And let no one make the mistake of thinking that thus moistening the vulva with saliva is unseemly, or unsanitary.  It is neither.  On the contrary, it is nature’s way of helping to perfection an act which, but for such timely assistance, might never be brought to a successful issue.  As has already been noted, chemically, saliva and the pre-coital fluid are almost identical.  They are both a natural secretion of a mucous membrane, are alkaline in reaction, their native purpose is lubrication, and, as a matter of fact, the saliva is as natural an application to the lips of the vulva as it is to the interior of the mouth or throat.  Truth to tell, the practice of applying saliva to the genitals before coition is very general, so much so that it might almost be counted as instinctive.  It is mentioned here only to remove any prejudice that might linger in the sophisticated mind of the reader.  Such use of saliva is no more to be deprecated than its application in a hundred other ways, such as moistening the fingers to turn a leaf, of “licking” one’s fingers after eating candy.  Such use of this fluid from the mouth might be condemned by the “over-nice,” but it is quite universally practiced, and it is neither unwholesome nor unsanitary.

It is sometimes recommended that some form of oil, as sweet oil or vaseline, be used as an unguent for anointing the parts before engaging in coitus, but this practice cannot be recommended.  Oil is not a natural product of the parts to which it is applied, it is chemically unlike their secretions, and to smear the delicate organs with a fluid that is foreign to their nature, is unwise, unsanitary, not to say filthy.  It is like greasing the mouth to make food slip down easily.  And it is easy to understand how such application of an unguent to the mouth would impair the taste, dull the nerves of sensation, and greatly interfere with the native and wholesome uses of the oral cavity.

So don’t be afraid or ashamed to use saliva in preparing the vulva and the vagina for the reception of their natural mate.

And so, to return to where we left off, if the wife is slower timed than her husband, her passion can be greatly increased by the manipulation just described.  Indeed, it could be very easily carried to such length—­the lips and tongue playing with the nipple, and the finger-stroking of the vulva—­that the woman could be brought to an orgasm without the union of the organs at all!  This is a form of masturbation (this word has a bad meaning attached to it, but it is a good word, as will shortly be shown, and it has its legitimate uses; but, as a preparation for coition, it should not be carried any further than is essential for bringing the laggard passion of the woman up to an equal tension of that of her lover.) A few weeks’, or months’, practice will enable a wife to determine just how much of this form of “courting” will bring her to the desired point of excitement; and, when this point is reached, she should invite her husband to “come up over,” if the first position is to be adopted for the rest of the act; or, she should throw herself into her lover’s arms, if the second position is used.