and, as to the value of these presents, she should always be guided by the value of those brought by the bridegroom.1 Among the ancient Germans, according to Tacitus, the wife in her turn presented the husband with some kind of arms, and this mutual exchange of gifts formed the principal bond of their union. Grimm also suggests that the meaning of the Teutonic dowry was partly that of a return gift.3 On the other hand, the purchase-sum was transformed into the morning gift and the dotal portion. A part-afterwards the whole-was given to the bride either directly by the bridegroom or by her father. Manu says, "When the relatives do not appropriate for their use the gratuity given, it is not a sale; in that case the gift is only a token of respect and of kindness towards the maidens." This gift was called "çulka," or her fee; but its close connection with a previous purchase appears from the fact that it passed in a course of devolution to the woman's brothers, and one rendering of the text of Guatama which regulates this succession, even allowed the fee to go to her brothers during her life.5 In modern India, according to Dubois, men of distinction do not appropriate the money acquired by giving a daughter in marriage, but lay it out in jewels, which they present to the lady on the wedding-day. Among the Greeks of the Homeric age, the father did not always keep the wedding-presents for his own use, but bestowed them, wholly or in part, on the daughter as her marriage portion. At a later period, the bridegroom himself gave the presents to his wife, when he saw her unveiled for the first time, or after the výš μVσTIKÝ. Among the Teutons the same process of development took place. Originally, the purchase-sum went to the guardian of the bride, partly, perhaps, to her whole family; 1 Küchler, in 'Trans. As. Soc. Japan,' vol. xiii. p. 123. 2 Tacitus, loc. cit. ch. xviii. 3 Grimm, loc. cit. p. 429. 4 The Laws of Manu,' ch. iii. v. 54. 5 Mayr, 'Das indische Erbrecht,' p. 170. Mayne, 'Hindu Law and Usage,' p. 82. Dubois, loc. cit. p. 103. 7 Rossbach, loc. cit. p. 220. Becker, loc. cit. vol. ii. p. 471. Hermann-Blümner, loc. cit. pp. 262, 266. but by-and-by it came to be considered her own property,1 as Tacitus says, "Dotem non uxor marito sed uxori maritus offert." 2 This was the case among the Scandinavians at the date of the inditing of their laws, and among the Langobardi from the seventh century.3 "La dot," says M. Ginoulhiac, 'n'est autre chose que le prix de la coemptiom en usage dans la loi salique; elle fut donée à la femme au lieu de l'être à ses parents, qui ne reçurent plus que le solidum et denarium, ou le prix fictif, et après la mort de l'épouse, une partie de la dot." In Lex Alamannorum and Lex Ripuariorum, only a dos which the wife receives directly from her husband is spoken of. And it seems probable that the morning gift, which has survived very long in Europe," originated in the purchasesum, or formed a part of it, though it has often been considered a pretium virginitatis. According to ancient Irish law, a part of the "coibche," or bridal gift, went to the bride's father, or, if he was dead, to the head of her tribe; but another part was given by the bridegroom to the bride herself after marriage. The same was the case with the Welsh 9 1 Ginoulhiac, 'Histoire du régime dotal,' pp. 187, et seq. Laboulaye, 'Histoire du droit de propriété foncière en Occident,' pp. 403, et seq. 2 Tacitus, loc. cit. ch. xviii. 3 Olivecrona, loc. cit. p. 152. Weinhold, 'Deutsche Frauen,' vol. i. p. 325. 