B. G. Jefferis and J. L. Nichols

“ THE SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF LABOR.
1. Although the majority of patients, a day or two before the labor comes on, are more bright and cheerful, some few are more anxious, fanciful, fidgety and reckless.
2. A few days, sometimes a few hours, before labor commences, the child "falls" as it is called; that is to say, there is a subsidence—a dropping—of the womb lower down the abdomen. This is the reason why she feels lighter and more comfortable, and more inclined to take exercise, and why she can breathe more freely. ”

“ She has, at this time, an increased moisture of the vagina—the passage leading to the womb—and of the external parts. She has, at length, slight pains, and then she has a "show," as it is called; which is the coming away of a mucous plug which, during pregnancy, had hermetically sealed up the mouth of the womb. The "show" is generally tinged with a little blood. When a "show" takes place, she may rest assured that labor has actually commenced. One of the early symptoms of labor is a frequent desire to relieve the bladder. ”

“ In case of shivering or chills, a cup either of hot lea or of hot gruel will be the best remedy for the shivering; and an extra blanket or two should be thrown over her, and be well tucked around her, in order to thoroughly exclude the air from the body. ”