prospective mother should become fatigued from any cause; sweeping,
moving heavy furniture, lifting heavy articles, and running a sewing
machine are not to be attempted. But household duties which do not
require strong muscular effort are better assumed than not.

Amusements which may cause jolting, or expose one to the danger of
falling, involve some risk of miscarriage. Short rides in a carriage
or an automobile over smooth roads are free from objection. Railway-
travel and sea-voyages are not advisable in the early months; after
the eighteenth week they may be undertaken with a greater degree of
safety, provided comfortable accommodations are assured, and the
patient has never had a miscarriage.

A few physicians, even at present, attribute the interruption of
pregnancy to strong emotions, including intense joy or sorrow, anger,
fright, or even jealousy. Without denying altogether the possibility
of such an influence, we may be sure that its importance is greatly
exaggerated. It is not unusual to see patients who are able to recall
a mental shock of some kind shortly before the miscarriage occurred;
nevertheless, in such cases diligent search will usually reveal a
physical cause for the accident.

Another popular fallacy relates to the effect of drugs upon
pregnancy. The use of castor oil and other strong purgatives do not
interrupt it. Should the administration of any cathartic be followed
by miscarriage, some fault inherent preexisted in the pregnancy, and
no amount of precaution would have enabled the patient to reach full
term successfully. Quinin in tonic doses may be taken with impunity,
and even larger quantities are being constantly used for the cure of
malaria without doing the pregnancy any harm. Many other drugs are