Note: They were fined 10 pounds by the Plymouth Court "for committing carnal copulation before marriage or contract". At that time pregnancy was believed to last exactly nine months in all cases. As the medical facts of premature birth were unknown, a baby born a week or in some cases two weeks before the 9 month wedding anniversary might be overlooked but not one born any sooner. Therefore Joseph Hallett and Elizabeth Gorham's first child may have been born prematurely.