The Second is "the privilege of the husband, by law, to marry feveral wives." This, to the European women, feems a grievous oppreffion; and they hold thofe very cheap who fubmit to it. But, in But, in truth, the cause of this law and cuftom is the nature of the female fex themselves, which feparates them from the husband, the feveral laft months of pregnancy, and time of fuckling; and befides thefe, the Afiatic women have many other times for being feparate from their hufbands. This privilege not being allowed by the English law, is indeed a great hardship upon the English husbands; whereas the Afiatic law permitting polygamy, does the hufband juftice, and wrongs not the wife; for the honour of the firft and equal wife is not affected by it; thofe women who fubmit to marry with a married man, not being admitted into the fociety of ladies, as they are never of high or wealthy families, no man of honour ever allowing his daughter to make fuch a marriage. The mode in which these other wives live is this they who are of a genteel extraction, have a feparate houfe for themselves, like kept miftreffes in England; and they who are not, live in the house of the equal wife, like fervants, and the husband at times conveys himself to them in a clandeftine manner. Befides, these wives cannot invade any of the rights of the equal wife; for al though they and their children are by law equally entitled to inheritance, yet fince the equal wife never marries without a very large dowry - fettled upon her, all that the huf band leaves goes to the payment of this dowry, and nothing remains for his heirs. The opinion that the men of Afia have generally three or four wives, is very ill

founded, for in common they have only one; out of a thousand, there will be fifty perfons perhaps who have from one to two, and ten out of thefe who have more than two. The fear of the bad confequences of polygamy makes men fubmit with patience to the times of feparation from the equal wife, as much the better way; for, from what I know, it is eafier to live with two tigresses than two wives.

The third is," the power of di vorce being in the hands of the huf. band." This is ordained by law, but not practifed; for if a great of fence be the motive to divorce a wife, and if it be proved against her, the receives punishment by the order of the magiftrate, or from the husband, with the concurrence of all her relations; and if the offence be of a trivial nature, fuch as a dif. ference of temper and unfociability, the husband punishes her by leaving the female apartments and living in his own. But the reason for divorce being at the will of the husband, lies in the very justice of the law, and the diftinction of the male fex over the female, on account of the greater fhare they take in the management of the world; for all the laborious work falls to their lot, fuch as car. rying heavy burthens, going to war, repulfing enemies, &c. and the wo. men generally fpend their lives in repofe and quiet. Nevertheless, if the wife eftablishes a criminal of fence against the husband, fuch as an unfair distribution of his time among his wives, or a diminution of the neceffaries of life, fhe can obtain a divorce in fpite of him.

The fourth is, "the little credit the law attaches to the evidence of women in Afia;" for, in a court of juftice, every fact is proved by the teftimony of two men; but if women be the witneiles, four are

required,

match does not take place, but the other way it generally does. All the children, both male and female, from being moftly in the company of their mother, and looking upon her as their protector against their father, whom, on account of his wishing to have them educated, they confider their tormentor, follow the religious tenets of their mother, and remain perfect ftrangers to thofe of their father. It often happens, where the wife is a Schia, and the hufband a Souni, the children hav. ing been Schias from their own natural difpofition, and the inftruction of the mother, fpeak difre fpectfully of the chiefs of the Souni fect in their father's prefence; and he, who all his life never bore fuch language from any perfon, but was even ready to put the fpeaker of it to death, has no redrefs, but patiently fubmitting to hear it from them, as, on account of their want of understanding, they are excufeable; and thus, by frequent repetition, his attachment to his faith is shaken, and, in the courfe of time, he either entirely forfakes it, or remains but lukewarm in it.

