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The figures in brackets are the percentages calculated on the
total from the appropriate column in Table II.
The percentage of miscarriages (1.2 per cent.) is not a fair
estimate of the proportion of pregnancies in the district which
terminate in abortion, as only 36 per cent. of primiparæ and 28 per
cent. of multipara attend the clinics before the twenty-fourth week.
In the case of breech presentations, version is attempted if
the condition is diagnosed ante-natally, so that the original incidence
of breech presentations in the series cannot be estimated from
these figures.
Maternal Mortality.
From the 2,088 eases there were two deaths which were classified
as maternal deaths, both from puerperal septicaemia following
normal delivery in two women under 25 years of age. This gives
a maternal mortality rate of 0.95. The mean of the maternal
mortality rate for the Borough of Leyton during the same period
was 3.1.
There were two other deaths in women who had attended the
ante-natal clinics, neither of which was classified as a maternal
death although one was almost certainly associated with the pregnancy.
This was in a multipara (4) aged 37 years, who showed
signs of ill-health in pregnancy—slight failure of compensation
with a trace of albumen and swelling of feet during the last two
months of pregnancy. She had various domestic difficulties, but
she was eventually persuaded to enter hospital five weeks before
the baby was expected. She had a normal labour three weeks
later and died after twenty-two days from mesenteric thrombosis.
Additional Information regarding Economic Circumstances, etc., of
Women of High Fertility.
I enlisted the co-operation of the health visitors to obtain some
information about the economic circumstances and health of the
women who comprised the 199 cases from seventh and subsequent
pregnancies. Some of the women had attended during three
different pregnancies in the five years and the 199 cases represented
164 women. The information I asked was the standard of employment
of the husbands (a) skilled (b) unskilled (c) chronic unemployment,
and the physical health and mental capacity of the
woman. Excluding removals, the employment of the husband in