HISTORY OF THE SPECIMEN 
11 
series of sections 7 microns thick, vertically to the surface of the decidua 
and in the supposed long axis of the uterus. 
The probability of finding a valuable ovum being somewhat remote, 
thirteen sections, at intervals, were cut out of the ribbon, mounted and 
stained. In three of these Dr. Teacher recognised what seemed to be an 
ovum of about 1 mm. in diameter, and the remainder of the ribbon con¬ 
taining about 400 sections was then mounted and stained with haemalum 
and eosin. At a later stage the first series was restained by Weigert’s 
fibrin stain in order to obtain a more accurate differentiation of the 
plasmodium from the decidua. 
The following details relative to the history of the case have been 
supplied by the husband of the lady, himself a man of science and there¬ 
fore alive to the importance of exact data. They can be implicitly relied 
upon. 
The patient and her husband are both healthy. There has never 
been any uterine disorder. Menstruation has always been regular, the 
intervening period averaging twenty-six days with an occasional variation 
up to two days in either direction, the irregularity being however usually 
compensated; if one interval were short the succeeding interval was usually 
longer by a corresponding amount, and vice versa. The data may be 
summarised as follows : 
September 2nd, 1907. Menstruation began. 
September 27th, 1907. Menstruation began. 
October 2nd to 3rd or 3rd to 4th. Coitus. 
October 19th to 20th. Coitus. 
October 25th. Menstruation was expected but did not appear. 
In the succeeding days the patient felt particularly well; 
she had no symptoms suggestive of pregnancy except the 
absence of menstruation. 
November 3rd to 4th. Coitus. 
On the morning of the 4th of November a discharge appeared 
like the 'commencement of menstruation. 
