Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1896-03-28
GIRL LIFE IN INDIA.
SlSctchcd I'm SsInber COlors by n Re.
turned Woman Missionary.

turned Woman Missionary.
From the Buffalo Courier.
Mrs. Libbie c. Griffin, graduate OF
Keuka College and a returned missionary
from India, delivered an entertaining lee
ture in the conference at the Second Free
Baptist Church last night. Mrs. Griffin
spent the greater part Of her life in Bengal,
and is thoroughly conyersant with all that
pertains to the customs. morals and life of
the Hindu people. In her lecture last night
she drew the picture of a girls life in India
from the time of her birth until her death.
The portrayal which Mrs. Griffin made was
a horrible one to contemplate, although she
assured her audience. that 1t was really
brighter than the true picture OF the LIE OF
the average Hindu girl.
Mrs Griffin tod of the sorrow OF the
mother of the girl when it was born. All
of a Hindu wonnan's life, and. indeed, that
of her husband, is bound up in the hopes OF
having a son. According to the Brahmii
religion, man can with certainty escape
he'll If he has son living at the time OF ms
death. Where a woman does not give plrtl
to son in eleven years, her husband must
cast her aside and choose another wl1e, by
whom he may possibly have son. NVivld
comparison was made between the lives CT
a boy and girl On the sixth night after
the birth of a child the mother ana cniid
lie down together in the same room ana
Sleep An inkstand and pen are placed IN
the room, and midwife watches the sleep
ers If the child means and losses, the
gods are writing sorrowful existence On
it's forehead. If it smiles, the opposite may
be awaited. At the end Of month the
astrologer comes and seeks to solve the Iate
Of the child's life. At the end of six months
the child is given the first taste Of rice and
water In all these ceremonies there Is
much feasting and celebrating In the case
of a boy, but nothing except the ceremony
Itself in the case of a girl.
A girl has miserable time OF IL all hef
life. Only at night is a mother allowe1 70
kiss or caress her child. The boys are al
lowed to roam at will; but girls must re-
main indoors, and can only get out at long
intervals for short periods.
At six years of age the child is married,
t. e., the first wedding ceremony takes
place. 1t is more of formal 5etrothai put
with all the binding Of a genuine wedding;
The child must now remain indoors, ana
her face must be hidden from all men. II
she is the daughter of cast-of wife, that
is, one who for eleven years has borne no
son, she has to suffer many prosecutions,
which eventually lead her to almost any
evil or sin.
At twelve years of age the husband, too
often very old man. comes to take the
child to his home. Often the child does not
wish to so, and ShrekS while she vain!y at
tempts to escape from the messengers sent
to bring her to the waiting husband
1.-The hardest things about this awful Gus
tom cannot be told" said Mrs. Griffin. Re-
Gently the English passed d law which for
babe husband to take wife to his home
until she was twelve years old. There were
many objections to the passing of this law,
and among them was one when sald tAat
it was contrary to the Hindu religion. IN
an impressive voice Mrs. Griffin said: Il
wonder if there are any advocates OF the
So-called higher religions, buddhism, Bran
mnism and Hinduism, in this room. If 50.
to them 1 say that these religions should be
swept from the face Of the earth, If for
nothing more than because they permit
these horrible child marriages"
Continuing, Mrs Griffin drew the picture
Of the child wife in her new home; the
early birth Of son, and the broken health
of the mother, due to this early birth, the
water famine, such as there was four years
ago, and the breaking out of cholera. re-
sulting in the death of the husband. When
the husband dies the wife is shut up in a
room, sometimes for years. where she sees
no one Her imprisonment depends on the
caprice of the mother-:n-iaw.
child she had been describing had had a
happy life as the life Of Hindu girls goes.
She has never been burned with red-hot
irons by her husband. and her husband has
not beaten her as much as other wives
have been eaten. Beatings she has re-
ceiyed but the rei-hot irons, although COM
mon, she has escaped
AS a widow, however she is In disgrace,
and the sooner she dies the better for her.
It is bad luck to look into her face first on
arising in the morning. She is allowed one
meal a day. and all de.icacies needed.
owing to her broken health as the result of
early births are withheld. The reason is
evident-widows are not wanted, and they
can never remarry.