Aged Beauties.

Te Aroha News, Volume IV, Issue 200, 23 April 1887, Page 2

Aged Beauties.

History is full of the accounts of the fascination of women who were no longer young. Thus — Helen of Troy was over forty when she perpetrated the most famous elopement on record. Pericles wedded Aspasia when she was thirty-six, and yet she afterwards, for thirty years or more, wielded an undiminished reputation for beauty. Cleopatra was past thirty when Antony fell under her spe.l, which never lessened bill her death, nearly ten years afterward?. Livia was thirty-three when she won the heart of Augustus, over whom she maintained her ascendancy to the last. Turning to modern history, where it is possible to verify dates more accurately, wo have the extraordinary De Poictiers, who was thirty -six when Henry II — then Duke of Orleans, and just half her age -became attached to her ; and she was held as the first lady and most beautiful woman at court up to the period of the monarch's death and thp icces3ion to power of Catherine de Medici. Ninon de Lenclos, the most celebrated wit and beauty of her day, was the idol of three generations of the golden youth ot France, and she was seventy-two when the Abbe de Berais fell in love with her. True it is that in the case of this lady a rare combination of culture, talents, and personal attractions endowed their possessor seemmeiy with the gifts of eternal youth. Bianca Capello was thirty eight when the Grand Duke Francisco of Florence fell captive to her charms and made her his wife, though he was five years her junior. Louis XIV. wedded Madam de Maintenon when fehe was forty-three years of age. Catherine 11. of Russia was thirty three when she seized the empire of Rucsia, and captivated the dashing young General Orloff. .Up to the time of her death, at sixty-feeven, she seemed to have retained the same bewitching powers, for lamentations were heartfelt among all those who had ever knownjher personally. The famous Madame Recamier was thirty -eight when Barras was ousted from power, ,and she was without dispute declared to <be the most beautiful woman in Europe, rank sho held for fifteen yeans. _____ ___ _, — — _