In granting licences to midwives the Bishops were supposed to make some enquiry as to their professional attainments. Among the “articles to be enquired of” during Diocesan visits was one “whether any man or woman within your Parish, hath professed or practised Physick or Chyrurgery; by what name or names are they called, and whether are they licensed by the Bishop of the Diocesse, or his Vicar Generall, and upon whom have they practised, and what good or harm have they done?”[[634]] And again, “whether any in your Parish do practise Physicke or chirurgery, or that there be any midwife there, or by what authority any of them do practise, or exercise that profession.”[[635]] But the interest of the Bishops was concerned more with the orthodoxy of the midwife than with her professional skill.
A midwife’s licence was drawn up as follows: beginning:—“Thomas Exton, knight, doctor of laws, commisary general, lawfully constituted of the right worshipful the dean & chapter of St. Paul’s in London; to our beloved in Christ, Anne Voule, the wife of Jacob Voule, of the parish of St Gile’s Cripplegat, sendeth greeting in our Lord God everlasting: Whereas, by due examination of diverse, honest, and discreet women, we have found you apt and able, cunning and experte, to occupy & exercise the office, business & occupation of midwife,” and continuing after many wise and humane rules for her guidance with an exhortation “to be diligent, faithful and ready to help every woman travelling of child, as well the poor as the rich, and you shall not forsake the poor woman and leave her to go to the rich; you shall in no wise exercise any manner of witchcraft, charms, sorcery, invocation, or other prayers, than such as may stand with God’s laws, and the king’s,” concluding thus:—“Item, you shall not be privy to or consent that any priest or other party shall in your absence, or your company, or of your knowledge or sufferance, baptize any child by any mass, Latin service, or prayers than such as are appointed by the laws of the Church of England; neither shall you consent that any child borne by any woman, who shall be delivered by you, shall be carried away without being baptized in the parish by the ordinary minister where the said child is born.”[[636]]
The Bishops’ interest in midwives may have been caused partly by a praiseworthy desire to secure an adequate supply for the assistance of women in each parish. But from the Church’s point of view, the midwife’s chief importance was not due to the fact that the life of mother and child might depend on her skill, but to her capacity for performing the rites of baptism. The reasons for granting her this authority are explained as follows:—“in hard Labours the Head of the Infant was sometimes baptized before the whole delivery. This Office of Baptizing in such Cases of Necessity was commonly performed by the Midwife; and ’tis very probable, this gave first Occasion to Midwives being licensed by the Bishop, because they were to be first examined by the Bishop or his delegated Officer, whether they could repeat the Form of Baptism, which they were in Haste to administer in such extraordinary Occasion. But we thank God our times are reformed in Sense, and in Religion.”[[637]] Though the midwife was only expected to baptize in urgent cases she might strain her privilege, and baptize even a healthy infant into the Roman Church. Her power in this respect was regarded with suspicion and jealousy by English Protestants, not only because she might inadvertently admit the infant to the wrong fold, but because it resembled the conferring of office in the Church upon women; however, as no man was usually present at the birth of a child, and it was fully believed that delay might involve the perpetual damnation of the dying infant’s soul, no alternative remained. Peter Heylyn, in writing of Baptism, comments on the difficulty, saying that “the first Reformers did not only allow the administration of this Sacrament [Baptism] in private houses, but permitted it to private persons, even to women also.” He continues that when King James, in the Conference at Hampton Court, seemed offended because of this liberty to women and laicks, Dr. Whitgift, Archbishop of Canterbury, denied that the words gave this liberty, and Dr. Babington alledged “that the words were purposely made ambiguous as otherwise the Book might not have passed Parliament.” To whom it was replied by the Bishop of London that there was no intent to deceive any, but the words did indeed “intend a permission of private persons to Baptize in case of necessity.”[[638]]
