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THE PHYSICAL LIFE OF WOMAN:
ADVICE TO THE MAIDEN, WIFE AND MOTHER.
PUBLISHERS' NOTICE.
The extraordinary popularity achieved and maintained by Dr. GEO. H.
NAPHEYS' _Physical Life of Woman_, places it beyond question among the
classics of the English language. Convinced of its high literary as well
as medical value, the present publishers have spared no pains or expense
to place it before the public in the most attractive style.
The _text_ has been most carefully revised and rewritten by the eminent
author himself; extensive additions of important matter the fruit of
three more years devoted to the study of the subject and the wants of
readers, have been incorporated. In type, paper and binding, the most
appropriate materials have been selected. And, to satisfy the repeated
requests of purchasers, permission has been obtained from the author to
insert his portrait, engraved on steel by one of the most skilful London
artists.
With these additions, the _Physical Life of Woman_ comes before the
public with all the novelty and freshness of a new book, and also with
the solid and substantial reputation for practical worth which its sales
of nearly _fifty thousand_ copies a year for _three_ years guarantee to
it.
We add a
SYNOPSIS OF THE BOOK.
It treats of woman in her three great positions in life, as the MAIDEN,
the WIFE, and the MOTHER.
Under the first of these is discussed the mysterious change she
undergoes when ripening from the indifferent girl to the tender and
sensitive virgin. The dangers she runs at this critical epoch are
carefully noted, and the rules to prevent and remedy them clearly set
forth. The all-absorbing topic of _Love_, is next treated of in a pure
and elevated style, but strictly from the physician's point of view, and
many salutary hints are given to direct the passion to noble ends and in
proper channels, and to teach the youthful reader how to shun
unfortunate unions.
In the part addressed to _Wives_ the health of the married couple is
first considered as being essential to their happiness. Plainly, yet
delicately, the rules that should govern them are laid down; the absence
of children and their excessive numbers are both mentioned, as requiring
appropriate correction, and an unsparing hand is laid upon certain
prevalent social vices. A full discussion of the important topic of the
inheritance of physical and mental traits will be found, and two most
thorough and practical chapters on Pregnancy and Confinement are added,
most invaluable to every young wife.
The duties of the _Mother_ are next set forth, in nursing her child, and
taking proper care of it, in training its budding powers, and also in
giving her own attention to it in some of the more common diseases to
which children are subject.
The sections devoted to _Health in Marriage_ will be peculiarly welcome
to many women suffering in health from they know not what exact cause,
but really from some of those inward or local weaknesses which are here
described. While to very many others who are approaching or about
passing through the critical epoch of the _Change of Life_, the full and
well-considered views of the author in the part devoted to that period
will be read with benefit and gratitude.
A carefully prepared Index and a copious list of authorities close the
volume.
[Transcriber's Note: In the Biographical Sketch section, an "a" with a
macron has been marked as [=a] in this file.]
THE
PHYSICAL LIFE OF WOMAN:
ADVICE TO THE
MAIDEN, WIFE AND MOTHER.
by
GEORGE H. NAPHEYS, A.M., M.D.
MEMBER OF THE PHILADELPHIA COUNTY MEDICAL SOCIETY; CORRESPONDING MEMBER
OF THE GYNECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF BOSTON; LATE CHIEF OF MEDICAL CLINIC OF
THE JEFFERSON MEDICAL COLLEGE; AUTHOR OF "THE TRANSMISSION OF LIFE,"
"THE PREVENTION AND CURE OF DISEASE," "MODERN MEDICAL THERAPEUTICS,"
"LETTERS FROM EUROPE," ETC.
"Je veux qu'une femme ait des clartes de tout."--Molière.
New Edition.
WITH THE FINAL CORRECTIONS OF THE AUTHOR, AND A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.
PHILADELPHIA:
DAVID McKAY, PUBLISHER,
23 SOUTH NINTH STREET.
1889.
Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1878, BY D. G.
BRINTON, in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. All
rights reserved.
EDITOR'S PREFACE.
In presenting a third edition of this work to the public, with the final
changes and improvements of the author, the publishers have felt it a
duty to attach to it a brief sketch of his life, which drew to so early
and lamented a termination. The whole has also been submitted to a
careful revision, in order that it might be brought down to the latest
advances in the department of science of which it treats, and also to
include in it the final suggestions of the author.
