herself again repeated, after the priest, the formula which had been
gone over earlier in the day. Then, having touched fire and water, and
sacrificed to the domestic gods, which were placed on the table, the
wedding festivities commenced, and were continued till midnight, when
the guests dispersed.

In India, the magnificence of the marriage-feast can scarcely be
imagined, especially when celebrated by torch-light procession.

In almost all the nations of antiquity, who had any marriage ceremony at
all, a woman's wedding-day was one of splendor and apparent honor, the
only day in which any of her wishes were deferred to during her whole
lifetime. Light was soon lost in darkness--anticipated pleasure in
disappointment, degradation, and despair. The day of her death was the
first day of her freedom.




CHAPTER IV.


The Sexes Equal at Creation.

From the arguments brought forward by the advocates of woman's
inferiority, it might be inferred that she was designed, from the very
dawn of creation, for man's servant, not for his companion; and, indeed,
it is not only inferred by the great mass of mankind, but broadly
asserted to be the fact by very many who, from their knowledge of the
history of creation, ought to know better.