4 Ginoulhiac, pp. 198, et seq. 6 Olivecrona, p. 57. Schlegel, 'Om 6 In Germany and Switzerland, the practice of presenting a morning gift has been kept up till the present time (Eichhorn, 'Einleitung in das deutsche Privatrecht.' p. 726. Bluntschli, 'Staats- und Rechtsgeschichte der Stadt und Landschaft Zürich,' vol. ii. pp. 164, et seq. 7 Schlyter, 'Juridiska afhandlingar,' vol. i. p. 201. Morgongavens Oprindelse,' in 'Astraea,' vol. ii. pp. 189, et seq. warter, 'Histoire de l'organisation de la famille,' p. 123. purchase-money which the husband was obliged to give to the bride, was also represented by the fictitious dowry preserved in the rituals of the Church till the sixteenth century. M. Martene mentions a ritual of the Church of Reims, of 1585, in which the bridegroom, at the moment of putting the nuptial ring on the finger of the bride, placed three deniers in her hand (Koenigswarter, p. 174, note 4). 8 Ginoulhiac, p. 202. Warnkoenig and Stein, 'Französische Staatsund Rechtsgeschichte,' vol. ii. p. 257. 9 'Ancient Laws of Ireland,' vol. i. p. 155; vol. iv. p. 63. "cowyll";1 and the Slavonic word for bride-price, "věno," came to be frequently used for dos.2 Speaking of the ancient Babylonians, Herodotus says that "the marriage portions were furnished by the money paid for the beautiful damsels." Among the Hebrews, as it seems. the "mohar," or a part of it, was given to the bride herself.1 We read in the Book of Genesis that Abraham's servant "brought forth jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment, and gave them to Rebecca: he gave also to her brother and to her mother precious things."5 Professor Robertson Smith is inclined to believe that, in Arabia, before Mohammed, a custom had established itself by which the husband ordinarily made a gift-under the name of "sadâc "-to his wife upon marriage, or by which a part of the "mahr" was customarily set aside for her use. But under Islam the difference between "mahr" and "sadâc" disappeared, the price paid to the father becoming the property of the woman." But it is not only in the history of the great civilized nations that we find marriage by purchase falling into decay. Among several peoples who are still in a savage or semicivilized state, the custom of purchasing the wife has been modified, and of a few it is expressly stated that they consider such a traffic disgraceful. The change has taken place in exactly the same way as we have seen to be the case with higher races. On the one hand, the purchase has become more or less a symbol. In some cases the gift no longer represents the 1 O'Curry, loc. cit. Sullivan's Introduction, vol. i. pp. clxxiii. et seq. 2 Schrader, loc. cit. p. 382. Cf. Kovalevsky, in 'Folk-Lore,' vol. i. pp. 479, et seq. 3 Herodotus, loc. cit. book i. ch. 196. 4 Saalschütz, 'Das mosaische Recht,' vol. ii. p. 736. Mayer, 'Die Rechte der Israeliten,' &c., vol. ii. pp. 342, et seq. 5' Genesis,' ch. xxiv. v. 53. 6 Robertson Smith, loc. cit. p. 98. 7 Ibid., pp. 78, 91, 100. Mayer, 'Die Rechte der Israeliten,' &c. vol. ii. pp. 353, et seq. Unger, loc. cit. p. 47. Kohler, in 'Zeitschr. f. vgl. Rechtswiss.,' vol. v. p. 358. 8 Bechuanas (Fritsch, loc. cit. p. 192), Aenezes (Burckhardt, loc. cit. p. 62). The Laplanders, according to Laestadius (Ett lappfrieri,' in 'Svenska folkets seder,' p. 125), take presents for their daughters, but do not consider it honourable to receive money. actual value of the girl, in others it is followed by a return gift. Thus, in Oregon, "the wife's relations always raise as many horses (or other property) for her dower, as the bridegroom has sent the parents, but scrupulously take care not to turn over the same horses or the same articles."1 The Ahts consider it a point of honour that the purchase-money given for a woman of rank shall, some time or other, be returned in a present of equal value.2 Similar statements are made with reference to the Patagonians,3 Mishmis,* and certain tribes in the Indian Archipelago.5 Among the Bagobos of the Philippines, if the newly-married couple are satisfied with each other, the father of the wife gives the half of the purchasesum back to the husband; whilst, in Saraë, the girl's father, at the wedding, has to return even five times the price which he received from the bridegroom's father at the espousals, the return gift, however, becoming the common property of the married couple. Among the Badagas of the Neilgherries also, the return gift is generally greater in value than the sum which has been paid for her. Several other peoples contract marriages by an exchange of presents.9 On the other hand there are peoples among whom the purchase-sum, or a part of it, is given to the bride either by her father or by the bridegroom himself. But, as this may be an indirect way of compensating the bridegroom for the price he has paid, it is in many cases almost impossible to dis 1 Schoolcraft, loc. cit. vol. v. p. 654. 