While Dr. Napheys evidently considered the second edition of the present
work as meeting closely the requirements of readers, and therefore left
behind him no notes which would alter the general plan, a number of
corrections and minor changes have been made in the text, various
paragraphs have been materially modified, and the Appendix referring to
authorities more or less altered.
The continued popularity of the work has been shown, not only by the
steady demand for it, but by the efforts of various authors to write
imitations of it, and various publishers to issue mutilated and
imperfect editions. Against these the present publishers would warn
innocent purchasers. The present is the only edition containing the
important additions and corrections made by the author during the latter
years of his life; and none other was authorized by him.
In its present form, _The Physical Life of Woman_ may justly claim to
count among the classics of American literature. Its popularity
increases with time, and none of the many similar works which have
appeared have approached it in public estimation. It is believed that in
the present edition no important scientific fact bearing upon the
subject has been omitted, and the most recent developments of hygiene
will be found discussed.
1878.
PREFACE TO THE SECOND STEREOTYPE EDITION.
Three years have passed since the author of the present work ventured to
lay it before the public, not without unusual anxiety as to the manner
in which he had fulfilled a task he knew to be so fruitful of good
results if well done. Those years of trial are over, and they have
brought a recognition of his labors beyond his most sanguine dreams.
Nearly _one hundred and fifty thousand copies_ of the work have been
sold in that period; it has been separately republished both in Canada
and England; it has been honored by a translation into German; the
imitations of it which have been written form almost a small library;
and, more to the satisfaction of the author than all this, it has
received the highest praise both at home and abroad, from both the
medical profession and the general learned world.
The present new stereotype edition contains the result of three more
years of study and experience, enlightened and aided by very many
letters from readers, which served to point out wherein the previous
edition fell short of their wants. The text has been carefully revised,
and in large part wholly rewritten; nearly one hundred and fifty pages
of selected new matter have been added; and the latest steps of medical
science in this direction have been followed.
Of the parts which are quite new, and which from the inquiries of
numerous readers will add greatly to the value of the work, are the
sections on the disturbances of the monthly function in girls, the care
of the child, the management of diseases of children, the diseases
incident to pregnancy, childbed, and nursing, etc.
Indeed, in the present edition the author has aimed to omit nothing
which can aid Woman in performing her full duty to herself and others,
so far as that duty lies in the sphere of her Physical Life, whether she
is called upon to act as Wife, Mother, Teacher, or Guide. His most
ardent desire continues to be that the work will be found a sure and
safe monitor amid the difficult duties of Maidenhood and Maternity.
LONDON, ENGLAND, October, 1872.
PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.
It seems well to offer, at the outset, a few words explanatory of the
nature and object of this book. The author feels that its aim is novel,
is daring, and will perhaps subject him to criticism. He therefore make
his plea, _pro domo sua_, in advance.
The researches of scientific men within the last few years have brought
to light very many facts relating to the physiology of woman, the
diseases to which she is subject, and the proper means to prevent those
diseases. Such information, if universally possessed, cannot but result
in great benefit to the individual and the commonwealth. The difficulty
is to express one's self clearly and popularly on topics never referred
to in ordinary social intercourse. But as the physician is obliged daily
to speak in plain yet decorous language of such matters, the author felt
that the difficulty was not unsurmountable.
He is aware that a respectable though diminishing class in the community
maintain that nothing which relates exclusively to either sex should
become the subject of popular medical instruction. With every
inclination to do this class justice, he feels sure that such an opinion
is radically erroneous. Ignorance is no more the mother of purity than
she is of religion. The men and women who study and practise medicine
are not the worse, but the better, for their knowledge of such matters.
So it would be with the community. Had every person a sound
understanding of the relations of the sexes, one of the most fertile
sources of crime would be removed.
A brief appendix has been added, directed more especially to the
professional reader, who may desire to consult some of the original
authorities upon whom the author has drawn. And here he would ask from
his fellow-members of the medical profession their countenance and
assistance in his attempt to distribute sound information of this
character among the people. None but physicians can know what sad
consequences are constantly occurring from the want of it. * * *
BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF GEORGE HENRY NAPHEYS, M.D.
Were man's life measured by his deeds, as the poet suggests, how brief
would be the long years of many an octogenarian, and how extended the
short span which has been allotted to not a few of the world's famous
heroes!
