THE SOCIAL SYSTEM 71 



case the family continues to belong to the lower 

 class. 



The members of each of these classes marry 

 in nearly all cases within their own class. The 

 marriages of the young people of the upper class 

 are carefully regulated. Although they are allowed 

 to choose their partners according to the inscrutable 

 dictates of personal affinities, their choice is limited 

 by their elders and the authority of the chief. Many 

 of them marry members of neighbouring villages, 

 while the other classes marry within their own 

 village. 



A youth of the upper class, becoming fond of 

 some girl of the middle class, and not being allowed 

 to marry her (although this is occasionally per- 

 mitted), will live with her for a year or two. Then, 

 when the time for his marriage arrives (it having 

 perhaps been postponed for some years after being 

 arranged, owing to evil omens, or to lack of means or 

 of house accommodation), he may separate from his 

 mistress, leaving in her care any children born of 

 their union, and perhaps making over to her some 

 property — as public opinion demands in such cases. 

 She may and usually will marry subsequently a 

 man of her own class, but the children born of her 

 irregular union may claim and may be accorded 

 some of the privileges of their father's class. In 

 this way there is formed in most villages a class of 

 persons of ambiguous status, debarred from full 

 membership in the upper class by the bar-sinister. 

 Such persons tend to become wholly identified with 

 the upper or middle class according to the degrees 

 of their personal merits. 



Marriages are sometimes contracted between 

 persons of the middle and slave classes. In the 

 case of a young man marrying a slave woman, the 

 owners of the woman will endeavour to persuade 

 him to live with her in their room, when he becomes 



