6 jo 
in a woman who died feven day's after delivery, he 
gave up the uterus entirely to this purfuit, and examined 
the fibres very carefully. He firetched it gradually in 
warm water, then inverted it, to have a full view of its 
inner furface. The remains of the decidua had been melt¬ 
ed down, and paffed oft' with the lochia, fo that the faf- 
ciculated lira turn of-mufcular fibres appeared to be bare, 
and to make the internal furface of the uterus. In a great 
number of places, but particularly where the placenta had 
been fixed, the fafciculi left oval fpaces between them for 
the pallage of arteries and veins, fomewhat like thofe repa¬ 
rations in the tendinous fibres of the abdomen and loins, 
where veffels pafs out to the cellular membrane and inte¬ 
guments. The cervix uteri, where the penniform rugae 
are fituated, had not fuch regular nor fo large fafciculi as 
the reft of the uterus. In the body of the uterus the fibres 
were regularly circular. The fundus was made up of two 
concentric circular plains of fibres, at the very centre of 
which was the orifice of the Fallopian tube. The better 
to conceive this arrangement of,the internal mufcular fi¬ 
bres, we may fuppofe each corner of the fundus uteri, 
where the tube is inferted, to be firetched or drawn out, 
fo as to make two horns, or a bifid fundus, as in the qua¬ 
druped; then, if we tmderftand the inner fibres to be cir¬ 
cular in every part of the uterus, we underhand clearly 
how they will be circular in the human uterus upon its 
body, and likewife circular and concentric at each corner 
of the fundus. 
When this internal ftratum was removed, the fafcicula- 
ted appearance and regular direction of the fibres was lefs 
and lefs apparent, in proportion as it was diiTeifted out¬ 
wards ; which feemed in a great meafure to be owing to 
the infinite number of the branches and communicatiqns 
of the large veins. The outer llratinn in general was 
firmer and lei's vafcular ; that is, had fewer large veTels, 
and therefore was more denfe than the middle and inner 
ftratum. But the lateral parts of the uterus, where both 
the fpermatic and hypogaftric velfels firft come to it, and 
anaftomofe upon its outlide, are excepted in this general 
obfervation. 
Dr. Hunter had afterwards the moft favourable occafion 
that could be delired, for examining the fibres upon the 
infide of the uterus. It was the uterus of a woman who 
died at the end of the ninth month, without being in la¬ 
bour, and without having any flooding or difchafge of wa¬ 
ters. When he had examined and taken out all the con¬ 
tents, he attended particularly to the internal furface of 
the uterus. He found it every where covered with a thin 
ftratum of the decidua, through which the mufcular fibres 
appeared, but with fome degree of obfcurity. 
The mouth of the uterus differs confiderably in the dif¬ 
ferent times of utero-geftation. For the greateft part of 
the nine months, that is, till the cervix uteri be fully dif- 
tended, there is a projection of both the anterior and pof- 
terior lip of the os tine® ; and in fome women this con¬ 
tinues till the very time of labour. But in moft women, 
when they are at their full time, or very near it, the os 
uteri is flat, and makes only a frnall rugous hole, often 
not readily difcoverable by the touch on the lower or pof- 
terior part of the rounded lower edge of the uterus. The 
border of this orifice, and the internal furface of the ute¬ 
rus, for an inch or more all around, is full of little irre¬ 
gular cavities. Thefe contain a tough gluten, which 
ftioots acrofs, and plugs up the inner part of the orifice. 
This gluten is commonly fqueezed out from all the lacu- 
me, by the dilatation of the os uteri in the beginning and 
progrefs of the labour ; and fo, lofing its hold, it falls out. 
In the dead body, when the part is kept fome days in wa¬ 
ter, the gluten Ivvells out more and more from all thefe 
cavities, and then feparates entirely. Then the innume¬ 
rable lacunas which contained it, being empty, are very vi- 
fible. And if the gluten has been thus carefully taken 
away, and be floated in water, its external furface is feen 
beautifully ornamented with all the procelles which were 
drawn out of the innumerable lacuna?. 
[Gravid Utrrus. 
