The Historical Child Oscar Chrisman 1433 downloads.pdf

The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Historical Child
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and
most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions
whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms
of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at
www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you
will have to check the laws of the country where you are located
before using this eBook.

Title: The Historical Child

Author: Oscar Chrisman

Release date: August 1, 2014 [eBook #46474]
Most recently updated: October 24, 2024

Language: English

Other information and formats: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/46474

Credits: Produced by Barbara Tozier, Heike Leichsenring, Bill Tozier
and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at
http://www.pgdp.net

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE
HISTORICAL CHILD ***

THE HISTORICAL CHILD

Paidology

The Science of the Child

THE
HISTORICAL CHILD
BY

OSCAR CHRISMAN, A.M., Ph.D.
Professor of Paidology and Psychology in the Ohio University

BOSTON

RICHARD G. BADGER
THE GORHAM PRESS

Copyright, 1920, by Richard G. Badger
All Rights Reserved

Made in the United States of America

The Gorham Press, Boston, U. S. A.

TO MY WIFE

PREFACE
In the Pedagogical Seminary for December, 1893, in an article on "The
Hearing of Children," the last paragraph, page 438, occurred for the first
time in print the word paidology.1 In The Forum for February, 1894, page
728, the first article explanatory of paidology appeared. A more complete
outlining of the subject was as a doctor's dissertation at the University of
Jena, Germany, 1896. In the first edition of the Standard Dictionary was
included the word paidology, wherein it was defined as "The scientific
study of the child." Paidology originated in my mind at a very unexpected
moment one day in April, 1893.
This book is the first of a series that it is my purpose to write upon child
life. The others will follow from time to time upon the different phases of
child being. This book and the others it is hoped may appear are the
outcome of several years of study and of teaching the subject to young men
and women, which has proved to me that people are eager to know about
children in the past as well as in the present. He who wishes to acquaint
himself with children and child nature must have a knowledge of child life
as it existed among the various nations of the world. The child as found in
Ancient Mexico and Ancient Peru is given place here because the life and
doings of these peoples have always been attractive reading to me, and also
it is well to consider child life in these nations who reached such a high
stage of existence among the lower forms of human society and so far
removed from the civilizations of Asia and Europe. It is hoped there is
value in this work to the student of child nature and that young people may
find it interesting and profitable.
It will be noted that there are topics of a general nature given in this work,
which purports to be a study of child life. When it is considered that the
affairs of a nation affect every class and age of the persons constituting it
and especially react upon women, the mothers, then it may be understood
how vital these matters become in a study of child life among a people and

how necessary they are for a better comprehension of what is directly
connected with children. Too the term "child" is used here in a general
sense, to include all ages up to full manhood.
It seems to me that everything done and studied in my whole life touches
this science of the child and that every one with whom I have come in
contact has aided me. It is wished here to express in a general way my
thanks to these friends for their help. I must, though, mention by name a
few who have more directly made this book possible. First of all is
President G. Stanley Hall of Clark University, the great leader and pioneer
in the study of children, with whom I spent two years and from whom I first
obtained the right ideas of studying child life. Another is Professor Wilhelm
Rein of the University of Jena, who kindly permitted me to use paidology
as the subject for my doctor's thesis and extended the time for working on
it, thus giving me opportunity for use of material at Berlin and when
completed he endorsed the thesis, "Paidologie, Entwurf zu einer
Wissenschaft des Kindes," to the Senate of his University. A third one to
whom I am greatly indebted is Professor Rudolph Eucken of the University
of Jena, whose lectures listened to for a year gave me a broader view of life
and the sympathy he expressed for myself and work were of the utmost
encouragement and too at a time when well needed. I owe much to Prof. Dr.
W. Preyer of the University of Berlin, now deceased, who wrote me
encouragingly of my work before my going to Germany and while there he
talked over matters with me and went over the thesis when completed and
had faith in the idea I was promulgating, new at that time, that the study of
the child is a science in and of itself and for which I had originated the term
paidology, and he advised and encouraged me to make it my life study.
I must take this opportunity to express gratitude to my wife who so
willingly gave up the many things which are so dear to a woman and a
mother that there might be acquired by myself the very best education the
world could give and so make possible the coming forth of paidology and
all it may contain.
O. C.
The Ohio University.

CONTENTS
CHAPTER PAGE

PREFACE 7
I. THE CHILD IN MEXICO 15-38
The people 15
Women and marriage 16
Birth 18
Casting the nativity of the infant 19
Baptizing and naming child 19
Care and treatment of children 19
Dress 24
Food and drink 25
Lore 27
Human sacrifice 28
Slavery 30
Industries 30
Couriers 33
Amusements 33
Education 36
II. THE CHILD IN PERU 39-51
The people 39
Buildings 41
Dress 41
Food, drink, narcotics 42

Marriage 43
Care and treatment of children 44
The Virgins of the Sun 44
Human sacrifice 45
Industries 45
Training of the Inca and the Order of the Huaracu 49
Education 50
III. THE CHILD IN EGYPT 52-84
The country 52
The people 53
Slavery 54
The home 55
Women and marriage 57
Child and parent 58
Dress 59
Food and drink 62
Food and clothing of children 64
Industries 65
Sickness and death 74
Child and religion 76
Amusements 76
Games, plays, and toys 81
Education 82
IV. THE CHILD IN INDIA 85-103
Caste 85
Women and marriage 85
Boys and girls 96

Infanticide 97
Dress 98
Amusements 98
Rites 99
Adoption 99
Inheritance 100
Education 100
V. THE CHILD IN CHINA 104-129
Women and marriage 104
Infancy 112
Boys and girls 115
Child and parent 116
Deformation of the feet 117
Amusements 118
Dress 121
Religion 122
Education 123
VI. THE CHILD IN JAPAN 130-160
Women 130
Marriage 134
The mother's memorial 138
Dress 140
Regulations 140
The care of children 143
Naming children 145
Carrying children 145
Adoption and inheritance 145

Power and duty of father 146
Amusements 146
Lore 152
Religion 155
Suicide 155
Work 156
Education 157
VII. THE CHILD IN PERSIA 161-166
Characteristics 161
Women and marriage 161
Dress 163
Child and parent 163
Inheritance 163
Amusements 164
Education 164
VIII. THE CHILD IN JUDEA 167-176
Historical 167
Women and marriage 167
Care and treatment of children 170
Duties of children 171
Dress 171
Amusements 173
Education 173
IX. THE CHILD IN GREECE 177-211
Physical characteristics 177
The people 177
The home 178

Girls and women 178
Marriage 182
Dress 186
Food 190
Child and parent 191
Care of children 191
Infanticide 193
Duties of children 194
Adoption and inheritance 194
Toys and playthings 194
Games and plays 195
Sports and festivals 197
Other amusements 199
Sickness and death 201
Religion 202
Education 203
X. THE CHILD IN ROME 212-263
Characteristics 212
The people 213
Slavery 214
The home 215
Women 218
Marriage 224
Dress 231
Food 237
Child and parent 238
Names 239

Care and treatment of children 239
Citizenship 240
Inheritance 241
Adoption 242
Sickness and death 243
Industries 246
The spectacles 249
Other amusements 253
The bath 254
Games and plays 254
Religion 255
Vestal Virgins 255
Education 257
XI. THE CHILD IN EARLIER AND MEDIEVAL
EUROPE 264-312
Historical and critical 264
Feudalism 265
The feudal castle and its life 267
Chivalry 268
The peasantry 271
The town people 273
The aristocracy 275
The home 276
Women 277
Marriage 279
Dress 282
Food 285
Children of the ancient Britons 287

Children among the early Christians 289
Child and parent 289
Care and treatment of children 290
Apprenticeship 290
Military training for the young 291
Amusements 292
Education 296
The children's crusade 302
Other child-pilgrimages 310
XII. THE CHILD IN EARLIER UNITED STATES 313-455
Customs relating to land 313
The people 314
Slavery 316
Servants 318
The home 322
Women 334
Marriage 336
Dress 348
Infants' clothing 359
Boys' clothing 360
Girls' clothing 361
Food 364
Drink 369
Food and drink of children 374
Infancy 376
Number and names of children 379
Child welfare 380

Manners and courtesy of children 382
Diary of a Boston school girl of 1771 384
Inheritance 388
Sickness and death 389
The illness of children 396
Amusements 398
Games and sports of children and young people 407
Children's toys and story books 412
Holidays and festivals 413
Public punishments 416
Manufactures 421
Boys' work and manufactures 422
Girls' and women's work 423
Religion 428
The child and religion 438
Education 442
INDEX 457

THE HISTORICAL CHILD

CHAPTER I
THE CHILD IN MEXICO
The People. When the Spaniards entered Mexico, in the sixteenth century,
and conquered it, they found the ruling people to be the Aztecs and whose
capital city, Tenochtitlan (Mexico City), was on an island in the lake of
Tezcoco. The Aztecs were not the first inhabitants of Mexico as they had
entered the country some five hundred years before the Spanish conquest
and through alliances and conquests had become the ruling power about a
century before the appearance of the Spaniards. The people whom the
Aztecs found when they entered Mexico told them of a great people who
had lived before their time and the ruins of whose great buildings remained
and still exist to the present day and who were designated the Toltecs. It has
been claimed for the Toltecs a very high state of civilization, much in
advance of the Aztecs, and some even holding that it really equaled the
civilization of the present time.
Mexico at the time of the conquest by the Spaniards was a monarchy, in
which the king stood supreme as he was a priest of their great god,
commander-in-chief of the military forces, and supreme judge. The throne,
however, was not hereditary, as upon a vacancy a ruler was selected by four
officers appointed for that purpose by the nobles and principal officials of
the kingdom. The king was usually taken from the ruling family and might
have been a brother of the late ruler or a nephew belonging to an elder
branch. The office-holders were usually appointed for life and at their death
the vacancies were filled by appointment by the king. The people were
divided into classes. The highest class was a landed aristocracy, who paid
no definite taxes but owed service to the king; a second class, who ranked
with the landed aristocracy, was a military nobility who held land at the
king's goodwill; the next class embraced the freemen, who held land in
common and paid taxes in common; below these were a class of freemen
who rented the lands of the lord and made payment to him for the same; and

the lowest of all were the serfs, who were bound to the soil. They
maintained a military system and made war upon neighboring tribes; at the
time of the coming of the Spaniards this seemed to have been carried on
mostly for the purpose of securing captives for the human sacrifices
demanded by their religion. They had an elaborate and efficient judicial
system and the laws seem to have been justly administered to all alike,
whether the ones before the courts were of higher rank or of the common
people.
Women and Marriage. The women were described by the Spaniards as
being pretty, with long black hair, and with a serious and rather melancholy
cast of countenance. It would appear that they were treated with much
consideration by the men who permitted them to engage in festivities and
entertainments equally with themselves.
Marriage was an important institution with the Mexicans and it was held
in such high esteem that there was a tribunal appointed for the sole purpose
of attending to matters relating to it. The customary age with men for
marriage was about twenty, women marrying at a younger age. When a
young man reached this age it became his duty to marry and sometimes the
high priest commanded it of him. The selection of the bride was made by
the parents and if a young man refused to abide by his parents' decision and
made his own choice, he was looked upon as being quite ungrateful to his
parents. Should he refuse to marry, it was his duty to remain continent
through his life and devote himself to the service of the gods. Should he
afterward decide to marry, he was despised by his friends and publicly
denounced for not keeping his vow to the gods and no respectable woman
would marry him.
When the parents had decided it was time for their son to marry, all the
relatives were called together and a feast given at which the father
announced to them that the son was of proper age to be married. The son
was then informed that his parents were about to select a bride for him, to
which the young man gave consent. Then they called in the priests under
whom the young man had received his education and their permission was
obtained and one of the priests addressed the young man with advice for the
occasion. The next step was to ascertain the day and sign of the young

man's birth and also the birthday and sign of the young woman, which was
obtained through astrologers or soothsayers. If the horoscopes of both were
favorable and showed that the union would have good fortune all was well;
if not, another girl had to be selected. If the augurs were favorable to the
union, two discreet and virtuous elderly women were called in as go-
betweens. These women were given their directions and they called upon
the parents of the bride and after a second visit preliminaries were arranged.
The parents of the girl then called in the relatives and friends and informed
them of the affair and the girl was given much advice by them. Then their
decision was sent to the parents of the young man. A favorable day for the
marriage was found by the augurs and both families made preparations for
the day of marriage and sent out invitations to relatives and friends. On the
day set for the marriage the relatives and friends of the bride went to her
home as did also some of the bridegroom's relatives and friends and in
procession escorted her to his home, where the best room in the house had
been fitted up for the occasion and the house festooned with green branches
and garlands of flowers. The bridegroom met the bride at the entrance to his
home and took her by the hand and led her into the room for the ceremony.
They were then seated upon a special mat, the woman at the left of the man.
The mother of the bridegroom gave presents to the bride and the mother of
the bride gave presents to the bridegroom. Then the priest made a long talk
to the couple, defining their duties to one another and toward the married
state. The couple then arose and the priest tied the end of the man's mantle
to the dress of the woman. A feast was then partaken of but in which the
couple did not participate as they were required to spend four days in
fasting and prayer in the room, closely guarded by old women. Upon the
fourth night two priests prepared a couch of two mats and the young people
were left to themselves. The next day they underwent a baptismal ceremony
and they were adorned with new apparel and some more advice was given
them by the mothers-in-law or nearest relatives, another feast was given of
which they partook, and the marriage ceremony was then fully completed.
Cousins were allowed to marry but not nearer relatives. As a rule a widow
was not permitted to remarry except a brother of her deceased husband and
in case she had children by the first marriage, then it was the duty of the
brother-in-law to marry her that the children might not be without the care

and protection of a father. Divorce was allowed but only after a careful
hearing by the tribunal on marriage, and when a divorce was granted the
couple could not under any circumstances be reunited. Concubinage was
practiced and it might occur even with young people under marriageable
age upon the consent of the parents. In this there was no contract or
ceremony, the two simply living together. In case a child was born to them a
marriage was performed or else the woman returned to her parents' house,
taking the child with her which was then considered as belonging to her
parents. This was not considered dishonorable on the part of the girl nor
were her chances for marriage in any degree lessened by her having thus
lived in a state of concubinage. Polygamy was permitted but perhaps it was
not greatly indulged in and it was chiefly among the wealthiest people. The
necessity for monogamy seemed to be understood, as a record is given of a
father counselling his son that for the proper perpetuation of the race but
one man is ordained but for one woman.

Birth.

As soon as a woman was found to be pregnant the relatives and friends
were informed of it and a feast was prepared, to which all were invited who
had been present at the wedding. Speeches of congratulations and of
admonition were made to the future parents. During the period before the
birth of the child, the mother was careful and she observed many rules.
"Thus, sleeping in the daytime would contort the child's face; approaching
too near the fire or standing in the hot sun would parch the fœtus; hard and
continued work, lifting weights, running, mental excitement, such as grief,
anger, or alarm, were particularly avoided; in case of an earthquake all the
pots in the house were covered up or broken to stop the shaking; eating
tzictli, or chicle, was thought to harden the palate of the unborn child, and to
make its gums thick so that it would be unable to suck, and also to
communicate to it a disease called netentzzoponiztli; neither must the edible
earth, of which, as we shall see in a future chapter, the Mexicans were very
fond, be eaten by the mother, lest the child should prove weak and sickly;
but everything else the woman fancied was to be given her, because any
interference with her caprices might be hurtful to her offspring."2 When the
time of confinement drew near another feast was given and speeches and
suggestions were made. Among the higher classes a midwife was procured
and careful preparation was made for the confinement. A woman dying in
childbirth was honored by a burial with great ceremony. When the child
was born, there was rejoicing with praises to the mother and congratulations
to parents and grandparents, and even the child itself was spoken to in
welcoming words by the midwife as it was being dressed.
Casting the Nativity of the Infant. Astrology was held in high esteem by
the Mexicans and it was used to decide the fortune of the infant. On the
birth of a child the astrologer was summoned and upon being told the time
of the event he cast the horoscope of the infant. If the augury was favorable
he told of the great fortune coming to the child and of the honors and
happiness to fall upon him. Should the augury prove unfavorable, it was

made less severe by the horoscopist who found accompanying signs that
helped allay the evil coming from the bad omens.
Baptizing and Naming the Child. The rite of baptism was early
performed upon the child, at which time it was given a name. The house
was decorated with branches and flowers, a feast was prepared, and
relatives and friends invited. Miniature weapons were used, if a boy, to
show that he was born a warrior, and, if a girl, small weaving utensils as
symbols of her future calling of housewife. The child, if a boy, was usually
named from the sign of the day or a bird or animal, and, if a girl, was
named from a flower. Sometimes a child took its name from some
important event which occurred at the time of its birth. A solemn invocation
to the gods was made, after which the head and lips of the infant were
touched with water, the name was given to it, and then it was lifted up to
heaven and a prayer of blessing said over it.
Care and Treatment of Children. Upon the arrival of a child into a
family, friends and neighbors congratulated them upon such, for it was
deemed quite a blessing. Although children were welcomed, yet the
discipline of younger children was rather severe and children were taught to
reverence and obey their parents and superiors. Both boys and girls were
carefully reared by the best parents.
The following admonitions of a father to his son show how greatly these
ancient Mexicans would have their children observe a right living:—
"My son, who art come into this light from the womb of thy mother, like
the chicken from the egg, and like it, art preparing to fly through the world,
we know not how long heaven will grant to us the enjoyment of that
precious gem which we possess in thee; but, however short is the period,
endeavor to live exactly, praying God continually to assist thee. He created
thee; thou art His property. He is thy Father, and loves thee still more than I
do; repose in Him thy thoughts, and day and night direct thy sighs to Him.
Reverence and salute thy elders, and hold no one in contempt. To the poor
and the distressed be not dumb, but rather use words of comfort. Honor all
persons, particularly thy parents, to whom thou owest obedience, respect,
service. Guard against imitating the example of those wicked sons who, like
brutes, that are deprived of reason, neither reverence their parents, listen to

their instruction, nor submit to their correction; because, whoever follows
their steps will have an unhappy end, will die in a desperate or sudden
manner, or will be killed and devoured by wild beasts....
"When any one discourses with thee, hear him attentively, and hold thyself
in an easy attitude, neither playing with thy feet, nor putting thy mantle to
thy mouth, nor spitting too often, nor looking about you here and there, nor
rising up frequently if thou art sitting; for such actions are indications of
levity and low breeding.
"When thou art at table do not eat voraciously, nor show thy displeasure if
anything displeases thee. If any one comes unexpectedly to dinner with
thee, share with him what thou hast; and when any person is entertained by
thee, do not fix thy looks upon him.
"In walking, look where thou goest, that thou mayest not push against any
one. If thou seest another coming thy way, go a little aside to give him room
to pass. Never step before thy elders, unless it be necessary, or that they
order thee to do so. When thou sittest at table with them, do not eat or drink
before them, but attend to them in a becoming manner, that thou mayest
merit their favor.
"When they give thee anything, accept it with tokens of gratitude; if the
present is great, do not become vain or fond of it. If the gift is small, do not
despise it, nor be provoked, nor occasion displeasure to them who favor
thee. If thou becomest rich, do not grow insolent nor scorn the poor; for
those very gods who deny riches to others in order to give them to thee,
offended by thy pride, will take them from thee again to give to others.
"Support thyself by thy own labors; for then thy food will be sweeter. I,
my son, have supported thee hitherto with my sweat, and have omitted no
duty of a father; I have provided thee with everything necessary, without
taking it from others. Do thou so likewise....
"Stay no longer than is necessary in the market-place; for in such places
there is the greatest danger of contracting vices.
"When thou art offered an employment, imagine that the proposal is made
to try thee; then accept it not hastily, although thou knowest thyself more fit

than others to exercise it; but excuse thyself until thou art obliged to accept
it; thus thou wilt be more esteemed.
"Be not dissolute; because thou wilt thereby incense the gods, and they
will cover thee with infamy. Restrain thyself, my son, as thou are yet young,
and wait until the girl whom the gods destine for thy wife arrives at a
suitable age; leave that to their care, as they know how to order these things
properly. When the time for thy marriage is come, dare not to make it
without the consent of thy parents, otherwise it will have an unhappy issue.
"Steal not nor give thyself up to gaming; otherwise, thou wilt be a disgrace
to thy parents, whom thou ought rather to honor for the education they have
given to thee. If thou wilt be virtuous, thy example will put the wicked to
shame. No more, my son, enough hath been said in discharge of the duties
of a father. With these counsels I wish to fortify thy mind. Refuse them not,
nor act in contradiction to them; for on them thy life and thy happiness
depend."3
The girl was not degraded among the Mexicans, and she was treated with
tenderness and love. How well cared for was the girl is attested by the
following advice of an Aztec mother to her daughter:—
"My daughter, born of my substance, brought forth with my pains, and
nourished with my milk, I have endeavored to bring thee up with the
greatest possible care, and thy father has wrought and polished thee like an
emerald, that thou mayest appear in the eyes of men a jewel of virtue. Strive
always to be good; for otherwise who will have thee for a wife? Thou wilt
be rejected by every one. Life is a thorny, laborious path, and it is necessary
to exert all our powers to obtain the goods which the gods are willing to
yield to us; we must not therefore be lazy or negligent, but diligent in
everything. Be orderly and take pains to manage the economy of thy house.
Give water to thy husband for his hands, and make bread for thy family.
Wherever thou goest, go with modesty and composure, without hurrying
thy steps, or laughing with those whom thou meetest, neither fixing thy
looks upon them nor casting thy eyes thoughtlessly, first to one side and
then to another, that thy reputation may not be sullied; but give a courteous
answer to those who salute and put any question to thee.

"Employ thyself diligently in spinning and weaving, in sewing and
embroidering; for by these arts thou wilt gain esteem, and all the
necessaries of food and clothing. Do not give thyself too much to sleep, nor
seek the shade, but go in the open air and there repose thyself, for
effeminacy brings along with it idleness and other vices.
"In whatever thou doest encourage not evil thoughts but attend solely to
the service of the gods, and the giving comfort to thy parents. If thy father
or thy mother calls thee, do not stay to be called twice; but go instantly to
know their pleasure, that thou mayest not disoblige them by slowness.
Return no insolent answers, nor show any want of compliance; but if thou
canst not do what they command, make a modest excuse. If another is
called and does not come quickly, come thou, hear what is ordered, and do
it well. Never offer thyself to do that which thou canst not do. Deceive no
person; for the gods see all thy actions. Live in peace with everybody, and
love everyone sincerely and honestly, that thou mayest be loved by them in
return.
"Be not greedy of the goods which thou hast. If thou seest anything
presented to another, give way to no mean suspicions; for the gods, to
whom every good belongs, distribute everything as they please. If thou
wouldst avoid the displeasure of others, let none meet with it from thee.
"Guard against improper familiarities with men; nor yield to the guilty
wishes of thy heart; or thou wilt be the reproach of thy family, and wilt
pollute thy mind as mud does water. Keep not company with dissolute,
lying, or idle women; otherwise they will infallibly infect thee by their
example. Attend upon thy family, and do not go on slight occasions out of
thy house, nor be seen wandering through the streets, or in the market-
place; for in such places thou wilt meet thy ruin. Remember that vice, like a
poisonous herb, brings death to those who taste it; and when it once harbors
in the mind it is difficult to dispel it. If in passing through the streets thou
meetest with a froward youth who appears agreeable to thee, give him no
correspondence, but dissemble and pass on. If he says anything to thee, take
no heed of him nor his words; and if he follows thee, turn not your face
about to look at him, lest that might inflame his passion more. If thou
behavest so, he will soon turn and let thee proceed in peace.

"Enter not without some urgent motive into another's house, that nothing
may be either said or thought injurious to thy honor, but if thou enterest into
the house of thy relations, salute them with respect and do not remain idle,
but immediately take up a spindle to spin or do any other thing that occurs.
"When thou art married, respect thy husband, obey him, and diligently do
what he commands thee. Avoid incurring his displeasure, nor show thyself
passionate or ill-natured; but receive him fondly to thy arms, even if he is
poor and lives at thy expense. If thy husband occasions thee any disgust, let
him not know thy displeasure when he commands thee to do anything; but
dissemble it at that time, and afterwards tell him with great gentleness what
vexed thee, that he may be won by thy mildness and offend thee no farther.
Dishonor him not before others; for thou also wouldst be dishonored. If any
one comes to visit thy husband, accept the visit kindly, and show all the
civility thou canst. If thy husband is foolish, be thou discreet. If he fails in
the management of wealth admonish him of his failings; but if he is totally
incapable of taking care of his estate, take that charge upon thyself, attend
carefully to his possessions and never omit to pay the workmen punctually.
Take care not to lose anything through negligence.
"Embrace, my daughter, the counsel which I give thee. I am already
advanced in life, and have had sufficient dealings with the world. I am thy
mother. I wish that thou mayest live well. Fix my precepts in thy heart and
bowels, for then thou wilt live happy. If by not listening to me, or by
neglecting my instructions, any misfortunes befall thee, the fault will be
thine and the evil also. Enough, my child. May the gods prosper thee."4
Dress. The men wore a long broad girdle or sash with the ends hanging
down before and behind, which sash often was figured and the ends fringed
or tasseled. They also wore a cloak or mantle, which was thrown over the
shoulders and tied around the neck. The women wore a short tunic, usually
without sleeves, and with it a short skirt under which they would wear
another skirt of longer length, these skirts often being embroidered and
ornamented. Over tunic and skirt they would wear a long loose robe, which
might have at its upper part a hood attached, for wearing over the head. The
material first used for clothing was of skins and later of maguey and cotton.
Mantles of fur and of feather-work were also worn in cooler weather by

both men and women. They wore sandals made of deer and other skins and
also of nequen and cotton.
The ordinary way of wearing the hair was to cut it short on the forehead
and temples and let it grow at the back. Unmarried girls wore their hair
loose, while the virgins who served in the temple had their hair cut short. In
some parts the heads of the children were shaved, with a tuft left behind.
Women after marriage on becoming mothers would sometimes let their hair
grow on all parts and arrange it on the head; one way was to plait it and
cross it on the forehead, another way was to braid it and ornament it with
flowers. Also, sometimes the women would use a dye made of herbs on
their hair, which gave it a violet shade.
The women used paint on their faces, one fashion was to paint the face
yellow and with a pottery stamp impress a pattern of red upon the cheeks.
They painted the teeth with cochineal and also they painted the hands, neck,
and breast. Among some peoples the women had their arms and breasts
tattooed, incisions being made with a sharp instrument and a blue color
inserted. Ornaments were worn by the men, women, and children, and by
all classes of people. The higher classes used gold and gems, while people
of the lower classes used shell and obsidian. There were a great variety of
ornaments made for the arms and neck and attached to garments. Rings
were worn on the fingers and rings and plugs in the ears. There also were
rings and plugs for the nose and plugs for the lips, although it would appear
that these were not so much in use as were the other ornaments. "There
existed very stringent laws regarding the class of ornaments which the
different classes of people were allowed to wear, and it was prohibited, on
pain of death, for a subject to use the same dress or ornaments as the king."5
Food and Drink. There was quite a variety of foodstuffs in Mexico.
Maize was the principal product but also there was great use made of other
grain, yams, and beans, and there were fruits, as the banana and plantain.
Their supply of meat was obtained very greatly from the game animals,
among which were deer, wild hogs, rabbits, quails, pigeons, ducks, turkeys,
and geese. Turkeys, ducks, and geese were domesticated, having been
raised for their feathers as well as for food. Fish was another important

article of food and both salt water and fresh water varieties were procured
in abundance.
"Miscellaneous articles of food, not already spoken of, were axayacatl,
flies of the Mexican lakes, dried, ground, boiled, and eaten in the form of
cakes; ahuauhtli, the eggs of the same fly, a kind of native caviar; many
kinds of insects, ants, maguey-worms, and even lice; tecuitlatl, 'excrement
of stone,' a slime that was gathered on the surface of the lakes, and dried till
it resembled cheese; eggs of turkeys, iguanas, and turtles, roasted, boiled,
and in omelettes; various reptiles, frogs, and frog-spawn; shrimps, sardines,
and crabs; corn-silk, wild-amaranth seeds, cherry-stones, tule-roots, and
very many other articles inexpressible; yucca flour, potoyucca, tunas; honey
from maize, from bees, and from the maguey; and roasted portions of the
maguey stalks and leaves."6
There were three meals a day, morning, noon, and night, and among the
higher class, at least, banquets and feasts were quite numerous. The food
was cooked and eaten from pots, bowls, and dishes of pottery. Maize, when
green, was boiled and eaten, as roasting-ears with us now, and when dry it
was sometimes parched or roasted. It was usually ground into meal and
prepared in the form of cakes. To prepare the meal, the grain was thrown
into boiling water, in which, lime had been placed, and then the hull was
removed. It was then washed and ground on grinding-stones, called metlatl,
and then kneaded and rolled into cakes and baked, there having been many
kinds of cakes. The meal was also boiled and made into porridge or gruel.
Beans were boiled when green and also when dry. Meats were stewed,
boiled, and roasted. Pepper was quite freely used, as was also salt. Fruits
were eaten raw, although some, as the plantain and banana, were roasted
and stewed.
There were two national drinks, octli and chocolatl, now known as pulque
and chocolate, the first an intoxicant made from the maguey and the second
from the cacao. There were other fermented drinks prepared from grain, and
a kind of mushroom was used to put into drinks to make them more
intoxicating. Intoxication was excusable in older people but the young
people were severely punished for it and even in case of intemperance death

was the punishment paid to the young while with the older persons only
loss of rank and property was the punishment.
Tobacco was used by the Mexicans, having been smoked in pipes or in the
form of cigars, and also it was made into snuff and used. "A kind of
chewing-gum was prepared from resin or bitumen, though its use, at any
rate in public, was confined by custom to unmarried girls."7
Human flesh also was eaten. This was not used as a common food but as a
religious rite. The sacrifice was made on an elevated place and after the
victim's heart was taken out as an offering to the gods, and if a warrior his
head was taken off to be preserved as a trophy, the body was then cast down
the steps and taken by minor priests and prepared for the table as other
animals. A thigh was sent to the king's palace and the remainder was taken
to the home of the warrior who captured the victim or if a slave to the house
of the owner, who had the human flesh prepared with other dishes and
served up in an entertainment to his friends. "This was not the coarse repast
of famished cannibals, but a banquet teeming with delicious beverages and
delicate viands, prepared with art, and attended by both sexes, who, as we
shall see hereafter, conducted themselves with all the decorum of civilized
life."8
Although the eating of human flesh by the ancient Mexicans was not
merely to satisfy the appetite for such food but in obedience to religion, yet
there must have been quite a good deal of partaking of it as the number of
human sacrifices each year was very great. Too, must be kept in view, the
sacrifices included men and women, quite often young people, and likewise
children, even infants. One peculiar custom was that the giver of the feast
where the body of a human sacrifice was served did not partake of the flesh
of his own captive, having been disbarred from this because he was
supposed to stand to the victim in the relation of father to son.
Lore. "Various portents were drawn from the animal world; the cries of
beasts of prey at night were supposed to forebode disaster to those who
heard them, and the voices of certain birds were believed equally unlucky.
The owl, so closely associated with Mictlantecutli, was especially regarded
as the harbinger of ill-fortune and death, and if one of these birds perched
upon the house of a sick man his demise was considered certain. It was held

unlucky to encounter a skunk or a weasel, and the entry into the house of a
rabbit or a troop of ants foreboded bad luck. If a certain kind of spider was
found in the house, the owner traced a cross upon the ground, at the center
of which he placed the insect. If it went towards the north, the direction of
the underworld, it was regarded as a sign of death for the observer, any
other direction foretelling misfortune of minor importance.
"Besides these superstitions there were a whole host of popular beliefs, of
which only a few can be given here. Many of these were connected with
food; it was customary to blow upon maize before putting it in the cooking-
pot, to 'give it courage,' and it was believed that if a person neglected to
pick up maize-grains lying on the ground they called out to heaven to
punish the omission. If two brothers were drinking, and the younger drank
first, it was thought that the elder would cease to grow; and it was also
believed that the growth of a child was stopped by stepping over it when
seated or lying down, but that the effect could be averted by stepping back
again. Young girls were not allowed to eat standing, for it was believed they
would fail to get husbands, and children were prevented from licking the
grindstone for fear they would lose their teeth. When a child lost one of its
first teeth, the father or mother placed the tooth in a mouse-hole, a
proceeding which was supposed to ensure the growth of the second tooth;
and all nail-parings were thrown into the water in the hope that the auitzotl,
a mythical water-animal which was believed to eat them, would make the
nails grow. Sneezing was thought to be a sign that evil was being spoken of
the sneezer, and there was a peculiar belief that the perfume of the flowers
which were carried at banquets and in ceremonial dances might only be
inhaled from the edges of the bouquet, since the center belonged to the god
Tezcatlipoca."9
Human Sacrifice. The sad and degrading side of the Aztec civilization
was that of human sacrifice. The number of sacrifices was very great,
estimated from twenty to fifty thousand annually, and on one occasion
alone, the dedication of a great temple, no less than seventy thousand
human beings were sacrificed to the gods. The great object of war, along
with the desire for the extension of the kingdom, was to obtain victims for
the sacrifices and hence an enemy was never slain in battle if there was a
chance of taking him alive. Mostly the victims were prisoners of war but

slaves also were used as sacrifices. Sometimes they offered up children,
generally infants, who were obtained by the priests, purchased from
poverty-stricken parents, who, perhaps, gave their children as much from a
sense of religious duty as for money. These children were dressed in
beautiful garments, and adorned with flowers. They were then carried in
procession of chanting priests through the city to the place of sacrifice. The
cries they uttered were not heard because of the chants of the priests, and
the tears they shed were favorable omens.
These sacrifices were so conducted as to exhibit something of prominence
relating to the deity being worshipped. The following illustrates this:—
"One of their most important festivals was that in honor of their god
Tezcatlipoca, whose rank was inferior only to that of the Supreme Being.
He was called 'the soul of the world,' and supposed to have been its creator.
He was depicted as a handsome man, endowed with perpetual youth. A year
before the intended sacrifice, a captive, distinguished for his personal
beauty, and without a blemish on his body, was selected to represent this
deity. Certain tutors took charge of him, and instructed him how to perform
his new part with becoming grace and dignity. He was arrayed in a splendid
dress, regaled with incense and with a profusion of sweet-scented flowers,
of which the ancient Mexicans were as fond as their descendants of the
present day. When he went abroad, he was attended by a train of royal
pages, and, as he halted in the streets to play some favorite melody, the
crowd prostrated themselves before him, and did him homage as the
representative of their good deity. In this way he led an easy, luxurious life,
till within a month of his sacrifice. Four beautiful girls, bearing the names
of the principal goddesses, were then selected to share the honors of his
bed; and with them he continued to live in idle dalliance, feasted at the
banquets of the principal nobles, who paid him all the honors of a divinity.
"At length the fatal day of sacrifice arrived. The term of his short-lived
glories was at an end. He was stripped of his gaudy apparel, and bade adieu
to the fair partners of his revelries. One of the royal barges transported him
across the lake to a temple which rose on its margin, about a league from
the city. Hither the inhabitants of the capital flocked, to witness the
consummation of the ceremony. As the sad procession wound up the sides

of the pyramid, the unhappy victim threw away his gay chaplets of flowers,
and broke in pieces the musical instruments with which he had solaced the
hours of captivity. On the summit he was received by six priests, whose
long and matted locks flowed disorderly over their sable robes, covered
with hieroglyphic scrolls of mystic import. They led him to the sacrificial
stone, a huge block of jasper, with its upper surface somewhat convex. On
this the prisoner was stretched. Five priests secured his head and his limbs;
while the sixth, clad in a scarlet mantle, emblematic of his bloody office,
dexterously opened the breast of the wretched victim with a sharp razor of
itztli—a volcanic substance, hard as flint,—and, inserting his hand into the
wound, tore out the palpitating heart. The minister of death, first holding
this up toward the sun, an object of worship throughout Anahuac, cast it at
the feet of the deity to whom the temple was devoted, while the multitudes
below prostrated themselves in humble adoration. The tragic story of this
prisoner was expounded by the priests as the type of human destiny, which,
brilliant in its commencement, too often closes in sorrow and disaster."10
Slavery. Slavery existed, the slaves having been criminals, prisoners of
war, public debtors, persons who sold themselves into slavery, and children.
Slavery was never the birthright of any child born in ancient Mexico.
Children born to a slave were free. Yet children could be sold into slavery
and were often sold by their parents, mostly on account of poverty. There
was one peculiar thing in slavery here. With the consent of the master the
parents could substitute a younger child as it grew up for an older one sold
into slavery, which substitution could go on down to the youngest child.
Slavery must have been rather mild, as in the presence of four witnesses the
precise services were prescribed when a child was sold, and a slave could
have a family and even hold other slaves, and, as was stated, all his children
were born free, the worst feature having been that slaves were liable to be
sacrificed.
Industries. Agriculture was in quite an advanced stage in ancient Mexico.
Unlike in other parts of North America, the men engaged in the work,
performed such labor as preparing the fields, planting, and reaping, while
the women helped in scattering the grain, weeding, and winnowing. They
had no useful domesticated animals, so that the people carried on all the
kinds of farm work and the implements were simple, as, the hoe, spade, and

basket. They fertilized the soil, let it recover from exhaustion by lying
fallow, irrigated by means of canals, surrounded the fields by adobe walls
and aloe hedges, and built granaries in which to store the harvests.
They mined silver, lead, tin, and copper. Gold was obtained in the form of
nuggets on the surface of the ground or from the sand in the beds of rivers.
They also got quicksilver, sulphur, alum, ocher, and other minerals which
were used in making colors and for other purposes. Although there was an
abundance of iron, it was not mined or used. They made tools of copper,
hardened with tin. Most of the instruments, however, were of stone, such as
axes and hammers. From obsidian, a kind of volcanic glass, by means of
pressure they detached long flakes having a razor-like edge, which they
used for making knives, razors, lancets, swords, arrow-heads, and spear-
heads. They quarried stone from the hills and mountains and often
transported large blocks for long distances and erected great buildings.
The caste-system did not exist in Mexico but it was a custom, usually
observed, for the son to learn the trade of his father. Trades were highly
esteemed among them, being learned even by the nobles. A particular part
of the city was given over to a particular trade, which had its own
distinctive mark, something like a guild, having its own god, festivals, and
the like. The high standing of the trades is shown by this advice given by an
aged chief to his son: "Apply thyself, my son, to agriculture, or to feather-
work, or some other honorable calling. Thus did your ancestors before you.
Else how would they have provided for themselves and their families?
Never was it heard that nobility alone was able to maintain its possessor."11
Among the manufactures were cloths made of cotton, maguey fiber, rabbit
hair, fiber of palm-leaves, and also the cotton was mixed with the rabbit hair
and with feathers in making a very fine kind of cloth. The cloths were dyed
in different colors as they obtained a number of dyes from both vegetable
and mineral substances, probably even excelling the Europeans in the art of
dyeing. They tanned the skins of animals both with and without the hair.
The making of mats and baskets was an important industry. Paper was made
from maguey fiber, sometimes this was mixed with fiber from some other
plants. Wood was used in making household furniture and farming
implements and they also made cups and vases of lacquered wood. In the

working of gold and silver they had reached a high degree of perfection,
making most beautiful ornaments, which, in many instances, were superior
to the work done in Europe. They were quite skillful in the use of feathers.
Feathers were mixed with cotton and with other fiber for the making of
clothing, tapestry, carpets, and bed-coverings. Feathers were used as
ornaments and decorations, sometimes having been tipped with gold and set
in precious stones, most beautiful fans were made in this way. The work
with feathers they most excelled in was what has been called feather-
mosaic, in which beautiful designs were worked out and colors
harmoniously blended by the skillfully pasting of feathers on to cloth. For
temporary use, as for decorations on the occasions of special festivals, they
made designs with leaves and flowers similar to the feather-work. They
were quite skillful in working precious stones, making most beautiful
ornaments from the stones found in the country, emeralds, amethysts, and
turquoises being the most abundant. Pearls and bright colored shells were
used with the stones in the formation of necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and
other ornaments. "Mirrors of rock crystal, obsidian, and other stones,
brightly polished and encased in rich frames, were said to reflect the human
face as clearly as the best of European manufacture."12
The making of pottery was one of the leading industries, which products
ran from coarse undecorated vessels to quite fine ware of various colors and
highly ornamented. "The quality of the potting varies considerably
according to locality, but the finer examples, such as the ware from Cholula
and the Totonac district exhibit a very high standard of paste, form and
technique, though the potters of this region of America cannot boast such
consummate mastery over their material as the early inhabitants of the
Peruvian coast."13
The agricultural and industrial products were not only used where
produced but also carried to the different provinces and even to other
countries by traders, which occupation was highly respected in Mexico.
They took with them the products of their own country and brought back
the products of other countries. These traders not only engaged in trade but
also acted as spies for the king and brought to him much information
concerning the places visited by them. The products of the country and

those brought in from outside by the traders were displayed for sale in the
great market-places of the principal cities. "The great market in Tlaltelolco
moved the wonder of the conquerors; it is described as being three times as
large as that of Salamanca, and one estimate places the daily attendance at
twenty or twenty-five thousand persons. One of the conquerors gives the
following picture of it. 'On one side are the people who sell gold; near them
are they who trade in jewels mounted in gold in the forms of birds and
animals. On another side beads and mirrors are sold, on another, feathers
and plumes of all colors for working designs on garments, and to wear in
war or at festivals. Further on stone is worked to make razors and swords, a
remarkable thing which passes our understanding; of it they manufacture
swords and roundels. In other places they sell cloth and men's dresses of
different designs; beyond, dresses for women, and in another part footgear.
A section is reserved for the sale of prepared hides of deer and other
animals; elsewhere are baskets made of hair, such as all Indian women use.
Cotton, grain which forms their food, bread of all kinds, pastry, fowls, and
eggs are sold in different sections; and hard by they sell hares, rabbits, deer,
quails, geese and ducks. Elsewhere wines of all sorts are for sale,
vegetables, pepper, roots, medicinal plants, which are very numerous in this
country, fruits of all kinds, wood for building, lime and stone. In fact, each
object has its appointed place. Beside this great market-place there are in
other quarters other markets also where provisions may be bought.' Special
magistrates held courts in the market-places to settle disputes on the spot,
and there were market officials similar to our inspectors of weights and
measures. Falsification of the latter was visited with severe punishment."14
Couriers. The means of communication between different parts of the
country was by couriers, who were trained for this purpose from childhood.
One courier would carry his messages from one post-house to another,
where another courier would take them and carry them to the next post-
house, and so on. These couriers were so well trained from childhood that
they traveled with remarkable speed, so that as much as two hundred miles
a day would be covered by the chain of carriers.
Amusements. Feasts were of common occurrence and were given by
people of all ranks of society. Each man vied with the other in giving
banquets and it often happened that the host ruined himself financially by

his hospitality, as it was the custom to distribute costly presents among the
guests, and some went so far as to have sold themselves into slavery to raise
funds to give at least one big feast that would make a name for them and
thus be kept in the memory of their fellow-men. One form of entertainment
at these feasts was the use of jesters, similar to the court-fools of European
medieval times, who made jokes at the expense of the guests, imitated
people of different nations in dress and manners, mimicked old women and
well-known eccentric individuals, and the like.
"At the royal feasts given when the great vassals came to the capital to
render homage to their sovereign, the people flocked in from the provinces
in great numbers to see the sights, which consisted of theatrical
representations, gladiatorial combats, fights between wild beasts, athletic
sports, musical performances, and poetical recitations in honor of kings,
gods, and heroes. The nobles, in addition to this, partook daily of banquets
at the palace, and were presented by the monarch with costly gifts."15
There were people who gave gymnastic performances and who performed
acrobatic feats such as of the present day and with equal or even greater
skill. There were running races, swimming matches, wrestling matches,
contests in shooting with bow and arrow and in throwing the dart, and
soldiers fought with wild beasts in enclosed places. Gambling greatly
prevailed, property of all kinds was put up as stakes and even a man might
jeopardize his own personal liberty on a game of chance. Dice was the most
general gambling game.
Dancing was one of the leading amusements of the ancient Mexicans. It
formed an important part in their religious ceremonies and much time was
given by the priests in instructing the youth in this art. Drums and other
musical instruments were used in the dancing and they were accompanied
by chants and other music of the dancers. In some of the dances each sex
danced apart, while in others they danced together. Sometimes they danced
in threes, two men and a woman, or two women and a man, while again
they danced in pairs, with their arms round one another's waist or neck.
There was one dance which somewhat resembled the old English May-pole
dance, in which ribbons were wound and unwound about a pole. In some of
their great public dances thousands participated. These occurred in an open

place, the musicians being placed in the center, about them was formed a
circle of the nobles and elderly people, next came a circle of middle-aged
persons, and then the young people formed a great circle around them all.
Each person was to keep his own place on the circle while all circled about
the musicians. The inner circle moved with slow and sedate steps, the
middle circle moved more rapidly, and the outer circle of young people
twirled rapidly about with many fantastic figures. With drums beating and
other musical instruments going and all the dancers chanting, with arms,
feet, heads, and bodies all moving in perfect accord, leaders directing, this
dancing must have made a great spectacle to the onlookers.
There were not a great variety of musical instruments. They had drums,
rattles, gongs, trumpets, and whistles. There were bands of musicians and
choirs, each temple having had a choir composed of singers of different
ages, among whom were boys of four to eight years of age. There were
contests in music and prizes were given to the successful competitors. There
were a large number of popular songs or ballads, which were well known to
all classes of the people. The drama existed among them. The plays were
given on a terrace in the market-place or on a porch of a temple. The
players usually wore wooden masks or were disguised as animals. The play
generally was given in the form of a burlesque and ended with the animal
players giving exhibits of the actions of the animals they represented.
"The national game of the Nahuas was the tlachtli, which strongly
resembled in many points our game of football, and was quite as lively and
full of scuffle. It was common among all the nations whose cult was similar
to the Toltec, and was under special divine protection, though what original
religious significance it had is not clear. Indeed, for that matter, nearly every
game enjoyed divine patronage, and Ometochtli, 'two rabbits,' the god of
games, according to Duran, was generally invoked by athletes as well as by
gamblers, in conjunction with some special god. Instruments of play, and
natural objects were also conjured to grant good luck to the applicant. As an
instance of the popularity of the game of tlachtli, it may be mentioned that a
certain number of towns contributed annually sixteen thousand balls in
taxes, that each town of any size had a special playground devoted to the
game, and that kings kept professionals to play before them, occasionally
challenging each other to a game besides. The ground in which it was

played, called the tlachco, was an alley, one hundred feet long and half as
wide, except at each end where there were rectangular nooks, which
doubtless served as resting places for the players. The whole was enclosed
by smooth whitewashed walls, from nine to twelve feet high on the sides,
and somewhat lower at the ends, with battlements and turrets, and
decreasing in thickness toward the top. At midnight, previous to the day
fixed for the game, which was always fixed favorably by the augurs, the
priests with much ceremony placed two idols—one representing the god of
play, the other the god of the tlachtli—upon the side walls, blessed the
edifice, and consecrated the game by throwing the ball four times round the
ground, muttering the while a formula. The owner of the tlachco, usually
the lord of the place, also performed certain ceremonies and presented
offerings, before opening the game. The balls, called ullamaloni, were of
solid India-rubber, three to four inches in diameter. The players were simply
attired in the maxtli, or breech-clout, and sometimes wore a skin to protect
the parts coming in contact with the ball, and gloves; they played in parties,
usually two or three on each side. The rule was to hit the ball only with
knee, elbow, shoulder, or buttock, as agreed upon, the latter was however
the favorite way, and to touch the wall of the opposite side with the ball, or
to send it over, either of which counted a point. He who struck the ball with
his hand or foot, or with any part of his body not previously agreed upon,
lost a point; to settle such matters without dispute a priest acted as referee.
On each side-wall, equidistant from the ends, was a large stone, carved with
images of idols, pierced through the center with a hole large enough to just
admit the passage of the ball; the player who by chance or skill drove the
ball through one of these openings not only won the game for his side, but
was entitled to the cloaks of all present, and the haste with which the
spectators scrambled off in order to save their garments is said to have been
the most amusing part of the entertainment. A feat so difficult was, of
course, rarely accomplished, save by chance, and the successful player was
made as much of as a prize-winner at the Olympic games, nor did he omit
to present thank-offerings to the god of the game for the good fortune
vouchsafed him."16
Education. Annexed to the temples were buildings devoted to the purpose
of education for boys, youths, and young women. The education of the

males was in the hands of the priests and of the females in the care of the
priestesses. Thus the priesthood were enabled to mould the young in their
own way. They brought the young so well under their sway that they were
never able in after life to free themselves from such nor did they seem so to
desire to do.
The sexes were not educated together nor was any intercourse allowed
between them, and if such occurred the transgression was severely
punished. The morals of both sexes were very closely looked after. Offenses
were severely punished, sometimes by death. Love did not lead the Aztec
youth in education, but terror.
The children of the common people and those of the higher classes did not
attend in the same buildings. Both classes were taught such things in
religion, music, painting, and the like, as belonged to their stations in life.
The boys of the common people did the heavier and more menial work
about the temples, such as the attending to the getting of fuel for the sacred
fires and preparing the material for the repair of the sacred edifices. The
young nobles attended to the higher duties, such as caring for the fires of
the sanctuaries, keeping the upper parts of the temples clean, and decorating
the shrines of the gods with flowers. The children of the common classes
were obliged to sleep in the school buildings but they took their meals at
home while the young nobility remained in the buildings for meals as well
as for sleeping.
For the most part the girls who attended the schools belonged to the
nobility. They attended to the lower part of the temples, prepared the
offerings of meats to the idols, and wove and embroidered the fine cloths
for the altars. They were strictly guarded so that no intercourse could take
place between them and the youths. When they went out they were
accompanied by their teachers and they were not permitted to pay any
attention to any one, and if they did so they were severely punished. They
were instructed in religion, household arts, spinning, the weaving of
mantles, the making of feather-work, and the like.
In the higher schools, the noble boys were taught much that was given to
the other boys and also in many of the arts and sciences, such as the study
of heroic songs and sacred hymns, history, religion, philosophy, law,

astronomy, astrology, and the writing and interpreting of hieroglyphics.
Those destined to be priests were further educated in the priestly duties,
while those who were to enter upon a military life were exercised in
gymnastics, and trained to the use of weapons, to shoot with the bow, to
manage the shield, and to cast darts at a mark.
When the young reached the age when marriage was permissible or when
business cares should be entered upon, they were sent from the schools with
the commendations of the officers and teachers, which were of great aid to
many in securing positions in life.

