Book IIII*

Births contrary to Nature,
Whence comes fain m Chili - birth .
Gen. 3»
Tenth Month s births .
wifd . r.
thers back, and cue head inclining downwards* it hath its eyes and face toward the Coccyx* that is, the rump bone,that is fad to csficmm, the Dutch call it de flier: this, in the birth, parts together with the os pubis, and is loofned; whence it is that commonly males come with their faces downwards , or with their head turned fomewhat obliquely, that their faces may be den, but Fe¬ males are commonly feituate the contrary way, fo that they come forth with their faces upwards, and look up toward heaven and cry. But thefe things do not alwaies proceed according to natures order, for many births arc contrary to nature; and many children there are, not born with their heads foremod, and their bodies longwayes, and with their hands lying on their hips, but fome come to the door with their feet, crooked and wide ; fome with their necks bowed, and their heads lying obliquely, with their hands dretefted out, as they have that fwim, and with their (boul¬ ders downwards, with great danger tothcmfelves and their mo- thers, and no leffc trouble to the Midwives. But when all things proceed orderly and naturally, the child when the time is accom¬ plished in the Womb, endeavours to come forth, and inclining himfdf,roles downwards. For he can no longer lye hid in thefe hiding places ; than he can End nutriment by theNavtl, and the heat of the heart can fubfift without external refpiration. Where¬ fore being grown great, he is defirous of nutriment, and of light, and he fo delires to take Ayre, that he breaks the Membranes and coverings, wherewith* he was covered, and fenced againft any attrition, and with bitter pangs of his mother he comes forth to the light, and that not onely from the narrow, and ftraight paf- fages ofthe Womb, but becaufe this cnifery, and pain in tra¬ vel, was brought in by God, by reafon of the fall of oAdam2M& Eve, and this punifhment was laid upon her, the man alfo be¬ ing cad into a condition of mifery not inferiour to it. For the moft part in the ninth Moneth the Matrix parts, and the os pubis being loofned * the Woman driving what fhe can , and defiring to thruft forth what is a burden to her, and the child breaking forth by an imbred drength, and by the condud of na¬ ture : which help the Woman lacks when the child is born dead.
For a child that is quick and lively labours no lefle in this work than the woman, and drives to come forth to draw in the out¬ ward Ayre. Yet there are many that when 9 Months are coni pleat* ly ended, are not delivered till the tenth ; fuch births Hippocrates calls births of the tenth month, namely the tenth Lunar Month be¬ ing begun, that is perfeded in 28., dayes to a month, and not fully ended. So the Wifeman faith he was ten months formed in the Womb, and coagulated of the feed of the man and woman, from pleafure that comes by copulation. By like reafon, they that have now pafled the (ixth Month fin which no child born can live, be¬ caufe the parts want drength ) and are entred upon the fe- venth, and aregontwoor three weeks in it, are faid to be born 1‘ in
3°5
Chap. 2 3 . why a fluid u vital!, born at [even months.
in the 7th, month. The lame realon ferves to reckon weeks and months by, which are terminated in a certain number of dayes j for the former week or month being paft, and the following begun , from this is the reafon of the time deduced, and the courfe that the woman went with Child is aferibed to that, 8c from that month the great bellyed woman is in,or theChild is born, is theAccount made, as it ufeth to fall our in 7 or 9 turns of the Moon. The like reafon ferves in reckoning of years,either from Chrifts incarnation or paffi- on, fo that the infcription is dated from the following yeare, as for the beginning of the firft montb,the precedent month being negled- ed aqd defaced.lt is not befides reafon that a Child ftiould be vitall at feven months, but there is a certaine caufe for it. For the Child fevea month. by an imbred force and order of Nature, doth then turn it felfe about, and changeth its place for larger room ; And as a Captain a (mile from a in Warr, marcheth to fome other place , when the place he is in, is Cattai7{ «* too narrow or difficult, or he want neceflaries for food, yet fo that in pitching his Tents and quarters, the Souldiery allwaies keeps watch, and is ever ready for all events of warr , and ludden force that might fall on , and is prepared againft the affaults of the ene¬ my ; fo, if in that moment of time , whereby in thefeventh month that motion of nature ufeth to be ftirred , the time of Child-birth chance to happen, and the Infant come forth with joynt forces of the Mother affifting him , without doubt it will be vitall. But the like hapeneth to this Infant, as it doth to thofe that watch in the ^ fade from night, and turn themfelves to the other fide , and feek to lyc on the fleepZtbe^ fofter part of the bed that is not fo much preffed down .* and if any thing unlooked for befall them,or any fudden occafion hinder them that they cannot turn themfelves againc in their beds, they prefent- Iy leave their beds, and (baking off deep , though the night be not quite fpent, they haften to do what they are urged unto : But if any accident unlookt for befalls them that are faft afleep,they quake and tremble,and if they goe about any thing, it is confufedly and with¬ out all order, that the bufinefie can have no good or fuccesfull end : as it ufeth to' fallout in the eighth month: wherein ihe Infant being come to reft, begins to be refrefhed again , and to enjoy its lodging in the womb, and nutriment from the Mother.
