I remember when there was considerable discussion whether the child or the mother should be sacrificed. It is not necessary to sacrifice either of them today, because a Caesarean operation will almost certainly save them both. If the child is alive, it should be a practical certainty to deliver it alive, and I am confident that the risk to the mother is considerably less than it is after craniotomy. Some say that if the child is dead, a craniotomy should be performed. I consider that it is sometimes difficult to decide that the child is dead. It is no easy matter to auscultate the foetal heart even under favourable circumstances, and in the bustle of a confinement I should hesitate to express a positive opinion that it had cease to beat. Even when the child is known to be dead, I should prefer a Caesarean section as being less dangerous for the mother. Such an operation as craniotomy should never be resorted to in these days.