LITERATURE

1. Bancroft, Hubert Howe, The native races of the Pacific states of North
America.
2. Barnes, Earl and Mary S., Education among the Aztecs. Studies in
Education, I, 73-80.
3. Joyce, Thomas A., Mexican archæology.
4. Mason, Otis Tufton, Woman's share in primitive culture.
5. Nadaillac, Marquis de, Prehistoric America.
6. Prescott, William H., History of the Conquest of Mexico.

CHAPTER II
THE CHILD IN PERU
The People. The origin of the people found in Peru at the time of the
Spanish conquest is unknown. The people themselves held to a tradition
that the empire began with a settlement in the Cuzco valley, the central
region of Peru. By the time of the coming of the Spaniards in the first part
of the sixteenth century, through military expeditions this Inca power had
been extended to include the country from the river Ancasmayu, just north
of the city of Quito, Ecuador, to the river Maule, just south of the city of
Santiago, Chile, or from about the second degree of north latitude to the
thirty-seventh degree of south latitude, territory embraced at the present
time by Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, part of Chile, and north-west Argentina.
Before these Inca people there seemed to have existed a race of well
advanced people who left imposing architectural remains that the Inca
people were unable to account for. To hold together the parts of the empire,
great roads were built leading from Cuzco, the capital, to the extremities of
the country. One of these great roads ran over the grand plateau north to
Quito and south to Chile, and a second one ran each way, north and south,
along the lowlands on the border of the ocean, and these two were
connected by cross-roads. "The road over the plateau was conducted over
pathless sierras buried in snow; galleries were cut for leagues through the
living rock; rivers were crossed by means of bridges that swung suspended
in the air; precipices were scaled by stairways hewn out of the native bed;
ravines of hideous depths were filled up with solid masonry; in short, all the
difficulties that beset a wild and mountainous region, and which might
appall the most courageous engineer in modern times, were encountered
and successfully overcome. The length of the road, of which scattered
fragments only remain, is variously estimated at from fifteen hundred to
two thousands miles; and stone pillars, in the manner of European mile-
stones, were erected at stated intervals of somewhat more than a league, all

along the route. Its breadth scarcely exceeded twenty feet. It was built of
heavy flags of freestone, and, in some parts at least, covered with a
bituminous cement, which time has made harder than the stone itself."17
Along these roads were a series of post-houses for couriers, selected for
their swiftness of foot, who carried messages back and forth between the
capital and the different parts of the empire. The statement is made that
these couriers covered the distance from Quito to Cuzco, over a thousand
miles, in eight days. Along the routes were also placed storehouses with
provisions for troops or for those who travelled on state affairs, who really
were the only travellers.
At the time of the Spanish invasion, Peru was a huge bureaucracy, which
had evolved from a primitive communism as the territory was extended by
conquest. The empire was divided into provinces and placed under rulers,
below whom was a hierarchy of officials, running down to an inspector of
ten heads of families. A careful census was kept of the people and resources
of each province, which censuses were sent regularly to Cuzco. From these
returns was estimated the tribute each person was to give to the state, which
was not paid in money but in labor or products. No one but the sick was
permitted to remain idle and there was constant supervision over all. No
man was exempt except by special regulation from agricultural work and
military service. "From the cradle to the grave the life of the individual was
marked out for him; as he was born so would he die, and he lived his
allotted span under the ceaseless supervision of officials. His dress was
fixed according to his district; he might not leave his village except at the
bidding of the state, and then only for state purposes, he might not even
seek a wife outside his own community."18 Yet every one was cared for,
widows, orphans, aged, and sick, in fact no one was allowed to suffer. The
state stored in buildings provisions for times of scarcity of crops, so as to
prevent famine. At the head of the empire was the sovereign and who bore
the title of Sapa Inca, Only Inca, the divine ruler; next to the sovereign
came the nobility of royal blood, the Inca nobility, and who held the
principal offices of the state; then came a lower nobility, the Curaças, who
were of the original rulers of conquered states; and last were the common
people.

Buildings. The buildings of the highlands were of stone, while on the
coast stone was used for foundations and brick made of clay mixed with
reeds or tough grass was used for the walls. With stone mortar was
sometimes used and sometimes not. In the great buildings where large
stones were placed in the walls no mortar was used, and it is stated that in
some of the remains of such buildings the stones are fitted so closely that
not even a knife-blade can be inserted in the joints. The exterior walls were
often of great thickness and the interior of the building was arranged around
a court, with windows and doors from the rooms opening on to the court.
Some of the buildings were of immense sizes, in particular those built as
fortifications and for religious purposes. The doors were narrowed at the
top, and with a stone across the top, the arch with the keystone not showing
in Peruvian architecture. The roofs were thatched and in the large buildings
the ceilings sometimes were vaulted by having the upper courses of
masonry overlap and the whole topped by a single slab, thus forming a kind
of arch. On this lower part a second story was built, which did not open on
to the first floor, but was approached from the hill against which the
building was built. Inside the building the walls were niched for the purpose
of decoration and also gold plates and jewels were placed on the walls as
ornaments.
Dress. The two principal garments of the ancient Peruvians were the tunic
and the robe. In the simplest form the tunic consisted of an oblong piece of
cloth, folded crosswise in the middle and a piece cut out of the fold for the
head to go through, and the edges on each side sewed together except a
place left for the arms. Sometimes the tunic was made with short sleeves.
Often a belt was worn about the tunic at the waist. In the coast country the
material used for clothing was cotton while wool was used in the highlands
in the interior. The quality of the clothing differed with the rank of the
wearer, the coarsest clothes were used by the common people while the
finest were reserved for the nobility and the very finest for the sovereign.
The cloths were colored and designs woven in them and sometimes they
were fringed and embroidered and sometimes even they were further
decorated with feathers and small plates of silver and gold.
On the head were worn conical or flat-topped caps, some having flaps to
cover the ears and the back part of the head, while others enclosed the entire

head, coming down under the chin, leaving only the face exposed to view.
Women wore their hair long while with men the length of the hair
proclaimed the rank, as the higher the rank the shorter the hair was worn,
the sovereign alone having a closely cropped head. The ruling class wore a
fringed cord of vicuña wool wound round the head three or four times, the
color designating the rank of the wearer, that of the sovereign being
crimson, of the heir to the throne yellow, and the higher officials wore other
colors. Hair was not allowed to grow on the face and it was kept pulled out
by means of small silver and copper tweezers. They wore sandals made of
the hide of the llama or of vegetable fiber and they were fastened to the feet
with cords.
Another mark of rank, along with their colored fringed cord, was the
wearing of studs in the lobe of the ear, the largest size having been
permitted to the sovereign only, and the sizes diminished according to rank.
These ear-ornaments were so heavy as to pull the lobes of the ears down,
making them quite large, the sovereign's ears being distended nearly to his
shoulders. Sometimes the nose and the lower lip were pierced and
ornaments worn in them. They wore necklaces made of beads of colored
shell and turquoise, finger-rings, anklets, and bracelets of silver and gold,
and pins for fastening the cloaks. Tattooing was practiced, designs having
been worked into the skin with a blue pigment.
Food, Drink, Narcotics. Because of the country's lying for the most part
in the tropics and also being of a mountainous nature, thus allowing
different climatic conditions, there was a plant life as found in both tropical
and temperate zones such as to offer a variety of food. In the uplands maize
was one of the staple foods, which was usually eaten whole, roasted or
boiled, maybe not used by them as bread except at festivals, and the leaves
were eaten as a vegetable. Quinoa was another grain used by them, a kind
of buckwheat. Another staple was the potato, most commonly used in the
form of chuno, in which the potatoes were exposed to the frost for some
time, then pounded and dried in the sun, which made quite nourishing food
and could be stowed away and kept for some time. Beans and tomatoes
were also used by them. On the lowlands along the coast were found
bananas, cocoa-nuts, the quava, and the manioc. Birds were abundant, as
were also fish, both from the lakes and the ocean. The llama and the deer

and the wild sheep of the mountains were used as food, as was the flesh of
some other animals. This flesh was often cut into strips and dried, which
was called charqui, probably from which came the term "jerked" beef.
Syrup and a kind of vinegar were made from the juice of the maguey and
also syrup was made from the juice extracted from the stalk of the maize.
They made from the grain of the maize chica, which was the national drink
of Peru, and chica also was made from the grain of the quinoa. But more
desired than food or drink was the narcotic effect of the coca, whose leaves
were gathered and dried, mixed with lime or bone-ash, and thus made into a
preparation for chewing. Tobacco was used by the Peruvians but they
"differed from every other Indian nation to whom it was known, by using it
only for medicinal purposes, in the form of snuff."19
Marriage. By law in ancient Peru, every person, both male and female,
was to marry at a marriageable age, which should be not less than twenty-
four in males and eighteen or twenty in females, it being recognized that not
until that age were people prepared to care for a family. The nobility were
allowed more than one wife but the common people were limited to one.
According to law, each person was to marry within his own kindred. This
was not a very great restriction since all of his community, including the
town and often the whole province, were counted his kin.
The queen of the ruler was selected from among his sisters. No other
person in the realm was allowed to marry his own sister. This was
commanded of the ruler so that only the purest blood—the blood of the
heaven-born children of the sun—would thus flow in their offspring,
thereby preventing anything earthly from being a part of their great rulers.
No marriage was considered legal unless the consent of the parents had
been given; nor was any contract performed without the contracting parties
so desiring it.
The ceremony was very simple and yet quite peculiar. On a certain day of
each year, designated by law, all persons of marriageable age came together
in the open squares of their native places. The ruler of the district would
take the hands of the different couples in his and place them in each other's

and pronounce them man and wife. Among the kindred of the Inca this
ceremony was performed by the Inca in person.
After all the marriage vows were performed, there was a general good
time had by the newly married pair and their friends, which was carried on
for several days. It can be seen that these festivities must have been very
general over the whole empire, as all weddings occurred on the same day,
and as in every circle there must have been one wedding, so there must
have been among the participants in the after-feasts nearly all, if not all, the
people of the country.
The newly married pair were not left to find a home for themselves. Each
district furnished a house for each married couple within its boundaries and
gave a certain portion of land to them, and as children came additional
allotments were made for the support of each child. For a son twice as much
land was assigned to the parents as for a daughter. This allotment of land
occurred each year and amounts were given in accordance with the size of
the family.
Care and Treatment of Children. Infants were placed in cradles,
somewhat like Indian cradles, and fastened in them and kept in this manner,
not even having been taken out and into the mother's arms when fed. When
they were weaned an important ceremony occurred. In the first place the
hair was cut. The first lock of hair was cut from the head by an elder
relative with a stone knife and the rest of the hair was cut by the relatives in
the order of closeness of kin. The child was then given a name, presents
were given to it, and a feast closed the proceedings. When the heir to the
throne underwent this ceremony, the High-priest of the Sun cut the first lock
of hair, and the child received many fine presents, among them being
presents from the rulers of the various provinces of the empire. A very
careful record of births and deaths was kept.
The Virgins of the Sun. The Peruvians worshipped the sun and they
trained for this worship young women who were called Virgins of the Sun.
They were taken from their homes at an early age and placed in convents
solely consecrated to their instruction and training. One of these
institutions, located at Cuzco, was for the girls of royal blood. In the other
provinces they were for the girls of the higher and inferior nobles, and

occasionally a girl of remarkable beauty from among the common people
was placed among the inmates.
These girls were put in charge of old, reliable women, who had spent
many years in the convents. They taught the girls how to spin and to weave
the hangings for the temples. They prepared the apparel for the ruler and his
people. They were instructed in their religious duties, one of these being the
watching over the sacred fires.
When the girls entered the convents they were shut entirely away from the
world, not even being permitted to see or to hear from their friends and
relatives. Morality was carefully inculcated. If one of the young women
should be caught in an intrigue, she was buried alive, her lover was
strangled, and his native town razed to the ground.
No one was allowed to enter these convents except the king and his lawful
queen. The institutions were inspected each year by persons sent for that
purpose, who made a report of what they noted on their visits.
The buildings themselves were as finely furnished as were the palaces of
the Incas and the temples, as they were for the accommodation of the
Daughters of the Sun and so were in especial charge of the state.
When these young women reached a marriageable age, the most beautiful
among them were chosen to become brides of the ruler, others were given
by him as wives to the higher nobles, while others remained in the service
of religion, vowing perpetual virginity, and who were held in the very
highest respect.
Human Sacrifice. Human sacrifice was of rare event in Peru. This only
occurred to mark some great public affair. The victims usually were
children and beautiful maidens. They were selected from the various parts
of the empire and they travelled in regular convoys, the children too young
to walk being carried by their mothers. As they journeyed they received the
adoration of all the people on the way. In offering them up as sacrifices, the
priests strangled them or broke their necks with a stone implement, while
with some the throat was cut and blood from the wound sprinkled on their
faces. In some cases the hearts of the victims were plucked out and offered
to the divinity. These sacrifices were never served up at feasts, as in

Mexico, but all were buried in special cemeteries. Human sacrifice never
came to be a great part of the religion of Peru under the Incas, as was the
case in Mexico, and where it did occur there was never any cannibalism
with it.
Industries. Agriculture was the main occupation of the ancient Peruvians.
Every one was required to put in some time in agricultural pursuits unless
excused by special permit by the authorities. The land was divided into
three parts, one portion was reserved for the Sun, to be used to produce
revenue to care for the temples and the priests and others connected with
the religion, a second part was reserved for the state, and the third part was
given over to the people for their own use, each head of a family receiving a
plot and additional plots for each unmarried child. There were no animals
for use in the fields, so the people had all the work to do. The men used a
digging-stick, which was a long stake with a sharpened point, sometimes
having the point covered with copper, and with a cross stick about a foot up
from the pointed end for a foot-rest for digging with the foot. The men
would turn up the soil with their digging-sticks and the women would
follow and break up the clods with a rake and pull out the weeds. The men
unable to dig and the boys acted as scare-crows or used blow-guns and
slings to keep the birds away. Every bit of ground was cultivated and to add
to this terraces were formed on the hillsides by means of parallel walls of
rough stones, one above the other. To add further to the area of tillable land,
where the soil was rocky and dry they would make excavations, sometimes
as much as an acre in extent and sunk to the depth of fifteen or twenty feet,
and would line these with walls of adobe, sun-dried bricks. The bottom of
the pits probably reached down to where there was some moisture and they
were prepared for cultivation as the other fields.
As is well known, much of the coast region of the country which was
occupied by the empire of the ancient Peruvians is arid, as the prevailing
winds are from the east and the moisture is taken from them by the high
Andes mountains, and thus the rivers are few and with but little water in
them, often dry for a long time, and there is but little rainfall, if at all. In
order to overcome this lack of moisture and to add to the fertile area of the
country, the Peruvians built reservoirs and aqueducts. These aqueducts were
sometimes above ground and sometimes underground and some were quite

long, one at least having been between four and five hundred miles in
length and twelve feet deep and wide. As they did not use the arch they
could not well cross depressions or streams and had to make long detours,
and sometimes they tunneled in the mountains for the passages. They had
sluices by means of which the water could be turned on to the land and they
were very careful in allowing the right amount of water to be used on the
fields. The construction of these aqueducts, and other great buildings, is all
the more remarkable when it is considered that these people had no iron
tools of any kind whatever.
They were acquainted with the principle of fertilizing the crop. A small
sardine-like fish was abundant along the coast, which they caught and often
placed with the grains of maize in the holes in planting. Guano, the deposit
of sea-fowls on the islands along the coast, was used in great quantity by
them, and much care was given to its proper distribution to the different
districts. No one was allowed on the islands during the breeding season and
such trespass and killing the birds at any time were punished by death.
"Inland other forms of manure were used."20
As most of the country of the Peruvian empire lay in the torrid zone and
consisted of low coast land, elevated land, and mountainous regions, it
would have all ranges of climate, according to elevation, and without any
great changes of temperature in any one part. Thus all kinds of agricultural
products could be cultivated, such as would be found in tropical and
temperate regions. In the warm coast region cotton was grown in great
abundance and the banana and the cassava; in the more elevated regions the
great staple produced was maize and also manioc, guava, groundnuts,
tobacco, beans, gourds, and tomatoes; and in the higher and colder parts
were found the potato, quinoa, coca, and maguey.
Fishing was an important industry and on the coast regions it ranked next
to agriculture. They had a kind of raft, balsa, made of bundles of reeds or
poles fastened together and they used nets, harpoons made of copper or
tipped with copper, and hooks of bone or copper. Fowling was carried on by
means of nets and quite largely engaged in especially along the coast where
there were great numbers of birds. Game was plentiful in the mountainous
regions and often great drives were made, sometimes as many as fifty or

sixty thousand people took part in one and in which thirty thousand head of
game might have been taken. They used dogs in hunting, having had at least
two varieties of hunting dogs. Beasts of prey, such as pumas, bears, foxes,
and wild-cats were killed. The real purpose of the hunt, though, was to
capture the huanaco and vicuña, from which the wool was cut and then the
greater part of them, the females and best males, were turned loose to let the
wool grow for another year, some being kept for food. Besides these wild
animals, they kept great flocks of llamas and alpacas, the alpaca having
been raised for its wool and the llama for a beast of burden, for its wool,
and also for its flesh for eating.
The Peruvians excelled in the art of weaving. They made cloth, tapestry,
gauze, and embroidery. They used cotton and wool for the most part,
although there was a thread made from the fiber of the maguey. One of the
principal occupations of the women was the preparation of the thread for
weaving. In the early times it would seem that the loom was unknown but at
the time of the entrance of the Spaniards into the country the work was
done by true weaving on the loom. There were a number of designs used,
variations showing from one period to another. Various colors were used.
The patterns were woven in the material or placed on the cloth in the form
of embroidery or painted on the cloth, and sometimes the cloth was
ornamented with feathers placed on it in the form of patterns. They also
wove a double-faced cloth in which the colors were different on the two
sides. Delicate gauzes were made in which designs were embroidered on
fine net background.
Pottery was another important industry. There were very many designs and
all kinds of utensils and the workmanship was good. Gold was obtained
from deposits in streams and silver was mined. These metals were cast,
hammered, soldered, and inlaid, as the people were very skillful in working
with these metals and did especially fine work. They made vases, bracelets,
mirrors, necklaces, and all kinds of delicate ornaments. Copper was greatly
used, tin having been mixed with it. They made from this various kinds of
implements and tools and weapons. They were quite skillful in wood-
carving and inlaying was widely practiced, not only on wood but also on
bone and shell and stone. They displayed skill in stone-carving, being able

to cut the hardest stones, as emeralds and other precious stones. Their
implements were of copper or stone, as iron was not at all in use.
Money was not in use among the Peruvians and so there was required an
exchange of products. As the products of the country varied it became
necessary that ways should be provided whereby people could have
opportunity to exchange what they had for things greatly needed from other
people of a different calling. This was done by means of fairs held
throughout the empire. In the more populous places they took place three
times a month. "These fairs afforded so many holidays for the relaxation of
the industrious laborers."21
Training of the Inca and the Order of the Huaracu. "In his early years,
the royal offspring was intrusted to the care of the amautas, or 'wise men,'
as the teachers of Peruvian science were called, who instructed him in such
elements of knowledge as they possessed, and especially in the cumbrous
ceremonial of their religion, in which he was to take a prominent part. Great
care was also bestowed on his military education, of the last importance in a
state which, with its professions of peace and good will, was ever at war for
the acquisition of empire.
"In this military school he was educated with such of the Inca nobles as
were nearly of his own age; for the sacred name of Inca—a fruitful source
of obscurity in their annals—was applied indifferently to all who descended
by the male line from the founder of the monarchy. At the age of sixteen the
pupils underwent a public examination, previous to their admission to what
may be called the order of chivalry. This examination was conducted by
some of the oldest and most illustrious Incas. The candidates were required
to show their prowess in the athletic exercises of the warrior; in wrestling
and boxing, in running such long courses as fully tried their agility and
strength, in severe fast of several days' duration, and in mimic combats,
which, although the weapons were blunted, were always attended with
wounds, and sometimes with death. During this trial, which lasted thirty
days, the royal neophyte fared no better than his comrades, sleeping on the
bare ground, going unshod, and wearing a mean attire—a mode of life, it
was supposed, which might tend to inspire him with more sympathy with
the destitute. With all this show of impartiality, however, it will probably be

doing no injustice to the judges to suppose that a politic discretion may
have somewhat quickened their perceptions of the real merits of the heir-
apparent.
"At the end of the appointed time, the candidates selected as worthy of the
honors of their barbaric chivalry were presented to the sovereign, who
condescended to take a principal part in the ceremony of the inauguration.
He began with a brief discourse, in which, after congratulating the young
aspirants on the proficiency they had shown in martial exercises, he
reminded them of the responsibilities attached to their birth and station, and,
addressing them affectionately as 'children of the Sun,' he exhorted them to
imitate their great progenitor in his glorious career of beneficence to
mankind. The novices then drew near, and, kneeling one by one before the
Inca, he pierced their ears with a golden bodkin; and this was suffered to
remain there till an opening had been made large enough for the enormous
pendants which were peculiar to their order, and which gave them, with the
Spaniards, the name of orejones. This ornament was so massy in the ears of
the sovereign that the cartilage was distended by it nearly to the shoulder,
producing what seemed a monstrous deformity in the eyes of the
Europeans, though, under the magical influence of fashion, it was regarded
as a beauty by the natives.
"When this operation was performed, one of the most venerable of the
nobles dressed the feet of the candidates in the sandals worn by the order,
which may remind us of the ceremony of buckling on the spurs of the
Christian knight. They were then allowed to assume the girdle or sash
around the loins, corresponding with the toga virilis of the Romans, and
intimating that they had reached the season of manhood. Their heads were
adorned with garlands of flowers, which, by their various colors, were
emblematic of the clemency and goodness that should grace the character of
every true warrior; and the leaves of an evergreen plant were mingled with
the flowers, to show that these virtues should endure without end. The
prince's head was further ornamented by a fillet, or tasselled fringe, of a
yellow color, made of the fine threads of the vicuña wool, which encircled
the forehead as the peculiar insignia of the heir-apparent. The great body of
the Inca nobility next made their appearance, and, beginning with those
nearest of kin, knelt down before the prince and did him homage as

successor to the crown. The whole assembly then moved to the great square
of the capital, where songs and dances and other public festivities closed the
important ceremonial of the huaracu."22
Education. Education in ancient Peru was wholly reserved for the
nobility. The common people were treated very kindly by the ruling class,
but it was the theory of their government that the masses were only children
and must be treated as such. The following from one of their leading
sovereigns portrays this idea: "Science was not intended for the people; but
for those of generous blood. Persons of low degree are only puffed up by it,
and rendered vain and arrogant. Neither should such meddle with the affairs
of government; for this would bring high offices into disrepute, and cause
detriment to the state."23
The youth of the nobility were placed under "wise men," who were the
only ones having sufficient learning to do such work. The youth were
trained for the especial kind of duties they were to perform in after life.
They were taught the laws of their country, the principles of government,
and were well grounded in the use of their mother tongue. Those who were
to enter into a religious life were carefully instructed in regard to the rites
and ceremonies of the religion of the country. All were made familiar with
the use of the quipus.
The quipus were used for counting and computing numbers. The quipu
was a cord near two feet long, made of threads of different colors twisted
together and having smaller threads hanging from them like fringe. These
threads were of different colors with knots in them which served instead of
ciphers in computing. Sometimes the threads represented abstract ideas, as,
white stood for peace, red for war, and, again they represented concrete
objects, as, white was for silver, yellow for gold.

LITERATURE

1. ... Ancient Peru—Its people and its monuments. Harper's Magazine,
VII. (1853), 7-38.
2. Joyce, Thomas A., South American archæology.
3. Nadaillac, Marquis de, Prehistoric America.
4. Prescott, William H., History of the conquest of Peru.
5. Winsor, Justin, Narrative and critical history of America.

CHAPTER III
THE CHILD IN EGYPT
The Country. The desert stretching across Africa from the Atlantic Ocean
on the west extends into Western Asia and in its whole extent it is broken
only in one place and that is the long, narrow valley made by the Nile river.
In this valley snow and frost are unknown and the chief characteristic of the
climate is its combined warmth and dryness. There is but little rainfall
throughout this region and yet there is abundance of moisture, which comes
from the annual overflow of the Nile, and which overflow also greatly
enriches the soil. The deserts surrounding Egypt and the cataracts of the
Nile at its southern border isolated this country so that it was not readily
disturbed by outside peoples. This isolation, with the warm climate and the
productive soil, gave just the conditions necessary for the development of
mankind in its early times and thus arose a people in this region which
developed into a great nation, extending from about 5,000 years before
Christ down to its overthrow by the Persians in 525 B. C. The country was
divided into Upper Egypt, the principal city of which was Thebes, Middle
Egypt, with Memphis as the principal city, and Lower Egypt, which
included the Delta, its chief city being Heliopolis.
From the cataracts on the South to the Mediterranean Sea the Nile pursues
its course for over five hundred miles, till within sixty miles of its mouth it
divides into branches and forms the part called the Delta. The cultivable
land, depending upon the extent of the inundation, averages about five and
a half miles in width, varying from two miles in its narrowest part to ten
and three-quarters in its widest part, including the river. On the west of the
valley is a range of hills, which protects it from the sand of the desert, and
on the east, between the Nile and the Red Sea, is also another range of hills.
Lying at the foot of the hills is a strip of sand, sometimes as great as two
and a half miles in breadth, which is not reached by the inundation and
consequently remains a waste. The demarcation between this waste and the

fertile soil is very marked, so as to be readily noted. The rock in these hills
varies, at the southern extremity being found the granite, from which were
cut out their monoliths and made into obelisks and collossi; further north is
found sandstone of various colors, and from which were built the palaces
and temples of that region; and following this district is a part wherein there
is a limestone formation, in which region are found the pyramids, mostly
composed of this stone.

The People. The ancient Egyptians, although in Africa, were not from
African races but were of Asiatic descent, as the formation of their skulls,
their features, their hair, and their language, show that they were of a
Caucasian race. "The Egyptians appear to have been among the darkest
races with which the Greeks of the early times came into direct contact....
The hair was usually black and straight. In no case was it 'woolly,' though
sometimes it grew in short, crisp curls.... The forehead was straight, but
somewhat low; the nose generally long and straight, but sometimes slightly
aquiline. The lips were over-full; but the upper lip was short, and the mouth
was seldom too wide. The chin was good, being well-rounded, and neither
retreating nor projecting too far. The most marked and peculiar feature was
the eye, which was a long, narrow slit, like that of the Chinese, but placed
horizontally and not obliquely. An eyebrow, also long and thin, but very
distinctly pencilled, shaded it. The coloring was always dark, the hair,
eyebrows, eyelashes, and beard (if any) being black, or nearly so, and the
eyes black or dark brown.
"In form the Egyptian resembled the modern Arab. He was tall; his limbs
were long and supple; his head was well placed upon his shoulders; his
movements were graceful; his carriage dignified. In general, however, his
frame was too spare; and his hands and feet were unduly large. The women
were as thin as the men, and had forms nearly similar. Children, however,
appear to have been sufficiently plump; but they are not often
represented."24
The people were divided into classes and although the separation of the
classes was very marked and distinct, yet there was really no rigid caste
system, as the boundaries were crossed by people ascending from a lower
class into a higher. Of course, as with all people, it was quite customary for
the son to take up the work of his father, but, at least, in some cases this was
not compulsory. In one instance it is shown where the occupation of
architect had descended from father to son for twenty-one generations.
There is difficulty in knowing just what were the divisions of society but at
any rate there were at least three distinct classes, which were the priestly
class, the military class, and the rest of the people. The first two classes,
from whom came the king, were exempt from taxation. The rest of the

people had to bear the burden of the taxes, to construct the public works, to
perform the agricultural tasks, and to carry on all mechanical and other
pursuits. They had a hard time and yet the laws regarding them seem to
have been justly administered and it would appear as if they were contented
with their condition.
"The occupations of the common people in Egypt were carefully watched
by the magistrate, and no one was allowed to live an idle life, useless to
himself and to the community. It was thought right that the industrious
citizen should be encouraged, and distinguished from the lazy or the
profligate; and in order to protect the good and detect the wicked, it was
enacted that every one should at certain times present himself before the
magistrates, or provincial governors, and give in his name, his place of
abode, his profession or employment, and the mode in which he gained his
livelihood, the particulars being duly registered in the official report. The
time of attendance was fixed, and those from the same parish proceeded in
bodies to the appointed office, accompanied by their respective banners,
and each individual being introduced singly to the registering clerks, gave
in his statement and answered the necessary questions."25
Slavery. Slavery has a very early date, as it is found at the very beginning
of history, which is true in Egypt as elsewhere. The origin of slavery cannot
be traced but in the early history of Egypt it appears that the slaves came
from outside countries, gained through wars and raids and by purchase from
dealers. Many of the captives who became slaves were placed in the service
of the king and used on public works, as the building of temples, cutting
canals, raising dykes and embankments, and the like. They were used in
private, both black and white, to do the work in the fields and in the homes
and elsewhere. They attended on guests at banquets and also were used to
amuse them by singing and dancing and in other ways.
The master had full power over his slaves, could sell them, remove them
from place to place, if they escaped could pursue and recapture them, and
do with them as he pleased, and yet he could not wilfully murder one of
them or, if so, he himself was put to death. "The very kind treatment of
Joseph, the mode of his liberation, and his subsequent marriage with the
daughter of a freeborn Egyptian, a high functionary of the sacerdotal order,

are striking proofs of the humanity of the Egyptians and of their indulgent
conduct toward manumitted slaves."26 At the same time, as with slaves
everywhere and at all times, no doubt they were often cruelly treated, as is
given concerning the Israelites, when "there arose up a new king over
Egypt, which knew not Joseph."27
The Home. The houses in the towns varied in size, many of one story and
maybe some of four or five stories, but for the great part not above two
stories. The streets of the towns were narrow. The poorer classes lived much
in the open air and so did not use their houses greatly. The wealthier classes
built their houses so as to be cool throughout the summer. To keep their
houses cool "a line of trees ran parallel with the front of the house; and to
prevent injuries from cattle or from any accident, the stems were
surrounded by a low wall, pierced with square holes to admit the air."28 The
material used in constructing the houses was crude brick, baked in the sun,
a material peculiarly suited to the climate. Wood was used for beams and
doors, sometimes for floors, and the finer imported woods for decorative
purposes.
The houses were of different sizes and arrangement. Some of the houses
were small, having an open court in front, with three or four small rooms
adjoining for storing grain and other things, and a single chamber on a
second floor above these rooms, stairs leading to it from the court. Such
houses as these small single ones probably were found only in the country.
In the towns the smaller houses were usually built in a solid row along a
street, with a courtyard, common to several dwellings. The wealthier people
had separate houses, which sometimes were quite large, covering a good
deal of ground.
Before the front door was a portico or porch, about twelve or fifteen feet
high and supported on columns of stone, or if of wood they were stained to
represent stone. There was a large front entrance and on either side a small
door, probably for servants and ordinary use. Sometimes on the lintels or
imposts of the entrance the owner's name was written and over the door was
placed a phrase, as, "The Good House." Inside next to the entrance was a
small open court with a receiving door for visitors, on the opposite side of
which was a door through which the master of the house came to receive

the callers. From this small court doors led to a larger court, which was
shaded by trees. The rooms of the house were arranged on the right and left
of the large court, opening into it. The rooms on the ground floor were used
chiefly as store-rooms for furniture, goods of various kinds, wines, oil, etc.
Over the rooms on the ground floor were placed the chambers of the upper
story, with stairs leading to them.
The ceilings of the rooms were formed with rafters of the date tree with
transverse layers of palm branches or planks and sometimes they were
vaulted and made of brick and in the houses of the rulers they might have
been arched with stone. The floors were of stone or a composition made of
lime and other materials. The doors opened inward, both of the rooms and
the outside entrance. The doors were made of wood, often stained to imitate
foreign and rare wood. They were made of one or two valves and they
turned on pins of bronze, which were fastened to the wood with nails of the
same metal, and they were secured within by means of a bar or bolt or with
a wooden lock. The openings for the windows were small as the cloudless
sky of Egypt gave out brilliant light and small openings let in less heat. The
windows had wooden shutters of one or two valves, opening on pins and
secured by bars and bolts, as the doors. The walls and ceilings were
stuccoed and ornamented with various devices painted on them, being
tastefully done in form and arrangement of colors. A terrace was placed on
top of the house and covered with a roof and supported by columns, which
during the summer provided a refuge from the heat of the day and a
sleeping-place at night.
Beside these town places there were villas, which sometimes were quite
great in extent with a large mansion and beautiful gardens, watered by
canals from the Nile, and all surrounded by a wall.
The poorer classes of people sat cross-legged, crouched on the ground,
knelt on one or both knees, or sat on the heels. Sometimes as a token of
respect to superiors, the people of the higher classes knelt or sat on the
heels, but usually they used chairs or stools or couches.
The chairs were of various kinds, some of them of elegant form and made
of ebony and other fine woods, inlaid with ivory, and covered with rich
stuffs. Beside the single chair, they had a double chair for two persons,

which often was reserved for the master and mistress of the house, and
occasionally offered to guests. Most of the chairs had backs, some had a
raised piece at the back, while others were made in the form of camp-stools.
They were usually about as high as they are now, but some of the chairs
were quite low, the seat sometimes being as low as eight inches from the
floor. The legs were usually made in imitation of those of an animal, as, of
the lighter chairs like the legs of an antelope, of the heavier like those of a
lion. In the finer chairs bars were not used to unite the legs. The seats were
made of wood or leather and sometimes of interlaced string or leather
thongs, over which a cushion was placed.
The finer stools were very much as the chairs, of fine workmanship and of
rare woods inlaid with ivory. Some of the cheaper ones had solid sides
while others had three legs. They had footstools with open or closed sides,
covered with leather or interlaced string, as with the chairs. They used
couches, some of which were most beautiful in form and workmanship.
They used mats and carpets and rugs.
The tables of the Egyptians were round, square, or oblong. They were
generally made of wood, although some were of stone or metal. The smaller
tables often had but one support, in the center, while the larger ones had
three or four legs or were made with solid sides. In sleeping, for the head
they used a low half cylinder, usually of wood, sometimes of pottery or
stone, some of the wooden ones being made of rare woods and ornamented.
The poorer people slept on mats on the floor but probably the wealthier
people had bedsteads made in wicker form of palm branches and some,
perhaps, were of wood and bronze.
Women and Marriage. We find the women having considerable power in
ancient Egypt. They had full control of the home, as it appears that the
husband entered the house of his wives, rather than the wives to have
entered his. Royal authority and supreme direction of affairs were intrusted
without reserve to women. The women went often into public, at some of
the public festivals they were even expected to attend with their husbands.
Even greater privileges were accorded to the women of the middle and
lower classes as they often went and came as they liked.

Plurality of wives was allowed, except in the case of priests, who by law
were permitted but one wife. Yet the Egyptians generally restricted
themselves to one wife. Marriage of brother and sister was permitted and
seemingly encouraged from a religious point of view.
Although in most cases they might not have had but one wife, yet they had
concubines. These appear to have been obtained mostly in war or bought as
slaves from foreign dealers, not for most part being native Egyptian women.
These concubines were both white and black, but the black were used as
domestics in the family. Sometimes the white concubine took a prominent
part in the family, ranking next to the wives and children.
All the children born to a father were considered legitimate whether the
offspring of a wife or of some other woman, but those who were born of a
brother and sister in legitimate marriage took precedence of those whose
mother was of inferior rank or a slave.
The people of old Egypt held strong opinions on the behavior of their
women and so punished adultery very severely. A woman detected in
adultery had her nose cut off, as it was thought this would be a severe blow
to her charms and so make her less attractive. The man was condemned to
receive a bastinado of one thousand blows. If a man used force toward a
free woman he was very cruelly punished.
Child and Parent. The Egyptians were very fond of their children. Even
the most consequential pontiff did not affect indifference toward them.
They cared for the children and did not permit the father to have any right
over the life of his offspring. The punishment for child-murder was very
severe. They did not take the life of the offender, but gave to him a
punishment which would well portray to him the heinousness of the crime.
In the case of the killing of a child, it was ordered that the corpse of the
child be fastened to the neck of the parent offending, and for three entire
days and nights was the embrace of the dead child to continue, under the
watchful eyes of a public guard. The murder of a parent was considered the
most wicked of all crimes. In this case the criminal was sentenced to be
lacerated with sharpened reeds and after being thrown on thorns he was
burnt to death. In case a pregnant woman was sentenced to death, the
punishment did not take place till after the birth of the child, both because

they thought it wrong to take the life of an innocent being and also they did
not wish to deprive the father of the child, which might become his support
in later life.
Children were taught to pay great respect to old age. The children's
greatest duty was respect for and care of parents. This was just as binding
among the upper classes as with the lower. This was carried up even to the
very highest, as the sons of the king acted as fan-bearers to him, and they
also walked on foot behind his chariot in triumphal processions.
Dress. The lower orders of the Egyptian people dressed in a very simple
manner. The men wore a sort of apron, or kilt, held at the waist by a girdle
or sash, or else short drawers, extending half way to the knees. Sometimes
the apron was simply bound round the loins and lapped over in front. When
at heavy labor the men would even wear less clothing, as they would use
the girdle about the body at the waist and fasten to it in front a roll of linen
and pass this between the legs and fasten it to the girdle at the back. The
men of the higher orders used the apron also and wore over it a dress which
extended to the ankles and had large sleeves. Sometimes this dress was
fringed on the border around the legs. Over this for cool weather they wore
a woolen cloak. Sometimes they wore over the apron a skirt with short
sleeves and over this a loose robe with the right arm left exposed. As a
distinguishing mark, the princes wore a peculiar badge at the side of the
head, which descended to the shoulders and was frequently adorned and
terminated with a gold fringe.
The women of the lower classes usually wore a loose robe or shirt, with
tight or full sleeves, fastened at the neck with a string, and over this they
wore a sort of petticoat with a girdle about it at the waist, and, often while
at hard work, this costume was further simplified by their wearing merely
the loose shirt or robe and going barefooted. The women of the higher
orders wore a petticoat, or gown, held by a colored sash at the waist or by
straps over the shoulders, and over this they wore a large loose robe, with
full sleeves and tied in front below the breast. Slaves and servants were not
allowed to dress as their mistresses. They wore a long tight gown, tied at the
neck, with short sleeves, reaching nearly to the elbows. When entertaining

guests by dancing or otherwise at banquets and the like, these women wore
over their dress a long loose robe and strings of beads around their hips.
The material used for the clothing was sometimes cotton but linen was
preferred. Wool was used for cloaks for colder weather. Some of the
material was of very fine texture, this being particularly true of the linen.
There was a great variety of patterns in brilliant colors. In some of the
striped patterns, the stripes were of gold threads, alternating with red lines
as a border. The most elegant stuff and beautiful patterns were reserved for
the robes of the deities and the dresses of queens.
The men of ancient Egypt shaved the head and face, never letting the hair
grow except when they were in mourning. Women, on the contrary, never
had their hair cut off, even in mourning or after death. They wore their hair
long and plaited, generally in a triple plait, the ends being left loose; but
more usually two or three plaits were fastened together at the ends by a
woolen string of the same color as the hair, and falling around the head to
the shoulders. An ornamental fillet was bound around the head and fastened
with a lotus bud, which fell over the forehead. The plaits of hair at the side
were held in place by a comb or band and sometimes a round stud or pin
was thrust into them at the front. The male slaves had their heads and faces
shaved as their masters. The female slaves generally bound their hair at the
back of the head into a sort of loop; sometimes they arranged it in long
plaits at the back and at the sides of the neck and face.
The men wore wigs both within the house and without. Sometimes the
whole wig was of plaited hair, sometimes the upper portion was of curled
hair and the lower part of plaited hair, and again the whole wig was of short
locks of equal length. Too, cheap wigs were made in woolen and other
stuffs in imitation of hair. "The wig was worn by every gentleman; and
though it might appear ill-suited to a hot climate, the interlaced texture of
the ground to which the hair was fastened, and the protection of this last
against the sun, rendered it a most effective, and at the same time the
coolest, kind of covering for the head."29
"The most singular custom of the Egyptians was that of tying a false beard
under the chin, which was made of plaited hair, and of a peculiar form,
according to the person by whom it was worn. Private individuals had a

small beard, scarcely two inches long; that of a king was of considerable
length, square at the bottom; and the figures of gods were distinguished by
its turning up at the end. No man ventured to assume, or affix to his image,
the beard of a deity; but after their death it was permitted to substitute this
divine emblem on the statues of kings, and all other persons who were
judged worthy of admittance to the Elysium of futurity, in consequence of
their having assumed the character of Osiris, to whom the souls of the pure
returned on quitting their earthly abode."30
Both men and women wore sandals, which often were carefully and
beautifully made. They were made of leather, and lined with cloth, or of
palm leaves, papyrus stalks, or other similar materials in a sort of woven or
interlaced work. Some were pointed and turned up in front, some had a
sharp flat point, while still others were nearly round.
The Egyptians liked ornaments very much. They used gold and silver and
precious stones, and also cheaper materials were used in imitation of these.
Women wore earrings, some quite large. The women seem to have been
exceedingly fond of rings, sometimes wearing two or three on the same
finger, often wearing them on every finger of the left hand and at the same
time on a finger or two of the right hand, and they even wore a ring on the
thumb. They wore anklets. Both men and women wore armlets, bracelets,
and necklaces.
The men carried walking-sticks. These were of various lengths, running
from three to six feet. Some had a knob at the top while others had a peg
projecting from the side. On entering a house the sticks were left at the door
or in the hall. Where a party was being given, sometimes a poor man was
employed by the master of the house to hold the sticks of the guests. Quite
often the name of the owner was written in hieroglyphics on the stick.
For improving their appearance, the ladies of ancient Egypt used paints
and cosmetics. They applied kohl to the eyes, they used ointment on the
body, the ointment having been scented in various ways, they stained the
fingers with red henneh and the eyelids with a moistened powder of a black
color. They kept the paints and ointments in bottles and boxes and vases of
various forms and materials, some being ornamented. They had pins and
needles. Some of the needles were of bronze and from three to three and a

half inches in length. Some of the pins were seven or eight inches in length,
with or without heads, used for arranging the plaits or curls of the hair. They
had combs, usually of wood, about four inches long and six wide, some
being double with small teeth on one side and large teeth on the other side.
They had mirrors of mixed metal, chiefly copper, carefully made and highly
polished, nearly round in form, and with handles of wood, stone, or metal.
These people were of cleanly habits, both men and women. As was given
before, the men kept the head and face wholly shaved. They used warm and
cold baths. "The priests were remarkable for their love of cleanliness, which
was carried so far that they shaved the whole body every three days, and
performed frequent daily ablutions, bathing twice a day and twice during
the night."31
Food and Drink. Beef and goose constituted the principal part of the
animal food throughout Egypt, yet the cow was held sacred and forbidden
to be eaten.32 Among the animals used for food were the ox, kid, wild goat,
and gazelle. Of fowls there were the goose and duck, the widgeon and quail
and other wild birds. There were fish in plenty. They had a variety and
abundance of vegetables, among them being onions, garlic, lentils, beans,
cucumbers, and melons. The lotus, papyrus, and other plants that grew
abundantly along the Nile furnished the greatest food for the poorer people.
Among the grains they had wheat, barley, and durra. Of the fruits were
dates, figs, pomegranates, olives, almonds, peaches, and grapes.
For grinding the grain they had a mill of two circular stones, the lower one
fixed and the upper one arranged to turn on a pivot. The grinding was done
by a woman turning the upper stone by a handle, the grain being poured
through an opening in the center of the upper stone so as to get between the
stones to be crushed and ground. The same kind of a mill was made on a
larger scale and turned by animals. The better classes used bread made from
wheat while the poorer people used cakes of barley or durra flour.
Dinner probably came at midday and supper in the evening. It would seem
that they washed before the meal as well as after partaking of it. A napkin
was presented to each person for wiping the mouth after drinking. It was
their custom to sit together about a table at their meals, as we do now. Men
and women sat together, although sometimes the sexes were entertained

separately in a different part of the room, on which occasion the master and
the mistress of the house sat close together on two chairs or on a double
chair at the upper end of the room. Water, cooled in porous bottles, or wine
was served to the guests. Knives were used for the carving of a large joint
and spoons were provided the guests, for soups and other liquids, but they
did not have knives or forks, so they ate with their fingers, each one dipping
his bread into a dish placed in their midst, one after another according to
rank as guests.
"The Egyptians, a scrupulously religious people, were never remiss in
expressing their gratitude for the blessings they enjoyed, and in returning
thanks to the gods for that peculiar protection they were thought to extend
to them and to their country, above all nations of the earth. They therefore
never sat down to meals without saying grace; and Josephus says that when
the seventy-two elders were invited by Ptolemy Philadelphus to sup at the
palace, Nicanor requested Eleazer to say grace for his countrymen, instead
of those Egyptians, to whom that duty was committed on other occasions."33
"It was a custom of the Egyptians, during (or according to Herodotus
after) their repasts, to introduce a wooden image of Osiris, from one foot
and a half to three feet in height, in the form of a human mummy, standing
erect, as Plutarch informs us, in a case, or lying on a bier, and to show it to
each of the guests, warning him of his mortality, and of the transitory nature
of human pleasures. He was reminded that some day he would be like that
figure; that men ought 'to love one another, and avoid those evils which
tend to make them consider life too long, when in reality it is too short'; and
while enjoying the blessings of this world, to bear in mind that their
existence was precarious, and that death, which all ought to be prepared to
meet, must eventually close their earthly career."34
Wine was their favorite beverage and they had several different kinds of it.
They indulged in it very freely and there were no restrictions on its use by
individuals. It was used by all classes of the people, by the priests,
furnished to soldiers, offered to the gods, and prescribed as medicine.
Women, both young and old, were permitted to have wine, and it would
appear as if there were no restrictions as to their use of it.

