=Diet in Normal Cases.=—There is no restriction on the kind of food the patient may take, so long as she can digest it cleanly and without gas. Acids or alkalies, cold or hot, rich or otherwise, fruits, meats or vegetables, all go to the formation of good milk if properly digested. The old idea that acids should not be eaten is fallacious. There is more acid in the stomach normally, than could be added in a meal made up entirely of citrus fruits. At the same time, the heavy foods should be avoided on account of the serious demand on the liver and kidneys in the absence of exercise. On the other hand, if the breasts are engorged, the fluids must be reduced to a minimum, and a relatively dry diet enforced. The patient loses about one-ninth of her previous body weight in the course of labor and the puerperium. =The breasts= are made ready for lactation twelve hours after delivery by cleansing with sterile green soap and warm water and bathing in 50 per cent alcohol. Next, the nipple is attended to, and the infant is put to the breast. The nipple is prepared by cleansing it with an applicator soaked in fresh boric acid solution, and after nursing, the same process is repeated. This is routine, whether the mother is in bed or walking about. In the latter case, the mother must be taught to care for her own breasts. The child is put to the breast every three hours and given six feedings a day. This leaves a six hour interval at night, which is very necessary for the mother’s rest and for the child. If the babe is feeble, seven or eight feedings in the twenty-four hours may be required for the first two weeks. At first the breast only secretes a thick, yellowish secretion called colostrum, of which the child gets from a drachm to an ounce. It is a mild laxative. The irritation of the nipple by the child’s mouth is begun as early as possible in order to stimulate the breasts to secrete milk and the uterus to contract, and thus aid involution and the preservation of the maternal figure. The milk usually “comes in” on the third day and is accompanied by a sense of distention and moderate pains in the breasts. The glands may be hot, hard and swollen, but normally there is no rise of temperature with the inflow of the milk, except with nervous women who stand pain badly. There is no such thing as milk fever. If fever appears at this time, an infection must be suspected. The engorgement of the glands may become so great that the nipples are drawn in and nothing is left for the child to grasp. If the engorgement becomes too painful, fluids are removed from the diet list, and saline cathartics administered, while ice packs are applied to both breasts. Heat should never be used _except_ for the purpose of hastening suppuration.