CHAP. VII. MARRIAGE CUSTOMS. 75 



man who eats it, and then takes a piece from the floor, eats 

 half, and presents the other half under his left arm to the 

 girl to finish. She, in her turn, takes a piece of raw flesh from 

 the floor, eats half, and likewise hands the other half under 

 her right arm to the young man to finish. Then follows the 

 eating and drinking that in barbarous, as in civilised nations, 

 is considered necessary to ratify the ceremony. Before night 

 an old man, called a shamman, a kind of magician or medicine 

 man, carrying a drum, visits the choom ; of him the bride- 

 groom asks certain questions concerning his bride. If the 

 old man knows nothing against her he begins to play upon 

 his drum, and the marriage is completed. If, however, the 

 magician speaks evil of the girl, then the young man has 

 the option of leaving her there and then, or if he be still 

 enamoured of her charms, it is open to him to bargain with 

 her father to take her for a month or a year on trial. At 

 the expiration of the time agreed upon, if the pair suit each 

 other, they consider themselves married for life. On the 

 other hand, should they not agree, they can separate at the 

 end of the time specified ; but in that case the man must 

 provide for any children born within the period. After the 

 marriage festivities are over, the young couple are left alone 

 in the choom of the bride's father. 



It is customary for the bridegroom to present his bride 

 with the skin of a black fox. The girl's father gives his son- 

 in-law a choom, with all its appurtenances, and five, ten, 

 twenty or thirty reindeer, according to his wealth. If the 

 bridegroom be rich, he gives his father-in-law money to the 

 amount sometimes of two hundred roubles. 