The Egyptians also had beer, which was made from barley, and as they did
not grow hops they used lupins, skirret, and an Assyrian root for flavoring
it.35 "Besides beer, the Egyptians had what Pliny calls factitious, or artificial,
wine, extracted from various fruits, as figs, myxas, pomegranates, as well as
herbs, some of which were selected for their medicinal properties."36
There were excesses in drinking committed by people of all classes, both
men and women. At the banquets of the rich stimulants were sometimes
used to excite to further drinking, the cabbage having been one of the
vegetables used for such purpose.
Food and Clothing of Children. Swaddling clothes do not seem to have
been used by the Egyptians as they were among the Jews and some other
nations. If the child could not walk, he was carried by the nurse or mother
before her or at her side, in a shawl thrown around her back over a shoulder.
It was the custom, no matter whether the child had little or no clothing on,
to have a string of beads about the neck, having occasionally a charm
suspended in the center, a symbol of truth and justice. These were for the
purpose of keeping ill luck from the child, and to make him wise and
virtuous.
"The dresses of children of the lower classes were very simple; and, as
Diodorus informs us, the expenses incurred in feeding and clothing them
amounted to a mere trifle. 'They feed them,' he says, 'very lightly, and at an
incredibly small cost; giving them a little meal of the coarsest and cheapest
kind, the pith of the papyrus, baked under the ashes, with the roots and
stalks of some marsh weeds, either raw, boiled, or roasted; and since most
of them are brought up, on account of the mildness of the climate, without
shoes, and indeed without any other clothing, the whole expense incurred
by the parents does not exceed 20 drachmæ (about 13 shillings) each; and
this frugality is the true reason of the populousness of Egypt.' But the
children of the higher orders were often dressed like grown persons, with a
loose robe reaching to the ankles, and sandals."37
Industries. The ancient Egyptians engaged in many industries and reached
a high stage in the development of their country and their own powers. The
country was immensely rich, as was shown from the objects of luxury

found among them, and they loved pomp and splendor. Their
accomplishments come to us from the accounts of ancient writers and are
depicted through sculptures and paintings found upon the walls of temples,
palaces, and tombs, and remains of their work still exist sufficient to show
the great things they did.
The life of ancient Egypt depended upon the annual rise of the Nile,
caused by the rains and melting of snow on the mountains in the interior of
Africa. This rise begins in June, reaches the highest point in September,
remains stationary a few days, then recedes, and by December the flood is
past. This inundation, spreading over the whole country, left the land
covered with a rich dressing so that no further fertilizing was necessary and
made ancient Egypt probably the most fertile tract of country in the world.
This rising of the Nile produced a line of industries, such as the building of
canals and dykes and irrigation works as well as the greatest industry of all,
that of agriculture.
Because of the favorable conditions in Egypt, as mentioned above, and the
dense population, agriculture was the principal industry. So efficient did the
people become in this and the agricultural laborers were so frugal in their
mode of living that there was a great surplus of products each year, which
gave Egypt advantages which no other country possessed, giving them the
balance of trade with other nations. The principal grains were wheat, barley,
and durra. Beside these grains they grew beans, peas, and lentils, clovers,
lupins, and vetches, flax and cotton, various medicinal herbs, and of
vegetables, garlic, leeks, onions, endive, radishes, melons, cucumbers, and
lettuce, in fact, a very large number and a great variety of plants.
As soon as the water began to subside and land to appear, they began
preparing to sow the grain. On the highlands right along the river this would
generally be in October and the other parts following. The wheat and the
barley were sown about November, the barley ordinarily ripening in about
four months and the wheat in five. The durra was usually sown about April,
as an after-crop when the wheat and the barley had been cut and taken off
the ground. The ground was prepared by means of a very rude plow, but
more often by the hoe. The seed was sown broadcast over the surface of the
land. It would appear as if neither harrow nor rake was used to cover in the

grain, but it was left as it fell on the ground to germinate. As was stated
before, the water of the overflow of the Nile was carried by means of canals
throughout Egypt and retained for irrigating the land. When the land was
elevated, as along the banks of the Nile, they used the shadoof, a
contrivance somewhat like the old well-sweep and bucket, to lift up the
water from the river or wells to be poured over the soil. When crops were
raised late in the year or on soil not covered by the Nile, they sometimes
used fertilizing substances, as nitrous earth and some other kinds of
dressing. In harvesting the wheat was cut a little ways below the grain with
a toothed sickle and placed in baskets and carried to the threshing-floor, on
which it was deposited and cattle driven over it to tread out the grain. It was
then winnowed with wooden shovels and put in sacks and taken to the
granary.
Of the domestic animals were cattle, sheep, goats, hogs, horses, asses,
camels, cats, and dogs. The cat was a favorite animal among the ancient
Egyptians. They never allowed a cat to be killed purposely, cared for them
when ill, and embalmed them when dead. Dogs also were well considered
by them and they had several breeds of them. They had learned the artificial
process of hatching eggs and built ovens expressly for that purpose. There
were great flocks of sheep and they were well taken care of, great attention
having been given to their proper food in the various seasons and they were
carefully treated when ill. The skill of the Egyptians in curing animals had
reached a high stage.
Hunting was an industry as well as an amusement. There were quite a
number of different animals that they hunted. They used the bow and arrow
and other weapons and also the net, which in hunting large animals was
placed across ravines and the like to keep them from escaping. They hunted
with dogs and they even had cats trained to hunt with. The Egyptians were
expert fowlers, using for the most part nets and traps for catching the birds.
The Nile was celebrated for its fish and fishing was an important industry.
The net was greatly used in fishing and the rod and line and spear were also
used. Salted as well as fresh fish were used as food.
There were a great number of people engaged in manufactures and many
different trades were found among the ancient Egyptians. Whether each one

was compelled by law to follow the trade of his father, it is probable that
most of them did, so that often they were able to trace back the occupation
in the family for many generations. It is probable that each craft had its own
particular part of the city set aside for it wherein its members dwelt and
carried on their particular work and which was called after it, as, the quarter
of the goldsmiths, and so on. The workmen became very proficient in their
work and a number of inventions were made which are the same as we have
now, among some of the implements invented being the forceps, bellows,
blow-pipe, and siphon.
They were celebrated for their manufacture of cloths, having made such of
cotton, wool, and linen. They were woven on hand looms, some of which
were vertical and others horizontal and must have been of considerable size,
as they wove cloth five feet wide and at least sixty feet in length. The
spinning and weaving was the work of women, although men did
sometimes engage in this work. They colored the cloths, using dyes and
paints, and varied the colors in them, making patterns and showing figures
of animals and the like. Whether they understood the principle of the action
of mordants, they used this agency to make the cloth take the color equally
and also to change the hues.
Glass was known to the Egyptians and from it they made bottles, vases,
and other utensils, beads and other ornaments, and they were quite skillful
in the use of glass in counterfeiting the amethyst and other precious stones.
They had glazed ware a long time before they used glass. There were quite
a large number of people engaged in pottery work and they were quite
skillful in the manufacture of this ware. There were many varieties and
forms of their work and it included rough unglazed ware up to fine glazed
vases, highly decorated and colored. There were bottles not only of glass
and earthenware but also of leather and of stone and there were glass bottles
enclosed in wicker-work and others encased in leather. There were all kinds
of vases, earthenware, stone, bronze, alabaster, glass, porcelain, ivory, bone,
silver, and gold. Some of the vases were most beautiful in make and design,
inlaid with precious stones and tastefully ornamented.
There was quite an industry in metal working among them. There was
probably very little of any kinds of metals found in Egypt, having been

brought in from other countries. Gold was early used for the making of
ornaments. They soon found a way of hardening gold by alloying it with
silver. They learned to work gold in various ways. They cast it into figures,
molded it into beads by pressure, soldered it, drew it out into wire, used it in
plaiting, beat it out into sheets for gilding, engraved it and inlaid it with
precious stones. Silver came into use later than gold and in early times it
was scarcer than gold. Copper was greatly in use among the ancient
Egyptians and by alloying it with tin produced bronze. They made many
utensils and implements of it and learned to make it so hard as to be used
for woodcutting tools and chisels for cutting limestone. Lead was used by
them, as was also tin and antimony. Iron was perhaps used in the early
times, but it would appear that it was not greatly in use till the time of the
Greeks and the Romans in Egypt.
They were quite skillful in working in wood and there was a large class of
wood-workers, divided into carpenters, cabinet-makers, wheelwrights,
coopers, coffin-makers, and boat-builders. There was quite a good deal
more wood in Egypt in ancient times than now and yet not a great variety.
The principal trees were the date-palm, used for beams; the Theban palm,
used for rafts, and other purposes connected with water, and for beams and
rafters; the sycamore, used for large planks for boxes, tables, doors, and the
like; the tamarisk, a hard and compact wood, used for the handles of tools
and wooden implements; and the acacia, used for planks and masts of boats.
For ornamental purposes and where fine woods were required, they were
brought in from other countries, as, the cedar, cypress, cherry, walnut, and
deal from Syria, and ebony and other rare woods from Ethiopia.
Wood was used for buildings and parts of buildings, for furniture, boxes,
barrels, chariots, traveling cars, palanquins, coffins, statues, statuettes, and
in boat-building. "Regarding the methods of woodworking, certainly the
axe was the primitive tool, as shown by the royal architect being designated
by the axe. In the scenes of the pyramid age we find the saw about three
feet long worked with both hands, the mallet and chisel for cutting mortise-
holes, and the adze in constant use for shaping and for smoothing wood. To
this day the small adze is a favorite tool of the Egyptian carpenter and boat-
builder. For smoothing down the caulking inside a boat, heavy pounders of
stone were used, held by a handle worked out on each side of the block.

Drills were also commonly used both on wood and stone, worked by a
bow."38
As they had only the hand-saw, in making planks they usually placed the
piece of timber upright and fastened it to stakes and then sawed downward
through it. In joining two boards end to end, they would cut into their ends
and join them and glue them and then insert a flat wooden pin through them
from edge to edge and then pass a round wooden pin through the boards
into the flat pin, thus effectually keeping the joints from opening and
thereby showing the thoroughness of their work. They dovetailed and
veneered and stained and painted and gilded and inlaid their woodwork,
thus displaying a high degree of skill in working with wood.
One of the greatest industries with them was that of brick-making, which
was wholly under the control of the government and carried on solely by it.
"The use of crude bricks baked in the sun was universal throughout the
country for private and for many public buildings, and the dry climate of
Egypt was peculiarly suited to those simple materials. They had the
recommendation of cheapness, and even of durability; and those made
3,000 years ago, whether with or 'without straw,' are even now as firm and
fit for use as when first put up in the reigns of the Amunophs and Thothmes,
whose names they bear. When made of the Nile mud, or alluvial deposit,
they required straw to prevent their cracking; but those formed of clay (now
called Háybeh) taken from the torrent beds on the edge of the desert, held
together without straw; and crude brick walls frequently had the additional
security of a layer of reeds or sticks placed at intervals to act as binders."39
The tanning and preparation and use of leather was quite a leading
industry of ancient Egypt, so much so that a section of the city of Thebes
was set apart for the exclusive use of the workers in skins and leather. The
demand for leather was so great Egypt itself could not supply the hides
necessary and great quantities of hides were imported from foreign
countries and also the skins of wild animals were brought in and used. They
tanned the skins and dyed them and made some fine leather and also
embossed the leather.
The tools used for working in leather were a semi-circular knife, a sort of
chisel, an awl, a stone for polishing, cutting table, bending form, hone, and

a few others. They made shoes, sandals, coverings and seats for chairs and
sofas, bow-cases, ornaments and harness for chariots, and adornments for
harps. Skins were used to cover shields and other things and they were
shaped into forms for carrying water, wine, and other liquids. They made
thongs by twisting leather strips together, cutting the strips from circular
pieces of leather as is done now.
The Egyptians were famed for their manufacture of paper, which was
made from the papyrus plant. This grew almost altogether in Lower Egypt,
on marshy land or in the ponds left after the inundation of the Nile. The
right of growing and selling it belonged to the government and the
particular species from which the paper was made was closely guarded and
perhaps not allowed to grow anywhere else than in the restricted territory in
the Delta. The paper was made by removing the outer covering of the stalk,
cutting the interior lengthwise into thin pieces and laying these together side
by side on a flat board and across them another layer, cementing the strips
together with a kind of glue, then putting all under pressure, and after
drying the paper was completed and ready for use.
The paper made from the papyrus differed in quality according to the
growth of the plant and from which part of the stalk the pieces were taken,
the stalk growing to about fifteen feet in height. The breadth of the paper
differed, running from six inches under an early Dynasty to fourteen and a
half inches under a later Dynasty. When a sheet of papyrus had been used
for writing, it was rolled up, and if important and to be preserved for any
length of time, tied round the middle and secured by clay stamps with a
seal. The cost of the papyrus was so great that it was used only in funeral
rituals, conveyances, deeds, and other public documents, and sometimes the
old writing was erased and then the roll was written on again. For ordinary
purposes of writing, pieces of broken pottery, stone, board, and leather were
used.
The Nile traversing the entire length of Egypt formed a great avenue for
trade, as it was an open and easy way for reaching all parts. Not only did
the Nile give access to all parts about it, but also the canals going out from
it and running parallel with it connected the various parts and gave ready
ways on which domestic trade could go. The other nations bordering the

Mediterranean Sea carried on important maritime trade with Egypt and, too,
there was a great caravan trade with the interior of Africa and parts of Asia.
From Ethiopia came gold, ivory, and slaves; from Arabia was obtained an
incense necessary in the religious ceremonies; from India were received
spices. "Syria took Egyptian chariots by hundreds; Tyre imported 'fine linen
with broidered work'; Greece, large quantities of paper; India and Arabia,
linen fabrics; Etruria, glass, porcelain, and alabaster; Assyria, perhaps,
ivories. In the earlier times Egyptian manufactures must have been
altogether unrivalled; and their glass, their pottery, their textile fabrics, their
metal-work, must have circulated freely through the various countries
bordering the Mediterranean and the Red Sea."40
Among the important industries of Egypt were the works in sculpture,
painting, and architecture. The men engaged in these occupations ranked
high, along with the scribes.
There were three kinds of sculpture in ancient Egypt. One kind was that of
statuary, sculpture in the round, where the complete figure was shown; a
second kind was relief, where the figure was raised from the flat surface by
cutting away the stone about it; the third kind was intaglio, in which there
was a cutting of the figure into the flat surface, sinking the figure below the
surface, and in one form of this the cutting was done about the figure so as
to leave it raised from the interior, almost up to the level of the surface of
the stone.
The old Egyptians reached a stage of progress in which the block of stone
for the sculpture figure was cut away from the original rock and transported
to the place where it was to stand. Yet the figure was rarely if ever cut
entirely away from the stone and so did not stand forth separate, detached, a
statute in and of itself. That which most kept Egyptian sculpture, perhaps,
from reaching to the highest attainment was the conventionality in the
displaying of figures. As the sculptures were used in the decoration of
tombs and temples, religion, which is ever conservative, prescribed certain
attitudes for the figures, so that there was not much left for the working out
by the individual sculptor, and although there was an exactness of finish
attained there was not that expression which comes through allowing
freedom to the individual sculptor, and in consequence there is very much

of a sameness in the products of the sculptors running through the twenty
centuries of old Egypt.
As with sculpture so with painting, the conventional forms were demanded
of the painter so that although mechanical skill became great, there was not
that high artistic effect that is attained where individuality is permitted to
display itself. The walls of buildings were not broken by windows, as the
brilliancy of light was such that few openings were necessary and the
openings let in heat. The walls on the interior were covered with a coating
of stucco, which was white or whitish, and then decorated with paintings
displaying scenes and events in the life of the people and the nation. The
ceilings were also painted. The colors used were black and white, red, blue,
and yellow, green and brown. Columns and other parts of buildings were
also stuccoed and painted and even the same was done with statues and
other products of the sculptors.
The early buildings in Egypt were made of brick or by the interweaving of
palm-sticks. From these rude structures to the great temples and pyramids
makes the architecture of that country a most marked feature of its progress.
The architecture of Egypt in its rectangular form and massiveness fits well
into the nature of the land, which frames plain and cliff about these
buildings as a proper background. Yet size is not so much the essential
characteristic of this architecture but rather strength and durability, which
were the chief features of the structures, whether large or small. Although
they were familiar with the arch and used it very much in brickwork, yet it
would appear that it was not used in the great buildings of stone, or, if so, it
was hid in the building and kept away from the external forms.41
The kinds of stone used in sculpture and architecture were limestone,
sandstone, granite, basalt, alabaster, and diorite. The stone was cut out in
blocks from the quarry, the surfaces were picked smooth with a short adze,
the blocks were then sawn and cut with drills, and probably all prepared at
the quarry ready for use at the building. Sand was used as the cutting
material with the soft stones and emery with the harder ones. Whether the
cutting material was used as powder or set as separate teeth on the copper
saw blade cannot be determined, yet in some instances it would appear that
the emery was set in the tool as teeth. The great problem to us is how these

stones were transported from the quarries and set up in their places. One
obelisk is estimated to have weighed 886 tons and it was taken over-land a
distance of 138 miles. Some of the obelisks of seventy to eighty feet in
length and weighing near 300 tons each were conveyed a distance of more
than 800 miles.42 Two great collossi, weighing 1,175 tons each, were carried
upstream a distance of 450 miles.43 It would appear that sometimes the stone
were placed on sleds and drawn by oxen down to the river, where by an
inclined plane they were placed on vessels, while again these blocks were
hauled by large bodies of men over-land to their places of destination.
The greatest of all their buildings were the Great Temple at Karnak and the
Great Pyramid at Ghizeh. The temple at Karnak was 1,200 feet long and
340 feet wide, with an entire area of 396,000 square feet, and with pylons,
obelisks, and columns, and it is called "the greatest of man's architectural
works." The Great Pyramid at Ghizeh has a square base the length of each
side of which is 764 feet, covering an area of about twelve acres. Its
original perpendicular height is estimated at about 485 feet. "The solid
masonry which it contained is estimated at more than 89,000,000 cubic feet,
and the weight of the mass at 6,848,000 tons. The basement stones are
many of them thirty feet in length and nearly five feet high. Altogether the
edifice is the largest and most massive building in the world, and not only
so, but by far the largest and most massive—the building which approaches
it the nearest being the Second Pyramid, which contains 17,000,000 cubic
feet less, and is very much inferior in the method of its construction."44
Sickness and Death. It would appear that the study and practice of
medicine began at a very early time in Egypt. Principles and remedies were
given out from time to time till finally they were brought together in the
form of medical works and all physicians were expected to study them and
to use the prescribed remedies. The medical skill of the Egyptians became
known to other parts of the world and they were consulted and called to
foreign countries to give advice and treatment. They went so far as to divide
the study and practice of medicine into specialties and so there were
physicians attending to one kind of illness only, as, one for the diseases of
the eyes, another for the diseases of the intestines, and so on, accoucheurs
having been usually, if not always, women. The physicians were given

salaries by the government and fixed by it and also they were permitted to
receive fees for their advice and attendance upon patients, but when in
military service they could not charge fees.
On account of the glaring light and the sandy plains and the overflow of
the Nile, some of the prominent troubles were of the eyes and such as were
connected with malaria. In treatment of illness, it was held that the patient
had been attacked by some evil influence, hence to cure him was first
necessary to find what was the nature of this evil spirit and to drive it out or
to destroy it. This was the task of those skilled in sorcery, through
incantations, amulets, and the like. Then the diseases that had been carried
into the body by the evil influences were to be cured by medicine and
medical treatment. Physicians were held responsible for their treatment of a
disease and if contrary to the established system they were punished and the
death of a patient under such circumstances was considered a capital
offense. Yet if they had exhausted all the prescribed remedies without
producing good effect, they could prescribe new remedies and hence an
opportunity for advancement in the science of medicine. In their practice
they strove to prevent illness by directing attention to regimen and diet;
they purged the system by use of emetics or clysters; and they used drugs
and medical herbs.
When a death occurred, all the women of the household covered their
faces with dust and mud and with bosoms exposed ran out through the
streets, striking themselves and uttering loud cries of grief. Friends and
relatives joined the procession and the demonstrations became the louder. If
the deceased person had been of wide repute, many other people went into
the line of mourners and hired mourners were employed to increase the
lamentations and thereby enlarge the public display of respect to the dead.
For seventy-two days the mourning was carried on in the house,
lamentations were made, the funeral dirge was sung, all amusements and
indulgences were abstained from, and the men allowed their hair and beard
to grow. Thus they endeavored to show respect to the deceased and their
great affliction by his departure.
One of the great arts of the ancient Egyptians was that of embalming. It
constituted a distinct profession. The embalmers had wooden models of

mummies, displaying the three different ways of embalming. The first way
of embalming was very expensive and was used only by the wealthy class
and people of high position; the second way was more simple and quite less
expensive and used by the middle class of people; the third way was very
simple and very cheap and employed by the lower classes. After embalming
the body was returned to the family and put into a case and placed in a
room upright against the wall, and sometimes they were retained by the
family for quite a while before their burial.
When the time for burial came, the mummy was put into a coffin of wood
or stone to be placed in a tomb, which may have been hewn in the rock or
built up of brick or rock and usually on the western side of the Nile. Some
of the tombs were of great extent and highly ornamented with paintings and
sculptures and some were immense structures. The pyramids were built for
tombs. The funeral of any important personage was a great occasion. There
was much display and much noisy lamentations and it was very costly.
Upon reaching the Nile the body was placed on the funeral barge and the
procession went out on the river to the lake of the dead. Before the deceased
could be taken across the lake for burial he had to meet the tribunal of
death. Forty-two judges were at the bank of the lake and any one could
bring accusation against the deceased. The judges considered the accusation
and acted upon it and if the decision was acquittal then burial in the tomb
took place, but if the accusation was sustained burial was denied. The
judgment was carried out on the body of any person in the country, high or
low, rich or poor, the meanest subject or a Pharaoh, and there are instances
of deceased Pharaohs having been denied public burial.
"All the legitimate tendencies exerted by this singular institution were
obviously for good. It sent forth from the very entrance of the tomb a most
powerful persuasive to live a life of virtue. It appealed to some of the
strongest of human motives, and enforced that appeal by the severest of all
sanctions, the exclusion of the body from its sepulchre, and of the soul from
the abodes of the blessed. It is not a little singular that a custom apparently
so salutary, and so early introduced, should not afterwards have been
adopted by other nations."45

Child and Religion. The child played a part in the religion of the ancient
Egyptians. Even one of their gods, Harpocrates, was represented by an
infant, having his finger to his mouth and that striking characteristic of a
young child—a protruding abdomen. The birth of a child was a matter for
thanksgiving offerings through the priests to the gods. Herodotus says:
"When parents, living in town, perform vows for the recovery of their
children's health, they offer prayers to the deity of whom the animal is
sacred, and then shaving a portion, or half, or the whole of the child's head,
they put the hair into one scale of the balance and money into the other until
the latter outweighs the former; they then give it to the person who takes
care of the animal to buy fish (or other food)."46
On some occasions when the sacred bull was led in procession through the
town, the procession was led by children, and on such occasions it was
thought that these children received the gift of foretelling future events.
Wilkinson gives the following from Plutarch: "They even look upon
children as gifted with a kind of faculty of divination, and they are ever
anxious to observe the accidental prattle they talk during play, especially if
it be in a sacred place, deducing from it presages of future events."47
Amusements. In the earlier times of ancient Egypt, as of all nations, when
the struggle for living required the putting forth of the energies and but little
leisure was allowed, there was not much time for recreation and the people
were not much given to amusements. As wealth grew and there was leisure
time, the desire for amusement and entertainment increased until there grew
up in the Egyptian character a softness and inclination to luxurious living.
Great banquets were given, where hosts vied with one another in
entertaining lavishly and in furnishing amusement for the guests, till it
would appear as if they devised every possible kind of amusement. Nor was
the zest for amusement confined to the upper classes, for during the
inundation of the Nile, when but little work could be done, the peasantry
gave themselves up to pastime and sport. Many of the kinds of
entertainment given at the banquets were performed on the streets and open
places.
Dancing was an indispensable entertainment at an Egyptian party and
music was required with the dance. They danced to the music of the harp,

lyre, guitar, pipe, tambourine, and other instruments, and in the streets also
to the drum. Dancing was not done by the guests, as it was held not to be
proper for the upper classes to dance, although the lower classes indulged in
this amusement and greatly enjoyed it. The dancing was carried on before
the guests by slaves taught the steps for that purpose or by hired performers
who made a profession of furnishing dancing and music for festive
occasions. Graceful posings and movements and especial skill and grace in
the use of the hands were the important features of the dance. Both men and
women danced for hire, the women showing the superior grace and
elegance and the men displaying the most spirit. The dress of the female
dancers was usually a loose flowing robe, reaching to the ankles, fastened at
the waist, and around the hips was a small narrow girdle of various colors
and ornamented with beads. The material of the dress was of a very fine
texture and thin, showing the form and movement of the limbs in dancing.
There were various ways of dancing. Sometimes one person danced alone,
sometimes they danced in pairs, again there were several dancers together
sometimes of both sexes and then of but one sex. Some danced to slow
music, while others preferred lively tunes, men sometimes displaying great
spirit, bounding from the ground. The aim of the dance was to display a
succession of figures in which were exhibited a great variety of gestures.
Twirling was much used in dancing and the pirouette was quite a favorite
form with them. In one dance two parties would each dance on one leg
toward one another and perform a series of evolutions and then retire from
one another. In another step, standing on one foot the dancer would strike
the ground with the heel, changing back and forth from one foot to the
other. The dances of the lower classes were sometimes in the form of a
pantomime, in which there was a preference shown for the ludicrous rather
than the graceful.
Music was very popular with the Egyptians and they had both vocal and
instrumental. They had numerous songs and for various occasions. They
had quite a variety of musical instruments. Music was used in military
movements, in religious exercises, in their social functions, and in the
wailing for the dead. Music formed a part of the education of a member of
the upper classes, but he did not display this at social functions, as that, like
dancing, was given over to professionals. Both men and women of the

priestly order, though, did render service with voice and instrument in
religious ceremonies.
"It is sufficiently evident, from the sculptures of the ancient Egyptians,
that their hired musicians were acquainted with the triple symphony; the
harmony of instruments, of voices, and of voices and instruments. Their
band was variously composed, consisting either of two harps, with the
single pipe and flute; of the harp and double pipe, frequently with the
addition of the guitar; of a fourteen-stringed harp, a guitar, lyre, double
pipe, and tambourine; of two harps, sometimes of different sizes, one of
seven, the other of four strings; of two harps of eight strings, and a seven-
stringed lyre; of the guitar, and the square or oblong tambourine; of the lyre,
harp, guitar, double pipe, and a sort of harp, with four strings, which was
held upon the shoulder; of the harp, guitar, double pipe, lyre, and square
tambourine; of the harp, two guitars, and the double pipe; of the harp, two
flutes, and a guitar; of two harps and a flute; of a seventeen-stringed lyre,
the double pipe, and a harp of fourteen strings; of the harp and two guitars;
or of two seven-stringed harps and an instrument held in the hand, not
unlike an Eastern fan, to which were probably attached small bells, or
pieces of metal that emitted a jingling sound when shaken, like the crescent-
crowned bells of our modern bands; besides many other combinations of
these various instruments; and in the Bacchic festival of Ptolemy
Philadelphus, described by Athenæus, more than 600 musicians were
employed in the chorus, among whom were 300 performers on the
kithara."48
As was stated before, dwarfs and deformed persons were attached to the
households of the greater people as a means of entertainment as in Rome
and Medieval Europe. These dwarfs and also others engaged in buffoonery
for the entertainment of guests. There were various tricks performed by
jugglers, and we find there the old cup or shell game, in which a little ball
or pea is rolled about on a board from one inverted cup to another to guess
under which it finally rested. There were many kinds of acrobatic feats,
mostly performed by women, such as two performers swinging around in a
reckless fashion while holding hands. This was varied by two men holding
the hands of two women and whirling them around with feet braced
together. There were tumbling exhibits of turning forward and backward on

the hands, somersaulting off one another's shoulders, and even sometimes
doing these feats while holding one foot with a hand. There were tests of
strength wherein two men would sit back to back and each strive to rise first
from the ground, and in another test they would try who could lift the
heaviest weight or raise a bag of sand with a straight arm up over head.
They would throw knives at a board, each contestant striving to strike his
knife in the center of the board or on a mark.
The most common indoor games were odd and even, mora, and draughts,
all of which it would appear were played in Egypt from very ancient times.
In odd or even bones, beans, nuts, almonds, and coins were used and any
indefinite number was held between the hands, the game being to guess
whether odd or even. The game of mora was usually played by two persons,
each at the same time quickly throwing out the fingers of one hand, then
trying to guess the number of fingers shown by both. Draughts was a
favorite game of all ranks. It was played by two people on a board similar
to the present checker-board, but the pieces were not flat, being raised,
more like the pieces in chess, and picked up like chessmen between thumb
and finger. In another game hooked rods were used by which a small hoop
was to be snatched from one another, the skill in this was for one person to
get his hoop loose from his opponent's rod and then snatch it away quickly
before he had time to stop it. In one game a player knelt with face toward
the ground between two others, who held over him in their closed hands
shells or dice, the number of which he was to guess before being allowed to
rise. They played with dice and probably played several other games of
chance.
Wrestling was a favorite amusement among the lower classes. They fought
with the single-stick and among the boatmen of the Nile were conflicts with
long poles. Mock fights were common, especially with the military classes,
sometimes quite a great affair wherein a temporary fort would be erected
and attacked by a party with a battering-ram and other implements of war
and vigorously defended by the party within the fort. There were bull fights,
sometimes between the animals and again men would fight the bulls. The
animals were carefully trained to fight and prizes were awarded to the
owner of the victorious combatant. It is pretty certain that animals were
taught to perform tricks and to dance.

All classes of the Egyptians delighted in hunting, fowling, and fishing. In
hunting they used the bow, the spear, the lasso, and the net to place across
enclosures. There were preserves on some of the estates in which animals
were kept for hunting, but the greatest sport was hunting out on the desert.
Dogs were used and different breeds reared, some for attacking, some for
coursing, and the like. Sometimes there would be a great hunt arranged,
with beaters for forcing the game into quarters where they could be
enclosed with nets and then hunted within. In hunting for birds and water-
fowl the real sportsman used only the throwing-stick, which was from a
foot and a quarter to two feet in length, about one inch and a half in breadth,
and slightly curved at the upper end. The hunter would usually go out in a
boat into the places covered with tall reeds and lotuses and gliding swiftly
in among the birds, or using a decoy bird to attract them toward him, he
would cast the throwing-stick at them as they arose and thus fell them.
Often a cat would accompany the hunter which was trained to get the birds
as they fell and bring them to the boat. In the pleasure-grounds of villas
were ponds well stocked with fish. The fish were caught from them by hook
and line. But the real fisherman used the bident spear, which sometimes had
feathers at one end, like an arrow, but more often without, and sometimes
the spear had a string attached to it to bring it back when thrown. Running
his boat over the surface of the water, as he would see a fish he would cast
his spear at it. They prided themselves on their skill with the spear.
Games, Plays, and Toys. The children and young people among the
ancient Egyptians engaged in many sports and they were encouraged in this
by their elders, particularly in those activities of an outdoor nature, as they
were considered to be conducive to good health through exercise of the
body. The young people took part in the singing and other music and at
least among the lower classes in the dancing. They went out with their
parents and other relatives on fishing trips and bird hunting and the youth
went with the men on hunting trips. The youth of both sexes practiced
shooting at a target with the bow and arrow.
The game of ball was one of the great games of the Egyptians, participated
in by children and adults of both sexes, but it appears to have been more
indulged in by the women. Some of the balls were made of leather or skin,
sewed with string, and stuffed with bran or husks of corn, some being about

three inches in diameter. In one of the favorite games the ball was thrown
and caught and the one failing had to carry the other woman, who caught it
on her back till this one failed to catch it, when she had to do the carrying.
The women rode sidewise in short petticoats on the backs of the losers. In
another game the ball was thrown as high as possible and the catcher would
leap up and catch it before the feet would touch the ground. Again when the
ball was thrown to them they would catch it with the hands behind the back
and even while standing on one leg.
The playthings of the little child are often found buried with it. They had
dolls of various kinds, being made of wood, stone, and enamelled pottery.
They often were painted, the inferior ones being the most gaudily colored.
Some were of rude construction with head and body and without arms and
legs, while others were small models of the human figure. Some were
jointed, the arms and legs moving on pins. Some had artificial hair, while
others had beads in imitation of hair hanging from the head. Some
grotesque figures were formed and by means of strings could be made to
assume various postures. One such figure was that of a crocodile which
could be made to amuse the child by its grimaces and by the opening and
closing of its mouth. Some figures of persons could be made to go through
the motions of washing and of kneading dough. One was the figure of a
person with jointed arms and legs, which could be thrown about by the
pulling of a string, and which still exists with us today in the jumping-jack.
They also had pigs, ducks, pigeons on wheels, boats, balls, marbles, and
miniature sets of household furniture.
Education. The ancient Egyptians were very much interested in the
education of the young. It would appear that the parent was left entire
freedom in the selecting what education and how much the child should
have. In the matter of education there seemed to be no caste whatever, as
the poor boy and son of one of the lower classes could take his place in
school by the side of the rich boy or the son of the noble.
A clever boy in school had great opportunities, be he from whatever class
of society. He was encouraged to go on to literary life, which meant, if
successful, entering into the employ of the government and reaching the
very highest places. Many a great nobleman so arose in Egypt and often

was found on his monument after his death: "His ancestors were unknown
people."
There were elementary schools, probably none provided by the state, and
whether there were schools or not in a community, there were teachers to be
had for the instruction of the young. With the temples were connected
higher schools and in the capitals of the three districts of Egypt, Thebes,
Memphis, Heliopolis, the temple schools were quite important centers of
learning. The child started into the elementary school at near five years of
age and continued till he left for work, or to enter a higher school, or else he
might have gone into the office of a scribe or physician or architect to learn
directly the work of his profession. The vast majority of the children
received very little training beyond the rudiments of education and what
instruction was given to them by their parents in teaching them their trades.
Some of the young people continued with their schooling and entered the
schools of the temples and there came in contact with the learned men of
the state and received a higher education. A very few of these, who
displayed special aptitude for learning, were permitted to enter into the
deeper studies and to whom was thrown open all the knowledge possessed
by the wisest men of their day. Little is known about the education of girls.
As the women ranked high in Egypt and took part in the public festivities
and religious ceremonies, they must have received such education as would
prepare them for their duties in life.
The purpose of education in ancient Egypt was to prepare for some one of
the callings of priest, scribe, architect, engineer, physician, soldier,
musician, artisan. It was necessary to be educated to enter into office and to
rise in position. Thus the education was of a utilitarian nature. The most
important calling outside the priesthood was that of the scribe. The scribe
learned about official documents and the management of business and to
read and write the three forms of writing—hieroglyphic, hierotic, demotic
—and also he studied ethics, philosophy, and law. The architect studied
mathematics and science and the history that would give him a knowledge
of art. The physician was taught such anatomy and physiology as was
known, remedies and incantations, and other things pertaining to his calling.
Whatever may be considered about this education, it did give Egypt a high

place among the old nations of the world and caused its civilization to
continue through many centuries.
In the home and in the school it was impressed on the children to be
respectful to their elders. They were taught to be careful of looks and
gestures, that such should be of a proper kind. It was not permitted to use
any dance or ode at the feasts and sacrifices that had not been passed on by
the proper authorities. The children were not permitted to hear or to learn
any verses or songs than such as were of a virtuous giving character.
The discipline in school was quite severe. One teacher spoke thus: "The
hawk is taught to fly and the pigeon to nest; I shall teach you your letters,
you idle villain."49 A pedagogical saying runs: "A young fellow has a back,
he hears when we strike it."
"Plato says the Egyptians taught numbers to children in their play by
distributing amongst them a certain number of fruits, or other things, the
same number to be given to many or to few children, so that by dividing
them amongst themselves they learnt lessons in arithmetic; and all sorts of
numbers were given to them in their games and plays as arithmetical
problems."50
For written work they had wooden blocks covered with red or white
stucco. Copies were engraved on wooden or stone tablets and then the
children copied them on their tablets. Work was also given by dictation. The
older pupils wrote from dictation, or from copies, extracts from the best
writers. This trained also in penmanship and spelling. Often the pupils
copied an "instruction," which consisted of moral precepts of an ancient
writer. Often the instruction consisted of letters between student and
teacher.

LITERATURE

1. Brugsch-Bey, Henry, A history of Egypt under the Pharaohs.
2. Dean, Amos, A history of civilization.
3. Graves, Frank Pierrepont, A history of education, Before the middle
ages.
4. Laurie, S. S., Historical survey of pre-Christian education.
5. Maspero, G., Life in ancient Egypt and Assyria.
6. Maspero, G., The dawn of civilization.
7. Petrie, W. M. Flinders, Arts and crafts of ancient Egypt.
8. Rawlinson, George, History of ancient Egypt.
9. Wilkinson, Sir J. Gardner, A popular account of the ancient Egyptians.
10. Wilkinson, Sir J. Gardner, The Egyptians in the time of the Pharaohs.
11. Wilkinson, Sir J. Gardner, The manners and customs of the ancient
Egyptians.

CHAPTER IV
THE CHILD IN INDIA
Caste. The caste system in India was the most fixed of any of the nations.
In this way the natural divisions into which mankind placed itself in a free
country was not allowed, but fixed and hereditary classes were formed.
There were four principal classes: The Brahmans, the priests; the
Kshatriyas, the warriors; the Vaisyas, the farmers and traders; the Sudras,
the laborers. Below these was a class of the very lowest.
There was very little opportunity for a member of one caste going into a
higher, so that an impulse for higher striving was of no avail, and if ever
such came to a member of a lower caste it must have soon died away. This
entailed especial disadvantages upon the children, for a boy's whole
situation in life depended upon the class to which the father belonged and,
consequently, his occupation and education. This rigid caste system might
have brought contentment to the people, as there was no use of being
discontented with one's lot, but such contentment could not bring great
progress.
Women and Marriage. In the early times in India, women were not
excluded as they were later, but they were honored and respected. They
were considered as the intellectual companion of the husband, as helper in
the daily life, and as partaker in the religious duties. They attended the
courts and assemblies and public entertainments, being permitted to appear
freely and openly on public occasions. The change took place when they
were conquered by the Moslems, from whom the custom of the exclusion of
women was learned by the Hindus or was thrust upon them.
The Code of Manu some three centuries before Christ set the status of
woman thus, "During her childhood a woman depends on her father; during
her youth, on her husband; her husband being dead, on her sons; if she has
no sons, on the near relatives of her husband; or if in default of them, on

those of her father; if she has no paternal relatives, on the sovereign. A
woman ought never to have her own way." So it is no wonder that the wife
was treated by the husband in the harshest manner and she to respond with
the greatest humility. The following from a witness of a hundred or more
years ago, portrays some of the relations which women bore to the opposite
sex:
"The women, on the other hand, are so thoroughly accustomed to harsh
and domineering treatment from their husbands that they would be quite
annoyed if the husbands adopted a more familiar tone. I once knew a native
lady who complained bitterly that her husband sometimes affected to be
devoted to her in public and allowed himself such little familiarities as are
looked upon by us as marks of affection. 'Such behavior,' said she, 'covers
me with shame and confusion. I dare not show myself anywhere. Did
anyone ever see such bad manners amongst people of our caste? Has he
become a Feringhi (European), and does he take me for one of their vile
women?'
"As a rule a husband addresses his wife in terms which show how little he
thinks of her. Servant, slave, etc., and other equal flattering appellations, fall
quite naturally from his lips.
"A woman, on the other hand, never addresses her husband except in terms
of the greatest humility. She speaks to him as my master, my lord, and even
sometimes my god. In her awe of him she does not venture to call him by
his name; and should she forget herself in this way in a moment of anger,
she would be thought a very low class of person, and would lay herself
open to personal chastisement from her offended spouse. She must be just
as particular in speaking of him to anyone else; indeed, the Hindus are very
careful never to put a woman under the necessity of mentioning her
husband by name. If by chance a European, who is unacquainted with this
point of etiquette, obliges her to do so, he will see her blush and hide her
face behind her sari and turn away without answering, smiling at the same
time with contemptuous pity at such ignorance.
"But if women enjoy very little consideration in private life, they are in
some degree compensated by the respect which is paid to them in public.
They do not, it is true, receive those insipid compliments which we have

agreed to consider polite; but then, on the other hand, they are safe from the
risk of insult. A Hindu woman can go anywhere alone, even in the most
crowded places, and she need never fear the impertinent looks and jokes of
idle loungers. This appears to me to be really remarkable in a country where
the moral depravity of the inhabitants is carried to such lengths. A house
inhabited solely by women is a sanctuary which the most shameless
libertine would not dream of violating. To touch a respectable woman even
with the end of your finger would be considered highly indecorous, and a
man who meets a female acquaintance in the street does not venture to stop
and speak to her."51
Courtesans in India, as in Greece, if of great beauty and accomplishments,
were accorded many more privileges than the other women. As these were
used in the temples, they were permitted to learn to read and to sing and to
dance, accomplishments which a respectable woman would have been
ashamed to have acknowledged even if she should have learned them.
In the early times, during the Vedic period, it would seem that the girls had
some choice in the selection of the husband, and yet the father must have
exercised some control over the affair. But later the selection of both bride
and groom was fast fixed in the hands of the parents, who arranged
everything. With the young man's family the purity of the caste of the future
wife was the greatest concern, beauty and personal attraction counting
nothing, while the girl's parents thought more of the fortune of the
bridegroom to be and of the character of his mother, because she was to
become the absolute mistress of the young wife. Intermarriage between
castes was not strictly forbidden, but a woman could not marry a man of
lower caste without losing caste.
"To a Hindu marriage is the most important and most engrossing event of
his life; it is a subject of endless conversation and of the most prolonged
preparations. An unmarried man is looked upon as having no social status
and as being an almost useless member of society. He is not consulted on
any important subject, and no work of any consequence may be given to
him. A Hindu who becomes a widower finds himself in almost the same
position as a bachelor, and speedily remarries.

"Though marriage is considered the natural state for the generality of men,
those who from pious motives remain unmarried are looked up to and
treated with the utmost respect. But it is only those persons who have
renounced the world, and have chosen to lead a life of contemplation, who
can take vows of celibacy. In any other case marriage is the rule, and every
one is under obligation of discharging the great debt to his ancestors,
namely, that of begetting a son.
...
"But this privilege men possess of remaining single, and giving
themselves up to a life of contemplation, is not shared by women. They at
all events cannot, under any circumstances, take vows of celibacy.
Subjected on all sides to the moral ascendancy of man, the very idea that
they could possibly place themselves in a state of independence and out of
men's power is not allowed to cross their minds. The opinion is firmly
established throughout the whole of India, that women were only created
for the propagation of the species, and to satisfy men's desires. All women
therefore are obliged to marry, and marriages are carefully arranged before
they arrive at a marriageable age."52
There were eight kinds of marriages described in the law, the Institutes of
Manu: "Of which one half are honorable, and differ from one another only
in some minute circumstances; in the fifth, the bridegroom bestows gifts
upon the bride, her father, and paternal kinsman; the last three are rather
species of unlawful connection, than forms of nuptial contract; one being
voluntary and by mutual consent; the other forcible when a woman is
seized, 'while she weeps and calls for assistance, after her kinsmen and
friends have been slain in battle'; the last, 'when the damsel is sleeping, or
flushed with strong liquor, or disordered in her intellect."53
The following verses from the Rig Veda, a very ancient Aryan collection
of hymns, belonging to the Hindus, give the ceremony of marriage in those
olden times:
"21. O Visvâvasu! (god of marriage), arise from this place, for the
marriage of this girl is over. We extol Visvâvasu with hymns and
prostrations. Go to some other maiden who is still in her father's house and

has attained the signs of the age of marriage. She will be your share, know
of her.
"22. O Visvâvasu! arise from this place. We worship thee, bending in
adoration. Go to an unmarried maiden whose person is well developed;
make her a wife and unite her to a husband.
"23. Let the paths by which our friends go in quest of a maiden for
marriage be easy and free of thorns. May Aryaman and Bhaga lead us well.
O gods! may the husband and wife be well united.
"24. O maiden! the graceful sun had fastened thee with ties (of
maidenhood), we release thee now of those ties. We place thee with thy
husband in a place which is the home of truth and the abode of righteous
actions.
"25. We release this maiden from this place (her father's house), but not
from the other place (her husband's house). We unite her well with the other
place. O Indra! may she be fortunate and the mother of worthy sons.
"26. May Pûshan lead thee by the hand from this place. May the two
Asvins lead thee in a chariot. Go to thy (husband's) house and be the
mistress of the house. Be the mistress of all, and exercise thine authority
over all in that house.
"27. Let children be born unto thee, and blessings attend thee here.
Perform the duties of thy household with care. Unite thy person with the
person of this thy husband; exercise thy authority in this thy house until old
age.
"40. First Soma accepts thee; then Gandharva accepts thee; Agni is thy
third lord; the son of man is the fourth to accept thee.
"41. Soma bestowed this maiden to Gandharva, Gandharva gave her to
Agni, Agni has given her to me with wealth and progeny.
"42. O bridegroom and bride! do ye remain here together; do not be
separated. Enjoy food of various kinds, remain in your own home, and
enjoy happiness in company of your children and grandchildren.

