The Growth of the Marriage Relation. 73 



be inherited through both parents. Hence the eldest son 

 of the monarch married his nearest kinswoman, whatever 

 their relationship to each other. Unions of a similar 

 character were made by the ancient Persians, but they 

 were of comparatively late introduction, and owed their 

 origin to Cambyses, the son of Cyrus, or to the priests in 

 his interest. The actual exceptions to the rule against the 

 intermarriage of consanguinei are thus seen to have rela- 

 tion to purity of blood, and, as having a special object, they 

 tend to confirm the rule instead of disproving it. The 

 opinion that the parental relationship is not recognized or 

 is disregarded among the lower races has been shown to 

 be baseless. Relationship through both parents is fully 

 recognized with few exceptions, although kinship may be 

 traced through only one parent. 



We have now to consider the restrictions on entering into 

 the marriage relation due to human action, and which may 

 be termed social restraints on promiscn ity, as distinguished 

 from the natural restraints arising from consanguinity. 

 While the latter affect whole classes, the former may be 

 said to affect individuals, and they arise from the claim 

 made by parents or others to control the conduct of females 

 belonging to the family group. This claim is asserted in 

 various w^ays, such as, on the one hand, the prevention of 

 unchastity, and on the other hand, the compulsory provision 

 of the sexual hospitality which is general among uncultured 

 peoples, and which anciently formed so important a feature 

 in the temple service of the Great Goddess, as it does still 

 in India. The parental right is asserted also in betrothal, 

 which is very commonly practised even while the female is 

 a mere infant. Betrothal is useful, where it is not abused 

 in the interests of the older men of a tribe, as it operates, 

 like marriage, to put the tahn on females who might other- 

 w^ise be led to form temporary unions outside of the law 

 of marriage. 



There is a further motive in betrothal and marriage, 

 which has reference through the female to her offspring. 

 In the absence of any arrangement to the contrary, a 

 woman's children would belong to their mother's family 

 group. Among the early Arabs, females remained at home 

 after marriage, whetlier they formed temporary or perma- 

 nent unions, and as descent was traced in the female line, 

 children were born within the tribe to which they belonged- 