Some are born in the 7th, month, whofe bodies are loofe and not not firme, and that h&ve but weak naturall heat, but being helped a [mile from by the care and induftry ofNurfes, they will laft long , and live many yeares. For it happens to them as it doth to apples and other fruits of Trees,that fall or are pulled off too foon ,which fruiterers and haglers hide in draw and bury in chafe , that they may grow ripe in time, and fit to be eate. For fuch Infants by the labour and care of their Mothers, or Nurfes , gain ftrength, and by fofter- inggrow ftrong: and by this help they prolong their dayes for ma¬ ny yeares, which can be obtain’d by no means, in a Child born the eighth month, for fuch 3 one feldome lives, becaufe that motion of Nature is quiet, andaileep*, which agitation is wont to proceed from a certain caufe, both from the Mother and the Child.Where-.
T t fore
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'•■V » ' . # •
f • ' " 1
1; - ' • -- /
I* H
2 o 6 Hon? many months a woman goes with Child. Book IIII
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e — - ^ ^ 1 ..... .-— - - ~ - i
fore being tyred by that ftrugling in the 7 th, month , it begins to regain ftrength,and 10 be foftered untill the fet time, it ought to rc- A child in the main in the Mothers Womb. Hence if any diftemper or pcrtur- eight mnthfrl- bation arife,and the Child be driven forth of its place and habita- dome lives. bon ; it is deadly, by reafon of an externall caufe, and that is a- gainft natures order , which is alfo exafperated by Saturn , a cruel ^ry children, and hurtfull Planet to Children , that by the coldnefte of it deje&s their ftrength, wherefore it is fafe to ftay in the womb till the 9 th, month, that they may recoiled their forces and juft firmnefle. For when the ninth month begins to come , the Child finks down for want of nutriment, and falls low to the neck of the Matrix, feeking to come forth to the light * and is defirous to be releafed, Some¬ times in the very heat of birth , and flattening, it flips through the flippery parts, the Womb giving way , without the help of any Midwife, fuddenly, as a ripe apple falls with the leatt touch of it. which is moft common to them , whofe Matrix is wide , and the Infant hath ail helps together, being fufficicmly enabled tocome forth.For fuch as have narrow mouth’d wombs , bring forth with dif ficulty and painful lab6ur,& with all the force they have.Frofn j myall from t^s pre{fure and hard travel, our Saviour draws a moft fit compa- h£ohniC' ' rifon, and comforts and encourageth mightily his followers, that they fhould not faint nor be difeouraged, by reafon of calamities' and perfections which they fuffer for the Gofpell, flnee by the ex¬ ample of a woman in Labour , all their forrow fhall be turned to fudden joy, and folid confolation. Wherefore he fhews that danger is at hand, anxiety, fadnefle, and trembling : but all thefe things by joy unexpected arifing , and by the fweet confolation of the blefied comforter fhall be fuddenly difeufled. But God doth every where threaten the wicked , and by an example taken from Childbearing, that a fudden and unlooked-for deftruCtion (Ball fall upon them. For fo in Jfaiah he frights them. Howie bee aufe the day of the Lord is at hand , as deflation, the Hearts of men (hal melt , "and their hands faint , terrours and torments and griefs fhall poffej] e their minds , and they fhall be troubled and cry out as women with Child. So Jeremias describing the Ifraelites in the height of their forrows and extreame calamities; / heare, faith he , thenoyfeas of a woman in tra¬ vel, the freights and pangs of one that beares her firfl Child , which is wont to be the moft bitter , becaule they areunaccuftomed to it , and they never felt the like, nor were they ever in Travel l before. So God is formidable to Kings , and terrible when they lift up their heads againft him, as it is faid in the fame Prophet , concern¬ ing joachin King of Judah, whom he caft into thofc (freights , that he endured pain and forrow , as a Woman in Tra veil. Alfo he caft fuch fear on the hearts of the Souldiers of Moab, ( though this kind of men be fierce and fearleffe ) as falls on the mind of a wo¬ man in labour, that melts and diflolves , unlefle fhc be folaced by cbaf.i*. thofc that ftand by her 5 and the Matrons neere her comfort her.
