Prolonged hot baths are fatiguing. They draw the blood from the interior to the surface of the body; and during pregnancy they are particularly depressing. Vapor and steam baths have a similar action and should never be taken without the consent of a physician. They serve admirably for the treatment of rare complications of pregnancy; but, like medicine, their use should be limited to cases in which they are clearly indicated. Unless disagreeable results are noticed, those who have become accustomed to cold baths may continue to take them during pregnancy, but others should not. If, however, the temperature of the water is modified so that it will not produce a shock, no one need omit the morning plunge or shower which most persons find invigorating. Sponging answers the same purpose, for the intent of the morning bath is not to cleanse the body but to arouse the circulation. A thorough rub-down assists in bringing the blood to the surface of the body. Bath and massage together thus constitute a kind of skin gymnastics especially beneficial throughout pregnancy. Although hot foot-baths have sometimes been thought to cause miscarriage, there is no good reason for believing they ever do. Sea- bathing, on the contrary, may be directly responsible for such a mishap. It is true that pregnant women sometimes indulge in surf- bathing without harmful results; nevertheless the danger of miscarriage they assume is not slight. The shock of the low temperature, the exertion required to keep a firm footing, and the pounding of the surf against the abdomen are all unfavorable influences which more than counterbalance any advantage of such a bath. On the other hand, there is slight risk if any in bathing in a quiet stream or lake. DOUCHES.--A great many women have the conviction that the vagina is not clean and should, therefore, be regularly cleansed by means of irrigations. This assumption is false and the treatment based upon it is unnecessary. In structure the walls of the vagina closely resemble the skin, but unlike the skin they do not contain glands; the vagina, therefore, has nothing to do with the elimination of waste products from the body. The secretion which issues from the vagina really originates in the glands around the mouth of the womb, and serves to protect the birth-canal against infection from harmful bacteria. Careful examinations have shown that under normal conditions, which of course include pregnancy, disease-producing bacteria are absent from the vagina; in this respect the vagina is even cleaner than the skin, for disease-producing bacteria are present on the surface of the body. The vaginal secretion becomes more abundant during pregnancy, and the increase is interpreted as an additional guarantee against infection at the time of labor. So far as possible, therefore, this natural antiseptic should not be disturbed.