The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1894-12-28
were the outuiSe voices and the wind


Then the music ceased, and all the
, voices were still The mother of the
, bridegroom, with platter loaded with
, aromatfcs and articles of food, confront
ed her son aud began to address hirn.
Then she took from the platter bottle
of perfume and sprinkled his face with
the redolenoe. All the while speaking
In droning tone, she took from the
platter a handful of rice, throwing
some of it on his head, splitting some of
1t ON his shoulder, pouring some of it
ON his hands. She took from tho plat
ter a coooanut and waved it ahout his
head. She lifted a garland of flowers
and threw it over his neck aud bou-
quet OF flowers and put it in his hand.
Her part of the ceremony completed,
the band resumed It's music, and
through another door the bridegroom
was conducted into the center of the
building. The bride was in the room,
but there was nothing to designate her.
where is the bride?" said Where
is the bride?" After awhile she was
made evident The bride and groom
were seated on chairs opposite each 9TH
er. white curtain WAS dropped lie
tween them so that they could not see
each other. Then the attendants pat
their arms under this curtain, took a
long rope of linen and wound it srornd
the neck of tho bride and the Groom in
token that they were to be bound to-
| gether for life. Then some silk strings
were wound around the couple, now
around this one and now around that.
Then the groom threw handful of rice
across the curtain on the head of the
bride, and the bride responded by throw
Ing handful of rice across the curtain
on the head of the groom. Thereupon
the curtain dropped, and the BRIDES
chair was removed and put beside that
of the groom. Then a priest of the
Parsee religion arose and faced the cou-
pie. Before the priest was placed
platter of rice He began to address the
young man and woman. We could not
hear word, but we understood just as
well as if we had heard: Ever and anon
he punctuated his ceremony by a hand
full of rice, which he picked up from
the platter and flung now toward the
groom and now toward the bride. The
ceremony went on Unfortunately. We
wanted to hear the conclusion, but We're
told that the ceremony would go OH for
a long WHILE indeed that it would net
conclude until o'clock in the morning,
and this was only between I and s
O'Clock in the evening. There would be
a recess after awhile in the ceremony,
but it would be taken up again in ear
nest at half past IL. We enjoyed what
we had seen, but felt incapacitated for |
six more hours of wedding ceremony.
Silently wishing the couple happy life
IN each Others companionship we press
ed our way through the throng OF con-
gratulatory Parsees All Of them seem
ed bright and appreciative of the occa-
sion. The streets outside joyously sym
pathized with the transactions inside.
Hindoo Customs.
We rode on toward our hotel wish
ing that marriage in all India might be
as much honored as in the ceremony
we had that evening witnessed at the
Parsee wedding. The Eindoo women
are not SO married. They are simply
cursed into the conjugal relation.
Many Of the girls are married at and
10 years Of age and some of them are
grandmothers at 80. They can never 90
forth into the, sunlight with theirxaeos
uncovered. They must stay at home.
All styles Of maltreatment are theirs.
Ii they become Christians, they become
A missionary told me in In
Ola OF Hindoo woman who became
Christian. She had nine children. Her
husband was over 70 years of age. And
yet at her Christian baptism he told
her to go, and she went out homeless
AS long as woman is down India will
DO down. No nation was ever elevated
except through the elevation of woman.
Parsee marriage is an improvement on
dlndoo marriage, but Christian mar
'1age is an improvement on Parsee mar
'iage
A fellow traveller in India told me
le had been writing to his home in
England trying to-get law passed that
10 white woman could be legally mar
led in India until she had been there ,
tx months. Admirable law would that /
'el If white woman saw what mar
led life with Hindoo u.s. she would {
lever undertake it. Off with the thick |
nd ugly veil from woman S face! OF I
With the crushing burdens from her :
boulder! Nothing but the gospel of
esus Christ will ever make life in In.
ia what it ought to be.
But what an afternoon of contrast in
Bombay we experienced From the tenn. {
lie OF silence to the temple of hilarity.
rom the vultures to the doves. From
1ourning to laughter. From gathering
hadows to cleaning lights. From OBJ
equies to wedding. But how much of 6
IL our lives is made up of such oppo l
ties! have carried in the same pocket 9
nd read frosn them in the same hour S
ne liturgy of the dead and the ceremo. g
y OF espousals. And so the tear meets
le smile, and the dove meets the vul. G
IRE. q
Thus I have set before you the best r
all the religions of the heather world, t
nd l have done SO in order that Won s
hight come to higher appreciation of '
le glorious religion which has nut its /
enediction over us and over Christen. D
ON. b
A Comparison. b
Compare the absurdities and mum b
eries of heather marriage with tho d
lain Il will" Of Christian marriage, P
re hands Joined in pledge "till death q
you part. :" Compare the doctrine g
lat the dead may not be touched with Il
sacred and tender and loving kiss c.
ever given, the last Kiss of lips that G
ever again will speak to us. Compare I
10 narrow bridge Chinvat over which b
10 departing Parsee soul must trem- +
lngly cross to the wide open gate of
'aven through which the departing
hristian soul may triumphantly enter. :.
ompare the 81 books of the Zend q
vesta of the Parsee which even the .
holars of the earth despair of under -