"43. (The bride and bridegroom say), May Prajapati bestow on us
children; may Aryaman keep us united till old age. (Address to the bride), O
bride! Enter with auspicious signs the home of thy husband. Do good to our
male servants and our female servants, and to our cattle.
"44. Be thine eyes free from anger; minister to the happiness of thy
husband; do good to our cattle. May thy mind be cheerful; and may thy
beauty be bright. Be the mother of heroic sons, and be devoted to the gods.
Do good to our male servants and our female servants, and to our cattle.
"45. O Indra! make this woman fortunate and the mother of worthy sons.
Let ten sons be born of her, so that there may be eleven men in the family
with the husband.
"46. (Address to the bride), May thou have influence over thy father-in-
law, and over thy mother-in-law, and be as a queen over thy sister-in-law
and brother-in-law.
"47. (The bridegroom and bride say), May all the gods unite our hearts;
may Mâtarisvan and Dhâtri and the goddess of speech unite us together."54
Dubois goes quite fully into the ceremonies and functions of a Brahmin
marriage of his time, from which is taken the following extract.55
There were four different ways of arranging the preliminaries of a
marriage. In the first the father of the bride refused the sum of money to
which he was entitled from the young man's parents and he bore all the
expenses of the wedding. In the second way the parents of both parties
agreed to share all the expenses. In the third way the youth's parents bore all
the expenses of the wedding and also paid a sum of money to the father for
his daughter. In the fourth method the girl's parents handed her over to the
young man's parents to do with her what they would. It is needless to say
that the first way was the most honored and respected and the last was most
mortifying to the girl's parents and it was used by none but the very poorest.
As soon as the parents of a young man had discovered a suitable girl,
when the auguries were favorable, they provided themselves with presents
and went and formally asked for her. Then the parents of the girl, at a
favorable moment, gave their consent and accepted the presents. Then the

priest who presided at public and private ceremonies fixed on a lucky day
and great preparations were made. The wedding garments were prepared,
the stores for feasts and for presents were got together, and all the many
other things needed. A canopy was erected and all the relatives and friends
invited.
The marriage ceremony lasted for five days. The first day was the great
day, as it was the day on which the most important and solemn ceremonies
took place. The gods and the ancestors and other divinities were invited to
be present. Then a number of rites and ceremonies were performed, in
which the bride and bridegroom, the parents, and guests partook. Near the
close of these ceremonies the husband fastened round the neck of the young
wife the tali, the little gold ornament which all married women wore round
their necks, and which performed by the husband showed that henceforth
the woman was to be his property. The day was ended with a specially
magnificent feast.
Amongst the ceremonies of the second day was the placing of an
ornament, covered with gold-leaf or gold paper and entwined with flowers,
on the forehead of both husband and wife to avert the effects of the evil eye,
the spell which is cast by the looks of jealous or ill-disposed people. On the
third day the wife joined in the sacrifice offered by the husband, the only
occasion on which a woman could take an active part in any of the
sacrifices. The only remarkable ceremony on the fourth day was that the
newly married couple rubbed each other's legs three times with powdered
saffron, of which Dubois did not understand the meaning and fancied its
only object was to kill time, just as Europeans under similar circumstances
would spend their time in drinking. The fifth day was chiefly occupied in
dismissing the gods and the ancestors and the other divinities that had been
invited to the feast. Then followed the distribution of presents. The festivity
ended with a solemn procession through the streets, which generally took
place at night by torchlight in the midst of squibs and fireworks of all kinds.
A girl's lot after marriage must have been dreadful in many cases, as she
became a servant to the mother of her husband, who too often tried in every
way to make the young girl miserable. In her husband's home the young
wife occupied the back of the house with the other women and she must

take the humblest place in this apartment for women. The little girl was
scolded quite a great deal and received no, or but little, praise. "I have
several times seen young wives shamefully beaten by beastly young
husbands who cherished no natural love for them.... A child of thirteen was
cruelly beaten by her husband in my presence for telling the simple truth,
that she did not like so well to be in his house as at her home."56 Yet, there
are here and there bright spots in this dark home life.
Polygamy was practiced in ancient India, and even down to later times, as
was true among many other ancient nations, but as a rule it was confined to
kings and wealthy lords. It was not looked upon with great favor. A person
of inferior rank was not allowed to have more than one wife, except in case
his wife was barren or had only borne female children, but before he could
contract a second marriage he had to obtain the consent of the first wife.
"Women in India have ever been remarkable for their faithfulness and their
duteous affection towards their husbands, and female unfaithfulness is
comparatively rare."57 Adultery was looked upon with the greatest
detestation in India. Yet the heinousness of the crime was regulated by the
caste of the offender, for a man of high caste committing adultery with a
woman of low caste was by no means so severely punished as was a man of
low caste with a woman of high caste. In case the man was a Sudra and the
woman of one of the three higher castes he suffered capital punishment, but
as on no account was a Brahmin to be punished with death, this offence
could not bring it to him.
"Although no law has ever said so, the popular belief is that a woman can
have no salvation unless she be formally married."58 Perhaps for this belief
parents became extremely anxious when their daughters were over eight or
nine years of age and were unsought in marriage. This was so strong it
frequently happened that poor parents feeling that their daughters must be
married would marry girls of eight or nine to men of sixty or seventy. In the
early times child marriages were unknown, but later boys among the
Brahmins married at about sixteen years of age and girls generally at five or
seven or, at the utmost, nine years of age. One author states that among the
Brahmins, if any girl remained unmarried until she was eleven years old the
family was suspended from caste.59

In early times in India, widows married and men belonging to one caste
married widows of other castes. "A droll story is told of the daughter of a
householder of Mâlava who married eleven husbands successively; and on
the death of the eleventh husband the plucky widow would probably have
welcomed a twelfth, but 'even the stones could not help laughing at her,' so
she took to the life of an ascetic."60 But Manu laid down that a widow
should never even mention the name of another man after her husband had
died, and that a second husband was nowhere prescribed for virtuous
women. A widower, whatever his age might be, and to whatever caste he
might belong, could marry again; but a woman of the Brahminical caste,
whether she ever lived with her husband or not, was not allowed again to
enter the married state. Sad was the state of these widows, for they were
cast out of society, but however despised they might have been, if one
remarried her lot became even worse, for she was shunned absolutely by
every honest and respectable person. "I once witnessed amongst the
Gollavarus, or shepherds, an instance of even greater severity. A marriage
had been arranged, and, in the presence of the family concerned, certain
ceremonies which were equivalent to betrothal amongst ourselves had taken
place. Before the actual celebration of the marriage, which was fixed for a
considerable time afterwards, the bridegroom died. The parents of the girl,
who was very young and pretty, thereupon married her to another man. This
was in direct violation of the custom of the caste, which condemns to
perpetual widowhood girls thus betrothed, even when, as in this case, the
future bridegroom dies before marriage has been consummated. The
consequence was that all the persons who had taken part in the second
ceremony were expelled from caste, and nobody would contract marriage or
have any intercourse whatever with them. A long time afterwards I met
several of them, well advanced in age, who had been for this reason alone
unable to obtain husbands or wives, as the case might be."61
Suttee is the name given to the act of a woman immolating herself upon
the funeral pile with the body of her deceased husband. This was not
practiced in the early times of India, yet it was quite old as it was known
from the time of Alexander, and even earlier. It continued down till the
nineteenth century, when a noted Hindu, Raja Ram Mohun Roy, got up such
an agitation against it that Lord William Bentinck, Governor-General of

India, enacted a law in 1829, which prohibited suttee within British
dominion and made all assistance, aid, or participation in any act of it to be
murder and punishable with death. But it did not fully cease till near the
middle of the century.
"Dr. Carey appears to have been the first who made efforts to ascertain the
extent of this practice in Bengal, and he found that the number of widows
who perished in this way, within 30 miles of Calcutta, in 1803, was 438. In
1817 the number of cases officially reported to the magistrate in Bengal was
706. In 1818 the number was 839, thus making 1,545 in two years. The
number which took place in Bengal from 1815-1826, or for 12 years, as
officially reported to the English magistrates, was 7,154. This number
includes only those which took place in Bengal. There was no means of
ascertaining the whole number of cases in the country. Mr. W. Ward
estimated them at 3,000 annually."62 The practice was chiefly among kings,
princes, Brahmins, and the wealthy and this made it all the more horrid,
because these were the men who practiced polygamy, and several of the
wives were burned with the husband's dead body. Instances are recorded of
5, 10, 15, 25, and even more, who thus sacrificed themselves. Everything
was done to get a woman to sacrifice herself and if after mature deliberation
she decided to do so there was no turning back for her. For if she did not go
on the funeral pyre of her own free will she would be dragged to it by force.
This is well portrayed in the following:
"In 1794, in a village of the Tanjore district called Pudupettah, there died a
man of some importance belonging to the Komatty (Vaisya) caste. His wife,
aged about thirty years, announced her intention of accompanying her
deceased husband to the funeral pyre. The news having rapidly spread
abroad, a large concourse of people flocked together from all quarters to
witness the spectacle. When everything was ready for the ceremony, and the
widow had been richly clothed and adorned, the bearers stepped forward to
remove the body of the deceased, which was placed in a sort of shrine,
ornamented with costly stuffs, garlands of flowers, green foliage, etc., the
corpse being seated in it with crossed legs, covered with jewels and clothed
in the richest attire, and the mouth filled with betel. Immediately after the
funeral car followed the widow, borne in a richly decorated palanquin. On
the way to the burning-ground she was escorted by an immense crowd of

eager sight-seers, lifting their hands towards her in token of admiration, and
rending the air with cries of joy. She was looked upon as already translated
to the paradise of Indra, and they seemed to envy her happy lot.
"While the funeral procession moved slowly along, the spectators,
especially the women, tried to draw near to her to congratulate her on her
good fortune, at the same time expecting that, in virtue of the gift of
prescience which such a meritorious attachment must confer upon her, she
would be pleased to predict the happy things that might befall them here
below. With gracious and amiable mien she declared to one that she would
long enjoy the favors of fortune; to another, that she would be the mother of
numerous children who would prosper in the world; to a third, that she
would live long and happily with a husband who would love and cherish
her; to a fourth, that her family was destined to attain much honor and
dignity; and so forth. She then distributed among them leaves of betel; and
the extraordinary eagerness with which they were received clearly proved
that great value was attached to them as relics. Beaming with joy, these
women then withdrew, each in the full hope that the promised blessings of
wealth and happiness would be showered on her and hers.
"During the whole procession, which was a very long one, the widow
preserved a calm demeanor. Her looks were serene, even smiling; but when
she reached the fatal place where she was to yield up her life in so ghastly a
manner, it was observed that her firmness suddenly gave way. Plunged, as it
were, in gloomy thought, she seemed to pay no attention whatever to what
was passing around her. Her looks became wildly fixed upon the pile. Her
face grew deadly pale. Her very limbs were in a convulsive tremor. Her
drawn features and haggard face betrayed the fright that had seized her,
while a sudden weakening of her senses betokened that she was ready to
faint away.
"The Brahmins who conducted the ceremony, and also her near relatives,
ran quickly to her, endeavoring to keep up her courage and to revive her
drooping spirits. All was of no effect. The unfortunate woman, bewildered
and distracted, turned a deaf ear to all their exhortations and preserved a
deep silence.

"She was then made to leave the palanquin, and as she was scarcely able
to walk, her people helped her to drag herself to a pond near the pyre. She
plunged into the water with all her clothes and ornaments on, and was
immediately afterwards led to the pyre, on which the body of her husband
was already laid. The pyre was surrounded by Brahmins, each with a
lighted torch in one hand and a bowl of ghee in the other. Her relatives and
friends, several of whom were armed with muskets, swords, and other
weapons, stood closely round in a double line, and seemed to await
impatiently the end of this shocking tragedy. This armed force, they told
me, was intended not only to intimidate the unhappy victim in case the
terror of her approaching death might induce her to run away, but also to
overawe any persons who might be moved by a natural feeling of
compassion and sympathy, and so tempted to prevent the accomplishment
of the homicidal sacrifice.
"At length, the purohita Brahmin gave the fatal signal. The poor widow
was instantly divested of all her jewels, and dragged, more dead than alive,
to the pyre. There she was obliged, according to custom, to walk three times
round the pile, two of her nearest relatives supporting her by the arms. She
accomplished the first round with tottering steps; during the second her
strength wholly forsook her, and she fainted away in the arms of her
conductors, who were obliged to complete the ceremony by dragging her
through the third round. Then, at last, senseless and unconscious, she was
cast upon the corpse of her husband. At that moment the air resounded with
noisy acclamations. The Brahmins, emptying the contents of their vessels
on the dry wood, applied their torches, and in the twinkling of an eye the
whole pile was ablaze. Three times was the unfortunate woman called by
her name. But, alas! she made no answer."63
Boys and Girls. "A son is the most coveted of all blessings that a Hindu
craves, for it is by a son's birth in the family that the father is redeemed."64
This accounted for the difference in the feeling for a boy and for a girl. So
strong was the desire for a son that sonless mothers were filled with great
care and anxiety lest the child should not be a boy. There is, perhaps,
nothing which will so weaken mankind as the life of the mothers before the
birth of the children, so what a great influence upon the Hindu race must

have been this constant worry of women who were to become mothers.
Well might the wives worry, for according to Manu, a wife who had all
daughters and no sons could be replaced with another wife in the eleventh
year of marriage.
This was also a burden to a girl born into the family. If a boy died soon
after the birth of a girl, or if a girl was born soon after her brother's death,
she was considered to be the cause of such death and was accordingly
treated very cruelly. This also had a bad influence upon the boys, as they
soon learned to know of their superior being and learned to despise and to
mistreat their sisters and later all womankind. After several sons had come
into a family a daughter might not be undesirable and in some cases really
wished for. Such a daughter was kindly and even affectionately treated.
The following is a striking passage. "Young children will obey their father,
because they fear punishment if they do not; but they will overwhelm their
mother with abuse, and will insult her grossly, even going so far at times as
to strike her. When they grow older they fail to respect even their father,
and it often happens that he is obliged to give way to his sons, who have
made themselves masters of the house. Strange to say, nowhere are parents
fonder of their children than they are in India; but this fondness usually
degenerates into weakness. If the children are good, they are extravagantly
praised; if they are naughty, their parents show the utmost ingenuity in
finding excuses for them. The mild punishments that their naughtiness or
disobedience brings down upon them invariably err on the side of leniency.
The parents do not dare to whip them or scold them sharply, or even inflict
any punishment that they would be likely to feel. The father and mother
content themselves with making feeble remonstrances about their bad
behavior, and if these produce no effect, they leave them to grow up in their
evil ways. The few sensible parents who show more firmness and severity
with their children are met with a show of temper. Sons do not hesitate to
resist the parental authority and threaten to escape it by running away and
living elsewhere. This threat rarely fails to produce the desired effect; the
parents' severity melts away and they become passive witnesses of the
disorderly conduct of their sons, who, encouraged by this first victory, end
by becoming absolute masters of the house. One must, however, do them
the justice to say that, after having thus gained the mastery over their

parents, they take great care of them, as a general rule, and see that they
want for nothing in their old age. But I fancy that in acting thus they are
moved less by filial affection than by considerations of what the world will
say."65
Infanticide. It is not strange that under such beliefs and treatment as
mentioned above that many female children should have been destroyed.
Fathers were willing to destroy their girls because of so little value and
mothers because of the saving to the girls the burdens which woman had to
endure. Also the Hindus were very superstitious and a child born under an
unlucky star was not only destined, according to common belief, to all sorts
of troubles and accidents during his life, but he would also bring bad luck to
his parents and relatives. Parents convinced that their child would bring bad
luck, because of having been born on an unlucky day, would abandon the
child at some place along the road, and even some would strangle and
drown such babies.
Dress. All classes of women in India were very fond of ornaments. They
wore jewels and rings in the ears and nose, rings on the fingers and toes,
chains on the neck, and bracelets on the arms, wrists, and ankles. It was no
uncommon sight to see a woman decked out in all her jewels, drawing
water, grinding rice, cooking food, and attending to all the menial domestic
occupations. But the greatest ornamenting was on the occasion of
marriages, holidays, and other festive times.
The women not only profusely ornamented themselves, but they also took
great pains and manifested much pride in ornamenting their children, both
boys and girls. Often the small children would have but little clothing on
but they would be wearing many ornaments, in some cases when all the
clothing worn by the child would, not exceed in value one dollar they
would be wearing ornaments worth one hundred dollars. Children were
frequently robbed and even murdered for these ornaments.
The dowry given with the girls at marriage consisted very greatly of the
ornaments. What the girl received from her husband's people or from her
home was clearly set forth in writing and they were considered her own
personal property. If she became a widow she claimed all such things as her
own.

Amusements. The amusements of the Hindus were for the most part of
the sedentary and inactive kind. Yet dancing was one of the most prominent
forms but they did not dance themselves but had hired performers, the
dancers being young women supposed to be courtesans, and for the most
part connected with the temples. There were feats of bodily agility and
dexterity, as found with the tumbler and the juggler. They were fond of
chess, cards, and other games of chance. Story-telling was a favorite
diversion.
Rites. The Hindu performed a great many rites. We are concerned here
only with the domestic ceremonies. The most important of the Domestic
Ceremonies were Marriage, ceremonies performed during pregnancy of
wife, birth of child, first feeding of child, tonsure, initiation, and return from
school on the completion of education.
In marriage there were many parts to the ceremony, all of which had to be
rigorously observed. During pregnancy there were rites to secure
conception, a rite to cause a male child to be born, rites to insure protection
to the child in the womb, and sometime between the fourth and eighth
month was the ceremony of the husband affectionately parting the wife's
hair.
On the birth of a child a rite was performed and a secret name given to the
child, known only to the parents. The child was weaned at eight months, at
which time he was given his first solid food, and an appropriate ceremony
went with it. At one year another rite was performed, at which time the
child's head was shaved, leaving such hair as might be desired for its
arrangement as was the custom of the family.
The ceremony of initiation, or the giving over of the boy to his teacher for
education, was a very important affair, participated in by the boy and by his
teacher. After he had finished his education, the student returned home,
which was the occasion for another important ceremony, which was
followed by his marriage and the student was then changed into a
householder. At the time of the initiation, the triple cord or sacred thread,
which was worn by the three upper castes, was bestowed upon the boy. The
age of the boy differed at this time according to which caste he belonged,

the Brahmin boy being initiated between 8 and 16, the Kshatriya between
11 and 22, and the Vaisya between 12 and 24.
Adoption. "When a Hindu had no sons, because of his wife's failure to
bear them to him or because the sons borne to him had all died, two things
were left to him to do, to take another wife or to adopt a son. If he adopted a
child it was generally from among his own relatives or if a Brahmin, at any
rate from his own caste. He might adopt a child or an adult, just as he
should choose. Girls were adopted, but there were very few instances of
such. The adoption was an event of importance and it was attended with
solemn ceremonies.
"The adopted son renounces wholly and forever all his claims to the
property and succession of his natural father, and acquires the sole right to
the heritage of his father by adoption. The latter is bound to bring him up, to
feed him, and to treat him as his own son; to have the ceremony of
upanayana, or the triple cord, performed for him, and to see him married.
The adopted son, in his turn, is obliged to take care of his adoptive father in
his old age and in sickness, just as if he were his natural father, and to
preside at his obsequies. On the death of his adoptive father he enters into
full possession of his inheritance—assets as well as liabilities. Should there
be any property left, he enjoys it; but if, on the other hand, there are debts,
he is bound to pay them. He is, moreover, by his adoption admitted into the
gothram or family stock of the adopter, and is considered to have left that in
which he was born."66
Inheritance. It appears that the property was divided in earlier times
equally among the sons upon the death of their father. Yet there was a joint
system where all lived together and the eldest son supplied the place of the
father, receiving all the property and then caring for all the others of the
family. At one time it was the custom for a daughter to get one-fourth as
much as a son, and at another time each son gave to the daughter one-fourth
of his share. As was stated above, when a son was adopted, he renounced all
claim to what his natural father might leave on his death, while he became
the full heir of his adopted father and upon his death got all that he might
leave.

The right of inheritance and the duty of presiding at a man's obsequies
belonged one with the other. When a man died without leaving direct
descendants, if he was wealthy a crowd of relatives appeared and great
disputes often arose as to whom belonged the honor of conducting the
funeral rites. But if he was poor, and burdened with debts, then the
survivors took every possible care to disprove near relationship.
Education. In the very early times in India, royal courts were the seats of
learning, and the learned and wise of all nations were welcomed to them.
Learned priests were retained in these courts not only to perform the
religious duties but also for the purpose of imparting learning. On great
occasions men of learning from all parts came to these places and
discussions were held on ritualistic matters and likewise on such subjects as
the human mind, the destination of the soul after death, the future world,
and the like. Then later appeared Brahminic settlements called Parishads,
answering to the Universities of Europe. These were at first, perhaps,
conducted by three Brahmins who knew the Vedas, but the number was
increased up to twenty-one. To these places men of the Brahmin caste who
wished to become learned could go and receive instruction in the Vedas and
such traditionary law and astronomy and philosophy as was current.
Besides these Parishads, there were private schools, established by
individual teachers, who collected about them a body of students. Also
learned Brahmins in their old age would sometimes retire to forests and
gather students around them. Later great schools arose, such as noted by
Houen Tsang, a Chinese traveler, who spent several years in India in the
seventh century after Christ. "Our traveler now came to the great
NÂLANDA University, if we may call it by that name. The monks of this
place, to the number of several thousands, were men of the highest ability,
talent, and distinction. 'The countries of India respect them and follow
them. The day is not sufficient for asking and answering profound
questions. From morning till night they engage in discussion; the old and
the young mutually help one another. Those who cannot discuss questions
out of the Tripitaka are little esteemed, and are obliged to hide themselves
for shame. Learned men from different cities, on this account, who desire to
acquire quickly a renown in discussion, come here in multitudes to settle
their doubts, and then the streams (of their wisdom) spread far and wide.

For this reason some persons usurp the name (of Nâlanda students) and in
going to and fro receive honor in consequence.'"67
The Brahmins themselves received the highest education possible. This
consisted in the memorizing of their sacred books and a study of the
philosophy and science of their times. The second and third castes seem to
have been accorded the right to study what the first caste did, yet the third
caste must not have entered much into this but have received a somewhat
meager education. As boys followed the occupation of their parents, they
would receive such elementary instruction as was needed in the trade or
work to be performed. The fourth caste had no need for learning so they
received none except in the duties which a servant was expected to perform.
In the olden times, when women were well respected and permitted to
appear in public, girls were taught to read and to write and were given other
education. But later they received no education further than the training for
domestic duties. Education was not needed by women, as a woman must at
all times depend upon some man for her knowledge of things. The dancing
girls received some education, as it was considered that their religious
duties would be better performed if they should receive some intellectual
training.
The student was expected to be obedient and respectful to his teacher and
to serve him in every way. The discipline of the school was very mild.
Laurie quotes from Manu: "Good instruction must be given to pupils
without unpleasant sensations, and the teacher who reverences virtue must
use sweet and gentle words. If a scholar is guilty of a fault, his instructor
may punish him with severe words, and threaten that on the next offence he
will give him blows; and, if the fault is committed in cold weather, the
teacher may dowse him with cold water."68
"To the Hindus we are indebted for our numerical notation, often wrongly
attributed to the Arabs. During the fifth century after Christ they invented
an algebra superior to that of the Greeks, although they were probably
assisted by the work of the latter. They early learned how to calculate
eclipses and find the location of planets by means of tables. They seem also
to have had some knowledge of medicine. By 300 A. D. they possessed a
treatise on rhetoric, and had worked out a logic two centuries before the

time of Aristotle; while in the science of grammar, as early as the fourth
century B. C., they were so far advanced that the Western world first
learned what philology was when the study of Sanskrit was opened to
Europe a hundred or more years ago."69

LITERATURE

1. Allen, David O., India, Ancient and modern.
2. Dubois, Abbé J. A., Hindu manners, customs, and ceremonies.
3. Dutt, Romesh Chunder, A history of civilization in ancient India.
4. Graves, Frank Pierrepont, A history of education, Before the middle
ages.
5. Laurie, S. S., Historical survey of pre-Christian education.
6. Letourneau, Ch., The evolution of marriage.
7. Mill, James, The history of British India.
8. Ragozin, Zénaïde A., Vedic India.
9. Ramabai, Pundita, The high-caste Hindu woman.
10. Rhys-Davids, T. W., Buddhist India.

CHAPTER V
THE CHILD IN CHINA
Women and Marriage. The Chinese have an old maxim that "a woman is
thrice dependent; before marriage, on her father; after marriage, on her
husband; when a widow, on her son." But this refers, no doubt, principally
to support and subsistence, as the mother was greatly respected and had
much authority for even "the emperor himself performs the ceremonies of
the ko-tow before his own mother, who receives them seated on a throne."70
This power of the mother was carried to the daughter-in-law, for after
marriage the girl was no longer a daughter but a daughter-in-law and for a
considerable part of her life she was under the absolute control of a mother-
in-law. Cruel treatment was the rule rather than the exception and the only
way out was through suicide, and suicide and attempts at suicide on the part
of wives were so frequent as to cause but little comment. Christianity
requires a man to leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife, but
Confucianism requires a man to cleave to his father and mother and
compels the wife to do the same. The sale of wives and children was not
uncommon. "It is perfectly well known to those acquainted with the facts,
that during several recent years in many districts stricken with famine, the
sale of women and children was conducted as openly as that of mules and
donkeys, the only essential difference being that the former were not driven
to market."71
Modesty was deemed so essential in the female character that it was
considered indecorous in women of birth and breeding to show even their
hands, and the dresses were so made that the long sleeves usually covered
the hands when touching or moving anything. Yet there was adultery, which
was considered a most heinous offence, but instead of bringing the offender
before a magistrate many cases were dealt with in private. The offender
would be attacked by a band of men and sometimes his legs were broken,

sometimes his arms, and again quicklime would be rubbed into his eyes,
destroying the sight.
The laws of China did not sanction polygamy but they did permit
concubinage. The man could have but one wife, who was distinguished by a
proper title, while the concubines were inferior and their children belonged
to the wife. If the wife had borne sons, it was considered somewhat
discreditable for a man to take a concubine, and if he did and brought her
into the same home with his wife there was usually great disturbance, which
accorded with one of their proverbs, That nine women out of ten are
jealous. These concubines were generally purchased with money and were
from the lower classes, where poverty always prevailed, making occasion
for the selling of the girls. In a few cases, concubinage in a family might
have arisen through the wife's desire to have women and children to serve
her, as they would come under her control.
There were seven grounds for divorce in China, being, barrenness,
adultery, disobedience to the husband's parents, talkativeness, thievery, ill
temper, and malignant disease. But divorce was not for the wife, for no
offense, of whatever kind, on the part of the husband, gave a woman any
right to claim a divorce from him. "Any of these, however, may be set aside
by three circumstances: the wife having mourned for her husband's parents;
the family having acquired wealth since the marriage; and the wife being
without parents to receive her back."72 The family of the woman was a great
factor against divorce, not only on account of the unjustness or disgrace
attached to it but also because when the woman married she gave up her
home and no provision was made for her further support and especially so if
her parents were dead as the property was divided among her brothers and
she would be looked upon as an alien. Hence a husband would not be
allowed to divorce his wife, except for a most valid cause.
It was considered disreputable for widows to remarry. But this was not
true of a widower as he could marry whomever he should choose, nor did
he have to wait for any length of time for the ceremony because of any
period of mourning for his first wife. If the widow herself should be
unwilling to marry, the law would protect her against those trying to make
her do so. One of the strong motives against marrying again was that as

long as she remained a widow she would be absolute mistress of herself and
her children. The widow was occasionally sold as a concubine by her
father-in-law, but this was rare, as it was considered a great degradation and
especially as she would be separated from her children.
"A reverse view of matrimonial experiences is suggested by the practice of
wives refusing to survive their husbands and, like the victims of suttee in
India, putting a voluntary end to their existence rather than live to mourn
their loss. Such devotion is regarded by the people with great approbation,
and the deed of suicide is generally performed in public with great
punctiliousness. The following account of one such suicide at Fuhchow is
taken from the Hong Kong Daily Press of January 20, 1861:
"'A few days since,' says the writer, 'I met a Chinese procession passing
through the foreign settlement, escorting a young person in scarlet and gold
in a richly decorated chair; the object of which I found, was to invite the
public to come and see her hang herself, a step she had resolved to take in
consequence of the death of her husband, by which she had been left a
childless widow. Both being orphans, this event had severed her dearest
earthly ties, and she hoped by this sacrifice to secure herself eternal
happiness, and a meeting with her husband in the next world. Availing
myself of the general invitation, I repaired on the day appointed to the
indicated spot. We had scarcely arrived, when the same procession was seen
advancing from the Joss house of the woman's native village towards a
scaffold or gallows erected in an adjacent field, and surrounded by hundreds
of natives of both sexes; the female portion, attired in gayest holiday
costume, was very numerous. A friend and I obtained a bench for a
consideration, which, being placed within a few yards of the scaffold, gave
us a good view of the performance. The procession having reached the foot
of the scaffold, the lady was assisted to ascend by her male attendant, and,
after having welcomed the crowd, partook with some female relatives of a
repast prepared for her on a table on the scaffold, which she appeared to
appreciate extremely. A child in arms was then placed upon the table, whom
she caressed and adorned with a necklace which she herself had worn. She
then took an ornamental basket containing rice, herbs, and flowers, and,
whilst scattering them amongst the crowd, delivered a short address,
thanking them for their attendance, and upholding the motives which urged

her to the step she was about to take. This done, a salute of bombards
announced the arrival of the time for the performance of the last act of her
existence, when a delay was occasioned by the discovery of the absence of
a reluctant brother, pending whose arrival let me describe the means of
extermination. The gallows was formed by an upright timber on each side
of the scaffold supporting a stout bamboo, from the center of which was
suspended a loop of cord with a small wooden ring embracing both parts of
it, which was covered by a red silk handkerchief, the whole being
surrounded by an awning.
"'The missing brother having been induced to appear, the widow now
proceeded to mount on a chair placed under the noose, and, to ascertain its
fitness for her reception, deliberately placed her head in it; then,
withdrawing her head, she waved a final adieu to the admiring spectators,
and committed herself to its embrace for the last time, throwing the red
handkerchief over her head. Her supports were now about to be withdrawn,
when she was reminded by several voices in the crowd that she had omitted
to draw down the ring which should tighten the cord round her neck;
smiling in acknowledgment of the reminder, she adjusted the ring, and,
motioning away her supports, was left hanging in mid-air—a suicide. With
extraordinary self-possession she now placed her hands before her, and
continued to perform the manual chin-chin until the convulsions of
strangulation separated them and she was dead. The body was left hanging
about half an hour, and then taken down by her male attendants, one of
whom immediately took possession of the halter, and was about to sever it
for the purpose of appropriating a portion, when a struggle ensued, of which
I took advantage to attach myself to the chair in which the body was now
being removed to the Joss house, in order to obtain ocular proofs of her
demise. Arrived at the Joss house the body was placed on a couch, and the
handkerchief withdrawn from the face, disclosed unmistakable proofs of
death. This is the third instance of suicide of this sort within as many weeks.
The authorities are quite unable to prevent it, and a monument is invariably
erected to the memory of the devoted widow.'"73
The most essential circumstance in a respectable family alliance was, that
there should be equality of rank on either side. A Chinese lover who should
woo a young lady of good family would visit the house of her parents,

where he was expected to display his accomplishments, especially in
penmanship. There was romance and poetry in the wooing, as may be
shown by this love song, which has been sung in Cathay for more than two
and a half millenniums:

"How rises the moon in radiant glory!
And thou my lady, most charming and sweetest
Oh, listen kindly to love's story!—
Ah, poor my heart that vainly beatest!

"How rises the moon in cloudless effulgence!
And thou my lady, most winsome and purest
Oh, grant thy lover more indulgence!—
Ah, poor my heart what thou endurest!

"How rises the moon in splendor most brightly!
And thou my lady, loveliest, fairest
Wilt never for my love requite me?—
Ah, poor my heart what pain thou bearest!"74

"At the present day marriage is probably more universal in China than in
any other civilized country in the world. It is regarded as something
indispensable, and few men pass the age of twenty without taking a wife.
Chinese legislators have at all times encouraged early marriages as having a
pacifying effect upon the people. A man who has given hostages to fortune
in the shape of wife and children has a greater inducement to follow the
paths of steady industry, and is less likely to throw in his lot with brigands
and rebels, than a man who has but himself to think of, and is without any
immediate ties. Besides this the Chinese believe, in common with the
ancient Greeks, that the shades of the unburied wander restlessly about
without gaining admittance into Hades; so that non-burial came to be
considered by them the most deplorable calamity that could befall one, and
the discharge of the last service a most holy duty. To die, therefore, without
leaving behind a son to perform the burial rites, and to offer up the fixed
periodical sacrifices at the tomb, is one of the most direful fates that can
overtake a Chinaman, and he seeks to avoid it by an early marriage."75
The two young people to a betrothal in China had very little to do with it.
This was arranged by means of a go-between, or match-maker. The
negotiations generally originated with the family of the boy or young man.
A card was made out containing data of the candidate, such as the ancestral
name, the hour, day, month, and year of birth of the young candidate. At
some time in the proceedings both parties had to make known to each other
if there were any bodily or constitutional defect, what the true age of each

was, whether born of a wife or a concubine, and whether real offspring or
only adopted. Provided with the card, the go-between went to the other
family and stated the object of the visit. The parents or guardians of the girl
would then make inquiries about the other family, they would consult a
fortune-teller to ascertain if it would be fitting and auspicious for the two
young people to wed. If the offer was acceptable, then the go-between was
furnished with a similar card about the girl to take to the other family. If
within three days of the engagement an unlucky thing occurred, as the
breaking of a china bowl or the losing of some article in the house,
circumstances were considered to be sufficiently unlucky to warrant the
instant termination of the negotiations. The betrothal was not binding till
certain cards were interchanged between the families. The outside of the
cards was covered with red paper, on which was pasted a paper dragon for
the one and on the other a paper phœnix. Each card was adorned with two
pieces of red silk. The card with the dragon was filled out with particulars
relating to the family of the boy and retained by the girl's family, while the
one with the phœnix had particulars of the girl's family and it was kept by
the family of the boy. At the time of the exchange of cards presents were
sent. For the girl was sent a pair of silver or gold wristlets and for her
family articles of food, as pigs' feet, fruits, fowls, etc. For the boys' family
were sent artificial flowers, bread, cakes, etc.
As usually in a family there was strict separation between the males and
females, there was but little opportunity for the bride and groom to meet
one another and often they would not have seen one another till the day of
the wedding. The difficulty was increased after betrothal, for it was
considered quite improper for the girl to be actually seen by the family of
the future mother-in-law. The girl had to maintain the strictest seclusion.
She must retire to the inner apartments when friends called upon her
parents, and when going out she was to use a closed sedan chair. For this
reason, most engagements were arranged between parties not living in the
same place.
The time which might transpire between betrothal and marriage varied
from a month or two to eighteen or twenty years, depending much on the
age of the parties. "There are six ceremonies which constitute a regular
marriage. 1. The father and elder brother of the young man send a go-

between to the father and brother of the girl, to enquire her name and the
moment of her birth, that the horoscope of the two may be examined, in
order to ascertain whether the proposed alliance will be a happy one. 2. If
so, the boy's friends send the go-between back to make an offer of marriage.
3. If that be accepted, the second party is again requested to put their assent
in writing. 4. Presents are then sent to the girl's parents according to the
means of the parties. 5. The go-between requests them to choose a lucky
day for the wedding; and, 6, the preliminaries are concluded by the
bridegroom going or sending a party of his friends with music to bring his
bride to his own house."76
In the spring was considered the most appropriate time for marriage, and
the month in which the peach-tree blossomed as the happiest time. The
following poem translated from the "Book of Odes," illustrates this:
"Sweet child of spring, the garden's queen,
Yon peach-tree charms the roving sight;
Its fragrant leaves how richly green,
Its blossoms how divinely bright!

"So softly shines the beauteous bride,
By love and conscious virtue led,
O'er her new mansion to preside,
And placid joys around her spread."77

Some time previous to the day fixed, the bridegroom was invested
ceremoniously with a dress cap or bonnet, and he took an additional name.
About this same time the bride, whose hair had hung down in long tresses,
had it done up in the style of married women of her class in society.
Usually, the day before the wedding, the bride tried on the clothes she was
to wear in the sedan going to the home of her husband, and what she was to
wear the first day upon her arrival at his home. This was an occasion of
great interest to her family, and the parents invited female relatives and
friends to a feast that they might view the clothing and help to have things
well prepared for the wedding-day.
On the wedding-day, the bridegroom or his best man and friends went with
an ornamented sedan, accompanied with musicians, to the home of the
bride. When evening came and the stars were just beginning to peep out, the
bride, with a thick veil over her head and completely covering her features

from view, entered the sedan and the procession, with music and lanterns,
took its way to the home of the bridegroom. On reaching his residence, the
bride was carried into the house in the arms of matrons and lifted over a pan
of burning charcoal on the threshold. The bridegroom and bride seated
themselves side by side, each trying to sit on a part of the dress of the other,
as it was considered that the one who succeeded in so doing would rule the
household. Then the bride returned to her chamber and her outer garments
and veil were removed and she was dressed in her wedding finery and then
with her husband she entered upon the wedding-dinner. Often this was the
first time in the husband's life to behold the features of his wife. He could
eat what he chose of the good things but she, according to established
custom, must not take a particle, but must sit in silence, dignified and
composed. The door of the room was left open and about it gathered the
invited guests, the parents of the bridegroom and his relatives, all of whom
scrutinized the bride and observed her deportment and expressed their
opinions and criticisms. The cup of alliance was drunk together by the
young couple and pledges were exchanged. On the next day they
worshipped together the ancestral gods of the husband and paid their
respects to his parents and relatives. This was the wife's last time to be in
public with her husband, as husbands were never seen with their wives in
public. On the third day after the wedding, the bride paid a customary visit
to her own parents.
Whatever else might have been included in the marriage customs in China,
the wedding-feast was the main feature of the occasion. This might occur
upon the wedding-day or at some later time. Wedding and funeral feasts
would be quite impossible were it not for the "share" system which they
have worked out. Each guest, or each family, were not only expected but
really required by a rigid code of social etiquette to contribute to the
expense of the occasion. This was sometimes in food but usually in money
and there was a scale according to which every one knew what his "share"
should be.
"One of the most characteristic methods in which the Chinese lack of
sympathy is manifested is in the treatment which brides receive on their
wedding-day. They are often very young, are always timid, and are
naturally terror-stricken at being suddenly thrust among strangers. Customs

vary widely, but there seems to be a general indifference to the feelings of
the poor child thus exposed to the public gaze. In some places it is
allowable for any one who chooses to turn back the curtains of the chair and
stare at her. In other regions, the unmarried girls find it a source of keen
enjoyment to post themselves at a convenient position as the bride passes,
to throw upon her handfuls of hay-seed or chaff, which will obstinately
adhere to her carefully oiled hair for a long time. Upon her emerging from
the chair at the house of her new parents, she is subjected to the same kind
of criticism as a newly bought horse, with what feelings on her part it is not
difficult to imagine."78
Infancy. "A Chinese baby is a round-faced little helpless human animal,
whose eyes look like two black marbles over which the skin had been
stretched, and a slit made on the bias. His nose is a little kopje in the center
of his face, above a yawning chasm which requires constant filling to insure
the preservation of law and order. On his shaved head are left small tufts of
hair in various localities, which give him the appearance of the plain about
Peking, on which the traveler sees, here and there, a small clump of trees
around a country village, a home, or a cemetery; the remainder of the
country being bare. These tufts are usually on the 'soft spot,' in the back of
his neck, over his ears or in a braid or a ring on the side of his head."79
It was considered a deep disgrace if the children of a Chinese mother were
not all born at the father's home, and in their efforts to have such occur
women would do everything possible, even going to great inconvenience
and hardship. If this should be the first baby and a boy, there would be great
rejoicing in the whole household, but if a girl there would not only be no
rejoicing but along with depression the young wife would be treated with
coldness and often with harshness, and she might be beaten for her lack of
discretion in not producing a son.
On the third day after birth, the child was washed for the first time.
Friends and relatives were invited to take part and they brought presents to
the child. Immediately after the washing, the ceremony of binding the
wrists took place, which in some cases consisted of the tying of one or more
ancient cash to each wrist by means of a red cotton cord while with others
only a loose red string was put around each wrist. When the child was a

month old, the mother and child left her room for the first time and the
ceremony of naming the baby and shaving its head took place. All the
relatives and friends were invited and they were expected to take dinner
with the child, and, which was more important, to take presents.
"The presumption is that a Chinese child is born with the same general
disposition as children in other countries. This may perhaps be the case; but
either from the treatment it receives from parents or nurses, or because of
the disposition it inherits, its nature soon becomes changed, and it develops
certain characteristics peculiar to the Chinese child. It becomes t'ao ch'i.
That almost means mischievous; it almost means troublesome—a little
tartar—but it means, exactly t'ao ch'i. In this respect almost every Chinese
child is a little tyrant. Father, mother, uncles, aunts, and grandparents are all
made to do his bidding. In case any of them seems to be recalcitrant, the
little dear lies down on his baby back on the dusty ground and kicks and
screams until the refractory parent or nurse has repented and succumbed,
when he gets up and good-naturedly goes on with his play and allows them
to go about their business. The child is t'ao ch'i."80
The baby in China has its toys to play with and it also has its Mother
Goose rhymes and Headland states that he collected more than six hundred
of such rhymes.81 A few will be sufficient to give here to show their
resemblance to our own. The following is as popular in China as "Jack and
Jill" is here:
"He climbed up the candle-stick,
The little mousey brown,
To steal and eat tallow,
And he couldn't get down.

He called for his grandma,
But his grandma was in town,
So he doubled up into a wheel,
And rolled himself down."

This next one easily calls up "Lady bug, lady bug, fly away home:"
"Fire-fly, fire-fly,
Come from the hill,
Your father and mother
Are waiting here still.

They've brought you some sugar,
Some candy and meat,
Come quick or I'll give it
To baby to eat."

The following is said over the baby's toes very much as "This little pig
went to market:"
"This little cow eats grass,
This little cow eats hay,
This little cow drinks water,
This little cow runs away,
This little cow does nothing,
Except lie down all day.
We'll whip her."

The Chinese loved their children and yet infanticide existed with them, but
mostly only that of girls. The greatest cause was poverty. Being too poor to
care for their children parents thought best to kill them than to sell them
into slavery. This perhaps was not large over the whole country and existed
to a great extent only in certain parts, sometimes as high as eighty per cent.
of all girl babies born. The following conditions as given as found some
time before the year 1840, shows its prevalence in certain districts at that
time, as this refers to a small village on the Amoy island. "On a second
visit, while addressing them, one man held up a child, and publicly
acknowledged that he had killed five of the helpless beings, having
preserved but two. I thought he was jesting, but as no surprise or dissent
was expressed by his neighbors, and as there was an air of simplicity and
regret in the individual, there was no reason to doubt its truth. After
repeating his confession, he added with affecting simplicity, 'It was before I
heard you speak on this subject, I did not know it was wrong; I would not
do so now.' Wishing to obtain the testimony of the assembled villages, I put
the question publicly, 'What number of female infants in this village are
destroyed at birth?' The reply was, 'More than one-half.' As there was no
discussion among them, which is not the case when they differ in opinion,
and as we were fully convinced from our own observations of the numerical
inequality of the sexes, the proportion of deaths they gave did not strike us
as extravagant."82

It is difficult to judge this matter correctly when such contrary opinions are
placed before us as in the following quotations, the first by an American
who spent many years in China and the second by a Chinaman who spent
many years in America. "Much has already been done by those who have
had most opportunity to learn the facts, toward exhibiting the real practice
of the Chinese in the matter of destroying female infants. Yet no more can
be safely predicted than that this is a crime which to some extent
everywhere prevails, and in some places to such a degree as seriously to
affect the proportion of the sexes. It seems to be most common in the
maritime provinces of the southern part of China, in some districts of which
it is by the Chinese themselves regarded as a terrible and a threatening
evil."83 "I am indignant that there should be a popular belief in America that
Chinese girls at birth are generally put to death by their parents because
they are not wanted. Nothing can be further from the truth. In a country like
China, where women do not appear in public life, it must follow that sons
are more to be desired, for the very good reason that family honor and glory
depend on them and ancestral worship necessitates either the birth or
adoption of sons to perpetuate it. I venture to say that in proportion to
population and distribution of wealth that infanticide is as rare in China as it
is in this country."84
Boys and Girls. The relative estimation that was placed upon boys and
girls in olden China is well expressed by a passage from one of their oldest
classics, The Book of Odes. In describing the palace of an ancient king, the
dreams of the king are treated and then comes the following:
"Sons shall be born to him; they will be put to sleep on couches;
They will be clothed in robes; they will have scepters to play with;
Their cry will be loud.
They will be (hereafter) resplendent with red knee-covers,
The (future) king, the princes of the land.
Daughters will be born to him. They will be put to sleep on the ground;
They will be clothed with wrappers; they will have tiles to play with.
It will be theirs neither to do wrong nor to do good.
Only about the spirits and the food will they have to think,
And to cause no sorrow to their parents."85

The baby boy was greatly welcomed upon his arrival into the family, while
the baby girl might not only be unwelcomed but very greatly undesired.

This was mostly because girls counted for so little as they would marry and
then no longer belong to their family but entirely to the family of their
husband. Boys would not only become the support of their family but they
might have opportunity to acquire learning and thus add dignity and honor
to their family. Too, there was great need of sons to carry on the ancestral
worship and if not born into the family they must be procured through
adoption or by means of concubines. Without a son a man would live
without honor and would die unhappy. No matter how good or how
beautiful a girl might become, she could never equal the very poorest and
weakest boy.
Child and Parent. While his parents were alive, a son should continue to
obey them, was the doctrine of the classics, the laws, and the customs of
China. But a daughter, after she was married, was not subject to her own
parents but to her husband's parents. Although instances were rare, parents
had the right to bring their children before magistrates for aid in controlling
and punishing them. With all this, it would seem that the children were not
greatly disciplined nor did they give prompt obedience to their parents.
Public sentiment, especially in the older times of China, was strongly
against the individual who would not accord to his parents due respect and
obedience. No matter how old, how educated, or how wealthy he might
become this respect and obedience was still due his parents. Confucius
taught: "That parents when alive should be served according to propriety,
that when dead they should be buried according to propriety, and that they
should be sacrificed to according to propriety."86
"If a son should murder his parent, either father or mother, and be
convicted of the crime, he would not only be beheaded, but his body would
be mutilated by being cut into small pieces; his house would be razed to the
ground, and the earth under it would be dug up for several feet deep; his
neighbors living on the right and the left would be severely punished; his
principal teacher would suffer capital punishment; the district magistrate of
the place would be deprived of his office and disgraced; the prefect, the
governor of the province, and the viceroy would all be degraded three
degrees in rank. All this is done and suffered to mark the enormity of the
crime of a parricide."87

Deformation of the Feet. The practice of footbinding among the Chinese
females was carried on by all classes of society, so it was not a mark of
rank. It was the fashion and all classes followed it, for in some places
women sitting by the roadside begging had their feet bound, and in some
places, where women worked in the fields, they would have to kneel to do
their work because they could not stand upon their mutilated feet. But of
course it prevailed most with the higher and wealthier and more fashionable
people.
The practice of the compressing of the feet arose in China, it is thought,
sometime during the ninth century of our era. It is only conjecture as to how
and why this originated. Some accounts state that it arose from a desire to
pattern after the club feet of a popular empress; another story is that it
gradually came into use because of the admiration of small feet and the
attempt to imitate them; and a third suggestion is that it developed through
the men wishing to keep their wives from gadding. The Chinese women call
their feet "golden lilies," which is accounted for from the popular idea that a
certain empress was so beautiful that golden lilies sprang out of the ground
wherever she stepped.
The age at which the binding began varied, being from six to eight years
of age, but sometimes the bandages were put on as soon as the little girl was
able to walk. The whole operation was performed, and the shape maintained
by bandages, which were never permanently removed or covered by
stockings. The bandages were of strong white cotton cloth, about two yards
long and between two and three inches wide. The end of the strip was laid
on the inside of the foot at the instep, then carried over the toes, leaving the
great toe free, then under the foot and round the heel, and the bandage was
so continued till all used up and then the end was sewed tightly down. Each
day the bandage was tightened and if the bones should spring back into
place upon the removal of the bandage, sometimes they would be struck
back into place with a blow from the heavy mallet used in beating clothes.
These bandages would finally cause a bulge in the instep, a deep
indentation in the sole, and the toes would grow down under and across the
sole and come out on the opposite side, the great toe alone retaining its
normal position, the foot becoming from four to six inches in length and
sometimes even three or less.

The pain and suffering, as might be expected, was very severe and
continued so for about three years. In some families the child would have to
stay of nights in an outhouse or elsewhere away from the family so as not to
disturb them through the night, while in others the mother or mother-in-law
would have a big stick by the side of her bed, with which to get up and beat
the little girl should she disturb the household by her wails. Toes would
often drop off under binding and sometimes the entire foot. When grown up
the women could walk alone with their maimed feet for short distances but
usually they needed to be supported by some one or something. "Don't
imagine, however, that Chinese ladies are unable to move. They can, most
of them, walk short distances. But it is true that the spirit is taken out of
them by this species of suffering, and that they are oppressed by a sense of
physical helplessness and dependence."88
Amusements. "The active sports of Chinese boys are few. There are
hardly any sports, so-called, that develop the muscles and render a lad
graceful and agile. The Chinese boy at sixteen is as grave and staid as an
American grandfather; and if he happens to be married soon after, he throws
aside most games as being childish. At the best, he has nothing
corresponding to baseball, football, cricket, bicycle-riding, skating, sliding,
or tennis. Nor is he fond of exerting himself. He would rather sit for hours
talking and joking than waste time in running and jumping. He thinks it
work if his play entails much perspiration. His elders, too, frown upon
boisterous games. They approve quiet, meditative lads who are given to
study."89
"Active, manly plays are not popular in the south, and instead of engaging
in a cricket-match or regatta, going to a bowling-alley or fives' court, to
exhibit their strength and skill, they lift beams headed with heavy stones to
prove their brawn, or kick up their heels in a game of shuttlecock. The
outdoor amusements of gentlemen consist in flying kites, carrying birds on
perches, sauntering hand in hand through the fields, or lazily boating on the
water, while pitching coppers, fighting crickets or quails, kicking a
shuttlecock, snapping sticks, chucking stones or guessing the number of
seeds in an orange, are plays for lads."90

"Children's games are always interesting. Chinese games are especially so
because they are a mine hitherto unexplored. An eminent archdeacon once
wrote: 'The Chinese are not much given to athletic exercises.' A well-known
doctor of divinity states that, 'their sports do not require much physical
exertion, nor do they often pair off, or choose sides and compete, in order to
see who are the best players,' while a still more prominent writer tells us
that, 'active, manly sports are not popular in the South.' Let us see whether
these opinions are true."91 And this author goes on to give a large number of
games, enough to bear out his statement in the preface to his book that, "to
the careful observer of these different phases it becomes apparent that the
Chinese child is well supplied with methods of exercise and amusement,
also that he has much in common with children of other lands."
There were numerous holidays and festivals, giving abundance of
entertainment for the children. The principal time of leisure and rejoicing
was at the new year. On the night of the last day of the old year everybody
would remain up and at midnight a great time was begun with an incessant
firing of crackers and this was kept up for a number of days. Another great
time was at the Feast of Lanterns, in which was a procession of men and
boys with lanterns of all shapes and sizes, the procession ending with an
immense and terrible dragon, forty feet or more in length, carried aloft on
bamboo poles.
Kite-flying was a national recreation, indulged in by all ages and classes.
It was not an unusual thing to see an old gray-haired man enjoying it in
company of a young boy. All kinds of kites were used and of all sizes. The
ninth day of the ninth month, which comes in October, was "Kites' Day."
On that day the men and the boys would go out to the hills and have a great
time. Rank and size and age made no difference, as all entered into the zeal
of the sport just the same. The greatest sport consisted in the cutting of one
another's kite strings while the kites were in the air, which was done by the
sawing of one string on another.
There were plenty of little shows and juggling and gymnastic feats for the
children and who might wish to see them. They had Punch and Judy, trained
dogs and monkeys, the whirling of plates, the tossing of knives, juggling of
various kinds, sword swallowing, and many other tricks and performances.

The Chinese children had plenty of toys, which, as in all countries, were
suited to the wants of that country. The toys were not greatly complicated in
structure. There were rattles for the baby, dolls for the little girl, and drums
and knives and tops for the boys.
"There are not many games in which boys and girls play together. If they
do play together it is only while they are children, under ten or twelve.
Growing-up girls will have nothing whatever to do with boys, though
Chinese boys and girls are very sociable, each with friends of their own
sex."92
Girls have plenty of games they play among themselves—"Lots of them,"
which Headland says was the stereotyped answer that would come from any
Chinaman to almost any question he might be asked about things Chinese.
Several are given but one quoted here will be sufficient to show that their
games are as full of life as among girls anywhere. "This small girl after
some delay took control of the party and began arranging them for a game,
which she called 'going to town,' similar to one which the boys called
'pounding rice.' Two of the girls stood back to back, hooked their arms, and
as one bent forward she raised the other from the ground, and thus
alternating, they sang:
Up you go, down you see,
Here's a turnip for you and me;
Here's a pitcher, we'll go to town;
Oh, what a pity, we've fallen down.

At which point they both sat down back to back, their arms still locked, and
asked and answered the following questions:
What do you see in the heavens bright?
I see the moon and the stars at night.
What do you see in the earth, pray tell?
I see in the earth a deep, deep well.
What do you see in the well, my dear?
I see a frog and his voice I hear.
What is he saying there on the rock?
Get up, get up, ke'rh kua, ke'rh kua.

