In this month also you ought to keep the child-bearing woman from bleeding, unless in extraordinary cases; but when the month is past, bloodletting and physic may be permitted, if it be gentle and mild; and perhaps it may be necessary to prevent abortion. In this month she may purge, in the acute disease; but purging may be used only from the beginning of this month to the end of the sixth: but let her take care that in purging she use no vehement medicine, nor any bitter, as aloes, which is disagreeable and hurtful to the child, and opens the mouth of the vessels; neither let her use coloquintida, scammony, nor turbith; she may use cassia, manna, rhubarb, agaric, and senna: but dyacidodium purgans is best, with a little of electuary of the juice of roses. _Rules for the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Months._ In these months child-bearing women are troubled with coughs, heart-beating, fainting, watching, pains in the loins and hips, and bleeding. The cough is from a sharp vapour that comes to the jaws and rough artery from the terms, or the thin part of that blood gotten into the veins of the breast, or falling from the head to the breast; this endangers abortion, and strength fails from watching; therefore purge the humours that come to the breast with rhubarb and agaric, and strengthen the head as in a catarrh, and give sweet lenitives, as in a cough. Palpitation and fainting arise from vapours that go to it by the arteries, or from blood that aboundeth, and cannot get out at the womb, but ascends, and oppresseth the heart; and in this case, cordials, should be used both inwardly and outwardly. Watching is from sharp dry vapours that trouble the animal spirits, and in this case use frictions, and let the woman wash her feet at bed-time, and let her take syrup of poppies, dried roses, emulsions of sweet almonds, and white poppy seed. If she be troubled with pains in her loins and hips, as in these months she is subject to be, from the weight of her child, who is now grown big and heavy, and so stretcheth the ligaments of the womb, and parts adjacent, let her hold it up with swathing bands about her neck. About this time also the woman often happens to have a flux of blood; either at the nose, womb, or hemorrhoids, from plenty of blood, or from the weakness of the child that takes it not in; or else from evil humour in the blood, that stirs up nature to send it forth. And sometimes it happens that the vessels of the womb may be broken, either by some violent motion, fall, cough, or trouble of mind, (for any of these will work that effect); and this is so dangerous, that in such a case the child cannot be well; but if it be from blood only, the danger is less, provided it flows by the veins of the neck of the womb; for then it prevents plethory, and takes not away the nourishment of the child; but if it proceeds from the weakness of the child, that draws it not in, abortion of the child often follows, or hard travail, or else she goes