This oft-repeated thought strikes us forcibly in considering the
biography of the subject of this sketch. Closing his life at an age when
most professional men are but beginning theirs, he had already studied
broadly, had traveled widely over two continents, had gained credit and
fame by the sword and the pen, and had amassed a fund of erudition and
experience which the more lethargic lives of most men fail to approach
after twice his length of days. It is eminently appropriate that a
record of his busy career should be attached to the works on which his
celebrity is chiefly bound, and in which he most conspicuously displays
that command of language and happy facility of imparting instruction
for which he was so remarkable.
GEORGE HENRY NAPHEYS (pronounced N[=a]'feez, the [=a] as in _fate_) was
born in the city of Philadelphia, March 5th, 1842. His parents died
while he was still at a tender age, and he was placed with some
relatives who resided in the city. From early years he was characterized
by quick perceptions and a retentive memory. In the Philadelphia High
School, from which he received the academic degree of Master of Arts, he
was considered the best scholar in his class, a marked distinction in
view of the large numbers which attend that institution. Besides
acquiring the usual studies of the High School, he gave considerable
time to phonography, in which he became so skilled that he could report
any ordinary speaker with entire accuracy. This subsequently proved a
great advantage to him in his medical career.
After his graduation he repaired to Hartford, Conn., where he was
offered and accepted the position of private secretary to a gentleman of
prominence in the literary and religious world.
Thus he was engaged when the civil war broke out. With his natural
warmth of feeling and strong emotions, he entered the fray among the
first, and went out as Lieutenant, and subsequently as Captain, Company
F, 10th Connecticut State Volunteers. The regiment was enlisted for nine
months, and was dispatched to Louisiana, General Banks then commanding
the Department. It participated in engagements near Baton Rouge and on
the Red River, in which Captain Napheys always acquitted himself with
bravery and credit.
At the time the regiment was disbanded, an early preference for medical
subjects led him to devote a year to the preliminary studies of that
profession, but not waiting the full period required for a degree, he
was appointed assistant medical officer on the U. S. steamer Mingo, of
the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron. On her he passed a number of
months, cruising off the coast of the Carolinas and Georgia, and
ascended the St. John river.
These active duties prevented him from receiving his degree of Doctor of
Medicine until after the close of the war, when, in 1866, his diploma
was conferred upon him by the Jefferson Medical College of Philadelphia,
one of the most renowned institutions of our country.
After graduation, he opened an office in Philadelphia, and connected
himself with the clinics which are held at the College for the purpose
of supplying medicine and medical advice to the poor gratuitously, as
well as for giving students an opportunity of witnessing various forms
of disease. The practical experience he gained in this manner was
considerable, and his natural ability soon recommended him to the
authorities of the institution, who appointed him Chief of Medical
Clinic of the College, a position he held for several years.
One of the advantages of this post was that it brought him into constant
communion with many eminent medical men, and rendered him practically
acquainted with their treatment of disease. His skill in phonography
enabled him to take abundant notes of their lectures, and this led to
his early connection with the periodical literature of the profession.
Most of the reports he drew up were published in the _Medical and
Surgical Reporter_, a weekly journal, devoted to medical science,
published in Philadelphia. The series of reports commenced in April,
1866, and continued, with slight interruptions, until June, 1870. They
are characterized by a clear and correct style, and a manifestly
thorough grasp of the numerous topics treated.
The success which these ephemeral writings obtained turned his thoughts
in the direction of authorship. His tastes and associations led him to
employ his powers in two directions: first, in preparing for the general
public a series of works which would acquaint them with anatomy,
physiology, hygiene, sanitary science, nursing, and the management of
disease, to the extent that intelligent general readers can and ought to
know about these subjects; and secondly, in writing for professional men
several treatises on the means of alleviating and curing diseases.
In the prosecution of the first mentioned of these plans, he was early
impressed with the utter absence of any treatise on the hygiene of the
sexual life in either sex, written in the proper spirit by a scientific
man. The field had been left to quacks or worse, who, to serve their
own base ends, scattered inflammatory and often indecent pamphlets over
the land; or else, had one or more of the points been handled by
reputable writers, it was in such a vague and imperfect manner that the
reader gained little benefit from the perusal. While all agreed that a
sound treatise on these topics was most desirable, it had been openly
averred that it could not be written in a proper style for the general
public.
