Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1885-06-10
MARRIAGE CUSTOMS.
Many Ancient Ways and Means
Of Securing Wives.
slngularitIos of Wedding Customs-The
Marriage Rites of To-Day tho
Relies of Times When They
Were Serious Realities.

The institution of marriage is one of
so much consequence to the human race
that it is not remarkable to find great
many diverse customs and usages in
regard to it. A custom is seldom n ore
than usage in a particular case applied
to all cases, and customs which often
seem to have neither sense nor meaning
arc not infrequently the relics of former
institutions which, in their time, were
very significant. Though nowadays
everybody does not get married, yet
everybody still maintains n lively inter-
est in the custom and everything per-
tanning to it, for the simple reason that
marriage is a sort of grand climacteric
in the social life of man or woman,
the one time when the most insignificant
man and the homclicst woman become
of interest to all their ncighbors. I'M
less this fact be remembered, it will be
difficult to account for the lively con-
Germ felt by everybody in wedding.
Let any woman be married, no matter
how humble her position, and all the
other women to whose ears the news
happens to come will hustle about in
gleeful anticipation, while the men will
look on with an interest greater than
they care to show. Let n servant-girl
conclude to enter the state of matri-
mony, and her mistress and the young
ladies of the house will be as much
clustered by the event rs she herself,
while the presence of a bridal party on
q railroad train will excite all hands,
from the engineer, who will set the loco
motive whistle going, to the brakeman,
who will inform passengers OF the pres
ence of the newly welded, and will
point them out for the edification of the
general public. In consequence of this
universal opening of eyes and raising of
hands whenever the subject comes up
for consideration, survey of some of
the more prominent and pronounced
marriage customs of the world may not
prove either uninteresting or unprofit-
able.
SAVAGE MARRIAGE.
Few things, according to Sir John
Lubbock, give closer insight into the
real condition of savages than their
ideas on the subject of love and mar
rage, and in fact the best estimate that
can be made of the civilization of a
nation is that based on its opinion OF
the marriage relation. Many races of
savages have no such thing as mar
rage institution, know not what Is
meant by the word love, and the ALI
ances they contract are founded on
some other basis than that of sentiment.
In many of the languages of tho lower
tribes of savages there is no word cor
responding to love or affection, so that,
for instance, when the Bible was trans
lated into the Algonquin dialect, the
lack had to be supplied by word in.
vented for the purpose. Travellers uni.
versally assert that among the Hotten-
tots there is no conception of love, and
a marriage is as much matter of con-
vcnience as the formation of hunting
party. Caillie says that among the
Mandingoes of Central Africa marriage
is merely form of regulated slavery.
Husband and wife never talk or laugh
together. asked one why he did moi
sometimes make merry with his wives,
and was told that il he did he would
not be able to manage them, for they
would laugh at him when he told them
to do anything" Levin says that in
India the hill tribes of Chittagong re.
gard marriage merely as the best means
of getting their dinner cooked, while in
Australia, according to Eyre, wives are
valued only as slaves and are treated
with the utmost brutality, are beaten
and spearcd in the limbs upon the
smallest provocation. "Few womer
will be found to be free from frightfu
scars upon the head, the body or the
limbs, and / have seen young woman
who, from her appearance, seemed tc
be almost riddled with these wounds. v
sUMATRAN MARRIAGE.
Before tho native Institutions o.
Sumatra were suppressed by the con
quering whites, there were three kinds
Of marriage in use among the natives
one in which the man purchased thu
woman, one in which the woman pur
chased the man, and one in which thu
transaction was on terms OF equality
The first is easily understood and M
way novel; the second is somcwha
curious. The father of young woman
of high rank looks around for proper
husband for his daughter, and general
ly takes him from an inferior family
The young mans relatives pay slip
ulated sum for the honor he is about Il
receive, feast is made, and from tina
time "the good and bad of him." ,
peculiar expression for the better o.
worse, is vested In his new owners. III
is between son and n servant; II III