Third, "Their authority over their fervants;" for the fervants of the male apartments, the keeping and changing of whom are in the hands of the hufband, through fear of expofing themselves to the difpleasure or complaints of the wife, when the finds a proper opportunity, by their committing fome fault, which fervants are continually doing, are more obedient to her than to their own master; and the fer vants of the zenana, whom the wife has the care of retaining or turning off, ftand fo much in awe of their mistrefs, that many of them pass their whole lives in the zenana, without ever once coming in. to the prefence of the hufband: fome of them never perform any

fervice for him at all, and others, who do, enter not into difcourfe with him; and the women are so obstinate in this refpect, their hufbands never can turn off one of these fer. vants, but his very complaint against them is a recommendation in their favour; and his recommendation has the effect of complaint, by fubjecting them to their mistreffes refentment. Contrary to this is the manner of the European ladies, who have not their own will with their children and fervants, but live more like free and familiar guests in their husband's houses; and the household establishment and equipage being in common to both, if any part, as the carriage for example, is previously employed by the one, the other has to wait till it is difengaged: of this there is no doubt, that if a quarrel enfues between an English husband and wife, the wife has to leave the houfe, and feek her dinner either at her father's or a friend's; whereas in Asia, it is the husband that has to go out; for frequently the utenfils of cookery are not kept in the male apartments.

Fourth, "The freedom, by cuftom, of the Afiatic women from affifting in the business of the hufband, or fervice of his guefts;" whereas this is generally the duty of European wives, whether their hufbands be of a genteel business, fuch as jewellery, mercery, or pet. fumery, or the more fervile ones; I have feen many rife from their dinner, to answer the demands of a purchaser and although all these duties are not required of the ladies, yet fome, especially the entertaining the guests, carving and helping the dishes at table, and making the tea and coffee, are generally performed by them. Now the Afiatic ladies have no fuch duties at all, but live in the manner before defcribed.

Fifth, "The greater deference

the

the Afiatic ladies find paid to their humours, and a prefcriptive right of teazing their hutbands by every pretext," which is confidered as conftituting an effential quality of beauty; for if a wife does not put thefe in practice, but is fubmiffive to her husband's will in every thing, her charms very foon lofe their brilliancy in his eyes. Thus when a wife goes to vifit her father, the will not return to her husband, till he has come himself feveral times to fetch her, and being as often vexed by her breaking her promife; and every day when dinner is ferved, by pretending to be engaged at the time, fhe keeps her husband wait. ing, and does not come till the meat has grown cold, and in the fame manner at bed-time;-for return ing quickly from their father's houfe is confidered as a fign of fondness for the hufband, which in their opinion looks very ill; and coming foon to dinner they think betrays the difpofition of a hungry beggar. In thefe, and fuch like, the husband has nothing for it but patience; nay, it ever pleases him. I have known of many beautiful women, conftant in their affection, and obedient to their husbands night and day, whom, for not having thefe qualities, the hufbands have quickly tired of, and unjustly deferted, for the fake of plain women who poffeffed them.

Sixth, "The greater reliance placed by the Afiatic husbands on their wives virtue, both from law and cuftom." For, as to the European ladies, although they can go out of doors, and difcourfe with ftrangers, yet this is not allowed, unlefs they have a trufty perfon along with them, either of the hufband's or the father's; and fleeping out all night is abfolutely denied them, contrary to the way of the Afiatic ladies, who, when they go

to the houfe of a lady of their acquaintance, though their husbands be entire ftrangers, are not attended by any perfon of the husband's or father's, and they spend not only one or two nights in that house, but even a whole week; and in fuch a house, although the mafter is prohibited entering the apartments where they are, yet the young men of fifteen, belonging to the family or relations, under the name of children, have free accefs, and eat with and enter into the amufements of their guests.

Seventh, "Their fhare in the children, by law." For if a divorce happens, the fons go to the father, and the daughters to the mother, contrary to the custom here, where, if a divorce takes place, the mother, who for twenty years may have toiled and confumed herfeif in bringing up her children, has to abandon all to the father, and full of grief and affliction leave his houfe.

Eighth, "The ease, both by law and cuftom, with which the wife may feparate herself from her hus band, when there may be a quarrel between them, without producing a divorce." Thus the wife, in an hour's time after the difpute, fets off with the children and her property to the house of her father or relations, and until the husband makes her fatisfaction she does not return: and this fhe can always do without a moment's delay.

Befides thefe eight, as above noticed, of the fuperior advantages the Afiatic women enjoy over the European, there are many others here omitted for brevity's fake. What has been faid, is enough for people of difcernment. Farewell.

"I'll fondly place on either eye,
"The man that can to this reply.

Lendon.