QUEEN VICTORIA’S JUBILEE, 1897 191 INTRODUCTION IN this little book I am going to tell you about some of the women who have been famous in the past. There are perhaps many names more famous than those I have chosen, but it was not always the best women who were the most talked about. In the past it was seldom that any woman, who was not a royal lady or some great aristocrat, became known to the world. In the early days of Christianity, many women suffered bravely for their faith, and later in the convents there were studious nuns who became known for their learning. In the account of St. Hilda you will read of one of the most famous of these. But most women were busy in keeping their houses, and had to do many things which no woman would dream of doing now. Cloth and linen had to be woven at home, simple medicines and ointments were made by the great ladies, who had often to act as doctors as well as nurses. Only few women had any book learning, and it was long before it was thought desirable for a woman to learn to write. When good schools were started for boys, few people thought it desirable to do anything for the education of girls. It was not till the nineteenth century that a change began, and that people as a rule began to think that, as girls had minds as well as boys, it was as well to give them the chance of learning. When you read about Mrs. Somerville, you will see how great was the change in her lifetime. No one troubled to teach her when she was a child, but before her death the first colleges for women were founded at Cambridge. Joan of Kent is an example of the aimless life led by a great lady in the Middle Ages who was kindly and beloved, but did not know how to make her life of use to others. Margaret Beaumont was also a great lady and might have spent her days in pleasure, but the experiences of her life made her serious, and she used her life and her money in the service of others. Since their day, there have been many great ladies who have been like one or other of these two.