I confess it would be better if the operator could put back
the child by its shoulders with both hands, but the head takes up so
much room, that he will find much ado to put up one, with which he must
perform this operation, and, with the help of the finger-ends of the
other hand put forward the child's birth as in natural labour.
Some children present their face first, having their hands turned back,
in which posture it is extremely difficult for a child to be born; and
if it continues so long, the face will be swelled and become black and
blue, so that it will at first appear monstrous, which is occasioned as
well by the compression of it in that place, as by the midwife's fingers
in handling it, in order to place it in a better posture. But this
blackness will wear away in three or four days' time, by anointing it
often with oil of sweet almonds. To deliver the birth, the same
operation must be used as in the former, when the child comes first with
the side of the head; only let the midwife or operator work very gently
to avoid as much as possible the bruising the face.
SECT. V.--_How to Deliver a Woman when the Child presents one or both
Hands together with the Head._
Sometimes the infant will present some other part together with its
head; which if it does, it is usually with one or both of its hands; and
this hinders the birth, because the hands take up part of that passage
which is little enough for the head alone; besides that, when this
happens, they generally cause the head to lean on one side; and
therefore this position may be well styled unnatural.
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