The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1914-07-26
O Modern Eminent Women Ounppng the Herones Of History

'oNg to the sixteenth century. four to the
enteenth. five to the eighteenth and five to the
nineteenth
Half of the twenty most eminent women
were sovereigns ruling as u regent the
others IN their own right. Six became eminent
, literature, five of these being prose writer's.
and Mrs. Browning, the pre-emirent poetess
Marie Antoinette, the unfortunate queen OF
Louis XVI, and Josephine. who might be called
ptu me fortunate and unfortunate wife Of
>apoleon l., owe their positions to marriage.
Madame de Maintenon is noted or her politi-
al influence. and Jeanne dare was religious
France and England each produced six OF
re twenty most eminent women Of history.
austria. Scotland. Sweden. Italy. Germany.
Russia. Egypt and America have each one rep.
rcScntative.
"a list of this sort makes possible compari.
sons which are not ordinarily evident. and
could not otherwise be made. and the known
probable makes it possible to determine
within what limits the comparisons are true.
Charlotte Bronte and Charlotte Corday seem.
ingly have nothing in common. yet their re-
spoctive number in order OF merit are 81 and
% Marie Erinyillicrs. whose mania for poison.
ing makes it impossible to classify her as any
thing bu; Il criminal Just precedes Genevieve
the patron saint of Paris. Joanna Baillie the
poet; Mrs. Siddons, the actress: and Beatrice
Cenc whose beauty and tragic fate have been
preserved for us in the colors of Guido REM and
in the lines OF Shelley, numbered 49, 80
and ~ respectively"
One of the most striking truths brought out
in this compilation is the steady increase In
history, century by century. since medieval
times. The tenth century produced g. the
twelfth. IL; the fifteenth, 30; the sixteenth As;
the seventeenth 81; the eighteenth, 213, and
me nineteenth, 30. or course large part OF
TINS Increase is due TO the impetus which the
invention OF movable types and the printing
press gave to the business OF recording his.
tory-the same influence which brought about
general spread Of engh tenment among
women as well as among men. If Sappho and
lew other eminent women of ancient times
are excepted, cminence by right of personal
achieVement is confined to the women who
ilved and labored during the last five centuries
But as an offset TO this showing for modern
women, as Mrs. Castle points out. was the con.
current increase in the population OF the
Western civilized world-from 100000 600 in
1880 TO 26,26O,222.
The distribution OF eminent women by
nationality and locality affords interesting COM
PARSONS To quote Mrs. Castle:
England has furnished eight more dstip.
eu!shed women than France. Germany ranks
tird With ia; America only two CENTURIES
oid, is fourth. Italy produced 60, Rome Al,
Austria "a. and Spain 90 eminent women
Russia claims 20. Sweden 16, Greece Is and
Scotland II. Twelve OF the eminent women
belong 10 the Byzantine Empire. IL to Holland
and 3 to Ireland. Twenty-seven nations each
produced fewer than ten eminent women
vi the 10 American of ability t
Is interesting 10 note that 20 were born in
Massachusetts; 15 in New York; Z in England
Maine, New Hampshire Connecticut and Penn
syivania each claim 4; are natives Of South
Ireland. Canada the District of Columbia Mary.
land, Tennessee, Virginia, Vermont Alabama
and California each produced one eminent
woman In other words. New England has
produced 80. or more than twice as many as
New York; are of foreign BIRTH and s are
southern women. Only eminent American
woman was born west of the Mississippi River
our hsures thus accord with those of Professor