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in return, protect her to the utmost of his power from those
external circumstances which it is his duty holdly to en-
counter. Her hair grows naturally longer, and in the
savage state she is accustomed to let it fall over the neck
and shoulders. The ancient Athenian and Lomhard
women are even said to have accompanied their husbands
to the battle-field with their hair so arranged as to imitate
the Beard. In more civilized society, various contriv-
ances are resorted to by the gentler sex for protection,
which would be utterly unsuitable to the sterner. In say-
ing this I do not include the present absurd bonnet, which
seems purposely contrived to expose rather than shield the
fair, and to excite our pity and cause us to tremble while
we cannot but admire !
Two curious exceptional cases of bearded women must
not be passed over; one, that of a female soldier in the
army of Charles XII, who was taken at the battle of Pul-
towa, where she had fought with a courage worthy of her
Beard: the other, that of Margaret of Parma, the cele-
brated Kegent of the Netherlands, who conceived that her
Beard imparted such dignity to her appearance, that she
would never allow a hair of it to be touched.
