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HISTORY OF ENGLAND.

CHAP.

III.

and faults of spelling such as a charity girl would now beashamed to commit.*

The explanation may easily be found. Extravagant licen-tiousness, the natural effect of extravagant austerity, wasnow the mode: and licentiousness had produced its ordinaryeffect, the moral and intellectual degradation of women. Totheir personal beauty, it was the fashion to pay rude and im-pudent homage. But the admiration and desire which theyinspired were seldom mingled with respect, with affection, orwith any chivalrous sentiment. The qualities which fit themto be companions, advisers, confidential friends, ratherrepelled than attracted the libertines of Whitehall. In thatcourt a maid of honour, who dressed in such a manner as todo full justice to a white bosom, who ogled significantly, whodanced voluptuously, who excelled in pert repartee, who wasnot ashamed to romp with Lords of the Bedchamber and Cap-tains of the Guards, to sing sly verses with sly expression, orto put on a page’s dress for a frolic, was more likely to befollowed and admired, more likely to be honoured with royalattentions, more likely to win a rich and noble husband thanJane Grey or Lucy Hutchinson would have been. In suchcircumstances the standard of female attainments was neces-sarily low; and it was more dangerous to be above that stand-ard than to be beneath it. Extreme ignorance and frivolitywere thought less unbecoming in a lady r than the slightesttincture of pedantry. Of the too celebrated women whosefaces we still admire on the walls of Hampton Court, few in-deed were in the habit of reading anything more valuable than

* One instance will suffice. Queen Mary had good natural abilities,had been educated by a Bishop, was fond of history and poetry, and wasregarded by very eminent men as a superior woman. There is, in thelibrary at the Hague, a superb English Bible which was delivered to herwhen she was crowned in Westminster Abbey. In the title page are thesewords in her own hand, “This book was given the King and I, at ourcrownation. Marie H."