WOMAN. The political and social condition of men varies greatly in dif ferent countries. The condition of women also varies greatly, though the variations in the condition of women are not univerally determined by the social or political condition of the men.
It is sometimes said that the condition of women is a kind of index to the degree of civilization in any given nation. The word civilization is somewhat indefinite, but perhaps we may understand the pro position thus : in those countries in which the social and political conditions of men nearly approach one another, the social position of the women will also be nearly the same. Thus in Great Britain and the United States of North America the social and political condition of men and the social condition of women are nearly the same. The differences are not worth noticing here.
The difference of sex satisfactorily ex plains the subordinate condition which women occupy in a political system. Their average strength is below that of the male, and those who become mothers have all the burden of the child before it is born and the chief labour of nurturing the child after it is born. The con formation of their body and its general more delicate organization disqualify them for many of the labours of the male sex, but qualify them for other labours of a different kind.
Among some nations the wife is the servant of the husband, and is compelled to do many things which the male could do better. This happens among some savage nations, and is justly considered a proof of barbarism ; for it implies an abuse of power on the part of the male and a miscalculation of his own interest. Woman is adapted to be a solace to man when he is wearied, a help to him in his labours, and a companion in his moments of relaxation. She increases his happi ness by co-operating with him in such ways as her strength and the peculiarities of her sex allow, not by labouring as he does or can do. The condition of women in nations called civilized approaches the condition of women in some nations called uncivilized, when they join in the labours of the man instead of performing the offices which are peculiarly suited to the female.
The exclusion of women from political power, from the discharge of public func tions, and from many other things that can only be done by mingling with men out of doors, is nearly universal, and it is founded on sufficient reasons. The dif ference of sex is the cause, and the neces sary cause, of this almost universal prac tice. In some nations the principle of hereditary succession allows a female to take in course of descent the regal power and title : in some nations females are excluded. In a constitutional govern ment where the administration is con ducted by responsible agents of her who has the regal power and title, there seems no reason why a female should not exer cise the kingly office as well as a male. In a monarchy properly so called, where the monarch is absolute, the administra tion of a woman is perhaps more likely to be bad than that of a male ; though the reasons for excluding women from a participation in political power generally do not apply in their full extent to ex clude a woman from exercising sovereign power.
Married women and unmarried women are not in the same condition in any country. The married woman by con senting to live with a man subjects her self to a control which is very different from that of a father or guardian. The purposes of marriage are among others the union of the sexes, the consequence of which is the procreation of children. The husband claims the exclusive pos session of his wife's person, and obedience to his reasonable commands, which in general his superior strength enables him to enforce. It is the condition of married women in different countries which is comprehended under the term "condition of women" rather than that of unmarried women ; and their condition comprehends the power of the husband over their per son, over the children of the marriage, and over the property which the wife has at the time of marriage or may acquire during the marriage. In all these matters the positive law of different nations varies very much.