To illuftrate the foregoing obfervations on the Pelvis, 
and Veffels of the Pregnant Womb, we have annexed 
Plate IV. of the Gravid Uterus, which repreCents a 
moft elegant diflection performed by Dr. Hunter, and of 
which the following is a defeription. AA, The thighs 
cut through. BB, The lower angles or flaps of the ab¬ 
dominal mufcles and peritoneum turned afidev CC, A 
front view of the womb, with the external covering dif¬ 
fered oft', to (hew the veins, arteries, &c. DD, The os 
pubis of each fide cut through, above the foramen mag¬ 
num ifehii. EE, The frnall branch of the ifehium which 
joins the os pubis cut through. F, The perinaeum. GG, 
The labia pudendi: the upper part of thofe, the nymph® 
and the extremity of the clitoris are cut oft'. H, A large 
caruncula nvyrtiformis. I, The vagina : at the lower part 
of this paflage, the deeper black part of this furface, in 
this figure, reprefents the cavity of the vagina leading 
backwards as well as upwards ; and where this letter, I, 
Hands, is leen the upper or anterior part of the vagina 
which is united to the bladder and urethra, and which is 
prefled downwards by the vifcera that lie over it. At the 
upper point of this dark oval orifice, the tuberous extre¬ 
mity of the urethra is feen, with the orifice of the meatus 
urinarius. K, The body of the clitoris cut through ; in 
the middle of which two frnall arteries are feen almoft con¬ 
tiguous, viz. one in each corpus cavemofum. LL, The 
crura and erebtores clitoridis. Thefe lie more horizon¬ 
tally than in the natural ftate ; the oll'a pubis, &c. which 
fufpend them, being removed ; and they are firetched or 
lengthened, from the bones of the pelvis being drawn a 
little alunder that the contents might be better feen. 
CONTENTS of the PREGNANT UTERUS . 
The pregnant uterus may be faid to contain the fecun- 
dines, liquor amnii, and the foetus. The fecundines make 
the lining of the uterus, and the immediate covering of 
the child ; they form the chain of connection and commu¬ 
nication between the bodies of the mother and child, and 
carry on that wonderful influence upon which the life and 
health of the child depend. There is an obvious divillon 
of them, into the navel-ftring, the placenta, and the mem- 
brakes. A very lingular peculiarity in the fecundines is, 
that there is not any appearance of fat in them, let the 
mother or child be ever lo adipofe, at any period of utero- 
geftation, neither in the found or natural, nor in the mor¬ 
bid, ftate of parts. What, upon a carelefs examination, 
appears to be fat upon the inner furface of the placenta in 
many cafes, is an accumulation of a fubftance fomewhat 
like a tough jelly, with an opaque and yellowifh call; and 
what often appears like (lender ramifications of fat upon 
the outer furface, in reality is not fat, but offifications in 
that part of the decidua. 
The navel firing and placenta have been in part already 
deferibed. The foetus is connected to the placenta by the 
navel-ftring; which may be defined, a long vafcular rope, 
compofed of two arteries and a vein, covered with coats 
derived from the membranes, and diftended with a quan¬ 
tity of vifcid gelatinous fubftance, to which the bulk of 
the cord is chiefly owing. The cord always arifes from 
the centre of the child’s belly, but its point of infertion 
in the cake is variable. If the placenta adhere to the fun¬ 
dus, or is fixed over the mouth of the uterus, it is then of 
a round form, and the cord arifes from its middle; but, if 
the placenta adhere elfewhere, the cord is inferted nearer 
its edge. Its fhape is feldom quite cylindrical ; and its 
veffels are fometimes twilled or coiled, fometimes formed 
into longitudinal fulci. Its diameter is commonly about 
the thicknefs of an ordinary finger, and its length fufficient 
to admit the birth of the child with fafety, though the 
placenta (liould adhere at the fundus uteri. In length and 
thicknefs, however, it is liable to conliderable variation. 
The extremity next the foetus is generally ftrongeft; and 
fomewhat weaker and more (lender next the placenta, ac¬ 
cording to its place of infertion ; which, though commonly 
not far from the centre, is fometimes very near the edge. 
3 This 
ANATOMY. 
