cate membrane, usually crescentic in shape, blocks the entrance to the vagina. This is the "hymen."

The hymen is usually ruptured at marriage, but a woman may be a virgin, yet have no hymen; in some cases it persists even after marriage and offers an obstruction at childbirth. A woman who has borne children has a few fleshy projections at the orifice of the vagina, the only remains of the hymen, called the "carunculæ myrtiformes." Between the vulva and the anus is a mass of flesh, the space on the surface measuring one and one-half inches in length. During the birth of the child this becomes greatly distended, and thins like rubber. This is the "perineum." It may be torn during labor to a greater or less extent; sometimes it is completely torn into the bowel. That part of the perineum in the virgin which forms the posterior border of the vulva is called the "fourchette." It is merely a fold of skin and is almost always torn in a first labor. Behind the perineum is the "anus" or orifice of the rectum, the lower part of the bowel.

The Vagina is a canal connecting the external with the internal organs of generation. The uterus is at the top of the vagina. In front of the uterus is the bladder, and behind and to the left the rectum.

A secretion of mucus keeps the vagina moist. There should, however, be no discharge in a perfectly healthy During pregnancy, and as a result of illhealth or local inflammation, the natural secretion may be greatly increased, and the patient is then said to have

woman.

"the whites." In labor the discharge is very greatly increased, so as to aid the birth of the child.

The Uterus is a pear-shaped organ, three inches in length, one and one-half inches in breadth, and about one inch in thickness. It weighs a little over an ounce in its normal condition in a virgin. After child-bearing it

FIG. 3.-Cavity of the Uterus and Fallopian Tubes.

A. Superior border of fundus of womb. B. Cavity of the womb. C. Cavity of the neck of the womb. D. Canal of the Fallopian tube. E. The fimbriated extremity. F. F. The ovaries. G. The cavity of the vagina.

remains larger and heavier than before. That portion of the uterus which communicates with the vagina is called the "neck, or cervix." The chief portion of the organ above this is called the body, and the rounded upper surface the fundus. The opening in the cervix which communicates with the vagina is called the "os uteri." That portion of the cervix in front of the os uteri is the anterior lip, while that part which lies behind is the posterior lip.

The Fallopian Tubes are two canals which pass from each side of the upper portion of the uterus.

They are from three to four and one-half inches long, and will admit the passage of a bristle. Each ends in a trumpet-shaped opening surrounded by a fringe of small projections called " fimbriæ." This is called the fimbriated extremity. When the ovum (or egg) escapes from the ovary it is received by the Fallopian tube and reaches the cavity of the uterus in this way.

The Ovaries are two small flattened bodies about an inch long and half an inch thick. They lie about an inch from the fundus of the uterus on each side, in the folds of the broad ligament. The broad ligaments are folds of peritoneum, a thin glistening membrane which covers the uterus and all the pelvic organs, and by means of which the uterus is suspended in the pelvis. The bladder and rectum being covered with the same tissue, there is an intimate connection between the three, so that if one is deranged the others are likely to be also.

The Breasts are considered as belonging to the external organs of generation. They are two glands situated on the front of the chest, one on each side of the breast-bone. They vary in size and shape in different women, and during pregnancy they enlarge greatly. They secrete milk for the nourishment of the child. The nipple at the apex of the gland is a conical-shaped projection. The milk ducts all come toward it from the different parts of the breast and open on its surface. The areola is a pink or brown circle which surrounds the nipple.

There is an intimate connection between the breasts and the uterus. Pain in the breast may be the result of disease of the uterus. The secretion of milk is called "lactation."

Menstruation is a bloody discharge from the uterus every month. It begins usually about the age of fourteen and recurs every month, except during pregnancy, or while a woman is nursing. There are occasional exceptions to this rule. It ceases at the change of life, or menopause (between forty-five and fifty).

At puberty, that is, when this function first appears, the girl becomes a woman, the breasts enlarge, and the pelvis increases in size. The organs of generation become ready to perform the functions of reproduction. The menstrual flow recurs every twenty-eight days and lasts about four days. The quantity of blood lost at a period is from four to eight ounces. Different women vary much in this respect. The discharge is blood mixed with mucus. Its color is dark red. Any peculiarity in color, or the appearance of any clots in the discharge, will need to be noticed by the nurse and the discharge kept for the doctor's inspection. There is usually a feeling of discomfort at the menstrual period, with headache, pains in the back, breasts, etc. These symptoms are more severe in some women than in others. The periodic congestion of the uterus, which results in the production of the menstrual flow, is probably associated with the ripening of the ova or eggs in the ovaries. It has been found, however, that the ova

may escape from the ovaries and be carried into the uterus through the Fallopian tubes independently of menstruation. The ova that do not become impregnated are simply carried away by the natural discharge.

Conception most usually takes place immediately or very soon after a period. This is not an invariable rule, as women have become pregnant before menstruation has been established, or even after the menopause. They may also become pregnant while nursing. The principal disorders of menstruation are:—

Dysmenorrhea, or painful menstruation;

Menorrhagia, or excessive flow at the period; Amenorrhea, or suppression of the menstrual flow;

and

Metrorrhagia, the occurrence of hemorrhage between the menstrual periods.

The causes of these disorders are very numerous and must be determined by a physician.

A nurse is so often questioned on these points that it is well for her to have information concerning them. Always endeavoring to discourage the inquisitiveness of mere prurient curiosity, she should aim to give wise counsel concerning matters of which her patient may hesitate to speak to her physician. In doing so the nurse should, however, speak to the physician of any matters of importance concerning the condition of the patient which she may thus learn, and ask his counsel as to the advice she should give.