Sect. III. How to bring away the After-burden.
A woman cannot be said to be fairly delivered, though the child be born, till the after-burden be also taken from her; herein differing from most animals, who, when they have brought forth their young cast forth nothing else but some water, and the membranes which contained them. But women have an after-labour, which sometimes proves more dangerous than the first: and how to bring it safely away, without prejudice to her, shall be my business to show in this section.
As soon as the child is born, before the midwife either ties or cuts the navel-string, lest the womb should close, let her take the string and wind it once or twice about one or two of the fingers of her left hand joined together, the better to hold it, with which she may draw it moderately, and with the right hand she may only take a single hold of it above the left near the privities, drawing likewise with that very gently, resting the while the fore-finger of the string towards the same hand, extended and stretched forth along the entrance of the vagina, always observing, for greater facility, to draw it from the side where the burden cleaves least; for, in so doing, the rest will separate the better: and special care must be taken that it be not drawn forth with too much violence, lest by breaking the string near the burden the midwife be obliged to put the whole hand into the womb to deliver the woman; and she need to be a very skilful person that undertakes it, lest the womb, to which this burden is sometimes very strongly fastened, be drawn away with it, as it has sometimes happened. It is, therefore, best to use such remedies as may assist nature. And here take notice, that what brings away the birth, will also bring away the after-birth. And therefore, for affecting this work, I will lay down the following rules.
1. Use the same means in bringing away the after-birth that you made use of to bring away the birth; for the same care and circumspection are needful now that were then.
2. Considering the labouring woman cannot but be much spent by what she has already undergone in bringing forth the infant; be therefore sure to give her something to comfort her. And in this case good jelly broths, also a little wine and toast in it, and other comforting things, will be very necessary.
3. A little hellebore in powder, to make her sneeze, is in this case very proper.
4. Tansey and the stone ætites, applied as before directed, are also of good use in this case.
5. If you take the herb vervain, and either boil it in wine, or make a syrup with the juice of it, which you may do by adding to it double its weight of sugar, (having clarified the juice before you boil it), a spoonful of that given to the woman is very efficacious to bring away the secundine; and featherfew and mugwort have the same operation, taken as the former.
6. Alexander boiled in wine, and the wine drank, also sweet servile, sweet cicily, angelica roots, and muster-wort, are excellent remedies in this case.
7. Or, if this fail, the smoke of marigolds, received up a woman’s privities by a funnel, has been known to bring away the after-birth, even when the midwife let go her hand.