he can make "her mark" on the roll of paper in question; and I
must confess that of all the ingenious marks I have seen, this one is the
most ingenious of all. If she be a lady of rank and illiterate, her
little hand is placed on the paper and the outline drawn round the
fingers and wrist with a fine brush dipped in Chinese ink; but if she
happens to have no blue blood in her veins, and is, therefore, of less
gracious manners, the simpler process of smearing her hand with black
paint and hitting the document with it is considered to render the
ceremony more impressive. A more or less vivid impression of the wife's
fleshly seal having been affixed in this way to some part or other of the
document according to her skill in aiming, the two unfortunates resume
their dignity on the platform, sitting face to face without a word or
motion. The bridegroom then makes four grand bows to his wife, in sign of
resignation or assent, I suppose; and she returns two, while she treats
her father-in-law with double that amount of reverence. This constitutes
the marriage ceremony proper, but much further bowing has to be gone
through by both the parties to each of the people present, who,
accompanying their wedding-gifts of birds and fish with pretty
compliments, come forward, one by one, to the platform and drink the
health, happiness and joy of the wedded pair. It is the duty of the bride
to remain perfectly mute and apparently unconcerned at all the pretty
speeches addressed to her by the bridegroom and his friends until the
nuptial-chamber is entered later in the evening. Previous to this,
however, the bridegroom is taken away into the men's apartment, while, on
the other hand, the wife is led into the ladies' own room. The former
then has his tress cut off and tied into a top-knot--an operation
entrusted to his best friend; while the latter also has her hair changed
from the fashion of the maiden to that of a married woman, by her most
intimate friend. It is only after this change in the coiffure that a man
begins to be taken notice of in the world, or is regarded as responsible
for his own conduct.

After being arrayed in the fashion just mentioned, and having gone
through a good deal of feasting, husband and wife are led off to the
nuptial-chamber. Here, numerous straw puppets, which had better be left
undescribed, are placed, with a certain implication, which need not be
explained. With these, then, the two poor wretches are shut i