... This is the custom alike of the
Walla-Wallas, Nez-Perces, Cayuse, Waskows, Flatheads, and
Spokanes.[136]
In Patagonia the usual custom is for the bridegroom, after
he has secured the consent of his damsel, to send either a
brother or some intimate friend to the parents, offering so
many mares, horses, or silver ornaments for the bride. If
the parents consider the match desirable, as soon after as
circumstances will permit, the bridegroom, dressed in his
best, and mounted on his best horse, proceeds to the toldo
of his intended, and hands over the gifts; the parents then
return gifts of equivalent value, which, however, in the event
of a separation are the property of the bride.[137]
Marriage by capture is an immediate expression of male force. Like
marriage by settlement in the house of the wife, it is an expedient
for obtaining a wife outside the group where marriage by purchase
is not developed, or where the suitor cannot offer property for the
bride. It is an unsocial procedure and does not persist in a growing
society, for it involves retaliation and blood-feud.
Pages:
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90