Midwifery Manuscript Lecture Notes.
A Syllabus of the Lectures on Midwifery, Delivered at Guy's Hospital, and at Dr. Haighton's Theatre in St Saviour’s Church Yard Southwark. Dr [John] Haighton (1755-1823)
London 1803
]2], 84, [2] pages, interleaved with 194 pages of manuscript notes by Thomas Howitt (?)
8vo, contemporary calf-backed boards. Bookplate of Thomas Howitt
Midwifery is that branch of medicine which treats of pregnancy and its consequences it comprehends conception, utero gestation, delivery, after treatment or recovery
Glimpse of the manuscript notes:
Interesting the use of the term Monsters as related to birth defects (brief section)
...monsters become such in the evolution of the fetus long before it could ever have been formed into a perfect figure a position which is clearly proved by the examination... The most common sort of monsters are those without any summit to the cranium or brain and nothing but the basis and sometimes a small quantity of brain left... a case of this kind was once mistaken by a practitioner who thought the skull had been opened and the brain extracted by an instrument.... in defective Evolution there will sometimes be by one foot or one leg again there may be no legs there may be two sets of extremities to one head...Dr. H has one case...
When a woman has great pain in the region of the pubis you may infere there is disease in the parts, the application of three or four leeches every day might afford relief
There have been cases where a female has been impregnated at two different times an American lady had a black child and a white one at birth
Premature birth when a discharge or miscarriage is expected the woman should lie in bed and less she has sufficient collection to lay upon a sofa the room should be kept cool and dark and it would be well if the practice of giving red wine here were all together exploded and instead they are of toast and water or barley water with lemon juice.... blood letting may be of service infusion of roses is of eminent service....
When a woman marries at 30 or 35 years of age there will be great rigidity of the passages
There are cases in which the head is too large after trying the large forceps where it seems no alternative but opening the head
Smallpox is dangerous to women in the later periods of pregnancy
Cesarean sections... The true cesarean operation even when performed on the dead subject has very rarely saved the life of the child sometimes when a woman has died in labor the hand may be passed up and the soft parts ..,to allow the child being easily brought away....Dr Haighton would rather....
...It is more consistent with present practice to extract the child piece meal which has been done where the pelvis was only 1 1/2 or 1 5/8 inch wide...
Laceration of the perineum better prevented than cured and if considerable you can do very little to cure it..Sometimes it opens into the rectum when the patient having no control over the feces is unfitted for society
When a child has Lues (syphilis) Sometimes you may meet with a woman who will be candid enough to tell you they have been foul, but never prep for an explanation....
Dr. Haighton would advise you never to recommend a wet nurse but leave the patients to make their own inquiries...
Believed to be Thomas Howitt (1785-1856) his bookplate is pasted down as shown. practiced medicine in Lancaster. His father was Samuel Howitt, the sporting artist. Thomas Howitt, a son of Thomas Howitt Sr. and followed his father in medicine at Lancaster. In 1831 became a Licentiate of the Society of Apothecaries. He was dresser to Sir Charles Bell at Middlesex Hospital. It may or may not be Howitt’s notes.
Guy’s Hospital was established in 1721 by Thomas Guy
Condition and notes
Moderate external wear to attached boards, scuffs, soiling, shelf- wear, abrasion of material. Front hinge is very tender
Rubbed
Corners bumped and rubbed
Manuscript notes legible. Page 60 has date 1871 “ the notes lost” in a different hand.(?) but later writing resembles earlier hand.
Half Title is present
Scattered foxing, some pages exhibit heavy foxing
Howitt's armorial bookplate on front pastedown with motto “Aquila Non Capit Muscas” (ancient Roman proverb translated an eagle does not catch flies; in other words a noble or important person does not deal with insignificant matters)
Soiling to edges
Age toned paper
Endpages foxed
Binding sound
There are handwritten numbers in the text to correspond with notes
Measures about 5” by 8”
Some page corners worn or dog eared
Rare. World catalog locates 4 copies of this edition held at institutions
Additional photos on request.
Signature required on delivery