M I S C E L L A N E O U S. 



C87 



houses ; and tliey have many other 

 modes of amusement besides these 

 mentioned. 



The second is, " the privilege 

 of the husband, by law, to many 

 several wives." This, to the Eu- 

 ropean women, seems a grievous 

 oppression ; and they hold those 

 very cheap who submit to it. But, 

 in truth, the cause of this law and 

 custom is, the nature of the female 

 sex themselves which separates 

 them from the husband, the seve- 

 ral last months of pregnancy, and 

 time of suckling ; and besides 

 these, the Asiatic women have 

 many other times for being sepa- 

 rate from their husbands. This 

 privilege not being allowed by the 

 English law, is indeed a great 

 hardship upon the English hus- 

 bands ; whereas the Asiatic law 

 permitting polygamy, does the 

 husband justice, and wrongs not 

 the wife ; for the honour of the 

 first andi equal wife is not affected 

 by it ; those women who submit 

 to marry with a married man, not 

 being admitted into the society of 

 ladies, as they are never of high or 

 wealthy families, no man of ho- 

 nour ever allowing his daughter 

 to make such a marriage. The 

 mode in which these other wives 

 live is this: they who are of a 

 genteelextraction, havea separate 

 house for themselves, like kept 

 mistresses in England ; and they 

 who are not, live in the house of 

 the equal wife, like servants, and 

 the husband at times conveys him- 

 self to them in a clandestine man- 

 ner. Besides, these wives cannot 

 invade any of the rights of the 

 equal wife ; for although they and 

 their children are by law equally 

 entitled to inheritance, yet, since 

 the equal wife never marries with- 



out a very large dowry settled 

 upon her, all that the husband 

 leaves goes to the payment of this 

 dowry, and nothing remains for 

 his heirs. The opinion that the 

 men of Asia have generally three 

 or four wives is very ill founded, 

 for in common they have only 

 one; out of a thousand, there will 

 be fifty persons, perhaps, who 

 have from one to two, and ten 

 out of these who have more than 

 two. The fear of the bad conse- 

 quences of polygamy makes men 

 submit with patience to the times 

 of separation from the equal wife, 

 as much the better way ; for, from 

 what I know, it is easier to live , 

 with two tigresses than two 

 wives. 



The tliird is, " the power of di- 

 vorce being in the hands of the 

 husband." This is ordained by 

 law, but not practised ; for if a 

 great offence be the motive to 

 divorce a wife, and if it be proved 

 against her she receives punish- 

 ment by the order of the magis- 

 trate, or from the husband,, with 

 the concurrence of all her rela- 

 tions; and if the offence be of a 

 trivial nature, such as a difference 

 of temper and imsociabiiity, the 

 husband punishes her by leaving 

 the female apartments, and living 

 in his own. But the reason for 

 divorce being at the will of 

 the husband, lies in the very- 

 justice of the law, and the dis- 

 tinction of the male sex over 

 the female, on account of the 

 greater share they take in the ma- 

 nagement of the world ; for all 

 the laborious work falls to their 

 lot, such as carrying heavy bur- 

 thens, going to war, repulsing ene- 

 mies, &c. and the women gene- 

 rally spend their lives in repose 