They then tried to get up, but, with their arms locked, they found it
impossible to do so, and rolled over and got up with great hilarity."93

In the one city of Peking alone, Headland collected more than seventy-five
different games. In his pictures and descriptions of games played by boys
are such as would call out much vigorous exercise. One of their favorite
games was "Skin the snake." In this game the boys all stood in line one
behind the other. They would then bend forward and each put one hand
between his legs and grasp a hand of the boy behind him. Then they all
would back and the rear boy would lie down and the others would back
over astride of him and each would lie down in turn, thus bringing the head
between the legs of his neighbor. When all were down then the last boy that
lay down would get up and each would get up in turn, raising each one after
him, until all were up and standing straight, when they would let go hands
and the game was finished.
Gambling was, perhaps, the greatest sport of the Chinese, and it was
indulged in by both men and boys. "A boy with two cash prefers to risk
their loss on the throw of a die, to simply buying a cake without trying the
chance of getting it for nothing."94 One of their means of gambling was
through cricket-fighting. In the season, the crickets were hunted by men and
boys, who would go out to the hills and waysides to get them. They were
cared for and trained and some would become such great fighters as to
command high prices.
Dress. The Chinese did not use wool in clothing. In the earlier times,
before cotton was introduced, it is thought that they used for their garments
some other vegetable fibers, such as rushes. When cotton was introduced
into China, it became the chief material for clothing. They did not use
underclothing but padded the outer garments for winter use and as the
weather grew colder they would put on more wadded clothes till in full
winter they would become about double their usual size. Their shoes were
made of cloth and so they were a poor protection from cold and moisture.
The young women enjoyed wearing colors, pink and green and blue being
the ones most preferred. The ordinary dress was a large-sleeved robe of silk
or cotton over a longer garment, under which were loose trousers fastened
round the ankles just above the small feet and tight shoes. They wore their
hair hanging down in long tresses, and the putting up of the hair was one of
the ceremonies preparatory to marriage. The eyebrows were blackened with

charred sticks and arched or narrowed to a fine curved line, to resemble a
young willow leaflet or the moon when a day or two old. Cosmetics were
used quite freely, on grand occasions the face being daubed with white paint
and the lips and cheeks with red, so that all blushes were covered up. They
wore bangles, bracelets, and ear-rings of glass, stone, and metal. "A belle is
described as having cheeks like the almond flower, lips like a peach's
bloom, waist as the willow leaf, eyes bright as dancing ripples in the sun,
and footsteps like the lotus flower."95
In some parts of China, if not in all, the baby in summertime wore no
clothing at all. In the winter it wore quilted trousers with feet attached. In
some parts the trousers of the baby were partly filled with sand or earth, so
that it was a common saying that a person who displayed small practical
knowledge had not yet been taken out of his "earth-trousers." The older
children wore the same pattern of clothing and cut out of the same kind of
cloth as their parents and grandparents.
Religion. "In considering all systems of idolatry and superstition, one
significant fact stands prominent, the utter neglect of religious training of
the young. China's three great religions have nothing answering to the
Christian Sunday School. Of course, boys and girls pick up some religious
ideas in their intercourse with those about them. But nobody ever
deliberately sits down to tell them of this god and that god, their origin,
character and power. Only incidentally is such knowledge conveyed. There
are many religious books; but from the difficulty of learning to read, they
are necessarily sealed to the young mind. If the young are told to worship
this idol and that idol, they never understand why and wherefore they
should do this. In time they comprehend that they do it to obtain favor and
to gain merit.
"I well remember the first time I was led to a temple and there told to bend
my knees to the idol decked out in a gorgeous robe, its face blackened by
the smoke from the incense. On either side of the room stood four huge
idols, with stern and forbidding faces. One of them was especially frightful.
It was the God of Thunder represented by an image having the body of a
man and the head of a highly caricatured rooster. This idol had a hammer in
one hand and a large nail in the other, with which he is supposed to strike

wicked persons. This god made such an impression on me that I had a
horrible dream about it that very night. I saw him clad in fierceness; he
moved his hands threateningly. Almost choked with fright though I was, I
managed to cry out and that awoke me."96
Education. Education in China is of long standing. The Chinese from the
earliest time, 2,000 B. C., or even earlier, held school education of high
value. The competitive literary examinations of candidates for office was
established about a thousand years later and about 700 A. D. the whole plan
was gone over and arranged as found in the last century, previous to the
changes of recent years. No other nation has so venerated scholars and
scholarship.
Nevertheless of this high esteem for education, there were no public
schools in the sense as with us as the government did not establish schools,
except, perhaps, for the most advanced students. Yet there were a great
number of schools, taken care of in a private way, and although every
village did not have a school, yet they would have liked such, but mostly on
account of poverty could not, for everywhere was the most profound
reverence for education. There were three classes of undergraduate schools:
"The primary, in which little is attended to beyond memoriter recitation and
imitative chirography; the middle, in which the canonical books are
expounded; and the classical, in which composition is the leading
exercise."97 Because of the great number of literary scholars who wanted to
teach, the pay for the most part was quite meager.
School usually began about six in the morning, and it continued all day,
with intervals for breakfast and lunch, sometimes running till dark. In some
of the higher schools the scholars would return in the evening to their
school work. School would continue throughout the entire week and the
year, except one month during the New Year's festival and a vacation at
wheat harvest and also at the autumnal harvest. If the teacher was preparing
himself for a literary degree, there might be a vacation of about six weeks in
the summer. The teacher was often not quite regular in his attendance at the
school and the pupils were still more irregular than he, so that in a way
made up for the lack of holidays.

There were scarcely any school-houses as such in China. The schools were
held as a rule in the hall of a temple or in a private building, usually the
ancestral temples were used for such purposes, and yet they might be held
in a shed, which scarcely protected from the weather, or in the upper attic of
a shop. In this room were placed a table, with an arm-chair, for the teacher.
The writing-materials, which consisted of brushes, India ink, and ink-wells
made of slate, were placed on this table. About the room were tables and
stools for the pupils. In one corner of the room was placed a tablet or an
inscription on the wall, dedicated to Confucius and the god of Letters.
Whatever may be said of education in older China, the teachers were
educated men, the majority of them being unsuccessful candidates for
literary degrees, but many of them were Bachelors and not a few were
Doctors. For the work they had to do they were well prepared by a long
course of study and they were usually competent. "In no country is the
office of teacher more revered. Not only is the living instructor saluted with
forms of the profoundest respect, but the very name of teacher, taken in the
abstract, is an object of almost idolatrous homage."98 Yet, "as a matter of
fact, the Chinese teacher is often barely able to keep soul and body together,
and is frequently obliged to borrow garments in which to appear before his
patrons."99
The first day of school was a great and noted day in the life of a Chinese
boy. He entered school in his seventh or eighth year. When he was to enter
school, a lucky day was found for him, and with his good clothes on he
started for school, feeling that this was the greatest event that was to happen
in his life till he entered the Imperial Academy, which he was sure to do, so
said all his friends. On entering the school-room he saluted, by prostrating
himself, the picture of Confucius and next, with almost as much reverence,
saluted his teacher, for the teacher was held in very high respect.
The course of study for the schools of China was formulated a long time
ago and rigidly held to in all the schools of the empire. It was divided into
three grades of instruction. The Chinese language does not have an alphabet
but there is a different symbol for each word. In the first period the pupil
was to learn the most important symbols, learning also to write them, and to
commit to memory the nine sacred books, known as the Four Books and the

Five Classics. The Four Books are known as the Confucian Analects, the
Great Learning, the Golden Medium, and the Sayings of Mencius; and the
Five Classics are the Book of Changes, the Book of History, the Spring and
Autumn Annals, the Book of Odes, and the Book of Rites. All this would
take four or five years on the part of the pupil. As these books were written
in the old Chinese language they would not be understood by the pupils and
the second stage of learning consisted in the translation of these books and
classics into the language of the pupils, and also there were lessons in
composition. The commentaries on these works were taken up and their
meaning explained. In the third stage of learning composition was entered
upon and consisted in the writing of essays and poems, imitating the style
and thought of the five classics and the better commentaries. A full
comprehension of the four books and the five classics and the commentaries
upon them and the use of this knowledge in the writing of essays and poems
was the desired end aimed at by the Chinese scholar and which was all that
was needed for the highest examination in the empire.
The methods of teaching with the Chinese were formal, being based upon
methods handed down from the ages, so that all teachers taught in the one
stereotyped way. In teaching reading the teacher would have the pupils
come to his desk, stand in line, each holding his book open before him. The
teacher would read aloud a line, the pupils would then read this in concert
in a loud voice, and this would continue till the pupils could pronounce the
line without the teacher's help. Then they would go to their seats and
commit this line to memory, each shouting it out as loud as he could.
"Every Chinese regards this shouting as an indispensable part of the child's
education. If he is not shouting how can the teacher be sure that he is
studying? and as studying and shouting are the same thing, when he is
shouting there is nothing more to be desired."100 When the pupil had learned
the line, he would go to the teacher's desk, lay his book upon it, turn his
back to the teacher, and shout out the line as rapidly as he possibly could
do. This method gave to the Chinese the phrase "to back the book" as we
have "to learn by heart." This method was continued till the whole book
was committed to memory.
The only other subject taught in the elementary schools was writing. In
teaching writing, the master would make a copy and the pupil would place

it under transparent paper and trace it with a hair pencil and then copy it
without the tracing till he could make it from memory. "In lieu of slates,
they generally use boards painted white to save paper, washing out the
writing when finished."101 In China, writing takes the place that drawing and
painting do here, so all strive to become fine penmen.
For most of the boys, three or four years was the extent of their schooling,
but if higher education was desired they attended higher schools. Here they
were given lectures explaining the meaning of classical authors, which
lectures were greatly committed to memory. They were also taught prose
and verse composition, in which they followed the thought, style, and meter
of the sacred books or of great writers, memorizing these writings for the
purpose.
The Chinese teacher was very severe. The more severe he was, the better
teacher he was considered. Fear ruled in the Chinese school. That the boy
might ever be reminded of the necessity of studying, the implements to help
him were always kept in plain view, as, "a wooden ruler to be applied to the
head of the offender and sometimes the hands, also a rattan stick for the
body. Flogging with this stick is the heaviest punishment allowed; for slight
offenses the ruler is used upon the palms, and for reciting poorly—upon the
head."102 Teachers carried their punishments to extreme lengths. The bad
pupils were the stupid ones who did not get their lessons assigned in the
given time. For such, severe beatings were administered, so severe that in
one case "a pupil was so much injured as to be thrown into fits, and such
instances can scarcely be uncommon."103
Girls were not often educated in China, because the parents thought it of
no use as they would marry and leave them, also there was no such
incentive for girls as with boys, who might hold office, and besides popular
opinion regarded reading and writing dangerous arts in female hands.
Nevertheless here and there a woman came forth among the educated and
celebrated instances were sometimes quoted of women who have been
skilled in verse. When a woman did emerge with a good education, she was
highly respected for her attainments. The girls of the better class were
taught needlework, painting on silk, and music.

Education in China did not stop with the youth, as the manner of filling the
offices through literary competitive examinations kept many studying even
to old age. This system was very old, dating back to several centuries before
Christ. In these examinations there were three grades of degrees conferred
—"flowering talent," Bachelors; "promoted man," Master; "entered
scholar," Doctor. Beyond this was yet another higher honor, as the very
highest became members of the Imperial Academy, the "forest of pencils,"
at the court at Peking. The best and most finished scholar of all was so
designated every three years by the Emperor, the very greatest honor. The
only thing in history that seems to approach this honor is the winning of the
foot-race at the Olympian Games.
Chinese education appears to fulfill the saying heard in this country in
bygone days—Educate a boy and he won't work—for in China "the scholar,
even the village scholar, not only does not plow and reap, but he does not in
any way assist those who perform these necessary acts. He does not harness
an animal, nor feed him, nor drive a cart, nor light a fire, nor bring water—
in short, so far as physical exertion goes, he does as nearly as possible
nothing all day. 'The scholar is not a utensil', (a Confucian saying), he
seems to be thinking all day long, and every day of his life, until one wishes
that at times he would be a utensil, that he might sometimes be of use. He
will not even move a bench nor make any motion that looks like labor."104
"There are among us who are enamored of state-systems which regulate
education down to its minutest detail, and leave no room for the free play of
mind: in China we have this indirectly accomplished and see in it all its
necessary rigidity, uniformity, and pedantry. There are who advocate a
secular system of education: in China we see this in full operation. There
are who think that all success in the education of mind should be measured
by external competitive tests: in China we have this elaborated into an iron
system. There are who cling by the dogmatic and preceptive, and regard
with suspicion the habituating of the mind of schoolboys to ideals esthetic
and spiritual, including even the simple elements of humanity: in China
they will find what they desire to see. There are who hold that teachers and
school-inspectors are heaven-born, and are above the study of educational

principles and methods (as the Emperor Sigismund was supra
Grammaticam): so China thinks."105
Whatever may be said of Chinese education, it has lasted through the ages
and it has sufficed for the needs of the nation. It may be that when this old
nation gets a system of education based upon European and American
ideas, and fills her offices with the most highly educated and only the most
highly educated, then may China lead the world.

LITERATURE

1. Barnes, Earl and Mary S., Historical ideas and methods of Chinese
education. Studies in education, I (1896-97), 112-118.
2. Carus, Paul, Chinese life and customs.
3. Davis, John Francis, The Chinese.
4. Doolittle, Justus, Sketches of social life in China. Harper's Magazine,
XXXI (1865), 429-442.
5. Douglass, Robert K., China.
6. Flower, William Henry, Fashion in deformity.
7. Graves, Frank Pierrepont, A history of education, Before the Middle
Ages.
8. Headland, Isaac Taylor, Home life in China.
9. Headland, Isaac Taylor, The Chinese boy and girl.
10. Laurie, S. S., Historical survey of pre-Christian education.
11. Lee, Yan Phou, When I was a boy in China.
12. Little, Mrs. Archibald, Intimate China.
13. Martin, W. A. P., The Chinese.
14. Martin, W. A. P., The lore of Cathay.
15. Smith, Arthur H., Chinese characteristics.
16. Smith, Arthur H., Village life in China.
17. Williams, S. Wells, The Middle Kingdom.

CHAPTER VI
THE CHILD IN JAPAN
Women. Although women have always stood higher in Japan than in any
other oriental country, yet they were much more highly considered in the
early times than in the later times. There was no seclusion, they had a
station in society, they shared in the recreations of their fathers and
husbands, they possessed intellectual and physical vigor, they filled offices
of state and religion; in fact, they ranked alongside of men as among the
best nations of the earth. Among the rulers of Japan there have been nine
empresses, the most noted having been Jingu and who led a conquering
expedition into Corea about 200 A. D., from whence came letters, religion,
and civilization into Japan.
"Of one hundred and twenty-three Japanese sovereigns, nine have been
women. The custodian of the divine regalia is a virgin priestess. The chief
deity in their mythology is a woman. Japanese women, by their wit and
genius, made their native tongue a literary language. In literature, art,
poetry, song, the names of women are among the most brilliant of those on
the long roll of fame and honor on whose brows the Japanese, at least, have
placed the fadeless chaplet of renown. Their memory is still kept green by
recitation, quotation, reading, and inscription on screen, roll, memorial-
stone, wall, fan, cup, and those exquisite works of art that delight even alien
admirers east and west of the Pacific.
"In the records of the Japanese glory, valor, fortitude in affliction,
greatness in the hour of death, filial devotion, wifely affection, in all the
straits of life when codes of honor, morals, and religion are tested, in the
person of their professors, the literature of history and romance, the every-
day routine of fact, teem with instances of the Japanese woman's power and
willingness to share whatever of pain or sorrow is appointed to man. In the
annals of persecution, in the red roll of martyrs, no names are brighter, no

faces gleam more peacefully amidst the flames, or on the cross of
transfixing spears, or on the pyre of rice-straw, or on the precipice edge, or
in the open grave about to be filled up, than the faces of the Christian
Japanese women in the seventeenth century. Such is the position of woman
in Japan in the past."106
In later times woman fell from her high estate and even lost power over
herself, as she came under her father in the home, under her husband when
married, and under her son when widowed. "The introduction of the
Chinese civilization with the Confucian system of moral philosophy, and of
Buddism, and later on the establishment of Feudalism, were prejudicial to
this high position of women. Chinese philosophers seem not to have had
much respect for women; while Buddism regards women as sinful
creatures, a temptation and snare, an obstacle to peace and holiness. In our
feudal system, in the code of Bushido, there was no reverence for women as
in the Western Chivalry."107 Buddism entered into Japan in the sixth century
of the Christian era and Confucianism came in some earlier, while
Feudalism existed in Japan earlier than in Europe and continued later, from
the fifteenth to the sixteenth centuries being the time during which the
feudal system received its most perfect development and the Bushido, or
"The Way of the Samurai," was fully elaborated.
The Japanese women had a love for beauty, order and neatness; they were
patient and long-suffering; their hopes lay in their children and they tended
and cared for them as, perhaps, no other nation of women ever did. They
had plenty to keep them busy with their numerous household duties and the
making of their own clothing and that of their children. Many of them were
engaged in the care of silk-worms and in tea-picking. The country wife was
busy in the rice-field, doing her work alongside her husband and sons, as
well as performing the other duties that came into her country life. "Among
the daily tasks of the housewife, one, and by no means the least of her
duties, is to receive, duly acknowledge, and return in suitable manner, the
presents received in the family. Presents are not confined to special seasons,
although upon certain occasions etiquette is rigid in its requirements in this
matter, but they may be given and received at all times, for the Japanese are
pre-eminently a present-giving nation."108

"As regards our standard of beauty.... A woman to be considered beautiful
by us, need not be tall. Height may be divinely imposing, but not essential
to human beauty. With us, about five feet would be considered the most
desirable height, but if one must err, it is advisable to err by exceeding
rather than by falling short of the mark. The figure should be slender
without being bony, the waist long and the hips narrow. To secure grace, the
body should be held slightly forward, not boldly erect. A very important
feature is the neck, which should be long, white, slender, and gracefully
curved. The hair should, of course, be abundant, long, and perfectly
straight, and while no deviation from black is tolerated, it should not be just
black, but should be so glossy that it seems blue-black. The face should be
oval and long, with a straight nose, which should also be high and narrow.
As for the eyes, opinions are divided, one school of connoisseurs
demanding that they should be large with a double line of the lid, while
another school prefers that the eyes should be long and narrow and slightly
slanting upwards at the outer corner. The color of the eye should always be
clear and deep brown; the lashes thick, long, and curved; the eyebrows
black and distinct, their line long, and well arched; the mouth small; lips
thin, curved, and red; teeth small, regular, and white. The ears must be
evenly curved, with no angle, and in size not too small, for pinched lobes
look poverty-stricken. Large ears, like those of the probable inhabitants of
Mars, lately described by Professor Perrier, if not exactly beautiful, are
believed to be lucky. As for the shape of the forehead, there are four types.
By the one termed 'horned,' we mean that in which the hair grows to a point
in the middle of the forehead and high at the sides after the fashion called
by the Germans Geheimraths-Ecke or the 'Councillor's corners.' Then there
are the square and the round types; but the forehead most admired is high
and narrow at the top, and obliquely slanting at the sides, suggesting the
outline of our sacred mountain, Fuji. As for the complexion, it should be
fair, with a tint of the rose on the cheek, only, in our parlance, we would call
it cherry-hued."109
One of the phases of the life of women in Japan is that of the dancing-
girls, the geisha. These are girls obtained when quite young from poor
parents or as orphans and trained in establishments for entertaining at tea-
houses or at private gatherings. They are taught the old Japanese dances,

and other dances, to sing and to play on instruments, to serve wine, and in
other ways to entertain. These are from ancient times. "The geisha are not
necessarily 'bad women,' as you call them, not any worse professionally
than the actresses and vaudeville artistes of America."110 Whatever the
geisha may be, there is no question about the jōrō, or courtesans, because
licensed houses exist in every part of Japan. Yet this is claimed of rather
recent origin, as in the older times such houses did not exist, and especially
in the villages and towns of the interior, where there were even but few of
such women. The saddest side of these houses is their filling through filial
obedience, the one thing considered most important for Japanese women.
"The Japanese maiden, as pure as the purest Christian virgin, will, at the
command of her father, enter the brothel tomorrow, and prostitute herself
for life. Not a murmur escapes her lips as she thus filially obeys. To a life
she loathes, and to disease, premature old age, and an early grave, she goes
joyfully. The staple of a thousand novels, plays, and pictures in Japan is
written in the life of a girl of gentle manners and tender heart, who hates her
life and would gladly destroy it, but refrains because her purchase-money
has enabled her father to pay his debts, and she is bound not to injure
herself. In the stews of the great cities of Japan are today, I doubt not,
hundreds of girls who loathe their existence, but must live on in gilded
misery because they are fulfilling all righteousness as summed up in filial
piety."111
Old age was not a burden or a fear among the Japanese women, nor was it
something to be ashamed of. Old age was really welcome, and especially in
the last centuries when woman's freedom was taken away and obedience to
the men introduced, for old age brought freedom, as then the mother
became a person of much consideration, to be waited upon and cared for by
children and grandchildren, the burdens of life being turned over to them.
"As she bears all things, endures all things, suffers long, and is kind, as she
serves her mother-in-law, manages her husband's household, cares for her
babies, the thought that cheers and encourages her in her busy and not too
happy life is the thought of the sunny, calm old age, when she can lay her
burdens and cares on younger shoulders, and bask in the warmth and
sunshine which this Indian Summer of her life will bring to her."112

Marriage. A young woman in Japan was expected as a matter of course to
marry. Any young woman was not forced to marry any young man, for
there was a certain freedom of choice on her part. Young people were
expected to marry within their rank. In the early times, marriage between a
brother and sister of the same mother was not permitted, but if by the same
father by a different mother they could marry, as they were not considered
related as in the first instance. In these earlier times marriage was permitted
at sixteen in man and thirteen in woman. Marriage was not a religious
affair, and not even a contract between the parties. It was rather a giving
away of the girl to the man who was to be her husband and to his family, so
that the bride's person and property passed completely under the control of
the husband and his family.
At one time, according to one authority, when a youth had fixed his
affections upon a maiden of suitable condition, he disclosed his passion by
attaching a branch of a certain shrub (the Celastrus alatus) to the house of
the damsel's parents. If this emblem of his passion was neglected, it implied
that his suit was rejected; if accepted, so was the lover; and should the
young lady wish to express reciprocal tenderness, she forthwith blackened
her teeth, though she must not pluck out her eyebrows until after the
wedding.113 In other times, the affair was arranged by a go-between. A young
man would get a married friend to help him select a bride, to make his
wants known to the girl and her family, and to arrange a meeting between
the young people at the home of a mutual friend, where they could decide
the matter. Again the matter may have been arranged by the families, it
might be a long time in advance, so that the young people did not have
much to do with it.
When the matter was decided on, then presents were exchanged, the young
man usually sending a piece of handsome silk, used for the obi or girdle,
which corresponded to the engagement-ring of Europe and America, but
sometimes the young man sent other presents, and because of which a
handsome daughter was considered rather an addition to the fortune of a
family. A formal betrothal was then entered into, and a lucky day found for
the wedding.

Just before the wedding, generally on the morning of the wedding-day, the
bride's trousseau and the household goods, which the bride was expected to
take with her, were sent to the house of the bridegroom. These varied
according with the rank and position and wealth of the bride's family. The
trousseau would contain dresses for all seasons and sashes of all kinds, and
since fashion unchanged a woman might enter her husband's home with a
supply of clothing that could last her through a lifetime.
As in old times the wedding ceremony occurred in the afternoon, toward
noon there was a bridal procession from the bride's home to the home of the
bridegroom. The bride was seated in a palanquin, clothed and veiled in
white, escorted by two bridesmaids, and accompanied by relatives,
neighbors, and friends, the men all in their dress of ceremony and the
women in their gayest robes. When the procession reached the bridegroom's
home, the bride was escorted by the bridesmaids into the room of state,
where sat the bridegroom in the post of honor, surrounded by parents and
nearest relatives.
When the real ceremony was performed there were present the bridegroom
and his parents, the bride and her parents, a few of the most intimate
relatives or friends, and the cupbearers, perhaps not over a dozen people in
all. There was no religious ceremony, no words were spoken, no promises,
no vows, no prayer. When all was ready, the wedding-cup, a two-spouted
cup, was filled by a young girl with native wine (saké) and presented to the
mouths of the bride and groom alternately, till all was drank by them, being
a symbol as husband and wife of the equal sharing of their joys and sorrows
of married life. Then the young couple arose and offered cups of saké to
their parents, after which the bride removed her veil, and the ceremony was
ended. Then the wedding-guests, who had been in other rooms during the
ceremony, joined the wedding-party and all partook of a feast prepared for
the occasion, with the mirth and joy that usually accompany weddings
among all peoples and in all times.
On the third day after the wedding, the newly-married couple were
expected to make a visit to the bride's family. The bride's family prepared a
dinner for the occasion, with music and dancing by professional performers,
and other entertainment. A large number of the relatives and friends were

invited and the bride appeared as hostess with her mother. Within the course
of two or three months, the newly married couple were expected to
entertain either in their own home, the home of the bridegroom's parents, or
at a tea-house.
"There are wedded couples who labor and save heroically for years, in
order to pay the expenses of their marriage festival. There is one rather
amusing custom, however, whereby this expense may be avoided. A couple
of respectable people have a daughter, who is acquainted with a good young
fellow who would be an excellent husband for her, except that he lacks the
necessary means to give her the customary wedding-presents and keep a
free table for a week, for the two families. The parents, coming home from
the bath one fine evening, do not find their daughter at home. They inquire
in the neighborhood; nobody has seen her, but all the neighbors offer their
services in assisting to find her. The parents accept the offer, and the
procession, constantly increasing in numbers, passes from street to street,
until it reaches the dwelling of the lover. The latter, protected by his closed
screens, in vain pretends to be deaf; he is at last obliged to yield to the
demands of the crowd. He opens the door, and the lost daughter, in tears,
throws herself at the feet of her parents, who threaten her with their
malediction.
"Then, the tender-hearted neighbors, moved by the scene, intercede; the
mother relents; the father, remains haughty and inexorable; the intercession
of the neighbors increases in eloquence, and the young man promises to be
the most faithful of sons-in-law. Finally, the resistance of the father is
overcome; he pardons his daughter, pardons the lover, and calls the latter
his son. All at once, as if by magic, cups of saké circulate among the crowd;
everyone takes his or her place on the matting of the room; the two outlaws
are seated in the midst of the circle, drink their bowl of saké together, the
marriage is proclaimed in the presence of a sufficient number of witnesses,
and the police officer enters it upon his list the next morning."114
There is another side of Japanese marriage, where the young man enters
the home of the bride. If in a family there was no son to inherit the name
and no son was adopted, upon the eldest daughter's coming of age, her
family would seek some young man who would be willing to marry the

daughter and give up his own name and take that of the family. The young
men were usually attracted to such a marriage because thereby they could
inherit wealth or rank or both, but sometimes such was entered upon solely
on account of the attractiveness of the young lady.
It is a question whether polygamy in itself ever existed in Japan, but there
is no question about concubinage, as it began at an early time, for the
Emperor was allowed twelve supplementary wives and the nobles (samurai)
two. It seems from the earliest there was one legal wife, and whatever the
other women were they were subservient to her. But concubinage did not
prevail very much among the middle and lower classes, and with the upper
classes only with the wealthier members. These concubines were kept in the
home unless the legal wife was strong enough to keep them out, when they
were furnished separate dwellings. They were ever a discordant element in
the life of the family. Since both Shintoism and Confucianism called for
ancestral worship, where there were no offspring by the legal wife, this
might call for concubinage to raise up children, and sometimes where there
was no heir, the wife might for that cause urge the husband to take a
handmaid to raise up sons to preserve the ancestral line. If the child of a
concubine was adopted into the family, it was taken from the mother and
she became no more to it than any other of the servants and had no more to
do with it than they did.
During feudalism in Japan, the legal status of women was very low. They
had no legal rights and their evidence was not admitted in a court of justice.
The husband had unlimited power of divorce, but under no circumstances
could a wife demand to be separated from her husband, but she had to abide
his will. A great reason for a wife suffering much and not leaving her
husband was that the children belonged to him and in case of a separation
their disposal rested absolutely with him.
"Seven causes for justifiable divorce are laid down in the classics of
Confucius, which are the basis of legal morals in Japan as in China, or as
those of Justinian are with us. The wife may be divorced:
1. If she be disobedient to her parents-in-law. (After marriage, in her
husband's home, his parents become hers in a far more significant sense
than among us.)

2. If she be barren. (If the husband loves his childless wife, he keeps and
supports her.)
3. If she be lewd or licentious. (She must not be given to loose talk or
wine. It is not proper for her even to write a letter to any other man.)
4. If she be jealous (of other women's clothes, or children, or especially of
her husband).
5. If she have a loathsome or contagious disease. (If dearly beloved, she
may be kept in a separate room and cared for.)
6. If she steal.
7. If she talk too much.
"It is needless to say that the seventh and last reason is the one frequently
availed of, or pretended. The Japanese think it is a good rule that works but
one way. The husband is not divorced from the wife for these equal reasons.
Of course, woman in Japan, by her tact, tongue, graces, and charms, is able
to rule her husband generally by means invisible to the outer world, but
none the less potent. Though man holds the sword, the pen, and divorce,
and glories in his power, yet woman, by her finer strength, in hut as in
palace hall, rules her lord."115
The Mother's Memorial. "A sight not often met with in the cities, but in
the suburbs and country places frequent as the cause of it requires, is the
nagaré kanjō (flowing invocation). A piece of cotton cloth is suspended by
its four corners to stakes set in the ground near a brook, rivulet, or, if in the
city, at the side of the water-course which fronts the houses of the better
classes. Behind it rises a higher, lath-like board, notched several times near
the top, and inscribed with a brief legend. Resting on the cloth at the
brookside, or, if in the city, in a pail of water, is a wooden dipper. Perhaps
upon the four corners, in the upright bamboo, may be set bouquets of
flowers. A careless stranger may not notice the odd thing, but a little study
of its parts reveals the symbolism of death. The tall lath tablet is the same as
that set behind graves and tombs. The ominous Sanskrit letters betoken
death. Even the flowers in their bloom call to mind the tributes of
affectionate remembrance which loving survivors set in the sockets of the

monuments in the grave-yards. On the cloth is written a name such as is
given to persons after death, and the prayer, 'Namu miō, hō ren ge kiō'
(Glory to the salvation-bringing Scriptures). Waiting long enough,
perchance but a few minutes, there may be seen a passer-by who pauses,
and, devoutly offering a prayer with the aid of his rosary, reverently dips a
ladleful of water, pours it upon the cloth, and waits patiently until it has
strained through, before moving on.
"All this, when the significance is understood, is very touching. It is the
story of vicarious suffering, of sorrow from the brink of joy, of one dying
that another may live. It tells of mother-love and mother-woe. It is a mute
appeal to every passer-by, by the love of Heaven, to shorten the penalties of
a soul in pain.
"The Japanese (Buddhists) believe that all calamity is the result of sin
either in this or a previous state of existence. The mother who dies in
childbed suffers, by such a death, for some awful transgression, it may be in
a cycle of existence long since passed. For it she must leave her new-born
infant, in the full raptures of mother-joy, and sink into the darkness of
Hades, to wallow in a lake of blood. There must she groan and suffer until
the 'flowing invocation' ceases, by the wearing-out of the symbolic cloth.
When this is so utterly worn that the water no longer drains, but falls
through at once, the freed spirit of the mother, purged of her sin, rises to
resurrection among the exalted beings of a higher cycle of existence.
Devout men, as they pass by, reverently pour a ladleful of water. Women,
especially those who have felt mother-pains, and who rejoice in life and
loving offspring, repeat the expiatory act with deeper feeling; but the depths
of sympathy are fathomed only by those who, being mothers, are yet
bereaved. Yet, as in the presence of nature's awful glories the reverent gazer
is shocked by the noisy importunity of the beggar, so before this sad and
touching memorial the proofs of sordid priestcraft chill the warm sympathy
which the sight even from the heart of an alien, might evoke.
"The cotton cloth inscribed with the prayer and the name of the deceased,
to be efficacious, can be purchased only at the temples. I have been told,
and it is no secret, that rich people are able to secure a napkin which, when
stretched but a few days, will rupture, and let the water pass through at

once. The poor man can get only the stoutest and most closely woven
fabric. The limit of purgatorial penance is thus fixed by warp and woof, and
warp and woof are gauged by money. The rich man's napkin is scraped thin
in the middle. Nevertheless, the poor mother secures a richer tribute of
sympathy from her humble people; for in Japan, as in other lands, poverty
has many children, while wealth mourns for heirs; and in the lowly walks of
life are more pitiful women who have felt the woe and the joy of
motherhood than in the mansions of the rich."116
Dress. The ordinary dress of both sexes in Japan in the older times was
quite similar but differed in color and texture. It consisted of a number of
loose, wide gowns worn over each other, fastened at the waist with a girdle.
The family arms were woven or worked into the back and breast of the
outer garment. The sleeves of the garments were wide and long. Within
doors the feet were bare or covered with socks and outdoors clogs of straw,
matting, or wood were worn, kept on the feet by an upright pin or button
held between the two large toes.
The men shaved the front and crown of the head, leaving a sort of tuft on
top; the boy's head was shaved in different ways, but at fifteen the boy's hair
was dressed exactly like a mature man, because then he attained his
majority. Among the women the hair was worn long but arranged
differently for a married woman than a young girl, and, too, the married
women removed the hair of the eyebrows.
The infant was free from swathing; at three its clothes was bound at the
waist with a girdle. At seven or later the boy of noble birth wore a short
sword in his girdle which at fifteen, when he became a man, he would
exchange for the two swords of the samurai.
Regulations. During the two hundred and fifty years—sixteenth-
nineteenth centuries—when Japan was cut off from all outside people, the
strictest economy was necessary for the nation to be able to care for itself.
To this end regulations were laid down to which the different classes had to
adhere closely. These were binding and must have proved irksome, yet they
preserved the nation. It seems well to give some of the regulations here.

"The following are examples, first, of the rules applying to the bungen
(station in life) of a farmer of seventy-five to one hundred koku ($375 to
$500), and, second, to that of a common farm-laborer:
I. For a Farmer of 100 Koku.

1. Such a farmer may build a house whose length is ten ken (about sixty
feet), but there must be no parlor (zashiki), and the roof must not be tiled. If
the householder wishes to tile the roof, to protect it against fires, he must
first get permission.
2. On the occasion of a marriage of a son or daughter, the gifts of the
householder must be limited to the following:

Two nagamochi (a chest used for bed-clothes).
One tansu (a chest of drawers).
One tsuzura (a vine used in basket making).
One hasami-bako (a case for scissors).
A yuinō obi (a present, usually the sash called obi, exchanged
at the time of the wedding).
One sensu (a fan).
One taru (a vessel containing wine).
Surume (a kind of fish).
Kobu (a kind of seaweed).
Tai (a kind of fish, used on occasions of ceremony).

3. The viands on the wedding-day must be as follows:
(1) Zōni-zuimono (a kind of soup).
(2) The things placed on the honzen (a small table): (a) in the hira (one of
the dishes), namasu (a kind of fish); (b) in the choku (the other dish),
something roasted or broiled.
(3) Hikimono (viands taken home by each guest): (a) suimono (soup), two
kinds; (b) torimono (a liquid), two kinds; (c) hikigashi (a kind of cake).
These three kinds altogether must not make more than a small amount.
4. The family must never wear silk clothes. If a son or a daughter is to
marry a person whose station allows the use of silk, the householder must
request him not to use it on the occasion of the wedding.

5. No guests should be invited other than relations of the family, ko-bun
(people who are under obligations to the householder for kindness received,
and stand in the place of children), and a few of the most intimate friends.
But this rule refers only to the day of the wedding.
6. At a wedding or New Year's call, the use of jū (lacquer boxes,
containing confectionery, given as presents) is forbidden.
7. When a member of the family makes a visit to a relation or elsewhere,
he should not carry valuable presents. When he is visiting a sick friend, he
may take anything which happens to be at hand.
8. When there is death (fukō), and people come to the house on visits of
condolence, no wine should be offered.
9. At a funeral (butsuji) wine should not be offered to the persons who
follow to the grave.
10. On such occasions, the viands should be of five kinds only; but there
should be no wine. If wine is offered, it should be given in soup-cups, not in
wine-cups, nor should tori-zakana (a dish served only with wine) be
prepared.
11. On the occasion of the birth of a first child (Uizan), the presents from
the grandparents should be as follows only:

A cotton garment.
One set (four boxes) of jū.
One taru.
Viands.

From the other relations only small money-presents, if any should be sent.
2. When the child is taken to the mura (village) temple (the occasion
called miya-mairi), jū may be offered to the grandparents, but not to others.
13. At the time of hatsu-bina (girls' festival), and hatsu-nobori (boys'
festival), grandparents and other relations should not present hina and
nobori (dolls and flags), the whole family should present a single kami-
nobori (paper-flag) and two yari (spears), and relatives may also make
small money-presents.

II. For the Bungen of a Farm-laborer.

1. The house may be five and a half ken (about thirty-two feet) in length,
and the roof should be of straw or bamboo thatch.
2. The presents at a wedding may be:

One tsu zura (a vine used in basket making).
Nagamochi (chests) are forbidden.

3. At entertainments, one hira (dish) and one soup may be offered, but not
in cups.
4. The collar and sleeve ends of the clothes may be ornamented with silk,
and an obi (belt) of silk or silk crêpe may be worn, but not in public.
5. Hair ornaments should consist of norihiki and motoi, and nothing more.
6. Footwear should be narazōri (sandals made at Nara) not setta (sandals
of iron and leather). Women are to wear bamboo-thonged sandals
ordinarily, but at occasions of ceremony sandals with cotton thongs; men
should wear only bamboo-thonged sandals on all occasions.
7. At the time of Uizan (birth of first child) the grandparents may send two
jū (set of confectionery boxes), and money for rice and fish; other relations
should send only money for fish.
8. At the time of hatsu-nobori, the grandparents may present a yari (spear),
and at the time of hatsu-bina a kami-bina (paper doll), or tsuchi-ningyo
(earthen doll).
"Accompanying these specific regulations, made with careful reference to
each man's station in life, there were also general rules to meet unspecified
contingencies. For example, only in case of absolute necessity could an
umbrella be used by the ordinary laborer. He must usually content himself
with the protection of a straw raincoat. Another provision related to costly
articles which a family might happen to have. Special permission was
necessary to make use of them, and no articles of luxury were to be used if
on hand."117

The Care of Children. The birth of a child among the Japanese was a
cause of rejoicing, a boy being somewhat more welcome than a girl. At the
birth of a child, a special messenger was sent to notify relatives and
intimate friends, who must soon visit the baby and take it presents, and
especially so if it was the first in the family. Yet infanticide was not
uncommon, for poverty sometimes decided against the infant, and this also
might be true of a child born maimed or deformed. "In old days, when the
new-born child was laid at the father's feet, the father could refuse to take it,
and the child was then exposed to die in a bamboo-grove. The custom exists
no longer; I doubt whether it ever prevailed to any very great extent, but it
has left behind it a very picturesque reminder. If parents have lost a child by
death, they often, not perhaps unnaturally, look upon their loss as the
visitation of an angry Heaven, which must need be propitiated by the free-
will offering up of the next born child. So when the next child is born it is
taken to the bamboo-grove and left by its parents. The exposure is,
however, nothing very serious; a friend of the family is waiting round the
corner for the weeping parents to abandon their infant, and a few minutes
afterwards he comes in, quite as if it were by accident, and tells the
bereaved couple that he has just picked up a fine, handsome baby boy (or
girl), which he hopes they will take and rear. Thus the anger of Heaven has
been, figuratively at least, averted, and the baby is known in after life by the
word sute ('abandoned') prefixed to his personal name. He is known as
sutejiro or sutesaburo, as the case may be ('the abandoned second son' or
'the abandoned third')."118
The baby's dress was loose and easily put on, so it was soon dressed. The
dresses were made like the kimono of the mother, being wide-sleeved and
straight, silk, cotton, or flannel, as the season demanded, and long enough
to cover the feet and hands. Red and yellow were the colors of the young
baby's dress, and if a girl high colors prevailed later, but a boy's clothing
became subdued in color. Near the one hundredth day of the child's life,
long dresses were left off and also about the same time it was weaned. The
baby's head was kept shaved bald until it was three years of age, when only
a part of it was shaved; it might all be shaved but a tuft on top, or tufts at
the side, or bare on top and encircling the head at the sides, just as the

mother might wish. "There is no limit set to the whimsical mother's taste in
this matter of tonsorial landscape gardening."119
Since the Japanese sat on the floor with their legs under them, the baby
was placed on the floor with its knees bent under it, which trained it to the
right way of sitting. The baby in learning to walk did not have chairs and
the like to bump against and fall over and it had soft-matted floors to bump
down upon without injury. It was quite noteworthy if the baby of his own
accord should walk before its first birthday, and mochi (rice pastry) was
made to celebrate the auspicious event. When the baby went outdoors, then
its feet were hampered by sandals or clogs fastened to the feet by straps
passing between the toes, but he soon learned to use them all right, so that
babies of two or three could get around all right in these clogs. One good
thing, these clogs did not bind the children's feet, but let them grow
naturally. These clogs left the toes of the Japanese children free and thus
they retained some of their prehensive powers so that in adult life the feet
were still used somewhat for holding and grasping. It would seem that the
baby learned to talk some earlier than in other countries, as the Japanese
language is conducive for such since it abounds in expressions easy for
children.
Naming Children. On the seventh day, some authors say the thirteenth,
the child received its name, at which time very little ceremony took place;
at seven years of age this name gave way to another name; which occurred
again upon reaching his majority at fifteen. When he married he received
another name; again he was given a new name if he took office; another
new name came if promoted; and, finally, after death, he received his last
name, which was engraved upon his tomb.
Carrying Children. The babies were carried upon the back of some
member of the family, quite often an older brother or sister and sometimes
these were not over five or six years of age. The baby was tied upon the
back of the one carrying it, face front, head and feet out, and even in quite
cold weather. The babies soon learned to hold on and thus they looked out
for themselves so as not to be dropped by the one carrying them. "The
mother bears the bairns, but the children carry them. Each preceding child,

as it grows older, must lug the succeeding baby on its back till able to stand.
The rearing of a Japanese poor family is a perpetual game of leap-frog."120
Adoption and Inheritance. There was a great desire, especially in feudal
times, to have a male heir to keep up the ancestral line, which otherwise
would be a disgrace to the family. There being no male heir, it might be that
a son would be adopted in early life to grow up as the heir, or he might be
adopted with the idea of his marrying one of the daughters later, or there
might be no formal adoption but a young man would marry a daughter and
give up his own name and take that of the family and thus become the heir.
The childless wife, if not divorced, would often care for the adopted child
as if her own, which care would be reciprocated by the adopted son in her
old age. In feudal times, in case a man should die leaving no children, either
natural or adopted, his death was concealed till the lord gave permission for
him to adopt a son, and not till then was his death announced, for otherwise
the lands escheated to the lord.
Power and Duty of Father. As in Rome, the family was the unit in feudal
times in Japan, and the head of the family held complete power. He had the
full control of the persons and property of his children and he could do with
them as he chose, only being held back by that most binding of all laws—
custom. Yet, as he had great power, so had he great responsibilities, as he
was responsible to the state for the doings of his family.
Amusements. Old Japan was a realm of sports. It was a nation of players.
There seemed not to have been any distinct line of demarcation between the
amusements of the children and those of the adults. The grown-up people
entered with zest into games which were in many cases the same and in
many others similar to the games of the young people. There were
numerous holidays and festivals, on which days the whole nation of people
seemed to give themselves over to the toy-sellers and showmen and story-
tellers and musicians and games and plays—to a time of general enjoyment.
Perhaps there was never any other people or country in the entire world at
any time that took as much interest in the pleasures of their children as did
the old Japanese.
When the evenings were pleasant they were spent out-of-doors, and on
pleasant moonlight evenings almost the entire population of a town would

be on its streets. At other times the evenings would be spent in the home,
the entire family being together, including the grandparents and even the
servants. Sometimes the father would tell stories of Japanese history and of
folk-lore, sometimes they would play chess and checkers, but the greatest
time was spent with cards. One such game was known as "The poems of a
hundred poets." On one card was written the half of one hundred famous
Japanese poems and the other half on another card, half of these cards being
distributed among the players and the other half being given to a reader. The
reader would call off the half of one poem and the one having the other half
would call back and this would continue till all the cards were matched.
There was dancing of evenings, usually by the young women, sometimes by
the men, but, perhaps, never by men and women together. In some places of
moonlight nights the young people would dance all night in the streets or
open places near the castle-gates.
"Among the ghostly games intended to test the courage of, or perhaps to
frighten, children, are two plays called, respectively, 'Hiyaku Monogatari'
and 'Kon-daméshi,' or the 'One Hundred Stories' and 'Soul-examination.' In
the former play a company of boys and girls assemble round the hibachi,
while they, or an adult, an aged person or a servant, usually relate ghost-
stories, or tales calculated to straighten the hair and make the blood crawl.
In a distant dark room, a lamp (the usual dish of oil), with a wick of one
hundred strands or piths, is set. At the conclusion of each story, the children
in turn must go to the dark room and remove a strand of the wick. As the
lamp burns down low, the room becomes gloomy and dark, and the last boy,
it is said, always sees a demon, a huge face, or something terrible. In the
'Kon-daméshi,' or 'Soul-examination,' a number of boys, during the day
plant some flags in different parts of a graveyard, under a lonely tree, or by
a haunted hillside. At night, they meet together, and tell stories about
ghosts, goblins, devils, etc.; and at the conclusion of each tale, when the
imagination is wrought up, the hair begins to rise and the marrow to curdle,
the boys, one at a time, must go out in the dark and bring back the flags,
until all are brought in."121
The children had plenty to see to keep them amused. There were visits to
the theaters, sometimes the performances lasted all day, in which were
displayed the doings of historical peoples and lore heroes. There were all

kinds of gymnastic feats and juggling of various kinds. "At the fair at
Asakusa, in addition to the performances of jugglers of all kinds, there are
collections of animals which have been taught to perform tricks—bears of
Yezo, spaniels which are valuable in proportion to their ugliness, educated
monkeys and goats. Birds and fish are also displayed in great quantities.
But the most astonishing patience is manifested by an old Corean boatman,
who has trained a dozen tortoises, large and small, employing no other
means to direct them than his songs and a small metal drum. They march in
line, execute various evolutions, and conclude by climbing upon a low
table, the larger ones forming, of their own accord, a bridge for the smaller,
to whom the feat would otherwise be impossible. When they have all
mounted, they dispose themselves in three or four piles like so many
plates."122
Among the leading amusements were the Festivals. These were of
frequent occurrence and of the greatest diversity, so that the young people
had plenty to amuse them. There were five great annual Festivals, which
were the Festival of the New Year, the Festival of the Dolls, the Festival of
the Banners, the Feast of Lanterns, and the Feast of Chrysanthemums.
The New Year Festival occurred on the first day of the first month of the
old Japanese year. At this time congratulations and presents were much
given and taken. This was a time for pleasure and all the members of the
family laid aside their work and their dignity and entered into the fun and
the sport that characterized this festival.
The Festival of the Dolls occurred on the third day of the third month. This
day was especially devoted to the girls, and to them it was the greatest day
of the year. All the dolls belonging to the family were brought out and
which had been accumulating in some families for hundreds of years. When
a daughter was born in a home, two images of wood or enameled clay were
bought for her, with which she played, and when she was married she took
them to her new home and kept them for her children, as well as any other
dolls she might have. "The Tokugawa collection, of which I have spoken, is
remarkably full and costly, for it has been making for hundreds of years in
one of the younger branches of a family which for two and a half centuries
was possessed of almost imperial power, and lived in more than imperial

luxury; but there are few households so poor that they do not from year to
year accumulate a little store of toys wherewith to celebrate the feast, and,
whether the toys are many or few, the feast is the event of the year in the
lives of the little girls of Japan."123
On the fifth day of the fifth month was celebrated the Festival of the
Banners, which was celebrated in honor of the boys, and it was to them the
greatest day in the year. On this day all kinds of military toys were
displayed, such as heroes, warriors, generals, soldiers, etc. Also there were
flags, streamers, banners, etc. A set of these toys was bought for every son
born in the family. So as with the display of dolls, in old Japanese families
the display on the Feast of Banners was very great. About the houses and on
poles in the yards were hung long paper pennons of every color, banners
with coats of arms, and also attached to a pole by a string was a paper fish,
hollow so that as the wind filled it out it would flop its tail and fins in a
most natural way. This paper fish was to show that a son had been born
during the year or that there were sons in the family.
The Feast of Lanterns occurred on the seventh day of the seventh month.
On this occasion the whole city or town was decorated with lanterns. In
some places little girls would go in crowds through the streets and sing with
all their might while swinging paper lanterns.
"The fifth festival takes place on the ninth day of the ninth month, and is
called the Feast of Chrysanthemums. At all the family repasts during the
day, the leaves of chrysanthemum flowers are scattered over the cups of tea
and saké. It is believed that the libations prepared in this manner have the
power of prolonging life. The citizen of Tokio would consider that he was
wanting in his duty as a good husband and father, if he should partake
sparingly of this specific."124
That children enjoyed themselves and that they were helped to enjoy
themselves was well shown in the abundance of toys and toy-shops and
many holidays on which to display them. The streets of the towns and cities
were full of toy-shops, where every kind of toys imaginable could be found.
Too, toys, and especially the religious varieties, were displayed for sale
about the temples on feast days. There were images of the various gods and
of implements and appliances used about the temples. There were on the

