Selected quad for the lemma: head_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
head_n	arm_n	belly_n	leg_n	2,979	5	10.3355	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A07466	The imperiall historie: or The liues of the emperours, from Iulius Cæsar, the first founder of the Roman monarchy, vnto this present yeere containing their liues and actions, with the rising and declining of that empire; the originall, and successe, of all those barbarous nations that haue inuaded it, and ruined it by peece-meele: with an ample relation of all the memorable accidents that haue happened during these last combustions. First written in Spanish by Pedro Mexia: and since continued by some others, to the death of Maximilian the Second; translated into English by W.T.: and now corrected, amplified and continued to these times by Edvvard Grimeston Sergeant at Armes.; Historia imperial y cesárea. English	Mexía, Pedro, 1496?-1552?; Traheron, W.; Grimeston, Edward.	1623 (1623)	STC 17852; ESTC S114709	17,459	908

A TRVE AND CERTAINE RELATION Of a STRANGE-BIRTH which was borne at Stone-house in the Parish of Plimmouth the 20. of October 1635. TOGETHER with the Notes of a Sermon preached Octob. 23. 1635. in the Church of Plimmouth at the interring of the sayd Birth By Th. B. B. D. Pr. Pl. LONDON Printed by Anne Griffin for William Russell in Plimmouth 1635. To the Curious Beholder of the former Picture Deare Countrey-man NOT the meere fiction of the over-daring Picturer doest thou here behold But if he have done his part the true Pourtraiture of the worke of God presented to the world to be seene and to be admired Two things I have to deliver to thine eare which this figure cannot convey unto thine eye First what it intendeth Next how thou maiest correct the Picture if it need amending For the first it intendeth to acquaint thee with this story In the Countie of Devon and in the Parish of the famous Towne of Plimmouth there is a Village called Stone-house Viculum Piscatorium I may justly terme it a pretty little Fisher-towne for it consisteth mostly of men that live by the Sea and gaine their livelihood by the water In this village there dwelleth one Iohn Persons a Fisherman whose wife having fulfilled the usuall moneths and weekes of womens burdens upon the twentieth day of this present moneth October fell in travell and by the helpe of a second Mid wife through Gods mercy and goodnesse was the poore mother after the wearie travell of thirteene or foureteene painefull houres safely delivered of the burden A Birth not more painfull to the Mother tho very painefull doubtlesse beeing still-borne then strange and wonderfull to all the beholders The eye is not satisfied with seeing with admiration and as it falleth out in such a case soone is the fame thereof spread all abroad Towne and Countrey commeth in to see that hereafter they might as I for my part must say At such a time in such a place I saw the strangest birth in all respects that ever I saw or heard before Two heads and neckes two backes and sets of ribbes foure armes and hands foure thighes and legges in a word from head to heele so farre as the eye could discerne two compleat and perfect bodies but concorporate and ioyned together from breast to belly two in one For the second thing propounded viz. how to correct the picture if it need amendment take this When I first cast mine eye upon them lying on the table I said surely if those children had bin living Art might have caused a just separation of them for I conceived them to bee no other than two bodies joyned together in one common skin But I soone perceived mine Errour when putting my finger to feele the Collar the Cannellbone I meane that place where you see them begin to joyne together I found that they had but one breast-bone common to them both and by it as by a partition wall were their two bodies as two chambers both joyned separated joyned together in respect of the externall bulke separated in respect of the internall contents This concorporation lasted downe to the Navell or a little beneath which also was in common to them both I still speak of what the eye could see happily so soone as that string of the umbilicall vessels by which the mothers wombe supplied food and nourishment to the birth had passed the skinne it might dispart it selfe But outwardly it was one in common Whence also it was conjectured that though these twinnes might have several hearts and lungs answerable to their severall heads and neckes yet but one common Liver to them both The truth of this conjecture I leave to the Colledge of Physitians to discover that is not my profession nor will I presume to determine any thing in anothers Art onely this Obiection I have against it that supposing one common Liver it must either gird them round or be misplaced in one of them for turning brest to brest and belly to belly you ioyne the left side of the one body to the right side of the other so that I say except the liver do compasse it round it shall be misplaced in the one But to returne to the story These two twins were not more neerely ioyned in the bulk of body than they were in all parts and proportions like to one another where they were disparted so that two the likest twins that ever you saw were not more like nay the glasse cannot I thinke give a truer answer to the face than these were each to other Which I doe the more boldly affirme because having satisfyed mine eye with beholding them on the one side as they lay I caused the women to turne the other side and laying them as before face to face and foot to foot I could perceive no difference in them at all from what I had seene before One thing I forgot till it was too late which if I had remembred I verily perswade my selfe might have been done viz. To lay them one upon another The which I mention lest happily any might conceive that the ioyncture of their bodies might leane to one side more than to another I was about to aske the women whether the mother felt them living in the wombe when presently I corrected my selfe seeing each part and limbe yea and the whole body of either growne as indeed it was to a iust maturity each by himselfe had they beene sundered had been a iust birth having haire on the heads nailes on their hands and toes nay which is more except the women were much deceived they had some teeth in their head and to confesse the truth I thought so too till others that had more skil and experience perswaded me to the contrary Howsoever the children were each of them as compleat and perfect as Births use to be Vpon these grounds I corrected my selfe in my former intended question for how should they grow to that perfection of stature had they wanted life But the mid-wife and the women told me that they were living and lively some few houres before they were borne So that in all likely-hood had a skilfull hand been made use of at the first they might have lived to see the light if not to inioy it But God that gave them a life and beeing in the wombe knowing that life upon earth would have beene a burden to them provided better for them and tooke them to himselfe Thus have I given a true and I thinke a full narration of this worke of wonder which God hath shewed here amongst us And with it I am content to send abroad some few notes prepared for the confluence of people met together when this birth was layed into the earth Something me thought was fitting to be commended to them that saw it while the thing was fresh in mind and that something such as it is loe here it is Rather would I shame my selfe in being over-busie than be