ried woman, who without the slightest
warning was delivered of a child while standing near a window in her
bedroom. The child fell to the floor and ruptured the cord about one
inch from the umbilicus, but with speedy attention the happiest results
were attained. Twitchell has an example in the case of a young woman of
seventeen, who was suddenly delivered of a child while ironing some
clothes. The cord in this case was also ruptured, but the child
sustained no injury. Taylor quotes the description of a child who died
from an injury to the head caused by dropping from the mother at an
unexpected time, while she was in the erect position; he also speaks of
a parallel case on record.

Unusual Places of Birth.--Besides those mentioned, the other awkward
positions in which a child may be born are so numerous and diversified
that mention of only a few can be made here. Colton tells of a
painless labor in an Irish girl of twenty-three, who felt a desire to
urinate, and while seated on the chamber dropped a child. She never
felt a labor-pain, and twelve days afterward rode 20 miles over a rough
road to go to her baby's funeral. Leonhard describes the case of a
mother of thirty-seven, who had borne six children alive, who was
pregnant for the tenth time, and who had miscalculated her pregnancy.
During pregnancy she had an attack of small-pox and suffered all
through pregnancy with constipation. She had taken a laxative, and when
returning to bed from stool was surprised to find herself attached to
the stool by a band. The child in the vessel began to cry and was
separated from the woman, who returned to bed and suddenly died
one-half hour later. The mother was entirely unconscious of the
delivery. Westphal mentions a delivery in a water-closet.

Brown speaks of a woman of twenty-six who had a call of nature while in
bed, and while sitting up she gave birth to a fine, full-grown child,
which, falling on the floor, ruptured the funis. She took her child,
lay down with it for some time, and feeling easier, hailed a cab, drove
to a hospital with the child in her arms, and wanted to walk upstairs.
She was put to bed and delivered of the placenta, there being but
little hemorrhage from the cord; both she and her child made speedy
recoveries. Thebault reports an instance of delivery in the erect
position, with rupture of the funis at the placenta. There was recently
a rumor, probably a newspaper fabrication, that a woman while at sto