Strong in the conviction that pure motives, literary tact, and the
requisite scientific knowledge qualified him to undertake this difficult
task, Dr. Napheys prepared, in the early months of 1869, his work on
"The Physical Life of Woman." Proceeding with caution, he first
submitted the MSS. to some professional friends, and profited by their
suggestions. After the work was in type, and before publication, he sent
complete copies to a number of gentlemen, eminent as medical teachers,
clergymen, educators, and literateurs. Their replies left him in no
doubt but that he had succeeded even beyond his anticipations. Almost
unanimously the opinions were complimentary in the highest degree, and
evidently written after a close examination of the book. As many of
these have been printed to accompany the work, in the last and previous
editions, it is needless to do more in this connection than to say that
they were penned by such judges as Dr. W. A. Hammond, late
Surgeon-General U. S. Army; Dr. Harvey L. Byrd, Professor in the Medical
Department of Washington University, Md.; Dr. Edwin M. Snow, Health
Officer of the City of Providence, R. I.; Rev. Henry Ward Beecher, Rev.
Horace Bushnell, D.D., Rev. George A. Crooke, D.D., D.C.L., and others.
On its appearance, the work was received with enthusiasm by both the
medical press and the public. While a few journals and individuals were
inclined to condemn it and censure the author, the intelligent and the
pure-minded, on all sides, recognized in him the only writer who had yet
appeared able to treat these delicate subjects with the dignity of
science and the straightforwardness necessary for popular instruction.
Satisfied that he had chosen the proper exercise for his talents, he
composed and placed in the hands of his publisher, the following year,
his not less extraordinary work, "The Transmission of Life," a treatise
addressed to the male, as his previous one had been to the female sex.
It was dedicated to the late Rev. John Todd, so well known for his
interest in young men, and his "Student's Manual" and other works
addressed to them. He accepted the dedication and addressed the author a
letter, in which occurs the following high compliment to his work: "I am
surprised at the extent and accuracy of your reading; the judiciousness
of your positions and results; the clear, unequivocal, yet delicate and
appropriate language used; and the amount of valuable information
conveyed." Similar expressions poured in from many other distinguished
critics, as, for instance, Dr. Noah Porter, President of Yale College;
the Rev. Henry Clay Trumbull, the Rev. Abner Jackson, President of
Trinity College, Hartford, etc.
In the same year (1870) he brought out the first edition of his "Modern
Therapeutics," a technical work, addressed to physicians. This was
enlarged in successive editions, until in its present form, as continued
by other hands in its latest editions, it comprises two parts of 600
pages each. Although the author claimed little other originality in this
work than the selection and arrangement of known facts, yet in these
respects he displayed the strongly practical and original turn of his
mind. As a student of the art of Therapeutics in large hospitals,
clinics, and dispensaries, he had convinced himself that it is not by
experiments on lower animals, nor yet on the human body in health, that
the physician can attain the glorious power of alleviating pain and
curing disease; it is only through the daily combat with sickness, by
the bedside and in the consulting room. Chemistry and physiology, he
believed, could teach but little in this branch; observation and
experience everything. Hence, in his work on Therapeutics he announced
himself as "aiming at a systematic analysis of all current and approved
means of combating disease," selecting his formulæ and therapeutical
directions from the most eminent living physicians of all nations.
This work was most favorably received by medical men; and, edited and
revised by competent hands, continues to be regarded as one of the most
valuable works in American medical literature. The unanimous opinion of
the leading medical journals, as well as of its numerous purchasers,
have testified to its real and great worth to the practitioner of
medicine.
Having thus established a wide, popular and professional reputation, one
which would have guaranteed him a lucrative practice, it would have
tempted another, no doubt, to make the most of this opportunity, so
rarely granted a young physician. Not so was it with Dr. Napheys. No
sooner had the three works mentioned been completed than he sailed for
Europe, in order to familiarize himself with the famed schools of
learning of the Old World and its rich stores of material for culture.
The summer was that of the Franco-German war; and spending most of it in
Paris, he was witness of several of the most exciting scenes which
attended the dethronement of the Emperor. These he would describe
afterwards with a vividness and power of language rarely excelled.
The excitement of the period did not, however, withdraw his attention
from the studies he had in view. These were partially indicated in a
series of letters he contributed to various periodicals during his
absence. While these letters were principally of a scientific character,
it is noteworthy how the relations of medicine to the welfare of man
always occupied his attention. Thus we find, in one sent from England,
June, 1870, a description of the Liverpool Medical Missionary Society,
a charity which combines religious instruction with medical advice; and
again, he comments on the popular instruction in hygiene which was
supplied at that period to the English workingmen by a committee of
competent physicians, organized for that purpose. It was the author's
purpose to collect and expand these letters into a volume, but the
project was not carried out.