3 Musters, in 'Jour. Anthr. Inst.,' vol. i. p. 201. 5 Riedel, loc. cit. p. 68. 2 Sproat, loc. cit. p. 98. 6 Schadenberg, in 'Zeitschr. f. Ethnol.,' vol. xvii. p. 12. 7 Munzinger, loc. cit. p. 387. 8 Harkness, loc. cit. pp. 116, et seq. 9 Tuski (Dall, loc. cit. p. 381), Thlinkets (Holmberg, in 'Acta. Soc. Sci. Fennicae,' vol. iv. p. 315), Chinooks (Waitz, loc. cit. vol. iii. p. 337). Chippewas (Keating, loc. cit. vol. ii. p. 157), Shoshones (Lewis and Clarke, loc. cit. p. 307), Miwok (Powers, loc. cit. p. 354), Quiché (Morelet, loc. cit. p. 257), Budduma, Tedâ (Nachtigal, loc. cit. vol. ii. pp. 370, 448), Todas (Marshall, loc. cit. p. 211), Central Asiatic Turks (Vámbéry, 'Das Türkenvolk,' pp. 233, et seq.), Laplanders (v. Düben, loc. cit. p. 200), Papuans of Dorey (Finsch, 'Neu-Guinea,' p. 102), Samoans (Prichard, loc. cit. pp. 139, et seq. Turner, 'Samoa,' pp. 93, 96), Nukahivans (v.Langsdorf, loc. cit. vol. i. p. 153). It tinguish between this custom and the one last mentioned. is equally hard to distinguish between the cases in which the bride receives a part of the price from her father, and those in which she receives a gift from the bridegroom directly. But perhaps the greatest difficulty of all is to make out whether the presents obtained from the bridegroom formed originally a part of the bride-price or were only a means of gaining her own consent. Among the Eskimo, the lover presents clothes to the lady, who puts them on, and is thenceforth his wife.1 Among the Dacotahs, men ask for consent to marriage by sending the price of the girl, and in addition often give presents to the object of their esteem.2 Speaking of the South American Guanas, Azary says, "Toutes les cérémonies du mariage se réduisent à un petit présent que le marie fait à sa prétendue." Again, among the Javanese, Kalmucks, and Ahl el Shemál, a Bedouin tribe of Syria, the money or articles which the father receives for his daughter are generally looked upon as a settlement or provision for the wife ; and among the Pelew Islanders, Mishmis, Bashkirs,9 Votyaks,10 &c., 11 she receives a larger or smaller part of the bride-price. P. 66. 2 4 From marriage by purchase we have thus reached the practice of dower, which is apparently the very reverse of it. But, as we have seen, the marriage portion derives its origin 1 Bancroft, loc. cit. vol. i. p. 66. Seemann, 'Voyage of Herald, vol, ii. Schoolcraft, loc. cit. vol. iii. p. 238. 3 Azara, loc. cit. vol. ii. p. 92. For other similar instances, see Waitz, loc. cit. vol. ii. p. 522 (Somals); Munzinger, loc. cit. p. 324 (Beni-Amer); Baker, 'The Nile Tributaries,' p. 124 (Arabs of Upper Egypt); Hanoteau and Letourneux, loc. cit. vol. ii. p. 161 (Kabyles); Proyart, loc. cit. p. 569 (Negroes of Loango); Caillié, loc. cit. vol. i. p. 349 (Mandingoes); Fritsch, loc. cit. p. 192 (Bechuanas). 5 Moore, loc. cit. p. 181. 7 'Ymer,' vol. iv. p. 333. 9 Georgi, loc. cit. p. 182. 4 Crawfurd, loc. cit. vol. i. p. 90. Burckhardt, loc. cit. p. 62. 8 Cooper, loc. cit. p. 236. 10 Ibid., p. 55. 11 Negroes of Accra (Daniell, in 'Jour. Ethn. Soc. London,' vol. iv. p. 12), Tartars of Kazan (Vámbéry, 'Das Türkenvolk,' p. 433) and Orenburg (Georgi, p. 103), Tunguses (ibid., p. 324), and other semi-civilized peoples belonging to the Russian Empire. For African peoples, see Post, Afrikanische Jurisprudenz,' vol. i. p. 417. |