The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1845-10-03

~ Seheldily supposed lnat the pa
bylonian women were admitted to
social and convivial meetings with
men; and it. is on record that they
sometimes drank too freely of the
wine. Weaving and embroidery
were no doubt generally practized
by the women, either for amusement
or profit. With regard to marriage
they had a yearly custom of par
ticular kind. In every district
three men, respectable for their
virtue, were chosen to conduct all
their marriagcable girls to the pub
lie assembly. Here they were put
up at auction by the public crycr,
while the magistrates preceded over
their sales. The most beautiful
were sold first, and the rich conten-
ded eagerly for choice. The most
ugley or deformed girl was sold
next in succession to the handsom-
est, and assigned to any who would
take her with the least sum of mo-
ney. The price given for the beau
tiful was divided into dowries for
the homely. Poor people, who
cared less for personal endowments,
were well contented to receive a
plain wife for the sake of modor-
ate portion. No man was allowed
to provide husband for his daugh-
ter; and no man was allowed to
take away the woman he had pur-
chased, until he had given security
to make her his wife. The feasts
by which wealthy Babylonians COM
inemoratcd their marriages became
at length so eXtravagant that laws
were made to restrain them. The
Assyrians worshipped Venus under
the name of Mylitta. Some of the
ceremonies observed in her temple
are unsuitable to be described TO
our readers.
When the Babyionians were be-
seiged by the Persians, they stran-
gled all the women except their mo-
Tiers, and one other in each family,
to bake their bread. This was
done to prevent famine and the lot
fell upon women probably because
they were Of less Importance in car
rying on the war.
1t is not known whether females
were admitted into the priesthood !;
but a woman always sleeps in the
temple of Jupiter Belus, whom the
Chaldcan priests decladed to have
been chosen by the Deity as his
special fayoritc from among all the
nation.
Two remarkable women are men
toned in the brief record we have
of Assyria and Babylon. Their
names are Semiramis and Nitocris.
When Minus, king of Assyria, be-
sieged Bactria, it is said the attempt
would not have been successful,
had it not been for the assistance of
ScmiramiS, who was at that time
the wife of one Of the principal Off
GERS. She planned so skillful me-
thod of attack, that victory was in
sured. Minus became a passionate
lover of the sagacious lady, and her
husband committed suicide. Soon
after this she became queen. Some
say she requested the monarch to
invest her with uncontrolled power
merely for the space of five days !;
and as soon as a decree to this effect
had been made public, she caused
him to be put to death. She sue
ceedcd Minus in the government Of
the Asscrian empire, and to render
her name immortal, she built the
great city of Baby lon in one year.
Two millions of men were constant
ly employed upon it. Certain dykes
built by order of the queen to de-
fend the city from intimidation, are
spoken of as admirable.
Affairs were built and divine hon
orS paid to the memory of Semira-
mis-.
The other celebrated queen was
Nitocris, wife of Nabonadius, who
III the scripture is called Evil Me-
rodach. She was a woman of great
endowmcnts. While her voluptuous
husband gave himselfup to what the
world calls pleasure, she managed
the affairs of state with cxtraordina-
ny judgment and sagacity. She was
particularly famous for the canals
and bridges which she caused to be
made for the Improvement of Baby
lon.
Such instances rs these do not IN
dictate a degraded condition of wo-
men. Yet the Assyrian monarchs
had their scraglios, at least in times
later than Nitocris; for we are told
that the cAcminatc Sardanapalus
spent his chief time in the apart
mcnts Of his women, learning to
handle the distaif, and initiating
their voice and manners. This fact
proves that spinning was not unusu-
al with women of high rank. The
exceeding love of perfumes which