stockings was regarded as the lion of the menagerie; and when he was detained, it was common to observe, "We can do nothing till the blue stockings come." The manner in which the phrase has ever since been used leads to the conclusion that the members of this club were pedantic. It is now common to say of a sensible, unaffected woman, She knows a great deal, but has no tinge of blue." Byron wittily remarked, "I care not how blue a woman's stockings are, if her petticoats are long enough to cover them;" and this pithy observation comprises all that ever need be said about the cultivation of female intellect.

English history presents many instances of women exercising prerogatives now denied them. In an action at law, it has been determined that an unmarried woman, having a freehold, might vote for members of parliament; and it is recorded that lady Packington returned two members of parliament. Lady Broughton was keeper of the Gate-house prison; and in a much later period a woman was appointed governor of the house of correction at Chelmsford, by order of the court.

In the reign of George the Second, the minister of Clerkenwell was chosen by a majority of women. The office of champion has frequently been held by a woman, and was so at the coronation of George the First. The office of grand chamberlain, in 1822, was filled by two women; and that of clerk of the crown, in the court of king's bench, has been granted to a female. The celebrated Anne, countess of Pem.

broke, held the hereditary office of sheriff of Westmoreland, and exercised it in person, sitting on the bench of the judges. In ancient councils mention is made of deaconesses; and in an edition of the New Testament printed in 1574, a woman is spoken of as minister of a church. The society of Friends, and the Methodists, are the only Christian sects who now allow women to speak at public religious meetings.

A woman may succeed to the throne of England with the same power and privileges as a king; and the business of the state is transacted in her name, while her husband is only a subject. The king's wife is considered as a subject; but is exempted from the law which forbids any married woman to possess property in her own right during the lifetime of her husband; she may sue any person at law without joining her husband in the suit; may buy and sell lands without his interference; and she may dispose of her property by will, as if she were a single woShe cannot be fined by any court of law; but is liable to be tried and punished for crimes by peers of the realm. The queen dowager enjoys nearly the same privileges that she did before she became a widow; and if she marries a subject still continues to retain her rank and title; but such marriages cannot take place without permission from the reigning sovereign. A woman who is noble in her own right retains her title when she marries a man of inferior rank; but if ennobled by her husband, she loses the title by marrying a commoner, A peeress can only be tried by a jury of peers.

man.

In old times, a woman who was convicted of being a common mischief-maker and scold, was sentenced to the punishment of the ducking-stool; which consisted of a sort of chair fastened to a pole, in which she was seated and repeatedly let down into the water, amid the shouts of the rabble. At Newcastle-upon-Tyne, a woman convicted of the same offence was led about the streets by the hangman, with an instrument of iron bars fitted on her head, like a helmet. A piece of sharp iron entered the mouth, and severely pricked the tongue whenever the culprit attempted to move it.

A great deal of vice prevails in England, among the very fashionable, and the very low classes. Misconduct and divorces are not unfrequent among the former, because their mode of life corrupts their principles, and they deem themselves above the jurisdiction of popular opinion; the latter feel as if they were beneath the influence of public censure, and find it very difficult to be virtuous, on account of extreme poverty and the consequent obstructions in the way of mar riage. But the general character of English womer is modest, reserved, sincere, and dignified. They have strong passions and affections, which often deve lope themselves in the most beautiful forms of domestic life. They are in general remarkable for a healthy appearance, and an exquisite bloom of com plexion. Perhaps the world does not present a love. lier or more graceful picture than the English home of a virtuous family.

In modern times, no nation has produced a greater

number of truly illustrious women. Hannah More wrote as vigorously as Johnson, and with far more of Christian mildness; Maria Edgeworth, as a novelist, is second only to Sir Walter Scott; Mrs. Fry, who cheerfully left the refinements of her own home, to do good to the destitute and vicious in their prisons, deserves a statue by the side of Howard; Mrs. Somerville, notwithstanding the malicious assertion of Byron, has proved that female astronomers can look at the moon for some better purpose than to ascertain whether there be a man in it; and who is disposed to dispute lord Brougham's assertion, that Harriet Martineau, by her writings on political economy, is doing more good than any man in England?

Modern literature contains abundant satire upon the vices and follies of women; but invectives against the sex are by no means popular. Byron indeed treats them in the true Turkish style, like voluptuous goddesses, or soulless slaves, as his own caprices happen to be; but a libertine will always write thus, because (as the old chronicler said of the troubadour) "he knoweth nothing better." Cowper, and Wordsworth, and that sweet minstrel Barry Cornwall, have praised us in a purer and better spirit, and thereby left to posterity a transparent record of their own virtue.

The Irish are an extremely warm-hearted people. Their well educated women have an innocent gayety, frankness and naiveté of manner, that is extremely bewitching. As a people, they are remarkably characterized by a want of foresight, and keen enjoyment

of the present mɔment. The style of Irish beauty indicates this; being generally bright-eyed, fresh, and laughing. If a young couple were in love with each other, it would, in most cases, be in vain to remind them of their extreme poverty, with a view to inculcate maxims of worldly prudence. The answer would be, "Sure, two people eat no more when they're together, than they do when they 're separate;" and when told that they may have a great deal of trouble and hard work in rearing a family of children, they will simply reply, "Sure, that's what I've always been used to." They are distinguished for filial piety. The most nourishing food and the best seat in their cabins are always appropriated to father and mother; and the grandchildren are taught to treat them with respectful tenderness.

The ancient custom of hired mourners at funerals still prevails in some of the provinces of Ireland. Women will often join a funeral procession, and unite in the lamentations with all their powers of voice for some time, and then turn to ask, Arrah! who is it that's dead? Who are we crying for?" Those who are particularly skilful in crying are in great demand; and, as an Irishman said to Miss Edgeworth, "every one would wish and be proud to have such at his funeral, or at that of his friends."

The Irish have been great believers in fairies, concerning the existence of which they have many wild popular tales. Their literature is generally imagi native and glowing. Some of the most attractive female writers of the present day are of Irish origin.