Daily Los Angeles herald., 1879-05-31
Women Warriors.

1t IL well known that women
played no mean part as warriors In
the wars of antiquity, but 1t is not
so generally known that they have
often distinguished themselves for
valor on the battle field in modern
times, excluding the memorable
examples of Bosdicea, Joan D'Arc,
the Women Of Limerick, etc. Yet
there are portions Of the world In
which they are famous as warriors
even now. The King Of Siam, at
the present moment, has q body
guard of 400 women, armed with
rifles and lances. When the in
vincible Dahomian army marched
upon Abeokuta, In 1851, 1t mum.
bered 10, 900 men and 5000 women.
The women were placed In front at
the critical hour Of assault, and
1000 of their brave were left dead
before the walls.
The Spartan women OF old, who
strung their braided hair upon
their husbands' battle-bows, were
not the first of the women of war,
nor was Joan or Moll Pitcher the
last. II Diodorus is to be believed,
the Asiatic Amazons who were
wont to hover among the noun.
tains of Caucasus not only learned
to fight, but they monopollzed the
business. They strangled nine
boys out of every ten at the mo.
msnt of birth, and sent all the girls
to the military academy. They
drove their husbands and other
masculine parasites to the caves of
the mountains; and when these
gentlemen timidly emerged to
break their prolonged fast, they
were hunted like so many rabbits.
The women marched to battle un.
der their chosen queen and over
ran and subdued the whole of Asia.
They built Smyrna and Ephesus.
They whipped Theseus and put the
Greeks to flight. And didn't the
African Amazons Of antiquity sub.
due the Gorgons and Atlantes? In
fact, If the prOfane history of 5000
years ago is worth anything, the
women of that day were accustom.
ed to "strike from the shouldern In
a fashion that was really terrific.
And In later days feroclous we.
men OF war have appeared from
time to time. In South America,
around the confluence of the Japura
with the Amazon, the traveller
Grellana, In 1910, found we'll
equipped and powerful Republic of
women, whose fierce fe feminine army
successfully resisted his European
soldiers in battle. No men were
permitted to live in the nation, but
men of the adjacent countries were
received and entertained with
much hospitality In April of each
year. At the beginning of the
festivities, the queens choose their
partners from the royal guests.
The male children were drowned,
but the girls were carefully reared
for the army. The women built
their own houses, killed their own
game, made their own
slight clothing, and found a
" helpmeet" quite unnecessary.
They had five temples of the sun,
guilt of stone and gorgeously plated
with gold. They flourished and
maintained their Independence for
several hundred years, as is attest
ed by the narratives of vigilant
travellers, from Orellans to Hum.
boldt.
Several women received pensions
for their services as soldiers In
the ranks during the American
revolution; and, during the recent
csvil war, it is estimated that not
less than 100 women fought in
disguise as private soldiers. Some
are known to have been killed in
battle; the sex of others was de-
tected by the surgeons who dressed
the wounds; while at least one
fought gallantly at the side of the
man she loved, for four years, and
finally passed in review with Sher-
mans army.