over 9 calendar months. A ready rule for determining the date on which confinement may be expected is to count three months backward from the first day of the last menstruation and to add seven days to the date obtained. Thus, if the last period began on February 3, three months backward would bring it to November 3, and seven days added would make November 10 the probable date. Since, however, the months are not of equal length, various tables have been constructed for a more accurate and convenient method of computing the date. The one upon the opposite page is a form very commonly in use. This method of reckoning is, of course, only approximate even when the exact date is known on which it is supposed that conception occurred. It is therefore only safe to consider the calculated date of confinement as the middle of a period of two weeks, on any day of which labor may naturally take place. Where it is impossible to reckon from a cessation of menstruation, it is customary to count from the date of quickening. Four and a half months from this date, or five months in the case of a woman pregnant not for the first time, will give the approximate date of confinement, although this is not very accurate. Management of Pregnancy. The prospective mother has, then, forty weeks during which she shall conduct herself in the way that will exert the most powerful influence for good upon the health of the coming little one. Bathing in tepid water may be enjoyed daily, but very hot or very cold baths, sea-bathing, and foot-baths are dangerous. Moderate exercise in the open air is important, while the constant occupancy of close, heated rooms is distinctly harmful. All the pure air possible should be obtained. Walking is beneficial, as is driving TABLE FOR CALCULATING THE DATE OF CONFINEMENT. Jan. I 2 3456 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 2 3456 7 Dec. Mar. I 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 5 Jan. 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 I 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 5 6 Feb. 7 Mar. April. April. I 2 7 June. July. Sept. 3 4 5 6 7 over smooth roads or riding in street cars; but horseback riding, bicycling, dancing, driving over rough roads, lifting, straining of any kind, the use of the sewing-machine, and all other violent or long-continued forms of exercise ought sedulously to be avoided. Particular care must be observed at the times at which the menstrual period would naturally occur if pregnancy did not exist. Sea-voyages are dangerous, on account of the liability to sea-sickness and the straining which accompanies it. There is a very injurious custom among some women that of refusing to go out of the house from the time when the alteration of figure becomes marked. Even were concealment of the figure impossible, health rather than appearance should be the first consideration. Amusement is, of course, necessary. There is no reason why pleasures should be abandoned, provided they are made entirely secondary to health. So, too, the frequenting of the theatre and of similar places of amusement is often harmless, especially if it is found to exert no unduly exciting influence upon the emotions. In many women, however, the emotional nature is unusually susceptible during pregnancy, and crowded places and exciting reading must be avoided. No amusements should be allowed to interfere with the obtaining of the large amount of sleep which is always required at this time. This brings us naturally to the consideration of the management of the mental condition. The unusually impressionable state characteristic of pregnancy renders a woman very prone to become the subject of great despondency. This she can relieve to a certain extent by the recollection that it is only a symptom shared by a great many others, and that there is no reason for the conviction that she will never survive the birth of her child. It is, of course, much easier to give this advice than to follow it. Consequently it is important that she avoid adding to her fears by listening to detailed accounts of the trials of other women under similar conditions, or by reading depressing novels or witnessing distressing sights. The experiencing of frights, the seeing of deformed persons or animals, the hearing of bad news, and so on-maternal impressions, as the doctors call them— are very commonly supposed to exert a powerful influence in producing some deformity or defect in the child; while the looking at beautiful objects, the listening to delightful music, and the reading of elevating books are also claimed to affect favorably the body or mind of the baby. As there is a possibility that such influences exist, every pregnant woman should avoid the one sort and cultivate the other. At the same time, there is certainly far more fable than truth in all this, and the action of such things is so infinitesimal and so uncommon that no woman need conclude that her child will surely be "marked" because she has been frightened or impressed in some way. The chances are hundreds of thousands to one that no such thing will happen. The various instances of maternal impression of which we so often hear are simply imaginary. On the other hand, there does exist the very certain influence of inheritance. If a mother wishes her child to be healthy of body and beautiful of mind, she must previously have cultivated her own mind and body through years of training. The diet during pregnancy should be generous yet easily digestible. There is no reason why the usual diet should be altered at all, if it has been healthful and well assimilated, except that it is sometimes better to have the evening meal light. It is also wiser to eat meat only once a day, in order to throw less work upon the kidneys. There is no truth in the fancy that certain articles of food eaten can exert any special influence upon the development of the child. The dress is very important. The skin should be well protected against change of temperature by wearing woollen clothing both in summer and in winter. All garments must be loose enough not to interfere in the slightest with the progressive enlargement of the abdomen and breasts. No woman with the slightest regard for the health of her child or for her own safety will resort to tight lacing in the endeavor to conceal her state as long as possible. From the very beginning of pregnancy she should abandon the corset altogether or use one especially adapted to prevent pressure, and should avoid circular garters and suspend the clothing from the shoulders as far as possible. There are now various dress-reform systems on the market which answer the purpose very well, and which are certainly to be commended during pregnancy, even though a woman cannot persuade herself to wear them always. High-heeled shoes ought not to be FIG. 1.-Abdominal belt. The abdomen may worn, as they put a strain on the back and the pelvis and may do serious damage. With the exhibition of proper taste and skill the dress can be so fashioned that no woman need have cause to regard herself as unfit to appear in public. grow very large, especially in women who have previously borne children, and may demand some support. A binder will give relief, or, better still, one of the abdominal supporters which are especially made for this purpose (Fig. 1). The care of the breasts must be commenced early, |