The fear of secret baptisms into the Catholic Church is shown in a letter which states that “the wief of Frances Lovell esqʳ of West Derhᵐ is noted for a recusant. And the said Frances had a childe about three yeares past christianed by a midwief sent thither by the La. Lovell, and the midwief’s name cannot be learned.”[[639]]
It was this danger which led to the prosecution of women who practised without licences. The Churchwardens at Lee presented “the Widow Goney and the wife of Thomas Gronge being midwives & not sworne.” In Hadingham they report “We have two poore women exercising the office of midwives, one Avice Rax and the wife of one John Sallerie,”[[640]] and elsewhere “Dorothye Holding wief of Jo. Holding & Dorothye Parkins wief of Wᵐ Parkins” were presented “for exercising the office of midwives without License.”[[641]]
The fees charged by midwives varied from £300 in the case of the French Midwife who attended the Queen, to the sum of 1s. 6d. paid by the Parish of Aspenden to the midwife who delivered a woman “received by virtue of a warrant from the justices.”[[642]] In most cases the amount paid by the parents was supplemented by gifts from the friends and relations who attended the christening.[[643]] Thus the baby’s death meant a considerable pecuniary loss to the midwife. An example of her payment in such a case is given in Nicholas Assheton’s diary; he enters on Feb. 16, 1617. “My wife in labour of childbirth. Her delivery was with such violence as the child dyed within half an hour, and, but for God’s wonderful mercie, more than human reason could expect, shee had dyed, ... divers mett and went with us to Downham; and ther the child was buried ... my mother wᵗʰ me laid the child in the grave.... Feb. 24, the midwyfe went from my wyffe to Cooz Braddyll’s wyffe. She had given by my wyffe xxs and by me vs.”[[644]]
The Churchwardens at Cowden entered in their account book 1627 “Item, paide for a poore woman’s lying in 3. 0.” 1638. “to John Weller’s wife for her attendance on the widow Smithe when she lay in 2. 0.”[[645]]
The account book of Sir John Foulis of Ravelstone gives many details of the expenses incurred at confinements in Scotland. His wife appears to have been attended by a doctor, as well as a midwife, and the latter’s fee was the higher of the two. The payments are in Scots money.[[646]] “Mar. 26 1680, to the doctor Steinsone for waiting on my wife in her labour 2 guines at 33 P. sterl. p.piece, 27. 16. 0, to Elspie dicksone, midwife, 40. 12. 0, to her woman 2. 18. 0.” On November 26, 1692 there is another payment “to my wife to give doctor Sibbald for his attendance on her in childbed and since to this day 5 guineas 66. 0. 0.” Jan. 31, 1704 “to my son Wᵐ to give the midwife when his wife was brought to bed of her sone Joⁿ 3 guineas 42. 12. 0. to my douchter Crichtoune to give the midwife for me halfe a guinie 7. 2. 0.”
The size of the gratuities given to the midwife by the friends and acquaintances who gathered at a society christening in London may be judged from Pepys, who enters in his diary when he was Godfather with Sir W. Pen to Mrs. Browne’s child “I did give the midwife 10s.”[[647]] His gratuities to people of lower rank were smaller, and of course the gifts made by the “common people” and those of the gentry in the provinces were much more modest.
In the latter part of the century there are indications of a growing tendency among the upper classes to replace the midwife by the doctor. The doctors encouraged the tendency. Their treatises on midwifery, of which several were published during this time, deprecate any attempt on the midwife’s part to cope with difficult cases. Dr. Hugh Chamberlain points out “nor can it be so great a discredit to a Midwife ... to have a Woman or Child saved by a Man’s assistance, as to suffer either to die under her own hand.”[[648]] In making this translation of Maurice’s work on Midwifery, Chamberlain omitted the anatomical drawings, “there being already severall in English; as also here and there a passage that might offend a chast English eye; and being not absolutely necessary to the purpose; the rest I have, as carefully as I could, rendered into English for the benefit of our midwives.”[[649]] This line of thought is carried yet further by McMath, who says in the preface to “The Expert Mid-wife” that he has “of purpose omitted a Description of the parts in a woman destined to Generation, not being absolutely necessary to this purpose, and lest it might seem execrable to the more chast and shamfaced through Baudiness and Impurity of words; and have also endeavoured to keep all Modesty, and a due Reverence to Nature: nor am I of the mind with some, as to think there is no Debauchery in the thing, except it may be in the abuse.”[[650]]