ime, and then subject boys and girls to a like critical
examination. Even with the disadvantages under which they labor in our
ordinary and even higher schools, girls have surmounted the difficulties
of their position, and without favor--indeed, in spite of ridicule,
partiality, and opposition--have come out first in their examinations.
Send such a class of young women as this to a university that will
honestly admit them to all its advantages, and allow them to compete
with the most studious young men admitted to the same university; let
both enjoy precisely similar facilities throughout the entire course;
and see if there will not be as many brilliant scholars who will
graduate with honors among the women as among the men. It is said there
are more talented men, more men eminent in science or in history, than
there are women. Certainly. The advantage has all been on the side of
the man, the disadvantage on the side of the woman; besides which, the
doctrine that it is unwomanly to emerge from the retirement befitting
her sex into public notice has been preached so persistently, that many
women truly great have shrunk from the ribald criticism--to use no
stronger term--with which insolent men assailed them. Consequently,
learned women have frequently given their works to the world
anonymously, or allowed them to be attributed to their male relatives.
An instance in point is Miss Herschel. It is well known, not only that
she gave her brother valuable assistance in his astronomical pursuits,
but that some of the discoveries attributed to him were actually made by
her; not because he wished to defraud her of the honor of her
achievement, but because she shrank from public notice.

But history has given us the record of learned women enough to show
that, with any thing like fair play, there would have been more. As it
is, the list of them is longer--very much longer--than those given to
decry their ability are willing to admit, or are perhaps aware of. The
names of women are found who have been famous for the founding of
empires, the carrying on successfully of civil governments, and the
leading on to glorious victory of armies which, under the generalship of
men, had suffered defeat after defeat, till they were not only
disheartened, but almost disorganized; and yet a woman reorganized
these shattered bands and roused them once more to determined action.
They have been found, in times of trouble, giving to statesmen sound