None were admitted into this order but after a long and laborious novitiate, which made the character venerable in their own eyes by the time and difficulty of attaining it.

They were much devoted to solitude, and thereby acquired that abstracted and thoughtful air which is so imposing upon the vulgar; and when they appeared in public, it was seldom, and only on some great occasion,--in the sacrifices of the gods, or on the seat of judgment.

They prescribed medicine; they formed the youth; they paid the last honors to the dead; they foretold events; they exercised themselves in magic.

They were at once the priests, lawgivers, and physicians of their nation, and consequently concentred in themselves all that respect that men have diffusively for those who heal their diseases, protect their property, or reconcile them to the Divinity.
What contributed not a little to the stability and power of this order was the extent of its foundation, and the regularity and proportion of its structure.

It took in both sexes; and the female Druids were in no less esteem for their knowledge and sanctity than the males.