/*V SUMATRA, 



151 



lent. The Government has now enacteil tliut all marriages 

 shall be without let or consideration, between "hira who will 

 with her who will," but the system of djufljur (or price to 

 be paid for a wife), sanctifie<l by generations of eustoni, it 

 is almost impossible to prevent, as when a fair sum is nut 

 paid, the girl's father can always mise insurmountable difti- 

 eulties, so that, in fact, the djudjur is almost invariably paid, 

 and is in amount according to the status of the youth, and 

 of the parents of the bride. When this has been (mh rosa, of 

 course) satisfactorily ar ranged j the parents of the youth and 

 of the girl must appear before the chief of the villnge (if they 

 belong to the same villagfo^ or to both chiefs if the parties 

 belong to different villages) to give olBcial intormafion that 

 their children wish to marry. This is the hiimuffan (tmng, is 

 clear) of the alTair ; it is, in fact, the publication of the banns. 

 After this has taken place, it is legal for the parents to receive 

 a small lixed gift (marnage gold, as it is called), but any Uv<U ^ ^ 

 demand for a greater sum is penal. 



The system of djudjur has acted, and still acts, very detri- 

 mentally on the population, for, as a rule, the sum demanded 

 by II father for his daughter*3 hand is so great that many 

 yonug men cannot afford to marry ; and as children Ijorn out of 

 wedlock are from of okl considered to be a stigma on the village, 

 the people have increased but little in number. Of course if a 

 youth should complain to the magistrate that he cannot marry 

 the girl of his choice on account of the large sum demanded 

 by her father, the magistrate^ would at once interfere ; but it is 

 very rare that any complaint is made, the youth preferring to 

 [wiy the djudjur f beaten down to the lowest figure possible. 



If, however, the youth chooses he may marry the girl in the 

 manner known as " ambil anak " (literally, "taking a child '*), 

 in which case the father of the girl receives the husband into 

 his house as one of his children, bound to labour in her place 

 for him absolutely. 



In eflect, by this form of marriage, the husband becomes the 

 slave of his wife \ he is bound to do all that she may demand, 

 and, should he rue his bargain and obtain a divorce, the 

 children of the union remain with her, and he goes out as he 

 came into the housje— portionless. It always remains oiien to 

 him, however, should he fall heir to any property, to pay the 



