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* * * * * * * and there they grew,
A sylvan tribe of children of the chase,
Whose young unwakened world was ever new;
Nor sword, nor sorrow, yet had left a trace
On her unwrinkled brow; nor could you view
A frown on nature's or on human face:
The free-born forest found and kept them free,
And fresh as is a TORRENT or a TREE.

And tall, and strong, and swift of foot were they,
Beyond the dwarfing city's pale abortions;
Because their thoughts had never been the prey
Of care or gain; the green woods were their portions;
No sinking spirits told them they grew grey;
No fashion made them apes of her distortions:
Simple they were, not savage; and their rifles,
Though very true, were never used for trifles.

Motion was in their days, rest in their slumbers,
And cheerfulness, the handmaid of their toil;
Nor yet too many nor too few their numbers:
Corruption could not make their hearts her soil:
The lust which stings, the splendor which encumbers
With the free foresters divide no spoil:
Serene, not sullen, were the solitudes
Of this unsighing people of the woods.

And woman, too, delicate and lovely woman, how has she changed; and how little is left of that erect and noble carriage, that full rounded figure, that dignity and beauty which characterized those of the by-gone century, and does still characterize the daughters of fair Albion; a beauty which arose from a full and perfect development, and healthy action of every organ of the body. Some may say that beauty is of small moment, that it is of little consequence in an individual, and much less in a national point of view is it to be regarded; but I maintain, and will maintain the contrary; and though I cannot, like the chevalier of old, uphold the claims of beauty by the point of a lance, I will use, wield at least, a pen in its defence, and maintain its cause with all the chivalry and zeal which the degeneracy of the age, and of our unchivalric day and country will allow.

Most heartily do I agree with the sage, who said, with a sigh, "well philosophers may argue, and plain men may fret; but beauty will find its way to the human heart." And it should be so, for so hath the Creator kindly and wisely ordained it; he hath vouchsafed to man the faculty of perceiving beauty; he hath made the perception a source of delight to him, and he hath filled the earth, the sea, and the skies, with bright and beautiful objects which he may contemplate and admire. Else, why is the earth, and every thing upon it, so varied in form, so full of beauty of outline? why are not the hills, -- the rocks, -- the trees, all square? why runneth not the river canal like to the ocean? why is not the grass black? why cometh the green bud, -- the white blossom, -- the golden fruit, -- and the yellow leaf? why is not the firmament of a leaden changeless hue? why hang not the clouds like sponges in the sky? why the bright tints of morning, the splendor of noon, the gorgeous hues of sunset? why, in a word, does the great firmament, like an ever-turning kaleidoscope, at every revolving hour present to man a new and beautiful picture in the skies? I care not that I shall be answered that these, and all other beauties, whether of sight and sound, are the results of arrangements for other ends: I care not, for it is enough for me, that a benevolent God hath so constituted us as to enable us to derive pleasure and benefit from them, and by so doing, he hath made it incumbent upon us to draw from so abundant a source.

It will be said I am losing sight of my subject -- the physical beauty of my countrywomen; I am not wont to do so long -- , and hasten back to it.

It is a very general opinion with us, that the standard of female beauty is quite as high here as in most countries; but this is by no means the case; our women fall far, very far below the standard which is attainable by them; for I hold, that with greater advantage of descent, with more of physical comfort and luxuries, with greater intellectual cultivation, than any women on earth, in beauty and grace of person they fall far below those of every civilized nation whom I have ever seen. Exceptions there are, and bright exceptions -- I need not leave this desk to point out some of them; but, alas! in how sad contrast do they stand with thousands whose narrow chests, projecting collarbones, pallid faces, and decaying teeth, show the defective physical organization. This is an interesting and a very important subject; for, as I shall show, the perfection of womanly beauty is dependent upon her original constitution, and her physical health, and I beg you to allow me to enlarge upon it.

I said that it was generally supposed here, that our women are not deficient in beauty, while in reality they are so, and this I explain from the fact, that in the spring of life, and for a number of years, there is a brilliancy of complexion which makes our maidens seem beautiful, and, as it were, dazzles the spectator into blindness to other faults. I confess, I know nothing like it; and, as the gorgeous pomp of our summer sunsets are unmatched by richest skies of Italy or Greece -- as the bright hues of our autumnal foliage are unrivalled by the forest scenery of any country, and inimitable by the boldest pencil so is the clear, glowing complexion of our maidens -- the blended lily and rose of their faces, unequalled by the brightest and most beautiful of earth's daughters. This it is, that renders them so pretty without being beautiful, and for this it is, that when the bloom of cheek is gone, you have but a very plain woman left. As at sunset, you gaze with rapture upon a golden-hued cloud, but while you gaze, the sun ceases to shine upon it, and you have only a leaden colored sombre mass before you -- so, oftentimes, does the lovely American girl of sixteen sink into the plain American woman of twenty.