As many other fine sutures as are necessary are now inserted between these two. In regard to the mucous membrane of the lip and the formation of the prolabium, care must be taken that the exact edges are stitched together, as they are very liable to curl in. It will be found of great assistance if the catgut of the first suture in the mucous membrane be not cut short, but used as a holder to lift the lip during the passage of the next stitch, which will fulfil the same office for the succeeding one, and so on, until, in this way, the mucous membrane can be thoroughly everted, and fine sutures carried through the edges on the buccal aspect. The effect of this is most satisfactory in maintaining exact coaptation of this part of the lip, which is so liable to be displaced when the child is fed or cries, permitting the entrance of food or saliva which will interfere with the progress of union. The wire stitches (sutures of relaxation) are now fastened, and in doing so there is no necessity to tighten them unduly; experience alone can teach the requisite amount of tension. This completed, all traces of blood are removed from the face, and the sutured lip carefully cleansed with a purified sponge dipped in boracic acid lotion. A collodion dressing is then applied in the following manner: a piece of antiseptic gauze folded double is cut butterfly fashion, so that one wing is fixed upon each cheek, and the uniting portion, just the width of the lip, passes over the wound. Collodion is carried close up to, but not over, the wound itself, which is merely covered by the bridge of gauze. During the adjustment of the dressing, the assistant should hold the cheeks forward, and this position must be maintained until the collodion is firm. The contractile nature of this dressing is especially useful in limiting to some extent the movements of the cheek. In former days the use of Hainsby’s truss or cheek compressor was much in vogue, with the object of relaxing, as far as possible, all tension on the flaps; but the apparatus has now been discarded by most surgeons. The pressure of the spring was occasionally so severe as to cause sloughing of the cheek (as I have seen in one or two cases many years ago); or else there was a great liability for the pads to slip out of position during any sudden movement of the child’s head, leading to injurious pressure on or near the wound itself. In fact, if the truss was acting efficiently, pain and irritation to the child resulted; if it was comfortable, it was generally useless. One of the principal points to be attended to in the _after-treatment_ is to instruct the nurse to depress the lower lip with the index finger for some hours after the child has recovered from the anæsthetic, and to repeat it occasionally until it becomes accustomed to the diminished oral aperture; otherwise the efforts to draw air through the mouth (now closed for the first time) will tend very considerably to disturb the wounded surfaces.[76]