The siege of Paris, which city he left in one of the last trains before
the blockade commenced, and the prolongation of the war, induced him to
return home. In the United States he found offers from several
publishers awaiting him, which would more than occupy him for a full
year. There was a new edition of his "Therapeutics" demanded, and a
revision of both "The Physical Life of Woman" and "The Transmission of
Life." A New England firm urgently pressed him to superintend the
production of several hygienic works, and secured him as literary
adviser to their house. He assumed the editorship of the "Half-Yearly
Compendium of Medical Science," and also of a "Physician's Annual,"
besides undertaking a number of articles for the periodical press, both
scientific and popular.
To this active literary life he devoted the year 1871; but at its close
felt more strongly than ever that he must give himself several years of
studious quiet, in order to accomplish his best. Refusing, therefore,
any further engagements, he sailed for Europe again, late in 1871, and
did not return this time until the spring of 1875. In this period, of
more than three years, he visited almost all the principal cities of
Europe, and enjoyed the friendship of many eminent men at London, St.
Petersburg, Vienna, and Paris. Reading, visiting hospitals, and
attending clinics, he accumulated a mass of material which he designed
to work up into future literary enterprises.
With these collected stores he returned to the United States early in
1875, and set to work with his wonted energy. A new and much enlarged
edition of the "Therapeutics" was sent to press; a "Handbook of Popular
Medicine," designed to give, in simple language, the domestic treatment
of disease, the rules for nursing the sick, selected receipts for diet
and medicinal purposes, and the outlines of anatomy and physiology, was
put in the hands of a publisher; a Synopsis of Pharmacy and Materia
Medica, a work of enormous labor, was well under way; and other literary
projects were actively planned; when, suddenly, the summons came which,
in an instant, with the shears of fate, slit the strand of this
activity. The rest of the story may be told in the words of the
biographer appointed by the Medical Society of the County of
Philadelphia to prepare a memoir of his life:--
"While earnestly laboring to prepare for the press his literary
collections, he suffered a severe blow by the sudden death of a person
to whom he was deeply attached. Over-work and this emotional shock
produced a result likely enough to occur in one of his ardent
temperament. One afternoon, while engaged in writing, he fell,
unconscious, from his chair, and for several days lay in a very critical
condition. On recovering his powers, it was evident his brain had
suffered a serious lesion. The old energy and love of labor had
completely gone; even the capacity for work seemed absent. Marked
melancholy followed, characterized before long by avoidance of friends
and the loss of a desire of life. This occurred with increasing force
until it led to his death, on July 1, 1876, through some toxic agent,
the nature of which was not ascertained.
"Thus early, and thus sadly, terminated a career of unusual brilliancy
and promise.
"It is probable that much that he has written will be read with pleasure
and instruction by future generations; and the memory of his genial
disposition, his entertaining conversation, and earnest sense of
professional honor, will long be cherished by those of his
contemporaries who enjoyed his friendship."--_Transactions of the
Medical Society of the State of Pennsylvania_, vol. xi, p. 720.
Various tributes were paid to his memory by the societies with which he
was connected, and by the scientific journals to which he had been a
contributor. One of these, after narrating some of the circumstances
attending his decease, spoke as follows:--
"Thus did our unfortunate associate close his short but brilliant
career. The emotions, the tender sentiments he has described with such a
magical pen, he felt himself with an unmatched keenness. They mastered
his whole frame with an intensity surpassing all romance. His
descriptions of the passions, descriptions which have been the wonder of
thousands, such is their fire and temper, were not rhetorical studies,
but the ebullition of a soul sensitive to their lightest breath, and not
shunning their wildest tempests.
"The genius which dictated the lines he has left us is not to be judged
by the conventionalities which suit the cold temperaments of ordinary
men; there is a strong vein of egotism in most devotion; but here was
one who felt, 'all is lost, when love is lost.'"
This extract well sets forth the extraordinary depth of his sentiments,
and the fervor of his feelings. It may be added that these mental traits
were not generally ascribed to him by casual or ordinary associates. He
was, in manners and bearing, evidently not one who sought friendships or
displayed to the general gaze the current of his thoughts. Consequently,
of intimates he had but few, and was considered by those whose
intercourse with him was superficial, to be much more of an intellectual
than of an emotional type of character.
