would not admit my finger, although I 
frequently attempted it. 
“ At half-past eleven the membranes began to protrude; at one the head 
had descended into the pelvis and the puppy was dead. In a previous labour 
she had been unable to produce her young, although the ergot of rye had been 
freely used, I was obliged to use considerable force, and she fought terribly 
with me throughout the whole process.. At half-past one, and after applying 
considerable force, I brought-away a large foetus, compared with her own size. 
On passing my fiuger as high as possible I felt another fetus living, but the 
night passed and the whole of the following day, and she ate and drank, and 
did not appear to be much injured. 
“Several times in the day I gave her some strong soup and the ergot. Some 
slight pains now returned, and by pressing on the belly the nose of the foetus 
was brought to the superior edge of the pelvis. The pains again ceased, the 
pudenda began to swell from frequent examination, the bitch began to stagger, 
and made frequent attempts to void her urine, with extreme difficulty in 
accomplishing it. I now resorted to the crotchet; and after many unsuccessful 
attempts, in which the superior part of the vagina must have been considerably 
bruised, I fixed it sufficiently firm to draw the head into the cavity of the 
pelvis. Here for a while the shoulder resisted every attempt which I could 
inake without the danger of detruncating the foetus. At length, by working 
at the side of the head until my nails were soft and my fingers sore, 1 extracted 
one fore-leg. The other was soon brought down; another large puppy was 
produced, but destroyed by the means necessary for its production. This: was 
the fruit of two hours’ hard work. ; 
“She was completely exhausted, and scarcely able to stand. When placed 
on the ground she staggered and fell at almost every step. Her efforts to void 
her urine were frequent and ineffectual. 
“ At four o’clock I again examined her ; the external pudenda were sore and 
swelled, and beginning to assume a black hue. It was with considerable 
difficulty that I could introduce my finger. A third fcetus irregularly presented 
was detected. I could just feel one of the hind-legs. No time was to be lost. 
I introduced a small pair of forceps by the side of my finger, and succeeded in 
laying hold of the leg without much difficulty, and with two or three weak 
efforts from the mother—I could scarcely call them pains—I brought the leg 
down until it was in the cavity of the pelvis, I solicited it forward with my 
finger, and, by forcibly pressing back the labia pudendt, I could just grasp it 
with the finger and thumb of the right hand. Holding it there, I introduced 
the finger of the right hand, and continued to get down the other leg, and then 
found little difficulty until the head was brought to the superior edge of the 
pelvis. After a long interval, and with considerable force, this was brought 
into the pelvis, and another puppy extracted. This fully occupied two hours. 
“The bitch now appeared almost lifeless, As she was unable to stand, and 
seemed unconscious of everything around her, I concluded that she was lost. 
I gave her one or two drops of warm brandy and water, covered her up closely, 
and put her to bed. 
“To my surprise, on the following morning, she was curled round in her 
basket ; she licked my hands, and ate a bit of bread and butter ; but when put 
on her legs she staggered and fell, The pudendum was dreadfully swollen, and 
literally black, In the afternoon she again took a little food ; she came volun- 