streets toys of all kinds of animals, of wrestlers and acrobats, of soldiers,
etc., etc. Dolls were one of the strongest features of toy-makers and toy-
sellers. "Here let me tell you something you certainly never heard of before
in relation to Japanese dolls,—not the tiny O-Hina-San I was just speaking
about, but the beautiful life-sized dolls representing children of two or three
years old; real toy-babes which, although far more cheaply and simply
constructed than our finer kinds of Western dolls, become, under the
handling of a Japanese girl, infinitely more interesting. Such dolls are well
dressed, and look so life-like,—little slanting eyes, shaven pates, smiles,
and all!—that as seen from a short distance the best eyes might be deceived
by them. Therefore, in those stock photographs of Japanese life, of which so
many thousands are sold in the open ports, the conventional baby on the
mother's back is most successfully represented by a doll. Even the camera
does not betray the substitution. And if you see such a doll, though held,
quite close to you, being made by a Japanese mother to reach out its hands,
to move its little bare feet, and to turn its head, you would be almost afraid
to venture a heavy wager that it was only a doll. Even after having closely
examined the thing, you would still, I fancy, feel a little nervous at being
left alone with it, so perfect the delusion of that expert handling.
"Now there is a belief that some dolls do actually become alive.
"Formerly the belief was less rare than it is now. Certain dolls were spoken
of with reverence worthy of the Kami, and their owners were envied folk.
Such a doll was treated like a real son or daughter: it was regularly served
with food; it had a bed, and plenty of nice clothes, and a name. If in the
semblance of a girl, it was O-Toku-San; if in that of a boy, Tokutarō-San. It
was thought that the doll would become angry and cry if neglected, and that
any ill-treatment of it would bring ill-fortune to the house. And, moreover,
it was believed to possess supernatural powers of a very high order.
"In the family of one Sengoku, a samurai of Matsue, there was a Tokutarō-
San which had a local reputation scarcely inferior to that of Kishibojin,—
she to whom Japanese wives pray for offspring. And childless couples used
to borrow that doll, and keep it for a time,—ministering unto it,—and
furnish it with new clothes before gratefully returning it to its owners. And
all who did so, I am assured, became parents, according to their heart's

desire. 'Sengoku's doll had a soul.' There is even a legend that once, when
the house caught fire, the Tokutarō-San ran out safely into the garden of its
own accord!
"The idea about such a doll seems to be this: The new doll is only a doll.
But a doll which is preserved for a great many years in one family, and is
loved and played with by generations of children, gradually acquires a
soul."125
There was an abundance of outdoor sports among the Japanese children.
Beginning with the New Year there came the great game with the girls of
battledore and shuttlecock. The girls made a beautiful sight, of which, no
doubt, they were aware. With their gayest dresses, hair arranged in a most
pleasing way, faces powdered and lips painted, the graceful, rhythmic
motion of their bodies, their bright eyes and laughing faces, all combined to
make them and their sport a most attractive scene. Kite-flying was about as
great an amusement in Japan as in China. All kinds and sizes of kites were
used. Some represented birds, others men, and yet others monsters. Kite-
fights were of frequent occurrence. A part of the kite-string was smeared
with glue and then sprinkled with powdered glass, which prepared it for
sawing another kite-string in two, thus causing it to fall and become the
property of the one sawing the string. To make the fight the more realistic,
at the top of the frame of the kite was set a piece of whalebone, which in
vibrating in the wind made the most blood-curdling howls. Also contests in
tops were held, in which it was the aim to damage one another's tops and
stop the spinning. There was leaping and running and jumping and
wrestling and slinging. They played blind-man's-buff, prisoner's base, and
pussy wants a corner, but in these last two instead of the officer and Puss,
the oni, or devil, was the chief performer. They had stilts and handled them
so well as to play games on them and run races. Where there was snow and
ice, the Japanese children coasted, built snow-forts, fought battles with
snow-balls, and the like. They made snow-men in the likeness of Daruma, a
follower of Buddha, who lost his legs by paralysis and decay from long
meditation and prayer in a squatting position.
The Japanese children in their plays imitated their elders, just as children
everywhere do. Playing the doctor was one of the great imitative plays of

the younger children, and there were dinners and tea-parties and weddings
and funerals. One of the great amusements of the Japanese was wrestling-
matches and the children imitated these with much precision, as they would
stamp their feet, eat their salt, rinse their mouths, slap their knees, and then
clinch and tug till one or the other was victor. "Another game which was
very popular was called the 'Genji and Heiké.' These are the names of the
celebrated rival clans, or families, Minamoto and Taira. The boys of a town,
district, or school ranged themselves into two parties, each with flags.
Those of the Heiké were red, those of the Genji white. Sometimes every
boy had a flag, and the object of the contest, which was begun at the tap of
a drum, was to seize the flags of the enemy. The party securing the greatest
number of flags won the victory. In other cases, the flags were fastened on
the back of each contestant, who was armed with a bamboo for a sword,
and who had fastened, on a pad over his head, a flat, round piece of
earthenware, so that a party of them looked not unlike the faculty of a
college. Often these parties of boys numbered several hundred, and were
marshalled in squadrons, as in a battle. At the given signal, the battle
commenced, the object being to break the earthen dish on the head of the
enemy. The contest was usually very exciting. Whoever had his earthen disk
demolished had to retire from the field. The party having the greatest
number of broken disks, representative of cloven skulls, was declared the
loser. This game has been forbidden by the Government as being too severe
and cruel. Boys were often injured in it."126
Lore. The lore of Japan is as rich as that of other countries. Only a few of
the things concerning children can be given.
"Japanese papas, who find, as other fathers do, how much it costs to raise
a large family, will not let an infant, or even a young child, look in a mirror
(and thus see a child exactly like itself, making apparent twins); for if he
does, the anxious parent supposes the child, when grown up and married,
will have twins.
"Children are told that if they tell a lie, an oni, or an imp, called the tengu,
will pull out their tongues.
"If a boy rests a gun on top of his head, he will grow no taller. Children
must not carry any kind of basket on their heads, nor must they ever

measure their own height.
"Children are told if they strike anything with their chopsticks while at
their meals, they will be struck dumb.
"When a maimed or deformed child is born, people say that its parents or
ancestors committed some great sin.
"In Japan, as with us, each baby is the most remarkable child ever seen,
and wondrous are the legends rehearsed concerning each one; but it is a
great day in a Japanese home when the baby, of his own accord, walks
before his first birthday, and mochi (rice pastry) must be made to celebrate
the auspicious event.
"Young girls do not like to pour tea or hot water into a cup of kawaméshi
(red rice), lest their wedding-night should be rainy.
"Little boys, tempted to devour too much candy, are frightened, not with
prophecies of pain or threats of nauseous medicines, but by the fear of a
hideous worm that will surely be produced by indulgence in sweets."127
A peculiar superstition was in connection with the sacred trees, which
were found quite numerous in both city and country. The patron gods of
these trees were thought to inflict great injury upon those who might
desecrate the trees. Believing this, sometimes a young woman whose
affections had been stirred and then set aside used these sacred trees as a
means of avenging herself. Making a rude image of straw to represent her
former lover, at the "hour of the ox," two o'clock in the morning, she carried
this straw man to one of these trees. Having on her feet the high clogs, worn
in Japan, her hair disheveled, dressed in a loose flowing white night-dress,
carrying in her hand nails and hammer, she proceeded to the tree and
crucified on it the straw image of her lover. Then she beseeched the gods to
whom the tree was dedicated to bring down affliction and even death upon
him who mutilated the tree. These visits were repeated and the same things
gone over till her recreant lover sickened and died. It is not told whether
this always occurred or not.
"The wonderful story of 'Raiko and the Oni' is one of the most famous in
the collection of Japanese grandmothers. Its power to open the mouths and

distend the oblique eyes of the youngsters long after bedtime, is unlimited. I
have before me a little stitched book of seven leaves, which I bought among
a lot of two dozen or more in one of the colored print and book shops in
Tōkio. It is four inches long and three wide. On the gaudy cover, which is
printed in seven colors, is a picture of Raiko, the hero, in helmet and armor,
grasping in both hands the faithful sword with which he slays the ghoul
whose frightful face glowers above him. The hiragana text and wood-cuts
within the covers are greatly worn, showing that many thousand copies
have been printed from the original and oft-retouched face of the cherry-
wood blocks. The story, thus illustrated with fourteen engravings, is as
follows:
"A long time ago, when the mikado's power had slipped away into the
hands of his regents, the guard at Kiōto was neglected. There was a rumor
in the city that oni, or demons, frequented the streets late at night, and
carried off people bodily. The most dreaded place was at the Ra-jō gate, at
the southwestern entrance to the palace. Hither Watanabé, by order of
Raiko, the chief captain of the guard, started one night, well armed. Wearily
waiting for some hours, he became drowsy, and finally fell asleep. Seizing
his opportunity, the wary demon put out his arm from behind the gate-post,
caught Watanabé by the neck, and began to drag him up in the air. Watanabé
awoke, and in an instant seized the imp by the wrist, and, drawing his
sword, lopped the oni's arm off, who then leaped onto the cloud, howling
with pain. In the morning Watanabé returned and laid the trophy at his
master's feet. It is said that an oni's limb will not unite again if kept apart
from the stump for a week. Watanabé put the hairy arm in a strong stone
box, wreathed with twisted rice straw, and watched it day and night, lest the
oni should recover it. One night a feeble knock was heard at his door, and to
his challenge his old aunt's voice replied. Of course, he let the old woman
in. She praised her nephew's exploit, and begged him to let her see it. Being
thus pressed, as he thought, by his old aunty, he slid the lid aside. 'This is
my arm,' cried the old hag, as she flew westward into the sky, changing her
form into a tusked and hairy demon. Tracing the oni's course, Raiko and
four companions, disguised as komusō (wandering priests), reached the
pathless mountain Oyé, in Tango, which they climbed. They found a
beautiful young girl washing a bloody garment. From her they learned the

path to the oni's cave, and that the demons eat the men, and save the pretty
damsels alive. Approaching, they saw a demon cook carving a human body,
to make soup of. Entering the cave, they saw Shu ten dōji, a hideous tusked
monster, with long red hair, sitting on a pile of silken cushions, with about a
hundred retainers around him, at a feast. Steaming dishes were brought in,
full of human limbs, cooked in every style. The young damsels had to serve
the demons, who quaffed saké out of human skulls. Raiko and his band
pretended to join in the orgies, and amused the demons by a dance, after
which they presented them with a bottle of saké which had been mixed with
a narcotic. The chief drank a skullful and gave to his retainers. Soon all the
demons were asleep, and a thunder-storm of snores succeeded. Then Raiko
and his men threw off their disguise, drew sword, and cut off their heads,
till the cave flowed blood like a river. The neck of the chief demon was
wider than Raiko's sword, but the blade miraculously lengthened, and Raiko
cut the monster's head off at one sweep. They then destroyed the treasure,
released all the prisoners, and returned to Kiōto in triumph, exposing the
huge head along the streets."128
Religion. Before the introduction of Christianity into Japan, there were but
three religions: Shintoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism. The first is native
to Japan and the other two are importations. Shintoism teaches nature and
ancestor worship, cleanliness, and purity. As is the nature of the Japanese,
so this native religion has some merrymaking in it. Confucianism teaches
implicit obedience to those who are in power, as emperor, parent, and
teacher. Buddhism is somewhat similar to Christianity in making its
followers kind to those in lower life, as, the poor, and animals. "In a word,
'Shintoism furnishes the object of worship, Confucianism offers the rules of
life, and Buddhism supplies the way of future salvation.'"129
There is no doubt that all three of these religions had much to do in
moulding the character of the young in Japan, for in nearly every house of
the reigning class were the books or emblems or symbols or idols of these
three religions.
The school children had a god all to themselves, who was supposed to aid
them in their study. This god was called "Ten-jin," or "Heavenly Man." As

the boy desired to become a scholar, learned in the Chinese characters and
an excellent penman, so he prayed to Ten-jin to help him in all these.
Suicide. The Japanese did not fear death nor dread the consequences of a
future world, so that suicide was not looked upon as in Europe and America
today. "As for the young lovers of whom I speak, they have a strange faith
which effaces mysteries for them. They turn to the darkness with infinite
trust. If they are too unhappy to endure existence, the fault is not another's,
nor yet the world's; it is their own; it is innen, the result of errors in a
previous life. If they can never hope to be united in this world, it is only
because in some former birth they broke their promise to wed, or were
otherwise cruel to each other. But they believe likewise that by dying
together they will find themselves at once united in another world.
Sometimes they make a little banquet for themselves, write very strange
letters to parents and friends, mix something bitter with their rice-wine, and
go to sleep forever. Sometimes they select a more ancient and more honored
method: the lover first slays his beloved with a single sword stroke, and
then pierces his own throat. Sometimes with the girl's long crape-silk under-
girdle (koshi-obi) they bind themselves fast together, face to face, and so
embracing leap into some deep lake or stream."130
"Bravery has always been the chief ideal of Japanese character. What
beauty meant to the Greeks, and right to the Romans, and purity to the
Hebrews of old, bravery has meant to Japan."131 In older Japan one of the
bravest deeds was that of taking one's own life when there was a need. Thus
arose the practice of seppuku (belly-cutting) or hara-kiri, the more common
term. This act was performed by cutting across through one's bowels. This
brought into practice the wearing of two swords, a long one for enemies and
a short one for the wearer's own body. The young men were taught how to
perform this deed upon themselves and they were so impressed that when
the time came for its performance they were able to meet death without a
tremor and with perfect composure. The young women were taught the
equivalent duty of jigai, which was the piercing of the throat with a dagger
so that a single cut would sever the arteries.
Work. The children were taught to work. The girl was instructed in
household duties and the care of children. She was taught how to receive

and entertain guests, how to take care of the rooms and furniture, how to
cook and prepare and serve the dishes, how to do the marketing, how to
sew, and all such duties, so that when she should enter a home of her own
she would know how to perform the duties of wife and mother.
The apprenticeship system was used in Japan. The boy had to serve a long
apprenticeship with no pay, or but little pay, although his needs of food,
clothing, and lodging were attended to. Somewhat akin to this was the
entering of boys into the homes of those of distinction and education. The
young men performed the services required about the home and they were
cared for by the ones having them in charge and given instruction in the
things needed by them for the future.
Education. In the early times of Japan there seems to be nothing to prove
that children received any education other than domestic training, and the
higher classes had a training in the implements of warfare. Later, schools
grew up and children of both sexes and of all ranks attended the lower
schools and those of higher rank went on into schools of a higher grade. In
the eighth century of the Christian era, a university was established at the
capital and branch schools in the several provinces. In the university
instruction was given in Chinese literature, history, law, music, medicine,
mathematics, and astronomy and astrology. Students were sent to China
along with the Japanese ambassadors to that country and some of these
students remained for a number of years to complete their studies.
The art of writing was brought into Japan from Korea in A. D. 284.
Previous to this it would appear that the Japanese had no way of recording
events, as books and writing were unknown. Writing was at first with the
Chinese characters, which were used to represent Japanese words. Later a
system was devised whereby only parts of the Chinese characters were used
for writing and a syllabry was formed.
In the university mentioned above, "the training of the students in
medicine chiefly consisted in making them familiar with the methods which
prevailed in China. The properties of medicinal plants, the variations of the
pulse in health and disease and in the changing seasons, and the anatomy of
the human body were the chief subjects of study. The human cadaver was
never dissected, but a knowledge of anatomy was obtained from diagrams

which were wholly hypothetical. In early times medical officers were
appointed to experiment with medicines upon monkeys, and also to dissect
the bodies of monkeys. From these dissections, as well as from the printed
diagrams of Chinese books the imperfect knowledge which they had
reached was derived. It was not till 1771 that Sugita Genpaku and several
other Japanese scholars had an opportunity to dissect the body of a criminal,
and by personal observation found the utter falsity of the Chinese diagrams
on which they had hitherto relied, and the correctness of the Dutch books,
which they had, contrary to the laws of the country, learned to read."132
A large part of the education of the young samurai was of a military order.
He was well trained to ride a horse, to shoot a bow, and to handle the spear
and the sword. The hara-kiri was an especial part of this training. "They are
instructed as to the proper mode of performing this act, the ceremonies that
should accompany it, varying with the occasion, and according as it is done
publicly or privately, and under what circumstances a well-bred man should
feel himself obliged thus to destroy himself."133
The girls were taught needlework, music, the arranging of flowers, etc.
They were instructed in household duties and the things needed by a wife
and mother. Some girls received higher education, becoming able to
understand the Chinese characters used by the Japanese, and they were
especially well learned in the history of their country. "Plutarch tells us that
the ambition of a Spartan woman was to be the wife of a great man and the
mother of illustrious sons. Bushido set no lower ideal before our maidens;
their whole bringing up was in accordance with this view. They were
instructed in many martial practices for the sake of self-defense, that they
might safeguard their person and their children; in the art of committing
suicide, that in case no alternative opened to save them from disgrace, they
might end their lives in due order and in comely fashion."134 There were a
number of books, which appeared from time to time, upon the education of
the girl, till a library arose which were often bound in one volume.
"If the reader will imagine a volume composed of the Bible, 'Ladies'
Letter-writer,' 'Guide to Etiquette,' 'The Young Ladies' Own Book,' Hannah
More's works, Miss Strickland's 'Queens of England,' a work on household
economy, and an almanac, he will obtain some idea of the contents of the

Bunko, or 'Japanese Lady's Library.' With text and illustrations, the volume
is very large; but if translated and printed in brevier with the cuts, it would
not probably occupy more space than one of our largest monthly magazines.
The books composing it, in their order of importance, are the Ōnna Dai
Gakŭ ('Women's Great Learning'—the moral duties of woman, founded on
the Chinese classics); Ōnna Shō Gakŭ ('Woman's Small Learning'—
introduction to the above); Ōnna Niwa no Oshiyé ('Woman's Household
Instruction'—duties relating to furniture, dress, reception of guests, and all
the minutiae of indoor life, both daily and ceremonial); Ōnna Imagawa
('Moral Lessons' in paragraphs); Ōnna Yō bunshō ('Lady's Letter-writer');
Nijiu-shi Ko ('Twenty-four Children'—stories about model children in
China). Besides these works of importance, there are Hiyaku Nin Isshiu—a
collection of one hundred poems from as many poets, written in the old
Yamato dialect, and learned in every household, and perpetually repeated
with passionate fondness by old and young; a collection of lives of model
women; household lore; almanac learning; rules and examples to secure
perfect agreement between man and wife; and a vast and detailed array of
other knowledge of various sorts, both useful and ornamental to a Japanese
maiden, wife, widow, or mother. This book is studied, not only by the
higher classes, but by the daughters in almost every respectable family
throughout the country. It is read and reread, and committed to memory,
until it becomes to the Japanese woman what the Bible is to the inmate of
those homes in the West in which the Bible is the first, and last, and often
the only book."135

LITERATURE

1. —, Manners and customs of the Japanese. Family library, No. 142
(1841).
2. Bacon, Alice Mabel, Japanese girls and women.
3. Griffis, William Elliott, Japan in history, folk lore, and art.
4. Griffis, William Elliott, The Mikado's empire.
5. Gulick, Sidney L., Evolution of the Japanese.
6. Hearn, Lafcadio, Glimpses of unfamiliar Japan.
7. Kikuchi, Baron Dairoku, Japanese education.
8. Knapp, Arthur May, Feudal and modern Japan.
9. Lloyd, Arthur, Every-day Japan.
10. Lombard, Frank Alanson, Pre-Meiji education in Japan.
11. Mitford, A. B., Tales of Old Japan.
12. Murray, David, Japan.
13. Nitobé, Inazo, The Japanese nation.
14. Scherer, James A. B., Young Japan.
15. Taylor, Bayard, Japan in our day.

CHAPTER VII
THE CHILD IN PERSIA
Characteristics. Persia proper was a table-land, lying between the
Caspian Sea and the Persian Gulf, with deep valleys and rapid rivers. It was
such a country, with such a climate, as required a constant struggle by
mankind for existence. Thus was produced a vigorous race, a race of our
own blood, Aryans, that had one great wave of emigration to the West,
peopling Europe, and a later wave into India. The Persians were quick,
keen-witted, lovers of art and poetry, filled with energy and courage, and
having a very high regard for truth. "He was free and open in speech, bold
in act, generous, warm-hearted, hospitable. His chief faults were an
addiction to self-indulgence and luxury, a passionate abandon to the feeling
of the hour, whatever that might happen to be; and a tameness and
subservience in all his relations towards his prince, which seem to moderns
almost incompatible with real self-respect and manliness."136

Women and Marriage. As in other oriental countries, the parties to a
marriage were often betrothed in infancy, and they had never seen one
another till on their wedding-day. Boys sometimes married at the age of
fifteen and girls at twelve, but as a rule men were between the ages of
twenty-five and thirty and women from fourteen to nineteen. Parents
usually arranged for the marriage of their children, but sometimes the men
would get a female friend to select a partner for them. When the consent of
all had been obtained, then a formal betrothal took place and gifts were
exchanged.
A day having been set for the wedding, on that day the women would
gather at the home of the bride and the men at the bridegroom's house. As
soon as it was dark, the bride was escorted to the home of the bridegroom,
amidst the beating of drums, the playing of tambourines, and the flashing of
lanterns. Arrived at his house, a man would grasp the bride about the waist
to carry her within, which would cause a strife for if this was done by a
friend of the bridegroom then he would in the future be able to maintain due
authority over his wife, but if it was by a friend of the bride then she "would
keep her own side of the house." When the bride had passed into the
reception-room, the bridegroom made his appearance and he would hold a
looking-glass before her that he might get a good look at her face, and he
was aided in his decision of her looks by the ladies present who would
strive to get a look also at her face. "After this, the bridegroom takes a bit of
sugar-candy, and, biting it in two halves, eats one himself, and presents the
other to his bride. He then takes her stockings, throws one over his left
shoulder, places the other under his right foot, and orders all the spectators
to withdraw. They retire accordingly, and the happy couple are left alone."137
There was a form of marriage peculiar to Persia, and which must have
originated in a very early time, in which the contract was only temporary. In
this form a woman would enter into an agreement to live as a wife with a
certain man for a limited period on consideration of receiving a specified
sum. The time might be for a part of a day or for a long number of years. If
the man should leave the woman before the time had expired, she received
the sum of money just the same. But she had no other claim upon him nor
had she the right to inherit property from him. At the end of the time the

woman could not marry again for a month and if then found to be with child
a longer time had to elapse before her marriage again and the child, as well
as other children born to the union, was acknowledged and supported by the
man with whom she had been living.
It is quite well known that incest existed among the ancient Persians. They
even went further in this than did the Egyptians or Peruvians, as not only
were brothers and sisters permitted to marry but even a mother and son or
father and daughter. As with the ancient Peruvians so with the ancient
Persians, these unions were sometimes required for their religion called for
the offspring of such unions for the sacrifices.
Since the number of sons a Persian had was a source of pride to him, this
made polygamy a desired and necessary thing. Hence in ancient Persia a
man was allowed to have several wives and besides an additional number of
concubines, in order that many sons might be born to him.
Divorce was permitted almost at will to the husband, custom holding him
in check. Another thing that checked divorce was that the husband had to
restore the dowry with the returning of the woman to her home. The most
usual causes of separation were bad temper, extravagance, or some
complaint of that kind against the wife.
Dress. The boy was dressed somewhat as his father. Of the poorer classes,
the males wore a tunic and trousers of leather, with a strap or belt around
the waist, and high shoes tied in front with a string. The richer classes wore
long robes with loose hanging sleeves, sleeved tunics reaching to the knees,
fine shoes, drawers under the tunics, gloves on the hands, and socks or
stockings under the shoes. These were all of rich material and handsomely
made. The principal attire of the women was a wrapper with trousers
beneath, over these was worn a jacket with a shawl, cloak, or furs,
according to the state of the weather, round the head was wound a silk
handkerchief in form similar to a turban, and on the feet were stockings and
slippers. Under Mohammedan rule, when going out the women put on a
long, loose wrap that enveloped them from head to foot and left only a
small opening for the face, which might be covered with open lacework or a
veil. The girls were dressed similar to their mothers.

Child and Parent. The boy remained with the women till his fifth year,
his father never seeing him till then, which was said to have been done to
prevent the father from being afflicted by the loss if the child should die
young. "Children had to yield absolute obedience to their parents; but so
convinced were they of the sacredness of the family tie as founded on love
and reverence that they maintained 'that never yet did any one kill his father
or his mother, but in all such cases they are sure that, if matters were sifted
to the bottom, it would be found that the child was either a changeling or
else the fruit of adultery, for it is not likely, they say, that the real father
should perish by the hands of the child.' (Herod.)"138
Inheritance. The Persian was considered to have reached manhood when
he was fifteen years of age. "The offspring of the temporary unions, or of
any sort of union, are all equal before the Persian law, which merely
subjects them to the right of primogeniture. At the death of the father, the
eldest son, though born of a slave mother, takes two-thirds of the
succession. The remaining third of the property is divided amongst the other
children, but in such a way that the share of the boys is half as large again
as that of the girls."139
Amusements. The chief amusements of the Persians were hunting and
playing at dice. The boys no doubt followed their elders and had imitation
hunts. The boys also played games similar to blindman's buff and tag. They
flew kites and played ball. Boys and girls did not play together. The girls
preferred to sit about and listen to fairy stories, or at least such was the case
in later days. Both boys and girls were fond of singing.
Education. Among the ancient Persians, education does not seem to have
been given other than to the higher classes, except that general training that
comes through religion and custom and institutions that would be shared in
by every citizen. Education was not meant to be literary or scholastic but
principally of such a kind as would produce warriors.
There were five periods in the life of the Persian. The first ended at the
fifth year, or, as some claim, at the seventh year; the second period ended
with the fifteenth year; the third ended at twenty-five; the fourth ended at
fifty, and the fifth period was the time after fifty years of age.

During the first period the child was under the care of the mother and the
other women of the family. "'Up to the fifth year,' Herodotus tells us, 'they
are not allowed to come into the sight of their father, but pass their lives
with the women. This is done that if the child die young, the father would
not be afflicted with the loss.'"140 The child was not supposed to be capable
of distinguishing between right and wrong, and so he was taught simply to
obey the directions given him. A child was not to be whipped before his
seventh year, and he was to receive only kind treatment.
At the close of this first period, at the end of the fifth year, the boy left his
mother and went into the care of the state. This second period was a time of
physical training. The boy was given exercises in running, stone slinging,
bow shooting, and javelin throwing. He was taught to ride, and, later, to
hunt. He was trained to endure heat and cold and hunger and fatigue.
Through the national traditions, the boys learned of the doings of the heroes
and the meaning of noble deeds. They were taught to speak the truth and
learned to be just and pure and courageous and to gain self-control. They
were instructed in the myths of the gods and other religious matters, and
about the fifteenth year the boys were invested with the holy girdle.
At fifteen the boy entered the youth period. During this period military
training was the great exercise. The youth received careful training in the
use of military implements, in the knowledge of military terms and usages,
and given the strict discipline of military life. "The Magi required a higher
education. This must have consisted in the study and explanation of the
sacred writings, and may have included a limited training in philosophy,
astrology, medicine, law, and finance, so that they were able to become
advisers to the Great King and his satraps."141
At twenty-five the youth was considered a man and he took his place as a
citizen of the state and he continued in service till his fiftieth year.
Girls received no education other than that of domestic training, such as
was needed in the care of the home, the rearing of the little children, and the
other duties that would come to the women. Women held a higher place in
the family than was granted to them, for the most part, in other oriental
countries.

There was no educational system in Persia. There was no real method of
instruction. Perhaps no other nation gave more care to the moral and
physical training of the young than did ancient Persia, yet this was to the
almost entire neglect of intellectual training. The moral training came
through the mingling of the young with their elders and the military training
through imitation of the men at the various courts. "We know, however,
from Strabo and the general evidence of antiquity that the boys of the
higher classes were brought up together under men of gravity and
reputation at the court of the great king, and also at the lesser courts of the
great nobles and provincial governors."142
Persian life and education tended toward individuality. Caste with its
repressive influence did not exist in ancient Persia. The national feeling was
intense. The government was despotic. The ethical aim was high and the
individual was encouraged to high standards of courage, truthfulness, and
purity. But in spite of this,(the education was faulty in that the individual
was trained so strongly in warfare as to overshadow the ethical side.) As
long as Persia was struggling the ethical standards were maintained
alongside the standards of war so that the individual and the nation could
keep right. But when conquests came, bringing wealth and power and the
lower ethical standards of other nations, the Persians were unable to bear
the strain and so degeneration went forward fast and the nation found itself
unable to withstand the more vigorous peoples that came against it under
Alexander and so the empire fell, leaving but little impress on civilization.

LITERATURE

1. Benjamin, S. G. W., Persia and the Persians.
2. Dean, Amos, The history of civilization.
3. Fraser, James B., Historical and descriptive account of Persia.
4. Graves, Frank Pierrepont, A history of education, Before the middle
ages.
5. Jackson, A. V. Williams, Persia, past and present.
6. Laurie, S. S., Historical survey of pre-Christian education.
7. Letourneau, Ch., The evolution of marriage.
8. McLennan, J. G., Studies in ancient history.
9. Rawlinson, George, The seven great monarchies.
10. Vaux, W. S. W., Persia from the earliest period.

CHAPTER VIII
THE CHILD IN JUDEA
Historical. We learn from their own writings that the Jews arose from
peoples that lived in the region of the Euphrates, a particular tribe of whom,
under the leadership of Abraham, near 2000 B. C., migrated to the land of
Canaan or Palestine. Here they lived a nomadic life till a portion of them,
the descendants of Jacob, migrated to northeastern Egypt, from whence
some centuries later they were led forth by Moses and after wanderings and
warrings they entered again into Palestine and built up a nation. After some
centuries internal dissensions arose and the larger part withdrew and were
later forever lost. The smaller portion continued as a nation and later were
carried captives into Babylon and then restored again to their own country.
Then later they came under the dominion of the Greeks and then under the
Romans. Through this contact with the various civilizations, through the
effect of their environment of both the country itself and the tribes about
them, but more from that something innate in themselves, they developed
into a people that evolved the great religious idea which, it seems, will
dominate the entire world.
Women and Marriage. Woman was held in high esteem by the Jews. She
mingled freely in private and in public with others. The Bible is full of the
doings of women—as mothers, as wives, as sisters—showing courage and
devotion and wisdom. She took a leading part in the life of the nation,
especially in religious affairs. She was protected by a religion that did not
debase her but which called for a pure home and a happy family. Woman
was greatly respected in spite of some of the sayings about her as the
following: "It was observed that God formed woman neither out of the
head, lest she should become proud; nor out of the eye, lest she should be
curious; nor out of the mouth, lest she should be too talkative; nor out of the
hand, lest she should be covetous; nor out of the foot, lest she should gad
about; but out of the rib, which was always covered.... As woman is formed

from a rib, and man from the ground, man seeks a wife, and not vice versa;
he only seeks what he lost. This explains why man is more easily reconciled
than woman; he is made of soft earth and she of hard bone."143
About eighteen was the age at which men generally married, girls younger.
A man under thirteen years and a day was forbidden to marry, and a woman
under twelve years and a day. Wednesday was fixed as the day for maidens
to marry, and Thursday for widows. If the bride was a maid each party was
allowed twelve months after betrothal in which to prepare for marriage, in
case of a widow but thirty days were allowed. A widower had to wait over
three festivals and a widow three months before re-marrying. A marriage
could not take place within thirty days of the death of a near relative, nor on
the Sabbath, nor on a feast-day. Marriage was not permitted with those not
in their right senses, nor in a state of drunkenness. "The Mosaic law (Lev.
XVIII., 7-17; XX., 11, etc.) proscribes no less than fifteen marriages within
specified degrees of both consanguinity and affinity. In neither
consanguinity and affinity, however, does the law extend beyond two
degrees, viz., the mother, her daughter, aunt, father's wife, sister on the
father's side, wife of the father's brother, brother's wife (excepting in case of
the Levirate marriage), daughter-in-law, granddaughter either from a son or
daughter, and two sisters together."144
It was generally held that all marriages were arranged in heaven and that it
was proclaimed there, forty days before the child's birth, just whom he or
she should marry. Upon earth, the parent assumed this part and chose for his
child the one he was to have in life as a partner. This duty belonged to the
father, and if no father, then the mother. The son might make a personal
choice of his bride, so that the son's wishes might be consulted, but all
proposals, nevertheless, were made by the father. Girls up to twelve years
and a day, minors, could be betrothed by the father and this was true of all
women in the earlier times, but later, if of age, the woman had to give her
own free and expressed consent, without which a union was invalid. The
proposals were offered usually by the parents of the young man, but if there
was a difference of rank then they were made by the father of the girl.
The betrothal was considered as sacred as marriage and could not be more
easily broken. "For a betrothal to be legal, it has to be effected in one of the

following three modes: 1. By money, or money's worth, which, according to
the school of Shammai, must be a denar—90 grains of pure gold—or,
according to the school of Hillel, a perutah—half grain of pure silver—and
which is to be given to the maiden, or, if she is a minor, to her father, as
betrothal price. 2. By letter or contract, which the young man either in
person or through a proxy, has given to the maiden, or to her father when
she is a minor. 3. By cohabitation, when the young man and maiden, having
pronounced the betrothal formula in the presence of two witnesses, retire
into a separate room. This, however, is considered immodest, and the young
man is scourged."145
A father was to provide a dowry for his daughter conformable to her
station in life, and should the father not be able to do this the bridegroom
would, before marriage, give her sufficient for the necessary outfit. In case
of an orphan the dowry was provided from public funds. In earlier times,
after the giving over of the marriage price and other gifts, the bridegroom
took the bride with him. At a later period a marriage-feast was given at the
bride's home, and at a later period yet the wedding-feast was furnished at
the home of the bridegroom.
Children were very greatly desired by the ancient Hebrews, and especially
male children, as the more children a man had the more was he respected.
Also the expectance of the Messiah, who might come from any one of the
families, made children all the more wished for. Hence marriage was a duty
with them, and this desire for children was also a cause for polygamy as
thereby more children would be born to a family. Yet polygamy and
concubinage was not the rule with the Hebrews but the rare exception, so
far as the people generally were concerned, so that they really adopted
monogamy and were, probably, the only Semites who did so. Even where
polygamy or concubinage did occur the law insisted that each wife or
concubine should receive her full conjugal rights, which prevented any
extended practice even among the most wealthy.
Divorce was allowed for "any shameful thing," which, necessarily, was
interpreted in different ways. "In fact, we know that it included every kind
of impropriety, such as going about with loose hair, spinning in the street,
familiarly talking with men, ill-treating her husband's parents in his

presence, brawling, that is, 'speaking to her husband so loudly that the
neighbors could hear her in the adjoining house,' a general bad reputation,
or the discovery of fraud before marriage. On the other hand, the wife could
insist on being divorced if her husband were a leper, or effected with
polypus, or engaged in a disagreeable or dirty trade, such as that of a tanner
or coppersmith. One of the cases in which divorce was obligatory was, if
either party had become heretical, or ceased to profess Judaism."146 Yet
divorces were not so common as might be thought under so loose a
statement for procuring them. Rather strict laws were drawn up explicitly
stating for what divorce could be allowed, both to man and to woman.
Divorce was discouraged and a conciliation was always tried to be brought
about before divorce proceedings began. The divorced parties could marry
other parties and even could unite again. The bill of divorcement had to be
couched in explicit terms, handed to the woman herself, and in the presence
of two witnesses. In separation of the parents where there were children, the
daughters were placed in charge of the mother and the sons were given to
the father; but should the judge consider it of advantage to the children, the
sons also were given to the mother.
In order that children might be of the best, prostitution was not allowed
and marriage with a prostitute forbidden. "Marriage with a prostitute was
contrary to law, and the sons of such a woman were denied the political and
religious privileges of citizenship unto the tenth generation."147
Care and Treatment of Children. Although all children were desired by
the Hebrews, yet there was more rejoicing over the birth of a boy than over
the birth of a girl. The father was not permitted to be present at the birth of
the child, although later the child was given to him, at which time he placed
it on his knees. Sometimes the grandfather was permitted to be present at
the birth of the child.
In the earliest times the mothers nursed their own children, prolonging this
till the child was two and a half and even three years old. In later times the
wealthier classes employed nurses for this duty. It was the custom for the
boys to be under the care of the women till the fifth year after which the
father took charge of them.

Perhaps the most important ceremony in the earlier years of the child was
that of circumcision. The child received its name at this time. Only males
were subjected to this. It was performed on the eighth day of the child's life,
even though it was the Sabbath. If two of the child's brothers had died from
the results of the operation, or if he was weakly, this was deferred till such a
time as there would be no great danger. This ceremony was of great
importance and so the prescribed rules were strictly adhered to, otherwise it
was not valid. Usually the father performed the operation, yet it might be
done by any Israelite, and even in special cases by women.
The father had full control of his children. He had the power to inflict the
severest of punishment, even death. He had greater power over the daughter
than over the son, as he could annul a daughter's vow but not a son's.
"When a child has attained the age of thirteen years and one day, he is
declared of age by his father in the presence of ten Jews, and then he
possesses the legal capacity of acting for himself, and can make and
perform his own contracts. After that the sins he commits are on his own
account. Previously they were on the account of his father. With respect to
girls, they are accounted women when they arrive at the age of twelve years
and one-half."148
Duties of Children. "Honor thy father and thy mother," was the great
commandment to the Hebrew child. Undutifulness was almost unknown
among them. Loving consideration for the parents was one of their
strongest marks. Crimes against parents were scarcely heard of. Respect for
old age was another great duty and one which was carefully observed. "The
general state of Jewish society shows us parents as fondly watching over
their children, and children as requiting their care by bearing with the
foibles, and even the trials, arising from the caprices of old age and
infirmity."149
Dress. The principal garment worn was a tunic, which encircled the whole
body and came down to the knees. Under this was an inner garment that
went down to the heels. Over all was a mantle, which was a piece of cloth
nearly square, several feet in length and breadth, which was wrapped round
the body, or tied over the shoulders. A girdle was worn about the waist,
some of which worn by the women were of costly fabric and studded with

precious stones. A kind of turban was worn on the head. There were three
kinds of veils worn. One hung down from the head, so that the lady could
see all around; a second was a kind of mantilla, which covered the head and
was thrown about the whole person; a third kind was like the modern
oriental veil, covering the face and front, leaving only the eyes free. Sandals
were worn, and the ladies also wore slippers, some of which were very
costly being embroidered or adorned with gems and so arranged that the
pressure of the foot emitted a delicate perfume.
The hair was considered a chief point of beauty and so it was well cared
for. With the women it was worn long and curled and plaited and adorned
with gold ornaments and pearls. Auburn hair being a favorite color,
sometimes the hair was dyed and again it was sprinkled with gold-dust. To
keep the hair in place, there were hair-pins and combs. Perfumery was
greatly in use as were cosmetics, the ladies painting their cheeks and
blackening their eyebrows. "As for ornaments, gentlemen generally wore a
seal, either on the ring-finger or suspended round the neck. Some of them
had also bracelets above the wrist (commonly of the right arm), made of
ivory, gold, or precious stones strung together. Of course, the fashionable
lady was similarly adorned, adding to the bracelets finger-rings, ankle-rings,
nose-rings, ear-rings, gorgeous head-dresses, necklaces, chains, and what
are nowadays called 'charms.' As it may interest some, we shall add a few
sentences of description. The ear-ring was either plain, or had a drop, a
pendant, or a little bell inserted. The nose-ring, which the traditional law
ordered to be put aside on the Sabbath, hung gracefully over the upper lip,
yet so as not to interfere with the salute of the privileged friend. Two kinds
of necklaces were worn—one close-fitting, the other often consisting of
precious stones or pearls, and hanging down over the chest, often as low as
the girdle. The fashionable lady would wear two or three such chains, to
which smelling-bottles and various ornaments, even heathen 'charms,' were
attached. Gold pendants descended from the head-ornament, which
sometimes rose like a tower, or was wreathed in graceful snake-like coils.
The anklets were generally so wrought as in walking to make a sound like
little bells. Sometimes the two ankle-rings were fastened together, which
would oblige the fair wearer to walk with small, mincing steps. If to all this
we add gold and diamond pins, and say that our very brief description is

strictly based upon contemporary notices, the reader will have some idea of
the appearance of fashionable society."150
Amusements. It is presumed that Jewish children had games as the
children of other nations, yet but slight account is given of such. It is noted
that they kept tame birds and imitated marriages and funerals. They also
engaged in singing and dancing, but males and females did not dance
together, and the dancers performed according to their feelings, wild and
fantastic, slow and graceful, nor were there any set forms for dancing. The
youth must have taken part in the military sports which took place in public.
Another means of entertainment was that of riddles, Samson's well-known
one is an illustration. "Riddles are still 'put forth' at weddings. Here is a
common one:
Black as night, it is not night;
It cuts its wings, it is no bird;
Damaged the house, it is no mouse;
It ate the barley and is no donkey.
Answer—The ant."151

The following is quoted from Jerome: "It is customary in the cities of
Palestine, and has been so from ancient times, to place up and down large
stones to serve for exercises for the young, who, according in each case to
their degrees of strength, lift these stones, some as high as their knees,
others to their middle, others above their heads, the hands being kept
horizontal and joined under the stone."152
Education. "If we take a general, and at the same time, it is to be
admitted, a somewhat ideal, view of the education of the Jewish race, we
shall find its beginnings and its specific character expressed in the sixth
chapter of Deuteronomy: 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord:
And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy
soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this
day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy
children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when
thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest
up....' Accordingly, we may say that a present God, whom to fear was 'the
beginning of wisdom,' the honoring of parents and elders, a sacred family
life, the memory of a great history, the practical wisdom of proverbs, and a

gradually growing lyric psalmody, constituted the elements of the education
of the masses down to the time of the Exile."153 Thus the education of the
Hebrew child began at a very early age, as it would be taught these essential
things as early as it could understand. The parents would begin its training
in the home. Higher training, and in fact anything beyond the very
rudiments, was given only to the upper classes. The teachers for the most
part were highly respected. They were expected to be able men, not too
young, and married.
In a general way education among the Hebrews may be divided into two
epochs—pre-exilic, from the foundation of the kingdom down to the return
from the Babylonian captivity, and post-exilic, from the close of the first
period to the fall of Jerusalem and the final dispersion of the Jews.
During the first period there was no public means of education. Instruction
was given by the parents, the very young child of both sexes being under
the mother's care, but when older the boys went with the father out into his
work and so learned from him. The young people were taught the history of
their own people, their relation to God, the meaning of the religious feasts,
the needed ethical and social training, and the things necessary for making a
living and the care of the home. "Higher education was scarcely known
until after the exile. Even the priesthood and scribes were limited to a
certain knowledge of law, and of historical and judicial literature. In the
schools of the prophets, besides theological interpretation and the law, they
apparently learned only the arts of sacred music and poetry, whereby they
were to be stimulated to greater ecstasy, and were instructed in the
compilation of maxims, narratives, and annals. It has been claimed that they
were taught some mathematics and astronomy, to mark off the religious
festivals, but this is very doubtful."154
During the Captivity, the Hebrews came in contact with the education of
Babylon, so that upon their return to their own country education became
more general and this continued to grow till contact with the Greeks and
Romans brought about more general education and the establishment of
schools for the training of the priests and the youth of the upper classes, and
later public elementary schools began to grow up and became the most
prominent feature of Jewish education. Rich and poor alike attended these

schools. Reading and writing and a little arithmetic were taught the younger
pupils, the older pupils were given instruction in the law. All pupils were
obliged to learn a trade.
In the teaching the children were required to use the memory a great deal
so that frequent repetition was the practice and, as in other oriental
countries, the pupil was to do this work aloud and should he try to do it
quietly he was reproved. In teaching the child to read, he was first given the
alphabet, the letters being placed on a board for him so that he could see
them. The child had to read aloud to his teacher, who corrected his
pronunciation. The Hebrew Bible was begun to be read by the child at an
early age. In learning to write, a copy was made in a wax tablet which the
child traced with a stylus, and after a while he followed a copy on papyrus
or parchment with a pen. In the more advanced work, interpretation of the
law, etc., would be given by the instructor, the youth, would listen
attentively and then strive to reproduce in exact words what had been given.
In the early period, at least, discipline must have severe. If we are allowed
to form an opinion based on the old Testament, then we must conclude that
the rod took a prominent part in every child's education, and from the
authorities given us it is pretty certain that the ancient Jewish parent did not
spare the rod whether he spoiled the child or not.
In the early epoch, girls received but little training, only such as was
necessary to the carrying on of the domestic duties. At no time did girls
receive such training as the boys, but in the second epoch they were taught
to read and to write with dancing and music and domestic arts. Yet it would
seem that there were some women who showed training beyond the simple
subjects and who were able to take a place alongside the educated men of
their times.
Jewish education was unsystematic, narrow, and selfish, art and science
was scarcely known, and the literature was limited to the ideas connected
with their God. Yet there was produced a beautiful family life, a thoughtful
and kind treatment of children, a higher position for women than with any
other oriental nation, a great reverence for parents, and a true idea of their
relation to the Supreme Being.

LITERATURE

1. Cornill, Carl Heinrich, The culture of ancient Israel.
2. Dean, Amos, The history of civilization.
3. Edersheim, Alfred, History of the Jewish nation.
4. Edersheim, Alfred, Sketches of Jewish social life in the days of Christ.
5. Ellis, G. Harold, The origin and development of Jewish education.
Pedagogical seminary, IX (1902), 50-62.
6. Graves, Frank Pierrepont, A history of education, Before the middle
ages.
7. Laurie, S. S., Historical survey of pre-Christian education.
8. Lees, G. Robinson, Village life in Palestine.
9. Letourneau, Ch., The evolution of marriage.
10. Lewis, Henry King, The child, its spiritual nature.
11. McClintock, John, and Strong, James, Cyclopædia of biblical,
theological, and ecclesiastical literature.
12. Milman, Henry Hart, The history of the Jews from the earliest period
down to modern times.
13. Thwing, C. F., The family.

CHAPTER IX
THE CHILD IN GREECE
Physical Characteristics. The country of ancient Greece, as is modern
Greece, was a small peninsula in Southeastern Europe, projecting into the
Mediterranean Sea. It was a mountainous country, with no navigable rivers,
and a broken coast line with many good harbors. There were differences of
climate, varying from the excessive summer heat of the plains on the coast
to the chilling atmosphere of the uplands, and yet as a whole the climate
tended to be mild and even, with a bracing and pure atmosphere. Although
it does seem that the spirit of freedom and independence was innate with
the Greeks, yet the character of the country and the climate tended to
emphasize these innate propensities and to bring human culture to a high
development.
The People.. In studying the people of ancient Greece, there are found two
countries, although in neighboring sections, who were almost the opposite
in character and the like. These were Sparta and Athens. In both these
countries there were three classes. In Sparta there were first the citizens,
who were the owners and the rulers of the land; in the second class were the
periaeci, who lived in the surrounding towns and country, and although free
yet they paid large sums to the citizens for the use of the lands and thus
largely supported the Spartans; the third class were the helots, who were
serfs or slaves and who did all the menial work for the citizens. The first
class in Athens were the citizens, who controlled the country and who
reserved to themselves the sole right of government and the making of
laws; the second class were the aliens, who had settled in Athens for the
purpose of engaging in trade or commerce, but who had no part in politics
or administration; the third class were the slaves.
The Athenian and the Spartan were almost the opposite in character. The
Athenians were refined, patriotic and brave, but at the same time fickle and

changing. The Spartans were as patriotic and brave, or even braver, than the
Athenians, but they were fixed and knew no change. The Athenians
cultivated letters and the finer arts, while the Spartans practiced rigid,
practical utilitarianism. The Athenians engaged in employments and
amusements, but the Spartans did but little work, had few amusements, and
spent their time mostly in military training. The Spartans were cruel in
disposition, as was shown in their bearing toward the helots or slaves, as
they greatly oppressed them and often put them to death; while the
Athenians treated their slaves kindly.
The Home. In the early times the private buildings both in Athens and in
Sparta were simple, but in later times the houses became larger and more
splendid. Yet there were, perhaps, not the extravagances as in other
countries, for in Greece much of the time was spent outdoors and away
from the home, so that public buildings flourished and they were splendidly
built rather than were the private houses.
In the cities the houses were built together, with only party-walls between
them. They were narrow in front but extended back to quite a depth. They
were, as a rule, built on the street but sometimes there was a small space in
front. The door opened out on to the street, instead of inward, and it was a
custom for any one going out to knock on the door to avoid opening out
against some one passing along the street.
The walls of the houses were a framework of wood, sun-dried brick, or
common stone, and covered with stucco. The roofs generally were flat,
made of beams laid close together and covered with cement. In the early
period the walls were plain on the inside and the ground served for a floor,
but later there were decorated walls and mosaic floors.
There were two principal divisions in the interior of the houses, the one for
the men and the other for the women, the women's apartments being back
of the men's. The rooms were built around one or more open courts, by
means of which light and air were admitted to the house. The homes were
furnished with chairs and tables and couches and lamps and other
household furniture and the kitchens were provided with pots and pans and
bowls and sieves and many other articles.

