The medical evidence relative to the duration of human pregnancy, given in the Gardner peerage cause, before the Committee for Privileges of the House of Lords in 1825-6 : with introductory remarks and notes / by Robert Lyall.

  • Great Britain. Parliament. House of Lords. Committee for Privileges
Date:
1826
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The medical evidence relative to the duration of human pregnancy, given in the Gardner peerage cause, before the Committee for Privileges of the House of Lords in 1825-6 : with introductory remarks and notes / by Robert Lyall. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    the time of nine months?—Yes, I was bad for a month, that was one thing; I was bad for a month before I had the child, ill at times. What do you mean by ill ? —1 had to send for my midwife two or three times. You expected the child to be born at different times ?—Yes; it was off and on. Did you make any note at the time of any circumstance connected with your child-bearing?—No farther than I did when the child was born. That is the only note you made on the subject?—Yes, and I always recollect it, before my daughter was brought in, and have mentioned it to several people. Are you able to give any reason for fixing on the time when the child was conceived?—No, I cannot recollect that at all. The witness was directed to withdraw. MARY TUNGATE was then called in; and, having been sworn, was examined by Mr. Tindal as follows : You are a midwife ?—I am a midwife to several lying-in institu- tions, and the Middlesex Hospital. How long have you been in the situation of midwife to those insti- tutions ?—I have been in ]>ractice for myself the last ten years. In the course of that experience, have you had many cases of delivery under you?—A great many; from 150 to 200 in a year. Sometimes I have exceeded that; calculating from the money I have received at the end of the quarter. From the experienee you have had, have there been any cases under your own observation in which you can state that the period of the child-bearing has exeeeded ten months ?—In one case parti- cularly I recollect, which was a woman of the name of Fitzgerald, of No. 6, Falconberg Court, an Irish woman. I made inquiry re- specting her, and she is gone to Ireland. She was a poor woman. She had her letter signed' the 27th day of November, in the year 1823. She came to me, saying, that she expected to be confined in a month. Was she confined in that month ?—No ; she was not confined till the 8th day of February. She sent for me twice during that time. Did she state any ground or reason for such her expectation ?— The first time she sent for me, she said she was extremely ill, which I found her; the second time she sent for me, on inquiry, I told her it would be her labour, and I stayed within full twelve hours, and never left her; but she was never confined for three weeks after that. Did she state any ground or reason for expecting her confine- ment?—I was rather curious ih the matter. She said she was sure she had gone beyond her time. I asked her, how do you know that? and she said— Mr, Attorney General objected to the evidence. ' The witness was directed to withdraw.