Part I. Travels into the h ev an t. 
CHAP. XLL 
Of the Marriage of the Turl^f. 
TH E Turks may have three forts of Wives, for they may Marry lawful Marriage of 
Wives, have Wives of Kebifi^ and their Slaves for Wives : But the firft tiic Turks, 
they never fee till they be married. When any one would marry after this ^^^'^ Turks 
firft manner, he agrees with the Parents of the Maid whom he would have, ^^J^ 
what Dowry he is to give her, that fhe may be his Wife j and this agreement Dikerent^"' 
is made in prefence of the Cady 2ind two Witneffes ; which Cady writes down forts of Mar- 
the conditions of the Marriage, and what Dowry he is to give his Wife. As riages. 
for the Woman, ftie brings nothing with her but her Bundle, which on the 
Wedding-day ftie difplays in her Chamber for a Shew î but before the Cele- 
bration, the Bridegroom gets an //«^;« to Mefs his Marriage, Tlic day being 
come, the Bride v;ell mufled up, is led to the Bridegroom's houfe , her 
bagage going before upon Horfes or Camels ^ and there they feaft and make 
raerry^ the Men with the Men, and the Women with the Women in an Ap- 
partment by themfelves ; the reft of the day is commonly fpent in Mufick 
and Puppet-Shows, the Women fometimes, whom they call Tekinghene, men- 
tioned by me before, dancing and playing tricks before them. When they 
are thus married, if the Husband happen to die, the Wife takes her Dowry, 
and no more j and if the Wife die, leaving Children behind her, thefe Chil- 
dren may conftrain the Father to give them the Mothers Dowry. Now Turks 
may marry four Wives in this manner, and divorce them when they pleafe ; The way of 
which they do, by going before a C^^'? and faying, c r^/^?/ ; which divorcing 
is to fay, I part with her for three times. And if a Man divorce his Wife Wives among 
"wrongfully heought to give her her Dowry ; but if he do it upon jiift grounds, '^^^'^ Turks, 
he is not obliged to give her any thing. When a Woman hath been Di- 
vorced, Ihe cannot Marry another Man, till her months be four times over j 
that is to fay , until the fourth month after her divorce , that /he may 
know whether fhe be with Child or not, and by whom, that fo there may 
be no confufion in Lineages -, and if fhe be with Child, he that would Di- 
vorce her, muft flay till fhe be brought to bed before he can do it, and is 
obliged to keep the Children. When a Man hath divorced his Wife, or 
if the Divorce hath even proceeded from her, he cannot, if he would, take her 
again, till firft fhe hath been Married to another Man, and then he may take 
her back. For the Wives of Kebin-, lefs Ceremony ferves *, a Man goes to the 
Cady^ tells him, that he takes fuch an one to Wife, to whom he promifes to 
pay fo much if he divorce her ; all this the Cady writes down, and gives the 
writing to the Man, who (after that) may keep the Wife as long as he pleafes, 
or fend her going when he thinks fit, paying her what he promifed, and main- 
taining the Children he hath had by her. They have as many of thefe Wives 
as they pleafe for their Slaves j feeing they are abfolute Mafters, they do with 
them what they pleafe, and have as many of them as they think fit ; and the 
Children of all thefe Wives, are all alike lawful. After all, the Turks never 
Marry their Kinfwomen, if they be nearer than eight Generations inclufively. 
CHAP. 