There is a very elegant and contblatory f pccch in Jfaiah , that is let
forth by an excellent comparifon* For the Prophet compare 5
thofc
j
ebaf. 1 i.
1
ibif. 4*
Chap. *s. idlOY. 48.
/
Chap. 23.
tAffliftion wakes men Godly .
3 °7
*hofe, who being affli&ed and ebaftiied repent,and die unto God by repentance, to a woman in travel, and is in danger of her life in her pangs, crying for help to thofe that (land by her , and turning her eyes every way, with groans and fighs and lamentations intreats for comfort. For fo he proceeds in the order of his fpeech , that I may touch upon fome things by the way. In the way of thy judgments ,
O Lord , have wt waited for thee : the defire of our Soul is to thy namet and
to the remembrance of thee-, with my Soul have I de fired thee in the night ,
yea with my Spirit within me^ I will f eek thee early . Hereby he teftifies
that he leanesupon God when any calamity comes, and when the inthatflact'
rod is nigh, his hope depends faft upon him, and his eyes are intent
toward him; laftly, that the memory of God is printed upon his
foul, and that he waited on his commandments with all his will
and mind, and all times did meditate on his faving Truth,not one-
ly at noon day, but alfo at midnight full of tempefts and tomes ,
and early in the morning ; and he prefently after fets down , what
it is that makes forgetfuli men fo hot in their minds , and extorts .
from them fuch firrae confidence. O Lord, faith he , the majefty Aj fUHonmiffi
and greatnefle of thy Name came into my mind in trouble and ntnQod^
affli&ion, when there was no hopes left, and I remembred thee.
Troubles and adverfities do lead us to repentance by the Secret in¬ fluence of thy Spirit 5 As {he that is with Child, when her time comes to be delivered, fhe cryes out and calls for help ; fo we have been, in thy fight O Lord. So St. Paul exhorts fluggifti and lazy *Thif.4: people to beinduftrious and watchfuil , and by the example of a ' woman in travell, to be ready and prepared for the coming of God;
For he comes as a Thiefe that oppreffeth men in the night , and as the fudden pangs that fall upon a woman; Studious Reader j I f thought good to add thus much, becaufe it is not altogether from ^Qe' 3,1 5 mypurpofe: from whence every man may take fome documents of life, and may confider, what clear and apt comparifons the holy Prophets ufed in their Sermons, taken from the moft known things in Nature; which they obferved the rather, becaufe they penetrate more effe&ually into the hearts of their Auditors , whereby they taking up a purpofe of a better life, may with a ready minde return to ferve God , and to bring forth fruits worthy of amendment of life,.
1 .1 'I'!
Tt i
CHAP,
3°8
At what age Maids defire to be marryed, Book IIIL
T
Mayds mu ft be married be- & times.
CHAP. XXIV.
At what age Maids defire to he married , and are fit to conceive ; Aga'tne , when women in ye ares grow barren and their courfes ceafing , they ceafe to be longer fruitful}. In which narration^ the condition of man is examined alfo .
