composure are secured only when one lies flat on the back, loosely
attired in sleeping garments. I have known several persons with a
tendency toward miscarriage who overcame it in this way. Recently one
of them who had been delivered prematurely on two former occasions,
and who was anxious for a successful issue to her third pregnancy,
was willing to remain in bed practically the whole period of
gestation. She had her reward; a well-developed infant was born at
full term, and has continued to thrive.

Prolonged rest in bed, some will say, is debilitating. While that may
be true to a degree, untoward effects can always be avoided by
systematic massage of the extremities. The abdomen should not be
subjected to such manipulations, for they will occasionally provoke
painful contractions of the uterus and defeat the purpose of staying
in bed.

Patients who are not disposed to undergo a long period of enforced
rest, no matter what profit may be promised, should at least consent
to keep in bed during that period of pregnancy at which a previous
miscarriage took place. We know that the event is particularly apt to
recur at such a time. Specifically, it is important to remain in bed
one week before and one week after the date in question.

When pregnancies follow one another in rapid succession, the
liability to miscarriage is notably increased. A natural interval
between births has been provided, an interval which depends upon the
mother nursing her child. Ideally, menstruation, and with it the
ripening of the ova (egg-cells), does not occur while the breasts are
active; but when the infant does not suckle, the ovaries regularly
resume their function in a very short time. Since the circumstances