Methods  of  Investigating  the  Milk.— As  a  ready  method

of  judging  of  the  quantity  and  quality  of  the  milk,  an  inspection
of  the  breasts  of  the  mother  or  nurse  should  be  made.  The
breasts  should  be  firm  and  pear-shaped,  and  covered  with  blue
veins.  Pressure  on  the  gland  should  excite  the  flow  of  milk,
which  should  be  opaque,  of  a  dull  whitf^  color,  and  under  the
microscope  present  fat  globules  of  a  fair  siza  The  number  of
these  globules  is  indicative  of  the  amount  of  caseine  and  sugar
present  in  the  milk.  On  a  piece  of  glass  a  drop  of  good  milk
maintains  its  globular  form,  and  does  not  readily  run  off  the
glass.  Poor  milk,  deprived  of  its  soHds,  lacks  these  qualities,  and
runs  off  on  the  least  inclination  of  the  glass.  Obviously",  however,
the  most  satisfactory  test  of  the  excellence  of  the  milk  is  furnished
by  observation  of  the  child.  If  he  sucks  vigorously,  finishing
with  the  milk  running  over  his  lips,  and  requires  a  meal  but
three  or  four  times  in  a  day,  we  may  conclude  that  the  milk  is
sufficient  in  quantity.  But  if  he  frequently  desires  the  breast,
sucks  with  effort  or  spasmodically,  now  and  then  desisting  and
crying,  the  milk  may  be  considered  insufficient     As  a  further  test


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560  THE   FAMILY   DOCTOR.
of  the  quantity  of  the  milk,  the  infant  may  be  weired  immedi-
ately before  and  after  a  meal;  the  difference  in  the  weight  should
be  three  or  four  ounces.
