There can be no controversy at the present time as to the desirability of relief of pain in labor, provided relief may be had with safety. We believe that our experience during the last ten years has shown that a high degree of relief may be obtained without sacrificing the safety that should be the physician's first concern. We wish to place ourselves on record as stating that in our opinion chloroform has today no place in obstetric practice. Experimentally, it has been abundantly shown by Graham, Woodyatt and by one of us (C. H. D.) that definite degenerative changes occur in the young in utero, these changes being present and demonstrable after subjecting the pregnant animal not only to complete anesthesia comparable to that used in surgical procedures, but also after intermittent and very light anesthesia, such as would be administered to a woman in the second stage of