Girls and Women. In the heroic age of Greece, women were accorded
much freedom. Yet it would seem that their lot was not much above that
found with women in savagery. They had the heavy household cares and
duties of savage women. They had the management of the provisions—the
grinding of the grain, the preparing of the meals, etc. They had to look after
the clothing, doing the spinning and the weaving and the making of the
garments. They carried the heavy burdens of domestic life along with the
care of the children. Yet the women were well respected and had high
standing with the men of that time.
In Sparta the state was everything. Strong and vigorous men were needed
to protect the state and so must be provided for military life, and the
mothers who were to bear them must be strong and courageous. The girls
and women were allowed much greater freedom than in other parts of
Greece. The girls received vigorous training, such as was given to the boys,
having contests among themselves and even sometimes with the boys. In
some of these contests the girls had to divest themselves of their apparel
and appear thus before the public. This coming in contact with the males,
the great freedom allowed to them, and the vigorous training did not spoil
the purity of the girls, for adultery was scarcely known in Sparta. Nor did
the training impair their physical appearance, as the Spartan women were
noted for their beauty of person, although on account of the vigorous
physical training this beauty was somewhat of a masculine type.
Women in Athens were treated quite differently to what they were in
Sparta. There was seemingly a contempt by the men for the women and
especially so among the leaders and rulers. "The most enlightened of the
Greeks limited the duties of a good wife, housewife, and mother, to the
following points: 1. That she should be faithful to her husband. 2. That she
should go abroad and expose herself to the view of strangers as little as
possible. 3. That she should take care of what the husband acquired, and
spend it with frugality; and, 4. That she should pay maternal attention to the
younger children of both sexes, and keep an incessantly watchful eye upon
her grown-up daughters."155
In Athens the women were closely watched and carefully guarded. They
were usually placed in the back part of the house and in the highest rooms,

and for the most part the women and girls passed their time in the
apartments allotted to them. There was no intercourse between young men
and young women. Women were considered men's inferiors and they were
thought little better than the slaves and they had but little more influence
with the men. Woman was looked upon as an entirely lower being
intellectually than man, and so not a fit companion for him in public life.
When men outside the household were present in the home, the women
were expected to seclude themselves. When a dinner was being given the
company consisted entirely of men and the wife kept herself and her
children in the women's quarters. The young women rarely went from
home. Even if it was necessary for them to appear in public religious
ceremonies, they did not take part in common with the other sex but acted
apart from them.
Thus the training of the Athenian girl and that of the Spartan girl were
quite in contrast and while the Athenian girl grew up to be a pale, slender
lady, but little versed in the ways of the world, the Spartan girl grew up to
be a vigorous, robust, healthy woman, ready even to take part in public
debate if necessary. Yet there was at least one class of women in Athens not
secluded, for "in the London market of Billingsgate it is the fishwomen who
have been notorious for abusive language; at Athens it was the bread-
women."156
A discussion of the women of Greece could not be complete without
including the much discussed but little understood class known as the
Hetairai, the stranger-women of Athens. Whether they were simply
courtesans or whether they were women seeking freedom from the
restraints and seclusion of the wife or whether they were both courtesans
and seeking freedom and education, they certainly exercised a remarkable
influence in Greece.
There were two classes of women at Athens, the first class being the wives
and mothers, the citizen-women of Athens, and the other class being the
stranger-women. Athens did not exclude strangers and indeed it was an
attractive place to foreigners. "The city itself was full of attractions for the
stranger, with its innumerable works of art, its brilliant dramatic
exhibitions, its splendid religious processions, its gay festivals, its schools

of philosophy, and its keen political life."157 Although they did not exclude
strangers from the city, yet they did exclude them from governing
citizenship. Nor was a citizen, male or female, allowed to marry a stranger
and severe penalties were inflicted on those who broke this law. Since the
stranger-women could not marry Athenian men, they had to gain their
companionship by other means. The citizen-women, the native women of
Athens, were not allowed the company of men nor were they given high
accomplishments. "The names of these wives are not to be found in history.
But the influence of the Companions came more and more into play. Almost
every famous man, after this date, has one Companion with whom he
discusses the pursuits and soothes the evils of his life. Plato had
Archeanassa, Aristotle Herpyllis, Epicurus Leontium, Isocrates Metaneira,
Menander Glycera, and others in like manner. And some of them attained
the highest positions.... Some were renowned for their musical ability, and a
few could paint. They cultivated all the graces of life; they dressed with
exquisite taste; they took their food, as a comic poet remarks, with
refinement, and not like the citizen women, who crammed their cheeks, and
tore away at the meat. And they were witty. They also occupied the
attention of historians."158 "Thus arose a most unnatural division of functions
among the women of those days. The citizen-women had to be mothers and
housewives—nothing more; the stranger-women had to discharge the duties
of companions, but remain outside the pale of the privileged and
marriageable class."159
The two most noted of the hetairai were Aspasia and Phryne. "Phryne, the
most beautiful woman that ever lived, attracted the eyes of all Greece;
Apelles painted her, and Praxiteles made her the model for the Cnidian
Aphrodite, the most lovely representation of woman that ever came from
sculptor's chisel."160 "Aspasia, the beautiful, accomplished, and highly gifted
woman, a native of Miletus, first the mistress and subsequently the wife of
Pericles, exercised an influence and a power in Greece very greatly superior
to any ever exercised there by any other woman. She was endowed with a
mind more beautiful than her beautiful form. Her genius drew around her
all those who had a taste for the beautiful, or a desire to cultivate their
minds. At her house, eloquence, politics and philosophy were daily
discussed, and ladies of the highest rank resorted thither to acquire some of

the accomplishments by which she was distinguished. Large concessions
must certainly be made to the mind that could be a fit companion for
Pericles, and could teach rhetoric to Socrates."161
Marriage. In most cases Greek marriage was not an affair of the heart, for
young people had but little opportunity to be with one another for love-
making. Marriage for the man was rather a matter of convenience, for the
purpose of the continuation of his family. This was a duty he owed to
himself and to the state, for the state must have citizens for its perpetuation.
To the Greek public life meant everything, the home counted but little. The
wife's duties were considered to be the attending to household affairs and
the bearing of children.
Marriage had to be with the consent of the parents. The young woman had
no control over her person as she was under the charge of her father, and
upon his death of a brother, and in case of no brother then the grandfather,
and last her guardian. The father not only had power over his daughter's
marriage in his lifetime but also after his death as he could bequeath her by
will. And yet more, for upon his deathbed he could betroth his wife to
another person and even he could bequeath her in his will to another.
In order for the children to be legitimate both parties had to be citizens of
the state, and equality of birth and wealth were the chief considerations. The
man could not marry in the direct line of his own descent, yet he could
marry his half-sister on his father's side, which was rarely done. There was
usually some years of difference in the age of bride and groom, the young
woman being from fifteen to twenty and the young man from twenty-four
to thirty. Marriages were most frequent in the winter, January being the
favorite month, and when the omens were favorable, the most favorable
being at the time at which there happened to be a conjunction of the sun and
the moon. The selections and arrangements were usually made by the father
or the guardian but often a professional matchmaker was employed, who
was well informed in regard to the marriageable young people. When the
marriage was determined upon, the betrothal took place, which was made
by the legal guardian of the young woman and in the presence of friends
and relatives of both parties, the dowry of the wife being agreed upon at the
time.

In ancient Greece the lover would often write the name of his loved one on
walls and columns and carve it on trees. He would even write the beloved
name on the leaves of the trees. The lover would send verses to his lady
love. He would decorate her door with flowers and garlands. He would
wear a wreath on his head awry or wear it untied, as a token of his being in
love. Sometimes the lover would make an image of wax, call it by the name
of his loved one, and place it near a fire, as the heat was supposed to melt
the hard heart of her he loved as it melted her wax image.
Love potions were in common use as were also antidotes to love. "Some
herbs were made use of for this purpose, also insects bred from putrid
matter; the lamprey, the lizard, the brains of a calf, the hair on the extremity
of the wolf's tail, with some of his secret parts, and the bones of the left side
of a toad eaten by ants. The bones on the right side were supposed to cause
hatred. Besides these, were also used the blood of doves, the bones of
snakes, the feathers of screech owls, and bands of wool twisted upon a
wheel, more especially such as had been bound about a person that hanged
himself.... The Greeks also professed to have the means of allaying the
passion of love, at least of that species of it which originated from magical
incantations. The antidotes were of two kinds. The one consisted of those
substances which possessed some natural virtue, to which the production of
the effect might be attributed, as the herbs which were supposed enemies to
generation. The other included all such as wrought the cure by some occult
or mystical power, and by the assistance of demons. As instances of this
latter, may be cited the sprinkling of the dust in which a mule had rolled
herself, and the confining of toads in the hide of a beast lately slain.
Another method of curing love, was to wash in the water of the river
Selemnus."162
In the Homeric time in Greece, the suitor paid the father for his bride, thus
purchasing her. But in later times this was entirely changed and the bride
was expected to bring a dowry with her. Among the wealthy this dowry was
supposed to consist partly in cash and partly in clothes, jewelry, and slaves.
The husband had to give security for it, as in case of divorce it was returned
to the bride or to her parents and in case of her death it did not go to the
husband but to the nearest of kin. Where there was a daughter of a poor,
deserving citizen, and especially if her ancestors had been serviceable to the

state, she was provided a dowry by the state. Sometimes the dowry was
given to such a girl by a number of citizens. The dowry was supposed to
give the wife better standing and thus bring more respect from the husband
and greater freedom. A woman might carry so great dowry to her husband
as to make her the stronger partner and so be able to have her husband in
submission to her and her money.
The day of the wedding having arrived, offerings were made to the deities
that protected marriage, the oath of fidelity was taken, and the father
declared that he gave his daughter to the man. The bride and bridegroom
both were bathed, at Athens the water being taken from a famous fountain,
and they were dressed in their wedding-garments, both bride and
bridegroom being richly adorned and wearing upon their heads garlands of
various herbs and flowers. The bride was then led from her home and
placed in a chariot between the bridegroom and his best man. They then
drove slowly through the streets, the bride's mother following them and
carrying the wedding torches, kindled at the parental hearth, and a
procession of relatives and friends followed. At the bridegroom's home the
axle-tree of the chariot was broken or burned, to designate that the bride
having found a new home would never return to her old home. The
bridegroom's house was decked with garlands and brilliantly illuminated.
The couple were met by his mother bearing torches, and surrounded by a
group of dancing-girls they came to the door, and at the threshold the bride
made a pretense of not wishing to enter, when the bridegroom seized her
and carried her inside, seeing that her feet did not touch the sill. All then
partook of a feast, consisting of wines, meats, sweetmeats, and wedding-
cake, the women with the veiled bride among them sitting apart from the
men. The final ceremony consisted in the eating of a quince by husband and
wife together, to signify, perhaps, because of the bitter-sweetness, that they
should partake of the sweets and bitters of life together, our "for better or
worse." Then the guests departed and the couple entered the bridal chamber,
where for the first time the bride unveiled herself to her husband. At the last
the bridal hymn was sung before their door by a chorus of maidens. The
next morning the chorus returned and saluted the married couple with
songs. This was the day of "unveiling," as the bride unveiled herself, and

the newly married couple spent the entire day in receiving visits with
salutations and presents from their friends.
"The marriage ceremonies of the Spartans differed from those of all the
other Greeks. Instead of having a public celebration, everything was there
done in as private a manner as possible. When everything had been settled
between the parties, the bridegroom at night made a secret visit to his bride
at her father's house. Before day he returned to his comrades, at the
gymnasia, and never, for a long time, visited his wife except at night and by
stealth, as it was accounted a disgrace to be seen coming out of his wife's
apartment. They sometimes lived in this clandestine manner for years, not
unfrequently having children by their wives before they ever saw their faces
by daylight."163
As citizenship was limited in the states of Greece, it became highly
important that the citizens should perpetuate the state by marrying and
having children. So the state would encourage marriage and make it
honorable and likewise almost compulsory and unmarried men would not
be wanted nor would marriage deferred till late in life be considered the
best for the state. In both Athens and Sparta bachelors were subject to a
legal penalty. In Athens those who held public office and were entrusted
with public affairs had to be married, to have children, and to have estates
in land. Sparta was quite severe on the bachelors. If a man delayed marriage
after a specified age, he subjected himself to a number of penalties. One
was for once each winter to go naked around the market-place and sing a
song ridiculing his bachelorhood. Such men were not permitted to be
present at the contests wherein young women engaged in a nude condition.
Upon the celebration of a certain solemnity, the bachelors were dragged
around the altar by the women who beat them with their fists. When these
men became old they were not accorded that high respect which the young
of Sparta was accustomed to pay to the aged.
Monogamy was early established in Greece as the basis of society. There
were some instances of polygamy or rather concubinage in the early ages
and on some occasions where large number of men were lost in war or from
other causes. This might have been resorted to in order to replenish the state
but this was of rare occurrence.

In early times in Greece divorce was in the hands of the husband and he
could exercise it whenever he felt that he was justified but in later times this
right was somewhat restricted. The Spartans seldom divorced their wives.
In Athens divorce was easy for the man, but a bill of divorce was required
to be presented to the magistrate in which the reasons for the divorce were
set forth. They would, no doubt, have been more frequent had it not been
that in divorce the husband had to restore the dowry to the wife or pay her a
sum each month for her support. For a man to divorce his wife was
considered a great dishonor to her. It was difficult for a woman to procure a
divorce, Athens being more favorable to women in this respect than the
other states of Greece. But here she had to present a bill of grievances to the
magistrate and it required his action before separation could take place.
"The terms expressing the separation of men and women from each other
were different. The men were said to dismiss their wives; to loose them
from their obligations; to cast them out; to send them away; to put them
away. If a woman left her husband, it was termed simply to depart from
him."164
Dress. The articles of dress worn by the Greeks were of two kinds—one
drawn on or got into, a tunic, called by the general term endymata; the other
thrown over the person, a mantle, known as the epiblemata. Of the first
kind the chiton was the representative garment, which was worn next to the
body. The chiton in its usual form was an oblong piece of cloth and thrown
about the body in such a way as to leave an opening for one arm to go
through, while the two ends of the open side were fastened over the other
shoulder by means of a buckle or clasp. Sometimes the chiton was made
with two sleeves, with one sleeve, or with short sleeves. In some cases, as
with workmen, it was thrown across the left shoulder with the right arm and
shoulder entirely bare, so as to be left free for action. The chiton was
fastened about the waist by a ribbon or girdle. The representative of the
epiblemata was known as the himation. This was also an oblong piece of
cloth, one corner of which was thrown over the left shoulder in front, drawn
across the back to the right side, sometimes below the right arm and
sometimes over it, and then it was thrown again over the left shoulder.
Boys commonly wore only the chiton. The young men, from the age of
seventeen to twenty, called the ephebi, instead of the himation wore the

chlamys, which was an oblong cloth, thrown over the left shoulder and the
open ends were fastened over the right shoulder with a clasp. The himation
of Sparta was smaller than that at Athens, scarcely covering the person, and
which was called the tribon. The women wore the chiton and the himation
and in addition they wore another garment over the chiton, called the
crocotos, which sometimes had sleeves and was of a rich purple or saffron
color and frequently had a broad border of embroidery. The Doric maidens
usually wore but a single loose woolen garment. It was without sleeves and
fastened over the shoulders with clasps. It usually extended about half way
to the knees, it was worn with or without a girdle, and the left side was left
open, which might or might not have been fastened with a buckle or clasp.
The garments were made of linen, cotton, or wool, and in later times silk
also was used. White was, perhaps, the prevailing color and yet many colors
were used, as, purple, red, green, yellow, gray, brown, olive, azure, cherry,
and changeable colors. If the entire dress was not colored, it might have had
colored borders, embroidery, or stripes, worked in or sewed on, and
sometimes there were fringes or tassels. The undergarment, in time of
mourning, was sometimes black.
The Greeks, both men and women, were especially careful of the hair. The
men wore their hair and beard long and they had the hair curled or braided
and bound up in a large bunch on top of the head or it might be arranged
along the forehead and kept in place with golden grasshoppers. Dandies
went to extremes and let their hair grow till it fell down on the shoulders.
Most of the men had thick hair. In the cities the men usually went
bareheaded but sometimes they wore hats or caps, when at work and on
journeys.
The Grecian women for the most part had long, rich hair and, naturally,
they took even more care of it than did the men with their hair. Sometimes
it was allowed to fall loosely down the back; sometimes the hair was
combed over the back in waving lines and a ribbon tied around the head; it
might be that the front hair was combed back over the temples and ears and
tied at the back of the head in a knot, held in place with hairpins of ivory,
bronze, bone, gold, or silver; and there were many other ways of keeping
the hair.

The hair of children was carefully attended to. The girls' hair was often
twisted into artistic curls and then drawn together over the forehead and
held by a fancy comb. In Sparta the boys' hair was kept short till their
majority had been reached, when it was allowed to grow long. Among the
Athenians the hair of the boys was permitted to grow till they had reached
maturity, when it was cut off and burned to some deity, after which it was
allowed to grow long again.
There were oils, perfumes, ointments, and essences for the hair. Curling-
irons were in use for curling the hair. Powders were used on the hair and
especially the kind that gave it an auburn color. There were dyes for the hair
and they were well resorted to. Nets were used by the ladies to enclose their
hair, and veils of a light fabric and of transparent texture were worn. On
festive occasions wreaths and garlands were worn by both men and women.
Among the Greeks the hands were not usually covered, gloves rarely
being worn. The feet were not covered in the house and even sometimes in
the street there was no covering to the feet. There was a great variety of
foot-wear from the simple sandal to the high boot, the three main kinds
being the sandal, the shoe, and the boot.
The sandal was the simplest form of foot-covering. This consisted of a
sole of wood or leather, or it might be two pieces of leather with a piece of
cork between. This was held on the foot by means of a strap or thong
passing between the big toe and the next and running back along the top of
the foot and fastened to another strap going over the instep and another that
passed round the back of the heel. Occasionally slippers were worn, which
among the women were ornamented with needle work.
From the sandal was evolved the half shoe, covering the front part of the
foot, and then the shoe, covering all the foot, which arose from the addition
of a closed heel and smaller or larger side-pieces sewed to the sole. The
working-people of both town and country had the soles studded with iron
nails, while the dandy in the city might have had gold or silver nails in his
shoes. The women regulated their stature, increasing or diminishing the
height, by means of high or low heels and soles of different thickness. The
children at Athens began to wear shoes at an early age. In the boot the

covering reached to the calf of the leg, open in front, and fastened with
laces.
In the footwear was where novelty and taste was shown by the Greeks.
There was fashion in shoes and they often were named for those who
originated the styles. They were very careful about neatness of fit and
appearance. It was not considered good taste to wear patched or mended
shoes. Black, white, and colored shoes were worn. Blacking was used,
which was a kind of polish. The material was usually leather but felt also
was used and slippers were sometimes made of linen. Socks and stockings
seem to have been worn, but they were not in common use.
In the heroic times of Greece, as described by Homer, men wore earrings,
necklaces, armlets, fancy girdles, hair ornaments, and finger-rings. In later
times all these were discarded except the finger-rings, and these were
usually signet rings. The women continued to use all kinds of ornaments.
They wore both signet and jeweled rings on their fingers, some of the latter
being set with beautiful and costly jewels; they wore necklaces of many
patterns, varying from the simple ring to elaborate pendants; they wore
armlets, bracelets, and anklets, usually in the form of spiral snakes; they
wore a diadem or fillet to keep the hair in place; they wore ornamented
girdles. The ornaments mentioned above were usually of gold and adorned
with gems, as they used many kinds of precious stones.
The ladies dyed their hair and bleached it and increased its amount by
adding other hair; they used tooth-powder; they blackened their eyebrows; a
dark complexion was whitened and one too pale was rouged; their lips were
touched with vermillion. To aid in this decorating, they had mirrors, which
were made of bronze and usually circular, either without a handle or with
one richly adorned.
The ladies had parasols, much like the ones at present, which could open
and shut by means of wires, and which they carried themselves or had
servants to hold over them. They had fans of peacocks' feathers or of thin
light wood. Canes were used by the men both in Sparta and Athens, which
were mostly of great length and with crook handles.

The ladies of Old Greek times well understood how to adorn, enhance, and
remodel the human figure. As was stated above, they hung on to the figure
all kinds of ornaments—rings, necklaces, earrings, bracelets, etc.; they
could curl and dye and increase the amount of hair; they painted and
powdered the cheeks and eyebrows and lips; they knew how to increase or
diminish the stature by means of the heels and soles of the shoes; and they
knew the art of enlarging or diminishing the figure by means of corsets and
padding. Not only did they know all these things, but also they understood
how to display to best advantage any part of the figure that was beautiful,
as, a woman having pretty white teeth knew how and when to laugh to best
display them and the handsome mouth.
Food. In the earlier times of Greece, when the food supply was limited to
a narrow territory, there was frugality and little variety. As commerce
increased the food supply became greater and of a varied character, and yet
the Greeks were for the most part frugal and temperate.
There were usually three meals a day—a light breakfast, a heavier meal
near midday, while the principal meal was toward the close of the day.
When the family ate alone, the father reclined on a couch, the mother sat on
a chair near him, and the children sat about them, the younger perhaps on
the mother's lap or on the couch by the father.
The bread was made from wheat and barley and also from rye, millet,
spelt, and rice. The bread sold by the bread-women in Athens had a big
reputation all over Greece. Among their cakes was one made of wheat and
honey, another of rice, cheese, eggs, and honey, and a third of cheese, eggs,
and garlic. Beef, mutton, goat's flesh, and pork, were the most common
meats. Poultry was abundant and eggs were used in various ways. There
was plenty of wild game, as, the partridge, wild pigeons, wild geese, deer,
hares, and wild boars. Hot sausages were greatly liked and they were sold
on the streets of Athens and perhaps in other cities. Fish were abundant,
both fresh-water and salt, and oysters, eels, mussels, and turtles were used
as food. Among the vegetables were lettuce, spinach, cabbage, peas, beans,
radishes, onions, garlic, turnips, and asparagus. The food was seasoned with
salt, mustard, garlic, onions, and herbs. Honey was used as sugar with us
and olive-oil and cheese took the place of butter. Of fruits there were figs,

apples, quinces, peaches, pears, plums, cherries, grapes, and of nuts there
were walnuts, almonds, and chestnuts. Wine was in great use and, perhaps,
there was no other beverage but water as milk was not often drunk except in
the country.
After being weaned, the child at Athens was fed by its mother or nurse
with milk and a weak broth, which consisted mostly of honey. The older
Athenian child no doubt had an abundance and a variety of food, but such
was not the case in Sparta. Taken to the public tables at seven years of age,
the Spartan child was given only very coarse food and not nearly a
sufficient quantity of this. He was permitted, however, to steal more food,
but if caught he was severely punished.
Child and Parent. One of the worst things that could happen to a Greek
in the old times was not to have children, and especially not to have a son.
Although daughters were not disliked, yet it was through the son that the
family name and the worship of family gods and ancestors could be
continued after the death of the father. There was more, for the state
considered childlessness and especially no sons in a family unfortunate, as
it was thought such a condition lessened the ties between citizen and state.
So when a boy was born into a family the outer door was decorated with an
olive branch, while for a girl a fillet of wool was used.
"The Grecian mothers were subjected to certain rules prior to the birth of
their children. Their food and exercises were regulated either by the laws, or
by the manners and customs. In most of the Grecian states they were
required to lead a sedentary, inactive, and tranquil life. In Sparta, however,
it was directly the reverse. There, women while in that condition were
required to be abroad, engaged in their usual athletic recreations, eating and
drinking as at any other period of time."165
Care of Children. The newly born child was bathed in water and oil and
then it was put into swaddling clothes, a narrow woolen band wrapped
tightly round and round the child from the neck to the feet. In Sparta the
newly born child was bathed in water tempered with wine, as it was
considered strengthening to the child and also that such a bath could be
endured only by strong and healthy infants. The baby was not placed in

swaddling clothes in Sparta, so that it was allowed the freedom of its limbs
and body.
There were two family festivals observed with the young child. The first
was of a religious nature, the ceremony of purification, and it usually took
place on the fifth day after birth. The child was held in the arms of the
nurse, midwife, or some member of the family, who ran round a fire blazing
on the family altar, followed by the members of the household. This was
done that the child might thus be placed under the care of the household
gods. It was ended with a feast. The second festival was that of the name-
day, which occurred on the child's tenth day after birth. This was a very
important event in the life of the child, as on this occasion the infant was
acknowledged by the father as his own and he committed himself to its
rearing and education. A feast was held, a special cake was eaten, a sacrifice
was offered, chiefly to the goddess of child-bearing, and the baby was given
a name. Presents were given to the child, among them being charms or
amulets and which were hung around its neck to protect it against magical
arts and the evil eye. The favorite name for the eldest son was that of his
paternal grandfather. Sometimes the boy was named for his father or there
might be a shortened form of the grandfather's or father's name. He might
be named for an intimate friend or for some god or for some action or
condition or experience in his father's life. Later in life the boy might
receive a nickname that would take the place of his real name.
In the earlier times the mothers both of Athens and Sparta nursed their
children, but later this was abandoned and nurses were procured. Wet-
nurses were employed for the baby's first year or a half year longer and then
a regular nurse was obtained for the child. In Sparta the nurses were usually
from the women of the perioeci, and the other peoples of Greece preferred
the Spartan nurses because they were strong and healthy and also gave the
children a vigorous training. "When the child grew to some understanding,
the nurse told stories out of the great wealth of Greek mythology and
Æsopian beast fables which circulated among the Greeks from the earliest
times; also ghost stories, chiefly to frighten and subdue the rebellious: about
the horrible bugaboo called Mormo; about Acco, who carried off bad
children in a huge sack; or Lamia, once a princess, who ate her own and
others' children; or Empūsa, a hobgoblin that took any shape it pleased. If

these stories failed to restrain the naughty child, then the sandal was
vigorously applied."166
The earlier cradle was of basket-work, in the form of a flat swing. A later
one was shaped like a shoe, having handles at the sides for carrying and
suspending. In yet later times appeared cradles similar to those of modern
times. Lullabies were sung over children as now. One cradle-song has come
down to us in this form:
"Tenderly she touched their little heads and sang:
Sleep, baby boys, a sweet and healthful sleep;
Sleep on, my darlings, safely through the night,
Sleep, happy in your baby dreams, and wake
With joy to greet the morning's dawning light."167

Infanticide. If in Sparta the child survived the bath of water and wine,
then it was subjected to an inspection by a council of the state to decide
whether it was fit to live or not. The strong and robust children were
permitted to live, but the weak and sickly and deformed children were
thrown down a precipice or exposed on the mountains. If any of the helots
or perioeci should find the child and take it they were permitted to keep it,
but the child could never become a citizen of Sparta. This custom of
destroying or casting out infants was done in order to insure strong citizens
for the state. No parent was allowed to pass judgment on the child, such
was retained by the state alone.
Infanticide was practiced in Athens, but not by the state. This was wholly
in the hands of the fathers. The fathers at Athens were more cruel than the
state at Sparta, for not only weak and deformed children were cast aside by
the Athenian fathers, but this might be true of other children, as poverty and
other causes might be a motive. This was done by placing the infant in a
basket or earthenware vessel and leaving it in a temple, or some other
public place, so that some one might take it. This was called "potting" the
child. The mother usually placed a token as a trinket or an amulet with the
child so that possibly afterward the child might be recognized. The party
who might take such a child had full power over it and might rear it as a
slave or do with it as he might wish. The father was sometimes brutal
enough to take the baby to the mountains and leave it to die from exposure
or wild beasts.

"From this barbarous custom the Thebans formed an honorable exemption.
They rendered the murder of infants a capital offense. Those who were born
of parents unable to provide for their maintenance were brought up at the
public charge, but in return, when grown up, the public had a right to their
services until they were adequately compensated for what had been
expended in bringing them up."168
Duties of Children. The boy at Greece was expected to walk along the
street in a quiet manner with head bent, as a sign of modesty, and to speak
to no one. At home he was to be careful of his manners and habits. He was
to be respectful to his elders, making way for them on the street, keeping
silence in their company, and when seated to arise when they entered the
room and to give way to them. It was the duty of children to be obedient
and respectful to their parents, and to care for them when there was need.
But the parents, too, had their duty to perform and if they neglected the
children then the children were excused from maintaining their parents.
Adoption and Inheritance. People not having children of their own were
permitted to adopt other children. If a man had no son he could adopt a
young man and have him marry his daughter. Those adopted were accorded
all the rights and privileges of any children. The children of an adopted son
were regarded as descendants of the adopting father and they preserved the
ancestral worship and paid homage at his tomb. If after adopting a son the
man should marry and have a son from this marriage, then the two boys
received equal shares of the property upon the death of the father. When
there were neither legitimate nor adopted sons, the estate went to the nearest
relatives. In case of death without heirs, the estate descended to the prince,
the commonwealth, or the supreme magistrate, as the laws directed.
Sometimes if the children of noted men were left without property, they
were provided for by the state. Children could be disinherited, but such had
to be done publicly before certain judges appointed for that purpose. When
a parent was unable, through age or infirmity, to manage his estate the son
could bring this before magistrates, who had the power to turn over the
property to the son, who would care for the property and the parent.
Toys and Playthings. The children of ancient Greece had quite a number
of toys and playthings. The infant's first toy was a rattle, made of metal or

wood, having small stones inside. A little older they had painted clay
puppets, representing human beings and such animals as tortoises, hares,
ducks, and mother apes with their offspring. Dolls were plentiful, made of
painted clay or wax, often with movable hands and feet. "In more than one
instance we have found in children's graves their favorite dolls, which
sorrowing parents laid with them as a sort of keepsake in the tomb."169 The
little girls had houses for their dolls and dishes and tables. The children had
ships and tops and balls and hoops and carts and swings. They also had pet
animals. Sometimes the toys were bought and again they were made by the
children, for, through instinct and imitation, they were much given to
modeling and making things out of clay or wax or fruit-peel or leather. This
is well illustrated by a passage from "The Clouds" of Aristophanes, wherein
he has a countryman describing the precocious abilities of his son:
"He is a lad of parts, and from a child
Took wondrously to dabbling in the mud,
Whereof he'd build you up a house so natural
As would amaze you, trace you out a ship,
Make you a little cart out of the sole
Of an old shoe, mayhap, and from the rind
Of a pomegranate cut you out a frog,
You'd swear it was alive."170

Games and Plays. Just as with children in all ages and in all times, the
children of Greece had many plays and games. The little boys and girls
were in the homes together till they were seven years of age and so they
played together, but apart after that. The boys of Athens, just as in other
cities in older times and present times, played on the streets and pestered
the passers-by and kept the guardians of the peace busy.
The little girls played with their dolls, making houses for them, setting out
dishes before them, hauling them in carts, and swinging them and
themselves in swings. In some of their plays they were joined by the little
boys and they all played in the sand and made mud-pies and had see-saws
and swings and they hitched up one another and dogs and goats to carts.
The children carried one another pick-a-pack and they rode stick-horses and
hobby-horses and they played bob-cherry and hide-the-rope and many other
such games.

They rolled hoops, walked on stilts, played running and catching games,
such as hide-and-seek; they played leapfrog, hopped and jumped, flew
kites; they played games of forfeit, odd or even, how many fingers are held
up; the older boys had the tug of war and tossed one another in blankets. In
one game the boy had to hop with one foot on a skin-bottle filled with water
and greased; they spun coins on the edges; they shot beans from the fingers
as the modern boys do marbles; they threw up five small stones and caught
them on the back of the hand, as boys do jack-stones now; they played with
dice.
There was a game in which a stone was to be so thrown into a circle as to
knock out the stones thrown into it by the other boys and itself remain in the
circle. They would sharpen one end of a heavy peg of wood and then throw
it into a softened place in the earth so that it would stand upright and also
knock out another's peg. They would blacken or moisten one side of an
oyster-shell and would call one side day and the other side night; then the
boys would divide into two sides with these names and would take turns in
tossing the shell up into the air and then note which side was up when it fell
to the ground; the winning side would then pursue the others and take
prisoners.
The boys, then as now, found great sport with tops, playing in the house as
well as in the street. They had different kinds of tops, among them being a
humming-top. The Greek boy would tie a long string to the leg of a beetle
and then let it loose and guide its flying by holding to the string; sometimes
the boys would fix a wax splinter to the beetle's tail and then light it before
letting him loose.
The children played blind man's buff. They would bandage a boy's eyes,
who would then go about calling out, "I am hunting a brazen fly." This
would be answered by the others with, "You will hunt, but you won't catch
it." They would then run about and strike him with whips till he caught one,
who would then be blindfolded.
The Greeks were very fond of the ball and ball-playing. The balls were of
all sizes and colors. Some were stuffed with feathers and wool and others
were empty. They were made of leather and of such a size as was suited to
the kind of game to be played with them. There was tossing and throwing

and juggling with balls and also there were regular games. Mahaffy thinks
that he has discovered from the descriptions given that they played games
similar to the present foot-ball, hand-ball, and lacrosse. He believes foot-
ball is shown in this description: "The first is played by two even sides, who
draw a line in the center, on which they place the ball. They draw two other
lines behind each side, and those who first reach the ball throw it over the
opponents, whose duty it is to catch it and return it, until one side drives the
other back over their goal line." In the following he can see hand-ball: "It
consists of making a ball bound off the ground, and sending it against a
wall, counting the number of the hops according as it was returned." From
another writer he finds lacrosse: "Certain youths, divided equally, leave in a
level place, which they have before prepared and measured, a ball made of
leather, about the size of an apple, and rush at it, as if it were a prize lying in
the middle, from their fixed starting-point (a goal). Each of them has in his
right hand a racket of suitable length ending in a sort of flat bend, the
middle of which is occupied by gut strings, dried by seasoning, and plaited
together in net fashion. Each strives to be the first to bring it to the opposite
end of the ground from that allotted to them. Whenever the ball is driven by
the rackets to the end of the ground, it counts a victory."171
Sports and Festivals. Besides the games and plays for the younger people
noted above, there was plenty of amusement of youths and adults in the
way of sports and festivals. The gymnasium, with its palæstra, and the
festivals gave opportunity for exercises and displays of all kinds.
The most common forms of gymnastic exercises were running, jumping,
throwing the discus, hurling the javelin, and wrestling, and they formed
what was known as the pentathlon. They were engaged in at the gymnasium
and at the four great national festivals. Beside these there were boxing, the
pancration, which consisted of boxing and wrestling, horse racing, and
chariot racing.
The gymnasium was originally an athletic ground where all kinds of sports
were carried on and it contained the palæstra, which was essentially a
building for the purposes of wrestling, although both palæstra and
gymnasium came later to stand for other things beside.

There were four great national festivals, known as the Olympian, the
Pythian, the Nemean, and the Isthmian. In these festivals contests in races
and athletic exercises were held and also sometimes in music, poetry,
rhetoric, and the like. The Olympic festival was held at Olympia every four
years, in the summer, and lasted for five days; the Pythian festival was also
held every four years, near Delphi, in the winter, in the third year of every
Olympiad; the Nemean festival was held at Nemea in the second and fourth
year of every Olympiad, alternating in winter and in summer; and the
Isthmian festival was held at Corinth, in the first and third years of each
Olympiad, alternating between spring and summer. These times were thus
arranged so that these national festivals did not conflict with one another.
The Olympic festival was the most noted. It was so important that in case
of war a truce was entered into among the Grecian states, which lasted
probably for three months during the year of the festival. During this time
all people journeying to and from the festival were granted protection, and
no one was allowed to carry arms within the sacred territory. The official
prize was but a crown of wild olive, not valuable in itself, but it was
perhaps the most coveted honor in all Greece. Only Greeks were eligible to
compete and the winner received the highest honor from his fellow-
townspeople. Poets of high renown composed odes in his honor, bronze
statues were made of him, he rode home in a triumphal chariot and
sometimes a part of the wall of his town was torn down for his entry, he was
generally supported for the remainder of his life at public expense, and his
honor extended to his parents and to his children, and even to the city of his
birth.
Women were not allowed to be present at the Olympian games. The only
exception was in permitting the priestesses of Demeter to be present, who
remained in a temple built for them near the Stadium. All other women
were excluded from the territory for a certain number of days. The penalty
of trespassing on the part of a woman was death, the transgressor being
thrown from the Typæan rock. "Only one instance is recorded of this rule
being broken. Pherenice, a member of the famous family of the Diagoridæ,
in her anxiety to see her son Peisirodus compete in the boys' boxing,
accompanied him to Olympia disguised as a trainer. In her delight at his
victory she leapt over the barrier and so disclosed her sex. The Hellanodicæ,

however, pardoned her in consideration for her father and brothers and son,
all of them Olympic victors, but they passed a decree that henceforth all
trainers should appear naked."172 But women were permitted to enter their
horses for the chariot-race, which they did, and won some races, too. The
women had their own festival at Olympia, the Heræa, occurring every four
years, at which there were races for maidens of various years, the course
being one-sixth less than that for men.
Every Greek boy received a thorough physical training. To keep up the
spirit for such training, local festivals were held in which was given
opportunity for the boys' testing their strength and skill. In the 37th
Olympiad were first introduced contests for boys, the names of the victors
being inscribed on the records of the events before the names of the adult
victors. At first there were only two classes of competition, for boys and for
men, later a third class being added, for the beardless or those between boys
and men. It would appear as if the ages for boys was between twelve and
sixteen and for the beardless between sixteen and twenty. The length of the
race-course for boys was but half that for adults and for the beardless it was
two-thirds the full length. In the races at the Olympic Heræa the girls were
likewise divided into the three ages. In the second century before Christ was
introduced the pancration for boys, which shows that the games were
becoming more cruel and degraded.
Other Amusements. The Greeks of the olden times were much given to
entertainments. These might be at the home or on the sea-shore or in the
country. They might be given by an individual, or gotten up by parties, each
one contributing his part or sharing in the expense. It was not uncommon to
have excursions into the country or to the sea-shore, with food and drink
packed and taken along for the occasion.
The entertainments in the home were sometimes simply an informal affair,
while again they were quite formal. A man wishing to give an entertainment
would go out to the market-place or the gymnasium and invite his friends or
he might send the invitations by a slave. After entrance into the home and
the exchange of greetings, the meal was partaken of and the drinking was
entered upon. Toasts were drank to one another and to absent ones, the
young men taking the occasion to drink to their loved ones and to sing love-

songs. Conversation would be entered upon and jokes and puns made,
professional jesters being quite often hired for the evening. There would be
games and conundrums and riddles and enigmas. A favorite game for such
an evening was called kottabos, in which the player would throw the last
drops of wine in his cup on to the head of a small brazen figure, which
produced a clanging sound and a bobbing of the head; the louder the clang
and the more violent the bobbing with the smaller the amount of the wine
thrown, the greater the success of the player. There were dancing-girls and
flute players and jugglers and contortionists. Recitations of passages from
the poets were given and there were pantomimic and dramatic scenes acted.
There might have been little of the kind of entertaining as noted above and
the evening spent in deep conversation upon the important topics of the day
and by the great philosophers and poets and dramatists and the other great
men gathered on the occasion.
One of the very greatest amusements of the Greeks was that of the theater.
These were usually built along a hillside, the seats being cut into the solid
rock. The performances were held in connection with two of the leading
religious festivals, the one in the midwinter and the other in the spring. The
theaters were public and open to all the citizens and free of expense, the
expenses being borne by the state or by wealthy citizens. There were no
playbills nor similar kind of announcements of the plays, usually the
audience not knowing what was to come till the play opened.
Dancing and music were among the pleasures of the young people. Of
these were mimetic dances, representing mythological scenes. There were
also warlike and choral dances performed at the feasts of the gods. There
were professional dancers and singers and flute-players. There were a
number of kinds of musical instruments. The types of the stringed
instruments were represented by the lyre, the kithara, and the harp; the
wind-instruments were the pipes, clarionets, and trumpets; and the clanging
instruments were the castanets, cymbal, and tambourine.
The young men indulged in horse-racing; they frequented gambling places
where dice was used; and they placed metal spurs on cocks, pheasants, and
quails and fought them thus armed. Hunting was a favorite sport. It was

quite fashionable for rich young men to have fine horses and, although they
did ride some, yet they preferred to drive their horses to chariots.
The jugglers and acrobats were quite skilful and they were of both sexes.
Outside the help of present day science, they seemed to have performed as
remarkable feats as at the present time. They gave sword dances; they
tossed hoops and balls; they did rope-walking and dancing; they extracted
things from their eyes and ears and noses and mouths. They would stand on
their hands and head and perform feats with their toes, as filling vessels
with water and shooting bows and arrows. In one feat a woman acrobat
would bend back her head till it met her heels, then she would clasp her feet
with her hands and roll off like a hoop. In one exhibit there was a
contrivance, known as the potter's wheel, in which a young woman would
be whirled round rapidly and yet she managed to read and write while being
so twirled.
Sickness and Death. In the earlier times of Greece old age was highly
respected in all the states. In Sparta and Thebes this respect was maintained,
but among the smart set in Athens this was not the case. In the more remote
and primitive districts the aged enjoyed the reverence and affection of the
young and middle-aged alike. They were treated with great respect in both
public and private and their opinions were sought for in affairs of state and
of the home. Yet in all Greece there was a desire for children so that parents
might be protected and comforted in advancing age, and those without
children were often in a pitiable condition in extreme old age. At the age of
sixty a man was recognized to be at least physically old, as he was then
exempt from military duty.
Although the Greeks enjoyed an exceptionally fine climate and gave
especial care to the body, yet they were subject to diseases as other people.
Their houses were not in sanitary conditions, the streets were not in proper
order, and the water was not always pure. There were physicians who had
quite good skill in the treatment of diseases and both medicine and surgery
were in a fair condition, although superstition and folk-lore too often ruled.
Athens and other cities employed physicians at public cost to care for the
poor free of charge.

Burial of the dead was a very important function and one demanded by
both custom and religion. Without this final honor, it was thought the spirit
would wander restlessly on forever. So when a man died his family was
bound to give him proper burial. This was considered so important that
when a man died in a foreign land his body was brought home, or, if that
was impossible, then a tomb was erected to him and the burial rites enacted.
It was even considered disgraceful not to let enemies in war bury their dead
and after battles a truce was entered upon that the dead might be buried.
When dead the body was washed and anointed and clothed in white and
placed on a couch. A wreath was placed on the head and garlands about the
body, which were given by friends. On the floor about the couch were set
pitchers that were to be put into the grave or on the funeral pile. The burial
took place early in the morning, at Athens, at least, before sunrise. In the
earlier times the dead were buried in the houses, but later they were placed
outside the cities, usually along a road, but in Sparta they were kept in the
city, while in the country they were buried in the fields. The bodies either
were buried or cremated, but as the latter was quite expensive it was used
usually by the wealthy only.
In the funeral procession the body was carried in a vehicle or on the
shoulders of friends or slaves. The male mourners marched in front of the
corpse and the female mourners behind it, all dressed in black with the hair
cut short. In the Homeric times there were violent outbursts of grief and
abuse of person by the mourners, but in later times laws were passed to
prevent such. At the grave if the body was to be burnt it was placed upon
the pile and precious ointments and perfumes were poured over it while
burning and the ashes were collected and placed in an urn. If it was to be
interred, the body was placed in a wooden, earthenware, or metallic coffin
and put into the grave, which was usually in the rock. The mourners then
returned to the house and partook of the funeral meal. On the third and tenth
days sacrifices were offered at the tomb and again on the thirtieth day,
which concluded the mourning period. The graves were well cared for and
decorated with flowers and plants. "To neglect the tomb of your ancestors
was so far a crime that no man could become a chief officer of the state who
could be proved to have failed in this respect."173

Religion. "An Athenian child begins by listening to the 'old wives' tales' of
his nurse; then is present at domestic rites and sacrifices, which impress him
without his understanding them; afterwards learns his old-fashioned Homer
and his poets, before he has any notion of questioning their theology; next
moves about among altars and splendid temples and statues of Zeus,
Athena, Dionysus, and many another divinity; is later on initiated into
awesome mysteries, which are addressed to his emotions and not to his
reason; and is at all times trained to undertake no enterprise, public or
private, without first consulting the will of the gods, praying to them, and
sacrificing to them."174
The child was introduced into the religious life in the home, as each house
had its own altar and its special household deities, to whom prayers were
offered and sacrifices made, and on occasions of marriage, birth, death, and
the like, special ceremonies occurred. He learned about both the good and
the bad, as amulets were hung about his neck to ward off harm and he saw
sacrifices made to appease the wrath of the evil ones. In public there were
sacrifices and celebrations to the gods, in some of which the child took part.
Old Greek religion was a worship of the beautiful—the ideal in nature and
human life, and the gods were ideal expressions of human thought,
portraying the divine in man. Religion influenced the old Greek in every
way and on every side he was reminded of the gods by temples, altars,
statues, sacred trees, etc. But with all his religion, strange to say, the Greek
did not connect it closely with his moral life, for his religion was expressed
in his attitude toward the gods, while his morality was determined by the
laws of the land and the customs of society. This is well shown in his
prayers, for these were not offered for inward betterment, but for some
definite outward help.
Education. In the early times of Greece there were no real schools, the
young receiving their training from the life of the family and the
community. As this came through contact with living persons and not
through dead precepts in sacred books, which demanded strict obedience
and following, there was opportunity for growth so that progress might be
made by the individual away from fixed and stereotyped ways of doing
things. The purpose of the training of those times was to help the boy to

become a man who would be wise and eloquent in council and strong and
courageous in battle.
Sparta represented a phase of education in Greece. Surrounded as it was
by people who were hostile to its ways and customs, it was necessary that
the young should be trained to be patriotic to the state and skilled in war. To
this end education began before birth, for means were used for having
strong children born and those not strong at birth were cast aside from the
state. If the child at birth was decided by the council to be fit to grow up to
be a Spartan, then he was given to his mother and remained with her till his
seventh year, when he was taken from her and put under the care and
training of state officials.
When at seven years of age the boy was taken over by the state, he was
placed in the care of an officer called the paedonomus. This officer had
supreme power over all the boys and youth and superintended their moral
training and gymnastic exercises and their punishments, having men to
assist in the work.
All the education was at public cost and all the young were placed in
public buildings, eating and sleeping in common, all being placed together
in common, even the younger members of the royal family, the heir-
apparent to the throne being alone exempt. Here they were divided into
three companies according to age—from the seventh to the twelfth year,
from the twelfth to the fifteenth, from the fifteenth to the eighteenth. The
elder and stronger boys were placed over them as, captains and had them in
charge.
When the boy first entered with the others his hair was cut short. The life
was one of continued severe discipline and hardship. In summer and winter
they went without shoes and with but little clothing, after the twelfth year
with only one garment. They slept on pallets of straw without covering and
after fifteen their beds consisted of rushes collected by themselves without
the use of a knife. They were given but little food. They had permission to
steal other food, but if caught stealing they were considered disgraced and
received a severe flogging.

The training of the boys consisted in gymnastic exercises, being carefully
organized and graded. The younger boys were drilled in running and
leaping and ball-playing. The older boys engaged in wrestling, boxing,
throwing the discus, and hurling the javelin. Sometimes the pancratium was
used, consisting of boxing and wrestling and also most anything to win, as
biting, kicking, scratching, gouging. The contestants generally were naked.
Dancing supplemented the gymnastics, which for the most part were war-
dances and also some choral dancing was given to be used in religious
festivals. This was all done to prepare the young for warfare.
When a boy reached eighteen years of age, he then left the buildings for
boys and entered upon a more distinctive study of warfare. He was
permitted to let his hair and beard grow and was known as a melleiren,
"budding youth." These youths were drilled in the use of arms and in
skirmishing. They were given frequent strict examinations. To test their
courage and endurance, there was a custom of each year of whipping a
certain number of youth. They were placed at the altar of Artemis Orthia
and so severely whipped as to cause the blood to stream from them, their
fathers and mothers standing by and urging them to endure it without
flinching or murmuring. Sometimes they endured till they died under the
severity of the whipping. Also there was another test in the way of a battle
of the melleirenes, held each year on a small island near Sparta. These
youths were divided into two companies, sacrifices to the gods were made,
they were lined up against one another, and then commanded to fight. They
fought without weapons, but fists and teeth and body and limbs were most
fiercely used, and many were the wounds received.
At twenty years of age, the budding youth became known as an eiren, "a
youth." These remained youths for the next ten years and they lived in
barracks to themselves. They took a public oath of loyalty to Sparta and
entered the army, thus going into real military life. They entered upon the
life of a soldier, lived upon the coarsest fare, were drilled in the usages of
warfare, and were sent out to guard and care for some armed camps or
fortresses on the border. Each year there were festivals in which was
displayed by all the youth their skill in military drill and gymnastic
exercises and in music and dancing, such exhibits being before the king and
the officers and the public.

