WHEN WOMEN ARE MOST ATTRACTIVE.

Temuka Leader, Issue 908, 24 January 1882, Page 3

WHEN WOMEN ARE MOST ATTRACTIVE.

In an interesting paper entitled “ When Women Grow Old,” Mrs Blake has brought facts to show that the fascinating power of the sex is oftentimes retained much longer than is generally assumed. She tells of Aspasia, who, between- the ages of 80 and 50, was the strongest intellectual force in Athens ; of Cleopatra, whose golden decade for power and beauty was between 30 and 40 ; of Li via, who was not far from 30 when she gained the heart of Octavius ; of Ann, of Russia, who, at 38, was thought to be the most beautiful Queen in Europe ;, o£ Catherine 11., of Russia, who, even at thesilver decade was both beautiful and imposing ; of Mademoiselle Mars, the actress, whose beauty increased with years, and 1 culminated between 3t) and 45 ;. of Madame Racaraier,..who, between 35 and 40, and even later, was the reigning beauty in Europe of Ninon d’Enclos, whose own son—brought up without knowledge of his parentage —fell passionately in love with her when she was at the age of 37, and who even on her 60th birthday received an adorer young enough to be her grandson. These- facts, the representatives of many others, establish that the golden decade of fascination is the same as the golden decade of thought ; that woman is most attractive to, and most influential over man at that period when both man and woman are nearest the maximum of their cerebral force. The voice of our great prima donnas is at its very best between 27 and 35 , but still some retain, in a degree,, its strength and sweetness even in the silver decade.. The voice is an index of the body in all its functions, but the decay of other fractions is not so readily noted. :