sovereign of a great kingdom, in which she would be deemed incapable of
exercising the smallest employment, civil or military. But, as the Roman
Emperors were still considered as the generals and magistrates of the
Republic, their wives and mothers, although dignified by the name of
Augusta, were never associated to their personal honors; and a female
reign would have appeared an inexplicable prodigy in the eyes of those
primitive Romans, who married without love, or loved without delicacy or
respect."

The warlike states named republics in the Middle Ages had no woman Doge,
or Duke, although women rose to the semblance of political power with
empires and kingdoms, in Italy and Spain as well as in Germany and France,
Austria and Russia.

Let us turn to modern Europe, in which thrones have been occupied now and
again by queens. The progress of woman here, especially in Anglo-Saxon
countries, has been steady, true and inspiring. In the earliest recorded
councils of the race from which we sprang, we see freemen in full armor
casting equal votes. During the ages of feudalism, women who were land-
owners had the same rights as other nobles. They could raise soldiery,
coin money, and administer justice in both civil and criminal proceedings.
In proportion as the aristocratic power lost its hold, women were exempted
from these services and gained in moral influence. The Germanic races were
renowned for their respect for woman, and their love for home. As
constitutional liberty grew, and each Englishman's house became his castle
for defence against arbitrary power, the protection was not for himself
but for his family. A figure-head ruler in feminine attire sits on
England's throne to-day--the England that still unites its church and
state, and in which feudal customs still prevail to some extent. Widows
and spinsters who are property-owners can vote for all offices except the