Orations of divers sorts accommodated to divers places written by the Lady Marchioness of Newcastle.

A Child-Bed Womans Funeral Oration.

Beloved Brethren,

VVE are met together to see a Young Dead Woman, who Died in Child∣Bed, to be laid into the Bed of Earth, a Cold Bed, but yet she will not take any Harm there, nor we shall not fear she will Catch her Death, for Death hath Catch'd her; the truth is, that although all Women are Tender Creatures, yet they Indure more than Men, and do oftner Venture and Indanger their Lives than Men, and their Lives are more Profitable than men's Lives are, for they Increase Life, when Men for the most part Destroy Life, as witness Warrs, wherein Thousands of Lives are De∣stroyed, Men Fighting and Killing each other, and yet Men think all Women meer Cowards, although they do not only Venture and Indan∣ger their Lives more than they do, but indure greater Pains with greater Patience than Men usually do: Nay, Women do not only indure the Extremity of Pain in Child-birth, but in Breeding, the Child being for the most part Sick, and seldome at Ease; Indeed, Nature seems both Unjust and Cruel to her Femal Creatures, especially Women, making them to indure all the Pain and Sickness in Breeding and Bringing forth of their Young Children, and the Males to bear no part of their Pain or Danger; the

truth is, Nature hath made her Male Creatures, especially Mankind, only for Pleasure, and her Female Creatures for Misery; Men are made for Liberty, and Women for Slavery, and not only Slaves to Sickness, Pains, and Troubles, in Breeding, Bearing, and Bringing up their Chil∣dren, but they are Slaves to Men's Humours, nay, to their Vices and Wickednesses, so that they are more Inslaved than any other Female Creatures, for other Female Creatures are not so Inslaved as they; Wherefore, those Women are most Happy that Never Marry, or Dye whilst they be Young, so that this Young VVo∣man that Died in Child-Bed is Happy, in that she Lives not to Indure more Pain or Slavery, in which Happiness let us leave her, after we have laid her Corps to Rest in the Grave.