Hat parents may well take care for their Daughters chaftity , they ought exactly to obferve , when it is fit and feafonable for Maidsjthat they have care of, or for their daughters to marry, and fo to difpofe and to provide husbands for them. For that Sex is frail , and fubjed to mine , Suitors woing them on every fide to undoe them. But the propen- fion and inclination of Maids to marriage, may bedifeovered by many arguments. For when their body grows hairy about the fecrets, and their terms flow at the time appointed, as it ufethtO • be in the 14 or 1 5 year of their age, their feed increafeth, infome fooner, in fome later, according to their habits and conftitutions , and the blood which is no longer taken to augment their bodies, dim of adorn- abounding, makes their minds fatten upon venereous imaginations ingjbmf elves, wherefore at that age they kemb, and adorn themfelves , and they do not oncly continually allmoft behold their eyes and cheeks in a Looking-glafle, but they defire to be viewed by young men, and to be made much of by Suitors,andfpoken kindly to, caftingTheir eyes obliquely for that purpofe, and looking fweetly on their Lo¬ vers, Whence arifeth a tickling delight, and itching in theirln- ward parts, and they begin to burn in love, and are eauly allured to copulation 3 and hence it is, that oft times fetting all fhame afide, and difobeying their Parents, who are frequently flow ro give them portions, or are unwilling to part with them, they willingly offer themfelves to their Suitors, and much infringe their own chaftity , to the fhame 'and difgrace of all their family and kindred. Whence Mr tufds! ** brbojche waere. Though for what belongs to Chaftity in the Low- Countrys, the condition ofMayds is more commendable, than the Ap reverb a- condition of Widdows. For fuch a Taunting fpcech is ufed gainfimddows, againft Widdows; Mayds are ftedfaft and calm in their loves , but Widdows are troublefome,flippery, inconftant, unquiet, and never of one fetled mind. De Maechden hebben eenen zinide weduwen hebben een duvel in, I fuppofe,becaufe they have tafted the delight of love,which fticking in their minds, makes them more greedy af- a woman ter them, than Mayds are, who never tafted tbofe delights , and are alltogethet ignorant of the marriage bed. But Mayds in the 14th. year oftheir age, or fomeWhat later, fhew fome fignes of ma¬ turity, their courfes then running, fo that they are fit to conceive , Which force continues with them till 44, yeares of their age ; and fome that are lufty and lively will be fruitfull till 5 5, as I have ob- wurffsfof1*** fetvcdamongft our Country women 3 I know that the flowing of the terms is extended farther in fome women of good tempers , but that is rare, nor doth allwaies that excrementitious humour flow
from
becomes firfi fruitfull .
I
Chap. 24. At what age Maicl$ defire to bemarryed .
309
from a naturall caufe. Wherefore their opinion muft be examin¬ ed 5 who fay that as there is no certain time of womens termcs to endjio neither of their concepuon,nor cannot any fet bounds be pre¬ fixed for thefe things. For though fome have their courfes at 60 yeares old, yet that proceeds not from a naturall caufe, but from fome affed that is contrary to Nature , which alfo hinders all con¬ ception. For anger, indignation, wrath, and fudden fear may caufe the veflels and paflages to open and cleave afunder, fobya vio¬ lent concourfe of humours fuch a thing may run our, many by falls and accidents , having the fibres of the veins pulled afunder.
But hnee women for the mod part about they eare 45, or at the moll 50, have their termes ftopt, and no hopes are to be had of Children by lying with them , they do contrary to the law of Na- oiiittets ture that marry young men , or men that for greedinefleof mony woe and marry fuch old women. For the labour is loll on both 7 fides , juft as if a man (hould caft good feed into dry hungry lean ground k It is more tolerable for a full bodied lively old man, that he (hould marry a very young Mayd in her green and tender years*
For from that focicty they may hope for fome benefit for pofterity; becaufe a man is never thought to be foold, and barren, andexhau- fted, but that he may get a t^hild. But what is the Nature of man and how long the force lafts in him to get Children muft be fhew- cd, by the way. For fince young men, as Hippocrates faith, are full ofimbred hear, about the age of 1 6. or fomewhat more, they have much vitallftrength, and their fecrets begin to be hairy , and their chins begin to fhoot forth , with fine decent down , which force manisfritiifitU and heat of procreating Children increafeth daily more and more untill 45 yeares, or till 50, and ends at 65. For then, for the moft part, the manhood begins to flag, and the feed becomes unfruitfull , the naturall fpirits being extinguifhed , and the humours drying up , out of which by the benefit of heat , the fjed is wont to be made. There are indeed fome ftrong Jufty old men, who have fpent their younger dayes continently and moderately, who are fruitfuli untill 70 yeares, and fubfift very matilyin performing nuptiall duties^ examples whereof there are fufficient in Brabant , and amongft the Goths and Swedes: lo I heard a -
trufty Pilate relate, chat when he traficked at Stockholm*? Guf- * Ww * ttfuui the Father of the moft invincible Ericw> who now reigns,ru]ed the Land, he was called by the King to' be at the marriage of a man that was a hundred years old, who married aBride of 30 years old, and he profcfled fincerely that the old man had many Children by her. For he was a man , as there are many in that Country, who vvas very green and frefh In his old age, that one would hardly TheifaianJ think him to be 50 yeares old. Alfo amongft the Tufigri and fam- livee pania in Brabant , where the Ayre is wonderlull calme, and the Na¬ tion is very temperate and frugal!, it is no new thing, but allmoft common, that men of 80 yeares marry young Mayds, and have Children by them , wherefore Age doth nothing hinder a mail for getting of Children, unleffe he be wholly exhaufted by incon¬ tinence in his youngeft dayes and his genitall parts be withered
1
who chiefly take difeafes from others .