OSBORN, William.

London: Printed for Cadell…and Johnson…1792

8vo, 1 leaf (half-title), pp. xxv, 475, folding engraved frontispiece of forceps. Frontispiece rather foxed and offset onto the title-page, a few spots elsewhere but the text generally very clean. Original boards, new paper spine as the original, corners worn, endpapers replaced, uncut. Old library stamp in upper corner of title and on upper board.

FIRST EDITION, incorporating his earlier book An essay on laborious parturition. Osborn was vehemently against intervention in obstetrics, and in particular condemned Caesarean section, although he did use forceps. He was a pupil of Hunter and Levret, and, with Denman, ran an enormously successful private school of midwifery. He was the second licentiate in midwifery of the Royal College of Surgeons. Radcliffe, Milestones in midwifery, pp. 50–51. Spencer, The history of British midwifery, pp. 117–123.

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