The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-04-23
MARRIAGES IN GERMANY.
\ BUsINEsS SYSTEM THAT WORKS
WE'LL IN PRACTICE

MUNICH, April 12.-There are In every Ger
man city, but notably In Dresden and Munich.
q great many unmarried American and Eng
lish, young women. When they arst como
they are enchanted with German manhood as
exempllied by the officers. It is worth re-
marking that although the young women are
mostly entirely eligible from the German
point OF view. and the officers even more so
from the Anglo-Saxon. II is O very rare thing
indeed when an international marriage occurs.
There are reasons for this. The marital re-
lationship in the various countries is an inter-
esting subject fer study. In no two is It ex-
actly the same: in some the wife 10 on the
pedestal, in others the husband Is on the
pedestal. and this might be called the Teu-
tonic attitude. In Germany there Is q remark
able difference In this matter In the different
States: that Is. a difference OF degree. Most
American women would probably prefer q
Hano veriaD,for n husband to q Bavarian. and
they might MOI like a Prussian at all-eyen
German. women. not Prussian. have views us
10 the last. But there Is one thing that no
one seems ever to have denied tho German.
no matter from what part OF the empire he
comes. Is not the;ideal husband according TO
the American standard. That standard is
known Throughout the world to be very high.
When a woman marries In Germany. she
ceases to be an entity. Her money. estates.
clothes. whatever worldly goods she may pos
sess. become. absolutely the property Of her
husband. who does what he pleases with them.
She.has no standing In the eye OF the la apart
from her husband. He may beat her. starve
her. live apart from her and she has no re-
dress the laws.are. made for him. not for her
unless she happens to break one OF them.
And that is not difficult. because they make
laws In Germany as they make sausages.
MARRIAGE ioS1ooHad N m In n ~ Eurnpnap
country exactly as It Is In America in nearly
every instance. when II Is not purely n matter
OF business. 1t Is a matter into which some
business enters. A woman may be loved very
much. but. unless she has some little money.
inherited or scraped together by s%avinG-no
matter how small the amount may be-she. has
little chance OF getting married. At the same
time every young German looks forward 70
marriage as his inevitable fate at some time
or other. and a German girl never looks to old
maidenhood with that conten.ed resignation
that one may see in England and America.
The dowry. then. Ia one prerequisite to
marriage in Germany. There may be no love.
but there must be a dowry. In times past
Germany has been regarded as the country
OF romance: to-day there is none more practi-
cal. The dowry business has been reduced
to an exact science. What is called a dowry
varies from $40 to as many thousands: after
that it is called q fortune. The lower sum is
respectable for a serving maid. the higher for
almost ANYBODY. In the army the sum Is reg
ulated bylaw. Tho officers are usually poor:
many are said to adopt the career with the sole
idea OF contracting a wealthy alliance. Their sal
aries, with allowances. range from So O week
for II Lieutenant to $50 n week for a Major
General. imperial law. does not permit an
officer under the rank OF Major TO marry at all.
unless he has a private income. or unless tho
dowry his wife brings him reaches a designat-
fieutenant and grades down to 5000 Tor a
Major. The dowry Is paid over. not to the
cent. on the amount received. This money Is
retained by the Government until the husband
funded in full in either case. The object is to
cannot support them with the dignity becom-
out OF the army the system is not 50 good;
the dowry Is not handed over to a watchful
trustee, but is placed in the hands Of the hns-
band himself, irreyyocably. lust as IL II were his
Mostly he puts It in his business. Il he has one;
II he, has not he buys bonds. In either case he
than that. The unjust part Of Il is that the
vile Is not tiksIy to receive any benefit from
the:onportunity cannot have failed to remarE
that the German. in any position OF life ex-
sept the lowest; is not prone to do the SQUARE
only for his Individual pleasures. Hurried
bands, virtues. because his family Is always
with him whom he takes his outings. II these
they would remark Il that. While they are are's al.
ways with him. he spends very little money on
them. One Of the ~commonest sights in brew
erv or beer garden is.to see a German order
his dinner. eat 1t. and hand. over the remains
often only empty plates to his spouse.
the contrary. there is:comparatiyely little real
f9rtune-huntinR In Germany. 1t Is confined
havl~ng:exhausted ali possible resources. and
deep In &c debt 6d.s Propose to sell bs, taem ,Ss ts,,n as
able value which i never overlooked. Aside
from the mobiles few men marry for money
money, but the required amount Is usually
contingent Upon ths maps position aud his
SSasn a salary iapSe or income dnss Of l say is ss.ouS a YEAR nS he
T rnoG expect . to ns mST5v a FILL TIrl T i.s has sb an z; sa uoi
only approves Of it. out requires i. and Gus
tom also makes provision for it. Property is
50 that every girl has. q dowry ,ofsome size.
II a man dies penniless, then the daughters
The. laws Of society In regard to marriage
able girls In Germany are not so strict as they
are in France: yet they S are much Ed more strics
IN France Il Is, Considered eminently proper
ture husband until after she has become en-:
gagged to him; in Germany 1t Is only required
that she shall never he alone with him for an
instant, until after marriage. A German girl
OF good family would be irremediably com
promised IL she were seen in public with her
young man alone. even after she had become
betrothed to him. She has the advantage OF
her French sister. however. in that she may
meet him at parties. at her OWE home and in
the houses Of her friends; That at least gives
her chance to determine his complexion.
As many people have remarked. there IL a
greater difference aside from language-bo-
tween the Bavarians and the North Germans
than there is between the Bavarians and the
French. A Bavartan never gro ys tired Of
dilating upon the fact that the Prussian Is not
a German. but O Slay. and that the true Ger
mans inhabit Bavaria and Austria proper and
are next door to being Latin: II is for this
reason probably that in all matters save those
OF a political nature the South German Is in
fuenced by Paris and Vienna and not by Der
lin. Among what are called, the higher classes
In Bavaria. then. the French way OF looking at
marriage is much in vogue. and the line is
being drawn closer and closer. The eminent
" proper procedure in matrimonial affairs
makes It an exceedingly veXatious thing for a
man. OF the exclusive ring to get married at all
in his own station.
Say that no has reached an age when he be-
gins to take an interest In a quiet family life
and hair restorers. He inquiries among his
F.iaN,Ja NJ 10 tho M rrinnanbIa utrIo fhau