This impression was doubtless increased by the strongly practical turn
of his mind, which is conspicuous in all his works. He was the reverse
of a dreamer and had little patience with theorists. In his professional
study he always aimed at bringing into the strongest light the
utilitarian aspect of medicine, its ameliorating power on humanity, its
real efficacy in preserving or restoring health and limiting human
misery. On this his theory of therapeutics was based, and, inspired by
the same opinions, he was one of the most earnest advocates of the day
of popularizing medical science in all its branches among the masses. In
this effort he was at times severely criticized by that class of
physicians--and they are by no means extinct--who think that medicine
should be wrapped in mystery, and that the people should be kept in
ignorance of themselves and of their own physical frailties, to the
utmost possible extent. With these learned obscurantists Dr. Napheys had
no patience, and naturally found but slight favor. Fortunately, they
were in the decided minority, and, we are happy to add, even that
minority is daily decreasing.
Of the various learned societies to which he was attached may be
mentioned the Philadelphia County Medical Society, the Franklin
Institute of Philadelphia, and the Gynecological Society of Boston. His
election as Corresponding Member to the latter body (which is an
association of scientific men who make an especial study of the hygiene
and diseases of women) took place shortly after the first publication of
the _Physical Life of Woman_, and was meant as a direct tribute of
respect to him as the author of that work, thus obtaining for it the
testimony of the highest body in that specialty then existing in our
land.
The general plan on which Dr. Napheys prepared his sanitary writings was
one eminently calculated to reconcile those who were most opposed to
instructing the general public in such branches. While he confidently
believed that vastly more harm than good is done by a prudish
concealment of the physiology of sex and its relations to health, he
also clearly recognized that such instruction should be imparted at the
proper age and under certain limitations; while the general facts common
to the species cannot be taught too generally, or made too familiar.
Hence, he projected three books, one to be placed in the hands of young
women, a second for youths, and a third for a general household book of
reading and reference on medicine and hygiene. These three he completed
in "The Physical Life of Woman," "The Transmission of Life," and the
"Handbook of Popular Medicine."
This plan, he believed, met all the objections to popular medical
instruction, at least all well-grounded objections, while at the same
time it did away with any necessity for concealing truths important to
be known, for fear they should come to the knowledge of those for whom
they were not designed, and on whose minds they might have a disturbing
tendency.
There can be no doubt but that both the plan and its execution were
successful. The many letters he received, filled with thanks from
private parties who had gained inestimable knowledge from these works,
made rich compensation for the occasional severe strictures he received
from those wedded to ancient ways, and who often condemned without even
reading his works.
The intelligent reading public, on whom, after all, the writer must
depend for a verdict on his works, were unanimous in his favor. They
bought them in quantities, and the writer of his life in the
_Transactions of the Pennsylvania State Medical Society_, above quoted,
who wrote in 1877, estimates that by that time over _a quarter of a
million_ copies had been printed and sold. Translations were made into
the German, and several editions pirated and printed in Canada and
England. In fact, the works may now be considered to rank as classics in
the language, and many years must go by before another such series can
be written, on topics of this nature, with equal delicacy of touch and
accuracy of knowledge.
CONTENTS.
INTRODUCTORY.
PAGE
Knowledge is safety--The peculiarities of sex--Examples of
individuals belonging to both sexes and to neither sex--The
sphere of woman 15-22
Part I. THE MAIDEN.
PUBERTY 22-52
What it means--Age when it arrives--Causes that hasten it--Causes
that delay it--Brunettes mature early--The signs of puberty--Its
dangers--Spinal disease--Green sickness--Hysterics--Secret bad
habits--Hygiene of puberty--Diet--Exercise--Clothing--Precautions
during the monthly changes--Between the monthly changes--What to
do when the changes are delayed--When they are painful--The age
of nubility.
LOVE 52-89
Its power in life--What it is--It is necessary and it is
eternal--Of second marriages and of divorce--Courtship--Love at
first sight--How to choose a husband--Shall cousins marry?--Marriage
between different races and different nations--The proper age of a
husband--His temperament--His moral and mental character--Words of
warning--Signs of character on the body--The engagement--Concerning
long engagements--The right time of year to marry--The right time
in the month to marry--The wedding tour.