CHAPTER XV 
Bridget’s Companions and Successors 
AD Bridget stood alone as a solitary phe- 
nomenon of Irish history, the only woman 
interested in the development of her in- 
telligence in her day, her own greatness would 
rather have been diminished than enhanced by that 
fact. She was but one of many however who in 
that period devoted themselves to the intellectual 
as well as the spiritual life. Her influence was 
deeply and widely felt and many Irish women, 
stimulated by her example, developed not only 
their minds but a spirit of helpfulness for the 
solution of human problems that has given them an 
enduring place in the history not only of Ireland 
itself but the culture of the world. It is manifest 
from what we have learned in recent years of ancient 
Irish history that the women of Ireland played a 
very important role in that chapter of the history 
of civilization which we owe to the Irish. The 
women of the Teutons as pictured for us by Tacitus 
who undoubtedly emphasized many traits because 
he wanted to make the contrast with the women of 
Rome so much more striking, have held a high place 
in the thoughts of modern feministic leaders. It 
is evident that the women of the Gael deserve an 
even greater place because they stood not only for 
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