than female, because they would have the males
well provided for the encounters of Venus; and the reason they give, why
they cut that of the female shorter is, because they believe it makes
them more acceptable to their husbands. Mizaldus was not altogether of
the opinion of these midwives, and he, therefore, ordered the navel
string to be cut long both in male and female children; for which he
gives the following reason, that the instrument of generation follows
the proportion of it; and therefore, if it be cut too short in a female,
it will be a hindrance to her having children. I will not go about to
contradict the opinions of Mizaldus; these, experience has made
good:--That one is, that if the navel-string of a child, after it be
cut, be suffered to touch the ground, the child will never hold its
water, either sleeping or waking, but will be subjected to an
involuntary making of water all its lifetime. The other is, that a piece
of a child's navel-string carried about one, so that it touch his skin,
defends him that wears it from the falling sickness and convulsions.

(3) As to the manner it must be cut, let the midwife take a brown
thread, four or five times double, of an ell long, or thereabouts, tied
with a single knot at each of the ends, to prevent their entangling; and
with this thread so accommodated (which the woman must have in readiness
before the woman's labour, as also a good pair of scissors, that no time
may be lost) let her tie the string within an inch of the belly with a
double knot, and turning about the end of the thread, let her tie two
more on the other side of the string, reiterating it again, if it be
necessary; then let her cut off the navel-string another inch below the
ligatures, towards the after-birth, so that there only remains but two
inches of the string, in the midst of which will be the knot we speak
of, which must be so close knit, as not to suffer a drop of blood to
squeeze out of the vessels, but care must be taken, not to knit it so
strait, as to out it in two, and therefore the thread must be pretty
thick and pretty strait cut, it being better too strait than too loose;
for some children have miserably lost their lives, with all their blood,
before it was discovered, because the navel-string was not well tied,
therefore great care must be taken that no blood squeeze through; for if
there do, a new knot must be made with the rest of the string. You need
not fear to bind the navel