302 A JOURNEY TO THE 



their daughters to those that seem most likely to be capable 

 of maintaining them, let their age, person, or disposition be 

 ever so despicable. 



The girls are always betrothed when children, but never to 

 those of equal age, which is doubtless sound policy with people 

 in their situation, where the existence of a family [311] de- 

 pends entirely on the abilities and industry of a single man. 

 Children, as they justly observe, are so liable to alter in their 

 manners and disposition, that it is impossible to judge from 

 the actions of early youth what abilities they may possess 

 when they arrive at puberty. For this reason the girls are 

 often so disproportionably matched for age, that it is very 

 common to see men of thirty-five or forty years old have 

 young girls of no more than ten or twelve, and sometimes 

 much younger. From the early age of eight or nine years, 

 they are prohibited by custom from joining in the most inno- 

 cent amusements with children of the opposite sex ; so that 

 when sitting in their tents, or even when travelling, they are 

 watched and guarded with such an unremitting attention as 

 cannot be exceeded by the most rigid discipline of an English 

 boarding-school. Custom, however, and constant example, 

 make such uncommon restraint and confinement sit light 

 and easy even on children, whose tender ages seem better 

 adapted to innocent and cheerful amusements, than to be 

 cooped up by the side of old women, and constantly employed 

 in scraping skins, mending shoes, and learning other domestic 

 duties necessary in the care of a family. 



Notwithstanding those uncommon restraints on the young 

 girls, the conduct of their parents is by no means uniform or 

 consistent with this plan ; as they set no bounds to their con- 

 versation, but talk before them, and even to them, on the most 

 indelicate subjects. As their ears are accustomed [312] to such 

 language from their earliest youth, this has by no means the 

 same effect on them, it would have on girls born and educated 

 in a civilized country, where every care is taken to prevent 



