Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1874-01-29
MARRIED LIFE IN CHINA.

very Ubt1c Is kuOWu III VI
the married life of the Chinese, but
nevertheless their habits and customs in
this respect are very minute, and by no
means devoid of interest The patri-
archal system of the country is exhib-
tied, as the Emperor claims to be, and
theoretically is, the absolute and des-
potic ruler of his subjects, so every
father exercises similar power over his
family, even claiming the right to sell
his children as slaves.
A woman in China, when once she is
married and has assumed her husbands
clan name, becomes part and parcel of
his family, and henceforward has but
slight connection with her own relations,
her duty and obedience being entirely
transferred to her husband and his pa
rents, the latter of whom, sad to relate,
frequently treat der with great cruelty,
.ala more as slave than q daugher-in-
law.
The Chinese wife's great hope and
ambition is that she may have male Off
spring to perpetuate her husbands
name, to care for and support him in
old age, and, after death, to watch over
and offer sacrifices at his grave, and at
stated periods to burn incense before
his tables. If she chance to be SO TN
fortunate as to have no S,,,ldrenh OF.
only daughters, there is rarely aHy &af =
piness In store for her in her married
life, and her husband is very likely to
take to himself concubine, if he can
afford to do so, hoping thereby to attain
the darling wish of his heart.
When women have no children they
suppicate the goddess Hui-fu Fu-ein to
aid them and send them sons, for if
possible, they would rather not have
daughters. If 8 man have no sons he
is thought to live without honor and
die unhappy ;" and so eager is China
man for male heir that, failing a son
of his own, he viii adopt one from his
brothers families, If he can get one.
Occasionally, too, from this all-absorb-
ing desire for son, parents will bride
a nurse to get some poor mans boy and
substitute him for newly-born daugh-
ter. In the exaggerated phraseology
common to the Chinese, those who do
this are said Tou lung, huan feng, !"
thst is, to steal dragon and exchange
it for phoenix.
The following customs, relating to
the "Social Life of the Chinese, are
rather amusing, and show what devices
women in the Celestial Empire will re-
sort to in the hope that they may be
blessed with children. Every year, be-
tween the eleventh and fifteenth day of
of the first and eighth Chinese moons,
several of the most popular temples de-
voted to the worship of a goddess of
children, commonly called Mother, =
are frequented by married, but child
less women, for the purpose of procur-
ing one of kind of shoe belonging to
her. Those who come for shoe burn
incense before the image of "Mother,
and VOW that they will offer thanks
giving if she will aid them in bearing a
male child. The shoe is taken home
and placed In the niche which holds the
family image of the goddess, where it is
worshiped IN connection with " Mother, u
though not separately, ON the first and
fifteenth days of each moon fresh
flowers are then offered up, and incense,
candles and mock-money are burned.
When the child thus prayed for is born,
should such q fortunate event take
place, the happy mother, In accordance
with her VOW, causes two shoes to be
made like the one obtained from the
temple. These two and the original
one are brought to the temple with hen
thank-ofering, which generally consists
of several plates of food Some women,
instead of asking for shoe of the god.
<less, beg some of the flowers which she
usually has In her hands or in flower
vase near by. The shoe is lent, but the
flowers are given On reaching home
some women fasten the foewrs thus OBJ.
tanned In their hair, while others place
them In a vase near the niche mentioned
above. should the suppliants net be.
come mothers, no thanksgiving would
be expected by the goddess whose aid
had been invoked.
- When a son is born there are great
reioicings IN a family. and shortly after
ward what is termed the "milk name
Is given, which answers to "pet names
among ourselves. Later on the boy re-
ceives a regular name, usually of two
characters, corresponding to what We
7 fall the Christian name q when writ
g ten it. is placed after, the clan or sur
name. When grown up. even, boys are
often called, not by their proper names
b1x< bv their prr-,, 1,a,- -, ff,a -fo-~,-fv-fo-