But herein principally lies the care of the operator, that he be not
deceived, when either the hands or feet of both children offer
themselves together to the birth; in this case he ought well to consider
the operation, of whether they be not joined together, or any way
monstrous, and which part belongs to one child and which to the other;
so that they may be fetched one after the other, and not both together,
as may be, if it were not duly considered, taking the right foot of one
and the left of the other, and so drawing them together, as if they
both belonged to one body, because there is a left and a right, by which
means it would be impossible to deliver them. But a skilful operator
will easily prevent this, if, after having found two or three of several
children presenting together in the passage, and taking aside two of the
forwardest, a right and a left, and sliding his arm along the legs and
thighs up to the wrist, if forward, or to the buttocks, if backwards, he
finds they both belong to one body; of which being thus assured, he may
begin to draw forth the nearest, without regarding which is the
strongest or weakest, bigger or less, living or dead, having first put
aside that part of the other child which offers to have the more way,
and so dispatch the first as soon as may be, observing the same rules as
if there were but one, that is keeping the breast and face downwards,
with every circumstance directed in that section where the child comes
with its feet first, and not fetch the burden till the second child is
born.
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