At thirty years of age, the Spartan was recognized as being a full-grown
man and became a member of the public assembly and was required to
marry. But even then he had to remain with the youths and boys and eat at
the common table with them, so that he had no home and had to visit his
wife secretly in her home. He also continued in military service. It was the
custom for each man to select a boy or a youth as a companion and to look
after his care and training. These men were expected to be examples to the
boys and youths and to correct them in their faults, the men being punished
upon failure to do these things.
The girls of Sparta received a public training similar to that of the boys. It
was the aim to train them so as to become strong, healthy women, such as
could bear robust sons to the state. They were given gymnastic exercises
such as were given to the boys, but not in company with the boys, and also
the girls were permitted to remain at home. They were exercised in running,
wrestling, leaping, throwing the discus, hurling the javelin, and in dancing
and music. On some occasions the young men and young women danced
and sang together in public in festivals to the gods. This training did
produce strong women and who were as patriotic as the men and who as
mothers could give thanks to the gods in the temples when they learned that
husbands and sons had died fighting for their country.
It may be seen that Spartan education was public and free and open
equally to all free-born children. The Spartan youth received very little
intellectual training. No doubt some acquired reading and writing, as such
was not forbidden, although not encouraged. They obtained ethical and
intellectual training from listening to their elders at meals and on the street.
They gained from criticism of their conduct, which criticism was severe at
all times. Thus they learned reverence for elders, honesty, and self-respect.
All the sufferings and hardships placed upon the youth were that they might
receive training to make them good soldiers to go out to battle for their
native land. Although Spartan education did produce warriors and patriots,
yet it did not bring out individuality, that which makes most for true
progress and right living. "The state regulated the individual life, and, by so
doing, crushed out individuality, personal initiation, literary and scientific
activity, and ethical freedom."175

Athens represented another phase in Greek education. A new conception
of human life developed here and hence there came forth new ideas in
regard to the meaning and end of education. The idea of the significance of
the individual took prominence and, although interests centered upon the
state, yet the state was considered as being composed, of individuals, each
of whose free development made the voluntary giving of his life to the state
all the stronger and better state. The citizens of Athens were educated for
peace as well as for war, so that the aim of education was to produce all-
round men who by being trained to be individuals would thus make the best
citizens.
At birth the child at Athens was judged by the father and upon his decision
it remained in the family or it was taken from the mother and exposed. If it
was returned to the mother, whether a boy or a girl, it remained in the home
till marriage, when the man or woman went to his or her own home. For the
first seven years of the child's life, both boy and girl, he was under the care
and training of the mother and the other women of the household. The
Athenian boy was well cared for and given plenty to eat and to wear and
toys and playthings, so that at least the early years of his life were easy and
pleasant. By hearing the nursery-rhymes and the stories from folk-lore, and
by having related to him the doings of the gods and god-like men as given
in the writings of the times, his emotional nature was stimulated and he
became imbued with the poetic feeling and dramatic spirit which invaded
Athens and with which later he was to come in close contact through his
school training and in his social and political life.
When the boy became seven years of age, he was sent to school. He was
then placed under the charge of a male slave, known as a pedagogue, whose
duty it was to go back and forth to school with the boy and carry his things
and to have care of the boy's manners and morals, having the power of
discipline, but he did not impart instruction, that being given by the
grammatist (elementary teacher) and the pedotribe (gymnastic teacher). The
state did not provide elementary schools, although they were under its
supervision. The schools were not only private, but the father had the right
to decide what work should be given to his boy, and yet the law did
prescribe instruction in gymnastics and music. If the father did not give due
education to his sons, in his old age he could not claim support from them.

The length of stay in the school and the amount of education obtained
depended upon the will and condition of the father, but all the boys did
receive elementary instruction in reading, writing, and arithmetic. The
physical training consisted in ball-playing, running, leaping, throwing the
discus, hurling the javelin, and wrestling, the course being graded to the age
and size of the boys. They were also taught dancing and music. Their
education was to train the boy to be able to use his body with ease and
grace and to increase his intelligence rather than to train him solely to
become a soldier.
At fifteen years of age the boy passed out of the elementary training and
from the control of the pedagogue, and if of the higher classes he entered
upon higher training. He now left the private school and entered the public
school, the gymnasium, which was not more than an exercising ground
located in a grove just outside Athens. At this time the youth was given
much more liberty than when a boy, as now he was allowed to go wherever
he wished, that he might become acquainted with what was going on in the
city to prepare him for the duties of public life. He was still under the care
of his father or guardian and through him he had opportunity for meeting
men and hearing the conversations and discussions and thus learn of the
political life of the state and the moral obligations of a citizen. At this time
the youth began to learn to play a musical instrument and he read and
recited poetry and studied drawing and geometry and grammar. The
gymnastic training received much more attention at this period than the
literary, as beauty of person and health was the great aim. The exercises
were about the same as in the previous period but of a more strenuous
nature. Boxing was introduced now and sometimes the pancratium was
used. Hunting and swimming became a part of the life of the youth.
At eighteen the young man completed the second period of public training
and became known as an ephebus, "youth," His father or guardian presented
him for citizenship, and if he showed proper credentials of legitimate birth,
of Athenian parentage, up to standard in body, mind, and morals, he was
registered. He also took an oath of fidelity to the state. He then entered into
military service and continued for two years. He was thoroughly drilled and
then sent to the frontier. At the close of this second year, when he was
twenty years of age, he was called to Athens and examined for citizenship,

and if he made a proper showing he was then made a full citizen, with all
the privileges and duties pertaining to that office.
The pedagogue was not held in high esteem, as he was usually a slave that
was unable to work, being too old or crippled. The elementary teacher, too,
did not take a high, position, as there were no special qualifications, so that
any one could fill the position and usually only those entered into this work
who were unfitted or unprepared for other occupations, and too often as the
last resort. The elementary schools were sometimes carried on in a portico
or the sheltered corner of a street, but again there were good buildings and
well-equipped for the times. The furniture of these buildings usually
consisted of stools for the children and a seat with a back for the teacher.
The Athenian boy left home at daybreak for school and he did not get back
home till sunset, but this was somewhat offset by the frequent closing of the
school for holidays and festivals. The discipline was quite severe, the stick
and the strap being much in evidence, and yet the teachers of ancient
Greece do not appear to have been more cruel than those of Europe and of
the earlier days in America.
In reading, the child was first taught his letters and their sounds, next came
the learning of syllables, and this was followed by the learning of words,
and the learning of the sentence came at the last. After he had learned to
read, the boy was given Homer and other Greek writers. The teacher would
recite the selection and the pupil would then repeat it. The poems were
carefully explained to the children and questions asked them after such
explanation.
Paper made from the bark of the papyrus-plant and parchment were used
for writing on. To write on the paper and parchment reeds, split and
pointed-like pens were used. Both black and red ink were used in the
writing. Such were not used by the school-boy, as he had wax tablets, which
were made by covering a small, thin board with a layer of wax. The boy
used an ivory or metal pencil for writing on the tablet. One end of the pencil
was made pointed for this purpose and the other end was flattened so that
the pupil could smooth over the wax when the tablet was to be used again.
The teacher would write letters and words, which the boys copied. At times

he would guide the hand of a beginner. Also sometimes the copies were
made deep in the wax and the children would trace them.
There was no such thing as school education of girls and young women in
Athens, no public training whatever. The Athenians held that woman's place
was in the home and that she should not take part in public life. Hence,
according to their ideas, the girl needed no education beyond what would be
required for the life within doors, such as would fit her to perform what
they considered the simple duties that would come to her as wife and
mother. The education of the girl, therefore, fell solely to the mother, aided
by the other women of the household. The girl was taught to sew, spin, knit,
weave, etc., and sometimes she learned to read and to write and to play on
the lyre and sing. It is true there were women at Athens who were educated,
and some of them were most highly learned, but they were not citizens of
Athens, being foreigners and known as the hetairai. These women were
discussed in a previous section of this chapter, so there is no need of further
statements here.
Education in Sparta and in Athens comprehended in a general way much
the same, as gymnastic and music were the two basic elements. The
gymnastic education consisted not only in the exercising of the muscles, but
also in the training for endurance to fit the young men for the fatiguing
duties of the life of a soldier. Also music was broadened to include literary
and moral training as well as music in its narrower sense. If the Spartan
education did crush out much of individuality with the men, yet it did allow
advantages to its women as no other education, in that the public training of
the girls and the taking part in public affairs by the women gave to them
great opportunities for growth. If the Athenian education did allow
individual expression to the men, yet in confining the women to the narrow
place of the home at Athens and in not allowing them to have any part in
public education and public life, it narrowed the life of the woman in
Athens more than was narrowed the life of the man in Sparta. There are
things to praise and things to condemn in the education of Athens as well as
that of Sparta.

LITERATURE

1. Anderson, Lewis F., History of common school education.
2. Davidson, Thomas, The education of the Greek people.
3. Davis, William Stearns, A day in old Athens.
4. Dean, Amos, The history of civilization.
5. Donaldson, James, Woman, Her position and influence in ancient
Rome and Greece, and among the early Christians.
6. Duncker, Max, History of Greece.
7. Felton, C. C., Greece, ancient and modern.
8. Gamble, Eliza Burt, The evolution of woman.
9. Gardner, E. Norman, Greek athletic sports and festivals.
10. Gardner, Ernest Arthur, Ancient Athens.
11. Graves, Frank Pierrepont, A history of education, Before the middle
ages.
12. Guhl, E., and Koner, W., The life of the Greeks and Romans.
13. Gulick, Charles Burton, The life of the ancient Greeks.
14. Laurie, S. S., Historical survey of pre-Christian education.
15. Letourneau, Ch., The evolution of marriage.
16. Mahaffy, J. P., Old Greek education.
17. Mahaffy, J. P., Social life in Greece.
18. Tucker, T. G., Life in ancient Athens.

CHAPTER X
THE CHILD IN ROME
Characteristics. It is one of the world problems to determine just the
cause for the origin and building up of a great city from which arose a great
nation as Rome. This is one of the great puzzling questions that seems can
never be correctly answered. But whatever the cause of the origin of the
Romans, there is no question about their accomplishments. From a few mud
huts on the bank of the Tiber river filled with savage or semi-civilized
people there grew up one of the very greatest ruling forces the world has
ever known, conquering the known world and controlling all from the
center at Rome with power and wisdom that seem miraculous. The Romans
possessed intense personality and keen power of organization and control.
They believed in the state and that each individual owed it a duty, and yet
they conceived that the state existed for the individual and needed each one
as well as the individual needed the state. This view of the state and the
individual enabled the Romans to base the state on law and to respect law
when once established. Through this view they became lovers of law and
order. They were essentially practical and from their attacking the problems
of the world in a business and thoughtful way they became strong in
administrative ability and through which they evolved a sound
jurisprudence, which was bequeathed to humanity. The old Romans were
men of both moral and physical vigor and of strong thought; they were
utilitarian, proud, overbearing, selfish, cruel, and rapacious; with strong
self-will they met humanity and nature and conquered both, which is shown
on nature by remains of roads, bridges, aqueducts, and other structures,
while their language yet dominates a large part of the world and their laws a
yet still larger portion.
"Rome was one continual city of noise and bustle. Horace had complained
of the turmoil going on night and day, the scurry and crowding of the streets
from whose 'torrents and tempests' he hastened to escape into the chaste

solitude of the Sabine hills. But during the first century population and
activity increased apace, reaching its zenith, perhaps, in the days of Martial
and Juvenal. Before daybreak the bakers would be hawking their loaves,
and the shepherds, coming into the town from the surrounding districts,
their milk: then the infant schools would begin intoning the alphabet, and
with hammer and saw the rasping workshops were set going. Creaking
wagons would haul huge blocks of stone and trunks of trees, with the
weight of which the ground would quake, heavily laden beasts of burden
jostled the foot-passenger; on all sides jolting and knocks and trampling, a
fine confusion in which pickpockets reap their advantage. Here, says
Martial (100 A. D.), the money-changer clatters Nero's bad coin down on
his dirty table, and there a workman is hammering Spanish gold on an anvil.
A procession of raving priests of Bellona is shrieking uninterruptedly; a
shipwrecked sailor, with a fragment of the wreck wrapped up in his hand, is
begging alms; a Jewish lad, sent out by his mother to beg; the call of a
blear-eyed peddler from the other side of the Tiber, offering sulphur
matches for broken glass. Jugglers, some with trained animals (Juvenal
speaks of a monkey riding a goat and swinging a spear), Marsian snake-
eaters and snake-charmers are calling for spectators for their craft. Peddlers,
peddling old clothes, linen and what-not, carriers of pea-flour and smoking
sausages, butchers with a reeking quarter of beef, and the foot, the guts and
the blood-red lung,—each, to his own screeching tune, proclaiming his own
wares."176
The People. In early Rome the population was divided into three classes,
as in Greece, which comprised citizens with full rights and privileges, aliens
with no rights of their own, and slaves who were regarded as mere property.
But Rome, unlike Greece, did not remain a small territory, but extended its
realm to include the parts of Italy about it and then all Italy and then the
land about the Mediterranean, and then expanded to other parts of the earth,
making a vast territory. Roman citizenship was gradually extended till it
reached out into this territory. So the original three divisions did not
continue to be maintained closely but there grew up three other divisions of
the people. These were the patricians, the equites, and the plebeians, all of
whom were of the free population, enjoying the citizenship of Rome but not
having the same privileges. The patricians, or ordo senatorius, were of the

governing class; the equites, or ordo equester, included the middle class, the
business people such as bankers, merchants, contractors, and the like; the
plebeians included the great body of citizens, the common people.
Slavery. The greatest development of slavery was at Rome, reaching its
high point in the last century of the Republic. The Romans had slaves from
the earliest history. In the early times those who held slaves usually did not
have more than two or three each, but as the years went on civic conditions
changed and a great demand for slaves arose and the numbers increased till
in the time of Augustus it is estimated that the whole number of free
citizens in Rome might have been a half million or more and the slave
population half that number, one in every three of the population of Rome
at that time being a slave.177
The slaves came from the children of slaves, from persons becoming
slaves under the law of debt, from importations from other slave-holding
countries, from kidnappers who snatched up people from other countries
and even from the coasts of Italy, but the great source of all was from
captives in the numerous wars waged by Rome upon other peoples. It is
claimed that in one campaign there were 150,000 people sold into slavery at
its close. Slave-dealers followed the armies and there were slave-markets at
Rome and other cities. Slaves were sold in open market just as animals and
at high-tide prices were very low. There were all kinds of slaves, as they
came from many parts of Africa, Asia, and Europe. The greatest number
were used in agriculture and in domestic service. There were all kinds of
mechanics among the slaves and some most highly skilled. There were
educated slaves coming from Greece and other countries of the East, so that
they were used for the training of the young and for the carrying on of
business for their masters. There even were physicians and surgeons among
the slaves, many households having one to look after the needs of the free
and the slave. There also were slaves whose duty it was to give amusement
and entertainment, such as musicians, dancers, acrobats, jugglers, rope-
walkers, and the like. Too, there were poor dwarfs and simple-minded
among the slaves, who were used to amuse master and mistress and guests
as did the jesters of the courts in Europe later.

In the early times when each family had but few slaves, they were well
treated and well cared for, being considered as members of the household.
But later, and especially when slaves became so numerous and cheap, they
were often treated very badly and neglected. The slaves were the absolute
property of the masters and unprotected by the law, but later laws were
made for their protection. The punishments were often extremely severe.
They were brutally beaten, legs fettered, heavy iron collars put around their
necks, thrown into dungeons, put at hard labor till worn out. Their capital
punishment was crucifixion, being thrown to the animals of the vivarium, or
set to fight the fierce beasts in the amphitheater. They were not always
treated badly and even some became greatly esteemed by master and
mistress and sometimes master and slave became friends, as some slaves
were highly educated and accomplished men. Such slaves were usually set
free and thus became freemen.
It is not necessary to discuss here the effect of slavery upon the citizen or
the nation, for the world has fully decided that slavery is not good for the
slave nor for the master nor for the state.
The Home. "The oldest Italian dwelling was a mere wigwam, with a
hearth in the middle of the floor and a hole at the top to let the smoke out."178
As Rome kept growing the houses kept improving until within the city the
buildings became among the most wonderful and beautiful in the world.
Also the Romans built beautiful country residences, villas, out from Rome.
Little was known about the houses of the Romans until Pompeii and other
cities were discovered in the middle of the eighteenth century, having been
buried by an eruption of Vesuvius in 79 A. D. The houses and contents in
Pompeii were well preserved, as the city was covered with ashes, while the
other places were more or less destroyed by streams of lava.
When Rome became so filled with people, only the wealthy were able to
have houses of their own, the well-to-do and the poor had to find place in
huge lodging-houses called insulae (islands), because they occupied the
entire block and so were surrounded by streets. Before the great fire in the
time of Nero, the streets were irregular and narrow. In the earlier times of
the Republic the houses were three or four stories high and the number of
stories grew until the time of Augustus, the maximum height of the frontage

of a private building was made 70 feet (Roman measure), which gave room
for six or seven stories which height was reduced after the fire of Nero to 60
feet, five or six stories. These houses were erected by speculators and were
of poor material and poorly constructed, so that they were continually
crumbling and tumbling and burning down. Being cheaply constructed and
poorly repaired they did not afford great protection against the weather and
so it was fortunate for the poor people that the climate of Italy for the most
part favored an out-of-door life.
There were three parts in a Roman house, which were arranged in the
same order in almost every house, although there might have been other
rooms attached to them. In front was the atrium, partly covered; then came
a center space, the tablinum, which was entirely covered; and adjoining this
latter was the peristylium, an open court surrounded by columns.
The atrium was the essential feature that marked off the Roman house
from that of Greece and other countries of the East. In the primitive houses,
and in later times with the poor and the middle classes, this was used for
both kitchen and sitting-room, while with the wealthier people it was the
reception-room. This contained the family hearth and altar. The street door
did not open directly from the street but there was a passage from the street
and the door was placed at the end of this passage. Usually there was a
square opening in the roof of the atrium for light and in the floor
underneath this opening was a cistern for receiving the water that rained in
and there were pipes under the floor for carrying off the water.
The tablinum was usually separated from the atrium by curtains. This
contained the family records and archives; the peristylium was a later
addition to the Roman house, coming when Greek architecture became to
be used in the buildings. This became the ornamental part of the house, with
fountains and flowers and shrubbery occupying the center of the court,
surrounded by pillars and open to the sky. There were other rooms, among
them being the alae, small rooms at the right and left of the atrium, and
from the peristylium opened the triclinium, dining room, the culina,
kitchen, and the sacrarium, chapel.
The street door was of wood, having two leaves (a folding-door), moving
on pivots, and in private houses opening inward and outward in public

buildings. When opening inward the door was secured by a bolt and when
opening outward by lock and key. There were but few windows and in
general only in rooms above the ground floor. Paper, linen cloth, horn, and
mica were used in the windows and glass seems to have come into use
under the early emperors. The walls were decorated with paintings. The
floors of the primitive houses consisted of clay and then came bricks and
tiles and stones and later the houses of the wealthy class had marble and
mosaics.
"The Romans resorted to various methods of warming their rooms. They
made use of portable furnaces for carrying embers and burning coals to
warm the different apartments of the house, and which they seem to have
placed in the middle of the room. They also had a method of heating the
rooms by hot air, which was conveyed by means of pipes through the
different apartments. They also had a kind of stove, in which wood appears
to have been usually burned. It has been a matter of much dispute whether
the Romans had chimneys to carry off the smoke, but it does not appear that
these were entirely unknown to the Romans."179
There were four representative kinds of chairs used by the Romans. The
first kind was a folding-stool with curved legs placed crosswise; the second
kind had four perpendicular legs and were without backs; the third kind
were similar to the second but had a back; and the fourth kind was a chair
of state, with high or low back, the back and legs being ornamented.
The couches were of three kinds. There was the low dining-couch, upon
which they reclined at meals; then there were the beds for sleep at night or
siesta by day; and the third kind had usually two arms but no back and
which were chiefly used for reading or writing at night. With the bed was
the mattress, filled with straw or sheep's wool or the down of geese and
swans; bolsters and cushions, stuffed as the mattress; blankets and sheets, of
simple material or dyed and embroidered; pillows for propping the head or
the left elbow of the sleeping or reclining persons; and footstools.
They had benches of wood and stone and bronze, some of them being
semi-circular and large enough to hold quite a number of people. There
were square, round, and crescent-shaped tables, some being quite large,
others smaller with three legs, and a one-legged table, often quite small and

made of the rarest material and elegant in design. There were pots and pans
of various kinds, and buckets and dishes and drinking-vessels, and other
kinds of vessels.
The houses at night were lighted with lamps. The lamp consisted of the
oil-reservoir, which contained the oil, the nose, through which went the
wick, and the handle to carry it by. The lamps were put on stands or were
suspended from lamp-holders or they hung down from the ceiling. The
stands and lamp-holders that were used by the poorer people were made of
common wood or metal, while those of the rich were of costly material and
often most beautifully adorned with figures of all kinds of animals carved
upon them. They had lanterns also, which had for covering horn, oiled
canvas, and bladder, and later, glass.

Women. There were three classes of women at Rome—the citizen-
woman, the alien, and the slave. Unlike as in Athens, the foreign woman
never rose to prominence at Rome but it was the citizen-woman who took
rank always before any other. Nor was a male citizen allowed to marry an
alien woman, for citizens were wanted and, therefore, both parents needed
to be citizens. But as citizenship was expanded to the parts of the world
outside of Rome, the alien woman became a citizen, and so a Roman could
marry her and still maintain his own and his offspring's rights.
In the early times the woman remained at home. She engaged in spinning
and weaving and other household duties, and she had supreme control of
household affairs. She was under the authority of her husband and she had
no individual rights in property and she could not make a will. Later she
acquired more rights and privileges. The condition of women at Rome was
quite a deal better than at Athens or in any other country previous to Roman
times. For at Rome women were allowed more freedom and participation in
public affairs, they were allowed more to share in the joys and pleasures of
the husband and other people, and they enjoyed a greater confidence and
esteem of the men.
That Roman women appeared in public and that they were not afraid to
stand up for their rights is illustrated in the following. In 215 B. C., when
Rome needed resources for the second Punic war, the Oppian Law, was
passed which forbade any woman to have gold trinkets of the weight of
more than half an ounce, to wear a parti-colored garment, or to ride in a
chariot within the city of Rome or a town occupied by Roman citizens or
within a mile of these places, except for a religious purpose. Twenty years
later, when the war was over and prosperity had returned, the women asked
for the repeal of this law. They started a campaign and talked about it in
every place, they interviewed men on the street, and they stated the case to
every one that had a vote. Women from towns and villages came into Rome
to help. On the day of the vote, the women rose early and filled the streets
to the Forum and used every means to gain their cause. They finally
overcame the opposition, the law was repealed, and the women recovered
their liberty of riding and dressing as they had formerly done.

The Roman women would even go to greater extremes than the
conducting of a political campaign. Over a hundred years before the event
recorded above, when the women had much less privileges, when the
despotic actions of husbands became unendurable, the women sought a way
of rescuing themselves. At the time a number of men of the upper classes
were attacked by an unknown disease, in every case attended by similar
symptoms, and nearly all died. No cause could be found until a female slave
offered to explain upon promise of freedom and to suffer no harm in
consequence. Upon the Senate's guaranteeing such to her, she told them that
the deaths were from poison, that the wives met together to compound the
poison. She took the officials to the place, where they found the women
preparing the ingredients. The women were charged with the matter, and to
prove their innocence they partook of the drugs, upon which death
followed, and with the same symptoms as with the men. Upon investigation
170 of the women were found guilty and it is held that 300 or more wives
had entered into the plot to put their husbands to death. Some doubts are
thrown upon this story by some historians but at any rate it is stated that the
Romans believed it and told it for the truth.
Another story is told of women's appearing in public. At the time of the
second triumvirate, funds being needed, a decree was passed requiring that
fourteen hundred of the richest women should make a valuation of their
property, under severe penalties against concealment or undervaluation, and
that they should turn over such a portion as the triumvirs might require. The
women appealed to the sister of one of the triumvirs and to the mother and
wife of another but with little success. They then in a body went to the
tribunal of the triumvirs, whose acts no man dared question, making for
their spokesman, Hortensia, the daughter of the famous orator, Hortensius,
and protested against the edict. It is claimed this is the first time to be
enunciated the principle of "no taxation without representation." They
succeeded in getting the amount reduced to a comparatively small sum.
There are some other instances of the public assembling of women. Under
the empire there was an assembly of women known as the conventus
matronarum, or the "little senate," as one writer of the time named it. The
Emperor Heliogabalus built on the Quirinal a meeting-place for this body.
This body of matrons met and discussed and voted upon and decided the

various points of court etiquette, such as questions of dress, precedence, and
the use of carriages.
The public standing of the citizen-woman at Athens has been given in the
quotations on pages 179-181, which may be compared with the public
standing of the citizen-woman at Rome as given in the following:
"If we take the period of Roman history from 150 B. C. to 150 A. D., we
shall be surprised at the number of the women of whom it is recorded that
they were loved ardently by their husbands, exercised a beneficial influence
on them, and helped them in their political or literary work. Many of these
women had received an excellent education, they were capable and
thoughtful, and took an active interest in the welfare of the State. It is well
known that it was Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi, who inspired her
sons with the resolution to cope with the evils that beset the State, and her
purpose did not waver when she knew they had to face death in their
country's cause. Julia, the daughter of Julius Cæsar, and the wife of
Pompey, kept the two leaders on good terms as long as she lived, and acted
with great sweetness and prudence. Cornelia, Pompey's second wife, was a
woman of great culture, and a most faithful and devoted wife. Plutarch thus
describes her: 'The young woman possessed many charms besides her
youthful beauty, for she was well instructed in letters, in playing on the lyre,
and in geometry, and she had been accustomed to listen to philosophical
discourses with profit. In addition to this, she had a disposition free from all
affectation and pedantic display, which such acquirements generally breed
in women.' The intervention of Octavia, the wife of Antony, in affairs of
state was entirely beneficial and judicious. The first Agrippina displayed
courage and energy, herself crushed a mutiny among the soldiers, and was
in every way a help to her husband. Tacitus praises his mother-in-law, the
wife of Agricola, as a model of virtue, and he describes her as living in the
utmost harmony with her husband, each preferring the other in love. And
Pliny the younger gives a beautiful picture of his wife Calpurnia, telling a
friend how she showed the greatest ability, frugality, and knowledge of
literature. Especially 'she has my books,' he says; 'she reads them again and
again; she even commits them to memory. What anxiety she feels when I
am going to make a speech before the judges, what joy when I have
finished it. She places people here and there in the audience to bring her

word what applauses have been accorded to my speech, what has been the
issue of the trial. If I give readings of my works anywhere, she sits close by,
separated by a screen, and drinks in my praises with most greedy ears. My
verses also she sings, and sets them to the music of the lyre, no artist
guiding her, but only love, who is the best master.'
"These are only a few of the numerous instances that might be adduced, in
which wives behaved with a gentleness or courage or self-abnegation
worthy of all praise. It is true that they took an active part in the
management of affairs, but, on the whole, it must be allowed that they acted
with great good sense. And there is a curious proof of this in the times of
the Empire. Wives went with their husbands to their provinces, and often
took part in the administration of them. Some of the old stern moralists
were for putting an end to this state of matters, and proposed that they
should not be allowed to accompany their husbands to their spheres of duty;
but, after a debate in the Senate, the measure was rejected by a large
majority, who thereby affirmed that their help was beneficial.
"No doubt it was their good sense, their kindliness, and their willingness to
co-operate with men, that led to their freedom and power in political
matters. And this power was sometimes very great. Cicero, in a letter to
Atticus, relates an interview which he had at Antium 44 B. C. with Brutus
and Cassius. Favorinus was also present, and besides him there were three
women—Servilia, the mother of Brutus; Tertulla, the wife of Cassius and
sister of Brutus; and Porcia, the wife of Brutus and daughter of Cato.
Servilia strikes in twice in the course of the discussion, and it is evident that
her words carried weight. On one occasion she promises to get a clause
expunged from a decree of the Senate. There must have been many such
deliberations where women were present."180
Since women entered into public affairs at Rome, it would be natural to
conclude they would enter upon some of the public vocations that were
occupied solely by men in the earlier times. It would seem that they did
enter into the medical profession but, perhaps, not the better class of women
and maybe not the citizen-women at all. Since medical art was introduced
from Greece, most all the men that followed it were Greek freedmen and
likewise the women were likely of the same nationality and standing.

Whether there were women lawyers or not, it is true women were permitted
to appear in court in their own defense, which some few, at least, did. In
religion the cult of Vesta was entirely in their hands, they had the leading
part in conducting the rites of Ceres and other female deities, and the wives
of priests in some instances held official positions along with their
husbands.
"Women occupied themselves, too, with literature. Very little is known of
their writings and this mostly from the male writers of their period, who did
not place a high estimate upon these compositions of the women, either
prose or poetry. Many of the women who did not take an active part in
literature did interest themselves in the writings of relatives and friends.
Other women became critics and took pride in expressing their views, while
others directed their energies toward philosophy and science.
"Ladies, when not poets, were critics, and as such, deemed by Juvenal
worse than tipplers. Before they had been five minutes at table, they began
to discourse æsthetically on Homer and Virgil, monopolizing the
conversation, with a hammer and tong-like effect. They paraded their
snacks of knowledge, made quotations from forgotten authors; grammar in
hand, corrected their friends' slips. A woman, says Juvenal, may have the
encyclopædia by heart and yet know nothing. Martial, too, mocks the purist
woman, and yearns, as his life-wish, for a not too learned wife."181
"In the good old days of the legitimate drama under Plautus, Terence,
Accius, and Pacuvius, women never appeared upon the stage. Feminine
rôles were taken by men in female dress. But, with the appearance of the
mime and the farce in the first century before our era, women began to take
part in theatrical and musical performances. Their larger participation in
such matters under the Empire is proved by the discovery of the burying
place of a guild of women mimes, just outside of Rome, along the highways
leading from the city. Women took a very active part in public musical
performances, if we may draw an inference from the number of epitaphs
which we find in honor of women who had been solo singers and flute
players."182 Women entered, also, into the commoner affairs of public life, as
costumers, seamstresses, washerwomen, weavers, fishmongers, barmaids,
and the like.

"If we make a general survey of the facts which have been noted above, it
is clear that Roman women took an active part in the literary and religious
life of the time, and in many of the cults held priesthoods or officially
recognized positions from very early times. Their interest in literature,
however, was not serious, and they have produced very little of permanent
value. In the practice of law they never succeeded in getting a sure foothold.
Women of the lower classes entered freely into the medical profession and
the trades, but so far as medicine is concerned women confined their
practice to members of their own sex. The principal branches of business
which they took up were those connected with the manufacture of wearing
apparel. The pursuits of the shopkeeper and the artisan were naturally left to
the lower classes, but women of standing in society engaged in industries
organized on a large scale, as we can see clearly enough in the case of the
brick business."183
In the early days of Rome, while the people were struggling to maintain
themselves and the nation, the virtue of the women stood out strong. But as
the days of hardships passed and comfort and ease and luxury came in with
the conquests, laxity of morals arose till under the empire, if the writers of
the times may be believed, licentiousness and not virtue was the dominant
trait of the women as well as the men. Yet there were many good women, as
is shown in the quotations a few pages back.
The social vices of Asia found place in Rome and while heretofore only
the foreign women were of evil character, at the time of the empire the
citizen-women entered into the life, and in 19 A. D. even a woman of
prætorian birth registered herself at the ædile's as a prostitute. This created
quite a feeling at Rome and a decree was made by the Senate that any
woman whose grandfather, father, or husband had been a knight should not
be enrolled as a public woman.
The public life of the times, too, tended toward the lowering of the
standard of women. The circus, the theater, and the amphitheater were open
to them and they attended in great numbers and witnessed the indecent and
obscene acts and the debasing fights and slaughters. It became the fashion
for women even of the highest rank to interest themselves in the actors,
athletes, circus-drivers, gladiators, stage-singers, vocalists, and musicians,

and often going into excesses. Pantomime dancers were the favorites with
the women as they "were very beautiful young men, whose art lent them
fresh grace. About 22 or 23 A. D. they were banished from Italy, on account
of the factions they caused, and their relations with women, who must have
been of high rank, otherwise no such ordinance would have been passed."184
Also there were the banquets, which gave further opportunities for the
meeting of the women with the men. With their obscene songs and dances
and stories added to enflaming food and drinks, they helped to debase
women and to arouse their passions.
Marriage. In the earlier days of Rome, when religion was purer than in
later times, and children were desired to perpetuate the household religion,
celibacy was looked upon as an undesired state and deserving censure; but
in later times, when high moral and religious tendencies went down,
childlessness was preferred to parenthood and celibacy to marriage.
Marriage was a very important affair as it meant the bringing of a stranger
into the household to enter into the family worship, to take part in the
sacrifices to the household gods, the deities which presided over the welfare
of that particular family. Thus it was a solemn obligation and one which
deserved careful consideration. Up to the time of Augustus, there were no
laws in regard to marriage, except as to the disposition of the dowries, as
previous to that time it was deemed essentially a private transaction.
To understand marriage at Rome, it is needed to keep in mind that a
woman was always considered to be under the control of a man—father,
husband, or guardian. Marriage might or might not mean the transfer of this
right to the husband, so that there were two general kinds of marriage
contracts. By the one, cum conventione, the wife passed from her father's
family into the family of her husband, in manum convenit, and stood in
relation to her husband as a daughter, she surrendered her patrimony and
became one of her husband's legal heirs. In the second, sine conventione,
the wife remained under the rule of her father, as before the marriage, and
retained her own property and her right of inheritance in her father's estate.
In the first case, the wife became a materfamilias while in the second she
was simply an uxor.

In the marriage, sine conventione, there was, perhaps, no form required as
cohabitation of the man and woman constituted the marriage. In the
marriage, cum conventione, there were three forms—usus, coemptio, and
confarreatio. Marriage by usus prevailed among the plebian, common
people; marriage by coemptio was the one commonly practised by the
middle classes; and marriage by confarreatio was the favorite form in the
highest social circles.
Marriage by usus was the simplest form, in which the wife entered into her
husband's manus, if she lived a whole year in the man's house, both parties
agreeing to the relation. In this case then the father's power was gone and he
could not even compel the wife to leave her husband's home. But should the
woman absent herself from the man's house for three nights in succession
during the year, then the bond was broken. In the times when divorce was
denied to the woman, she would often avail herself of this right of
remaining away three nights in a year, so that if need arose she could have
herself claimed by her father or guardian and in this way she could leave
her husband.
In marriage by coemptio, there was a kind of mutual purchase, a fictitious
sale, which the couple made to each other of their person, in which each
delivered to the other a small piece of money and repeated certain words.
The father emancipated his daughter in favor of her future husband and she
came to sustain to the husband the relation of a daughter, took his name,
gave up all her goods to him, and declared that she entered into the union of
her own free will.
Marriage by confarreatio was the only form that required religious
ceremonies. This was the most solemn and stately form of marriage as well
as the oldest. By it the wife came into the absolute power of the husband by
sacred laws but likewise she became a partner in all his substance and in his
sacred rights. In case of the husband's death without will the wife inherited
equally with the children and if no children then she inherited his whole
fortune. This was a public ceremony, conducted by the pontifex maximus or
the flamen dialis, in the presence of at least ten witnesses, and the bridal
couple tasted a cake made of a sort of wheat called far, which with a sheep,
was offered in sacrifice to the gods. The priests themselves had to be

married by this ceremony and none but the children of such marriage could
ever become flamen of Jupiter, Mars, or Quirinus, or vestal virgins.
A true marriage could be made only between Roman citizens, but as
Roman citizenship became widely extended there was thus much latitude
for choice. The lowest age for marriage was fixed by law at fourteen for the
males and twelve for the female, but usually the girl did not marry before
fifteen or sixteen and the boy not till he attained manhood, yet there were a
number of instances of early marriages. A woman of twenty or a man of
twenty-five who was not a parent became liable to the decree of Augustus
against celibacy and childlessness. All within the sixth degree of
relationship were originally prohibited from marriage, but later this was
lowered to relatives of the fourth degree and when, in 49 A. D., the Senate
permitted the Emperor Claudius to marry Agrippina, the daughter of his
brother Germanicus, it was lowered to the third degree. But a woman was
not permitted to marry her maternal uncle nor a man either his paternal or
maternal aunt.
Marriage was a family arrangement, a matter of family convenience,
hence, although the law made the consent of the girl necessary, yet really it
was wholly in the hands of the parents, for it is well known that children
were sometimes betrothed by the parents at a very early age, and the girl
was married at the beginning of her thirteenth year, both betrothal and
marriage being at an age when the child was wholly under the control of the
parent. In the early times, the betrothal was a simple affair but later it
became quite formal. This occurred at night or early morning, in the latter
case the friends assembling at early dawn at the home of the girl's father or
the nearest relative. The amount of the girl's dowry having been agreed
upon, a contract was drawn up and signed and sealed by both parties in the
presence of witnesses. The boy then gave the girl, as a pledge, an iron ring
without ornament or jewels, which the girl placed upon the third finger of
the left hand, as from this was believed to be a nerve leading directly to the
heart. This was followed by a banquet or feast. The engagement might be
broken by either party or by the guardians of either with no legal penalty
attached and sometimes this gave the young man or young woman
opportunity to escape a union not desired. But as long as a betrothal lasted it
imposed certain restrictions, one being that betrothed persons could not

testify against one another in the courts. There was usually quite an interval
of time between the betrothal and the marriage, but that did not affect the
relations of the couple, as they were not together any more than before the
betrothal so that really they did not get to know one another till after they
were married.
On the night before her marriage the girl put off her toga prætexta and her
mother placed on her a long white garment called a tunica recta or regilla,
and her loosened hair was confined in a scarlet net. The next day, the
wedding-day, the girl put on her wedding-dress, which was a long white
robe, gathered in at the waist by a woolen girdle tied in the knot of
Hercules, a true-lover's knot, and said to be a charm against the evil eye.
The flammeum, or wedding-veil, was of a brilliant orange red, or flame-
color, quite full, of thin, fine stuff, and it was thrown over the head from
behind, leaving the face exposed, and then draped gracefully about her. The
bride's hair was divided into six strands or stresses by the bridegroom with
the point of a spear, and then ribbons or fillets were bound between the
tresses and the hair was braided and confined to the head. On these braids
and under the veil was worn a garland of natural flowers which the bride
herself had gathered.
"The costume of the bride is a complete allegory. This orange-red veil, this
saffron-colored flammeum, which covers her head and allows only the face
to be seen, is the usual ornament of the flamen's wife, to whom divorce is
prohibited; the white tunic represents virginity; the head-dress raised in the
form of a tower, almost like that of the vestals, with a javelot which runs
through it, indicates that the wife is in submission to her husband; the
chaplet of vervain is the symbol of fecundity, and the girdle of wool which
is tied round her waist bears witness to her chastity."185
Weddings could not take place on any day of the year as there were
restrictions in reference to such. As a great number of religious festivals
occurred in the early summer, requiring the constant attendance of the
priests, marriages were forbidden to take place during the whole month of
May and the first half of June. On the dies parentales, from the thirteenth to
the twenty-first of February, marriages could not take place, as on these
days there were memorial services for deceased kindred and offerings to

their manes. Wedding-days could not be placed upon August 24, October 5,
and November 8, as the underworld was supposed to stand open on these
days, so they were most unlucky days. Nor could such other unlucky days
be used as the kalenda, nones, or ides of any month. Nor was it considered
appropriate for young girls to be married on religious holidays, although
widows could do so. The best time was considered to be that which
followed the ides of June.
The guests having assembled in the early morning at the home of the
bride's father, or of her nearest relative, the bride being decked out in her
wedding garments and the bridegroom having arrived, the wedding
ceremonies began with the taking of auspices. In earlier times this was done
by observing the flight of birds, but later by the examination of the entrails
of an animal, which was conducted by an haruspex, a professional diviner.
If the omens were favorable, then the wedding sacrifice was made, usually
a sheep, and the skin was spread over stools or chairs, on which the bridal
pair sat. The right hands of the pair were then joined by a pronuba, a
woman who had been married but once and who thus acted as a kind of
priestess, and the bride signified her willingness to come into the manus of
the bridegroom and to take his name by repeating the formula, "Quando tu
Gaius, ego Gaia," "You being Gaius, I am Gaia." The wedding party then
went to a temple or public altar, where offerings and prayer were made to
the flamen dialis to the gods, especially to June as the patron of marriage.
During the offering, the bridal pair sat side by side, while during the prayer
they walked together slowly around the altar. These completed, then all
returned to the house of the bride's father where a great feast was held.
At nightfall the feast ended and then came the deductio, the leading home
of the bride. The bridegroom and his friends made a pretense of snatching
the bride away from her father's house, in commemoration of the rape of the
Sabines. In reality the father was the only one who could break the bonds
that attached the bride to the hearth of her ancestors, where she was under
the protection of the household gods, and so he handed her over to the
husband and his family to enter into the new relations with them. The bride
was escorted by three boys, sons of living parents, two of them holding her
by the hand, the other one going before her bearing the bridal torch of white
thorn, to drive away the malevolent spirits. Her way was lighted by four

married women bearing pine torches and behind her was borne a distaff, a
spindle, and in a basket the instruments for feminine work. The procession
went through the streets singing, accompanied by flutes, bonfires were lit in
the streets and the streets were lined with people, and specially with
children, as the bridegroom threw nuts to them to show that he had given up
childish things, the bride also having given up her dolls and playthings by
offering them to the household gods who had protected her childhood.
As the bride came to the door of her new home, she rubbed oil on the
doorposts and then wound woolen bands around them, in order to keep off
baleful spells. She was then lifted up by her companions so that her feet
might not touch the threshold, sacred to Vesta, the virgin goddess. In the
atrium, she received from her husband the symbolic gifts of fire and water.
The two then knelt together and with the bridal torch lighted their first
hearth fire, offered a sacrifice, and broke the cake of far, and ate it together.
The husband then presented the keys of the house to the wife to show that
henceforth she was to have the management of the household. The day was
ended with a feast given by the bridegroom to the relatives and friends.
"No one who studies this ceremonial of Roman marriage, in the light of
the ideas which it indicates and reflects, can avoid the conclusion that the
position of the married woman must have been one of substantial dignity,
calling for and calling out a corresponding type of character. Beyond doubt
the position of the Roman materfamilias was a much more dignified one
than that of the Greek wife. She was far indeed from being a mere drudge
or squaw; she shared with her husband in all the duties of the household,
including those of religion, and within the house itself she was practically
supreme. She lived in the atrium, and was not shut away in a woman's
chamber; she nursed her own children and brought them up; she had entire
control of the female slaves who were her maids; she took her meals with
her husband, but sitting, not reclining, and abstaining from wine; in all
practical matters she was consulted, and only on questions politically and
intellectual was she expected to be silent. When she went out arrayed in the
graceful stola matronalis, she was treated with respect, and the passers-by
made way for her; but it is characteristic of her position that she did not as a
rule leave the house without the knowledge of her husband, or without an
escort."186

The wife was expected to lament for her husband upon his death and
during the time of mourning certain prohibitions were imposed upon her,
but these were not imposed upon the widower. Severe penalties were placed
upon a widow who married within ten months after the death of her
husband. When a widow married, if the husband went to live in her home,
the bed upon which the former husband died was removed, the door of the
bed-chamber was changed, and the things in the rooms were moved about,
that there might be as few reminders as possible of the former husband.
Concubinage existed, but not polygamy, as monogamy was strictly
enforced at Rome. This was so closely guarded that a divorced man could
not marry again unless the divorce was an effective one. Concubinage was
usually between parties that could not enter into a legal marriage, and thus
the concubine was usually a woman of low estate, often a freedwoman. The
offspring were considered illegitimate and could not enter into the
inheritance.
In the early times there were no divorces in Rome. It is claimed that there
were no divorces during the first five hundred years from the founding of
the city, the first divorce occurring about 231 B. C., when Spurius Carvilius
Ruga put away his wife because she was barren. But divorces increased till
in the last years of the republic and under the empire they became very
frequent. "Seneca says, some women counted their years, not by consuls,
but by their husbands; and Juvenal, that some divorced before the green
bays of welcome had faded on the lintels, and they might have had eight
husbands in five years; Tertullian, that women marry only in order to
divorce; these exaggerations must have a foundation in truth.... Ovid and
Pliny the younger had three wives; Cæsar and Antony four; Sulla and
Pompey five; such cases must have been frequent."187
There were a number of causes for divorce, in the later days, the most
common one being incompatibility of temper. In the divorce, the tablets of
the contract were broken in the presence of seven witnesses, all adult
Roman citizens. Repudiation was a less solemn act and took place quietly in
the family. In the early times, when a woman was divorced she lost her
dowry. In later times, a sixth was kept back for adultery and an eighth for
other crimes. Then, still later, it came about that if the husband was

divorced by the wife he lost the dowry, but if the wife divorced him without
a cause the husband retained a sixth of the dowry for each child, but only up
to three-sixths.
Dress. The Romans had two principal articles of dress—the toga and the
tunica. The toga was made of white woolen cloth. On festival days a new
one was worn or one newly cleaned. It was woven in an oblong form and
the corners were clipped off till it took the form of an ellipse. Its length was
about three times the height of the wearer, exclusive of the head, and its
breadth at the middle about twice the same height, although the breadth
varied with time and fashion, as, in the early period it was rather narrow,
while in later times a fashionable toga was nearly circular. In putting it on,
the toga was folded in its long way nearly in the middle and one end was
thrown over the left shoulder from behind and allowed to fall to the feet in
front. The other end was then brought across the back and under the right
arm and the folds were spread out to cover the right side of the body to the
calf of the leg and then gathered and carried across the breast and thrown
backward over the left shoulder. Thus one-third of the toga would cover the
left side and front of the body, the middle third would cover the back and
right side, and the remaining third would cover the chest and go over the
left shoulder. The diagonal folds across the breast formed the sinus, which
was often used as a pocket. It would seem that a girdle was not worn with
the toga nor pins or clasps to fasten it, but in later fashionable times small
pieces of lead were placed in the ends and hidden by tassels which served to
preserve the drapery. The white toga, without color, toga pura, was the
ordinary garment worn. Boys wore the toga prætexta, which had a purple
border, and which was discarded when manhood was reached at fifteen or
sixteen for the toga virilis, pura or libera. The toga for mourning was black
and in later times dark blue also was used. Beside these there were other
kinds. Only Roman citizens were allowed to wear the toga.
The tunica was worn indoors, when the toga was thrown off, and also
outdoors, when the toga was worn over it. In the later times in cold weather
two or more tunics were worn. The tunica was a kind of woolen shirt, at
first without sleeves, then with short sleeves reaching to the elbows, and in
the time of the empire long sleeves were attached to it. It reached down to

the calves and even to the ankles. It was often fastened to the waist by a
girdle, which was used as a purse for holding money.
Another garment was the pænula, a kind of cloak made of thick wool and
leather, and worn over the toga in traveling in bad weather. Another kind of
cloak, worn over the toga or tunica, was the lacuna, which was made of
lighter and more costly material and was worn for show as well as for use.
To both pænula and lacuna could be added a hood (cucullus) for further
protection from the weather.
The women in the early times wore the toga and the tunica the same as the
men. The tunica continued to be worn but there arose as distinct apparel for
women, the stola and the palla. The stola was an oblong garment worn over
the tunica and extended to the feet. It was open at the top on either side for
the arms to go through and fastened on both shoulders with clasps or
brooches (fibulæ), which often were quite costly articles. A girdle was
drawn around it at the waist and then it was pulled up and allowed to fall
over the girdle till the girdle was covered by the folds and then the lower
part of the stola was pulled down till it just touched the ground. At the
bottom there was an ornamental border. Sometimes there were sleeves to it,
which were open below and fastened together with gold or jeweled buttons
or clasps. The stola was a special garment that was permitted to be worn
only by married women of unblemished reputation. "The common
courtesans were not allowed to appear in the stola, but were compelled to
wear a sort of gown, resembling the habit of the opposite sex, and which
was regarded as a mark of infamy."188
The palla was a kind of cloak worn out of doors over the stola. It was
somewhat similar to the toga, as it was a square or oblong piece of cloth.
Like the toga, too, it was thrown forward over the left shoulder and let fall
to the feet, and then drawn over or under the right shoulder and pulled
across the breast and thrown over the left arm or shoulder. When necessary
to protect the head, the palla could be drawn up over it like the toga.
The prevalent material of Roman clothing was always woolen and up to
the end of the republic the only materials used were wool and linen. Sheep-
raising for wool was one of the very most important industries. Foreign
wools, however, were imported, because the supply of native wool was not