Account of a Child Taken from a Woman

[ Account of a Child Taken from a Woman ] Handley Chipman

Contributors
Contributor Role
Author
Contributor Name
Handley Chipman

Date: Written in 1776 about a 1749-50 event. | 1776/01/01 to 1776/12/31

Publication Format
Manuscript

Type
Medicine

Symptoms
pregnancy
labour
fever
pricking upon navel
swelling and redness
enlargement around the navel
weakness

Ingredients
cooling injections
cordials
anodyne
sack with warm water

Places
Nova Scotia
Suffolk
England

Source: Handley Chipman's Notes, Vol. 2
Institution: Nova Scotia Archives | Source Origin: Chipman Family Papers | Reference: MG Vol. 218 / Microfilm Reel 10,154

Description

An account of a difficult and stalled labour resulting in the dismembering and removal of the fetus, mainly through the abdomen but also vaginally with the help of a sack and warm water injection. No. 121, p. 73.


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Transcription

    Account of a Child taken from a woman
I have read an Account [Allested] by two
ministers namely, Thos: Seymour Curate of Debenham.,
& Samel: Ray Vicar of Kenton, also I Wareyn Clement
Chavallier, with T Debenham, & Robt Sutton Surgeons,
of some, Sarah Last, a Coopers wife, in debenham
in Suffolk in old England, who in April 1749, aged
about 30 years being pregnant of her Eighth child
had all the Sym ^ptoms of a woman in Labour, a
midwife was sent for, concluded she would Soon
be deliverd, but she was not, her pains abated
a fever came on, the 26 of May one of said
Docter.. Visited her. She would not be Examined,
he gave her Cooling Injections, Cordials, &c
She grew then better, & on the 26 of March
following undertook to walk a journ ^ey of ^miles15 .
The 27 April 1750, her Labour pains return’d
as it Seem’d, one of said Doctr. was call’d, he gave
her an Anodyne which composed her to rest, 
On the 14th of May She felt a pricking pain
upon her navel, with a Swelling & redness, in a
Few days appear’d like a Boyl, the Doctr. applied

of July the Docter. by advice of others Docter, Englarg’d
the Orifice round the Navel, into the Cavity of
the abdomen, but the woman being very weak
&c the Doctr: could only take off the Scapula, the 
Next day ^he Extracted one whole Arm, some ribs,
part of the Vertebrae the next day the greatest
part of the remainder &c, Except the cranium, 
which seem’d to adhere to the intestines, the
Doctr: then acted with great caution, Injections
was made with sack and warm water & found
of service, being thrown in in Larg Quantities
several parts of the bones, as the tibia fibula
&c where discharged by the vagi ^na, the wound
finally was cured, the woman perfectly reco:
;vered and is grown fat, saith the above relators
N:B after all was discharged the woman had
Milk in her in her breasts as upon a regular
Delivery &c. (A wonder of wonders.)